Chapter 4 Suspicions (2)

• Gianna looked back at the two people. Sergio had taken care of Catherine like a devoted husband. It was a warm and beautiful picture, but she always felt like something was missing. A very unlikely thought came to her mind, and suddenly she said, "Catherine's child, isn't it Lucian's?"
• Jack looked at her and scoffed. "Darling, don't talk nonsense. Lucian hates Catherine so much, he has never touched her. How could she be pregnant with his child?"
• "Hate?" Gianna wasn't very convinced. "Why? I think it's completely possible. Catherine loves Lucian so much; how could she be with Sergio after the divorce? The only possibility is that her child is Lucian's, and she wants to find a legal father for the baby."
• Her statement was so absurd that Jack couldn't listen anymore. "Come on, it's none of our business. We shouldn't care."
• Gianna looked at him and pulled his hand, but he obediently followed her to the SUV. "I don't want to be nosy, but I want to remind you, if her child is your brother's, that is the eldest grandchild of the Landong family..."
• That identity is more important than the one she carries in her stomach. Gianna saw Jack's steps suddenly stop, and his gaze turned to where Sergio and Catherine had disappeared. His eyes darkened, and he led Gianna to the car without saying a word. His silence made her continue talking.
• "There's also the possibility that Lucian hates Catherine, and maybe Catherine couldn't bear his indifference and fell in love with Sergio. After all, loving someone for too long and not getting a response is very exhausting. And with Lucian's iceberg-like personality, it is estimated that he wouldn't allow her to have his children, right?"
• "Catherine is pregnant, and Lucian claims he never touched her. Everything seems to point to the fact that in the end, he got a pair of horns. Haha." Gianna laughed amusingly.
• Catherine was sitting in the car, looking at the pregnancy checklist in her hand. Twenty-nine weeks pregnant, everything is normal. On the color Doppler ultrasound sheet, the hands and feet of the fetus were already formed. She could clearly see the hands, feet, and facial features of the child.
• In her belly, the child had tightly closed eyes, with a little pout on its small mouth. She could almost imagine how this child would be in the future.
• "Is it a boy or a girl?" Sergio asked, looking at her concentrated expression. Smiling, he looked back at the road ahead.
• "I don't know." Just like the others, the little baby refused to show its gender. So, Catherine didn't know. She said, "I hope it's a boy."
• "Why?" Sergio really didn't think Catherine also had patriarchal thoughts.
• "If it's a boy, when he grows up, he will be like his father, strong and cold, and won't be hurt by love. If I give birth to a girl like me... it's too cruel and worthless for a lifetime." Catherine's voice was soft, yet filled with a sense of melancholy.
• Sergio felt he was overthinking. Who knows the future? Even a child, upon meeting a woman with someone else in her heart, could be hurt by love. As the traffic light ahead turned red, Sergio hit the brakes and turned to see the dazed look on Catherine's face, a trace of anguish shining in her eyes.
• "Cat, are you thinking about him again?"
• "No," she denied. "I don't anymore."
• "Really?" Sergio said nothing more, but if she no longer loved Lucian, why didn't she agree to his marriage proposal? Her pregnancy was getting bigger, and if she didn't get married, she would be a single mother.
• "We just saw Jack. Do you think he will tell Lucian about your pregnancy?"
• Catherine's pregnancy was not kept a secret in their social circle. Anyone interested would know. But the members of the Landong family, especially the brothers, had never known. Jack is not an idiot. Catherine's belly is so big, he may suspect that this child is Lucian's, then he will be in trouble.
• "I don't know," Catherine said. She knew Jack, but she wasn't sure if he would talk about seeing her today. "But... I'm not afraid."
• "But..." Sergio knew Lucian's personality. As the eldest son of the Landong family, if Catherine were to get pregnant, how he would react was beyond his expectations.
• "No, I don't care," she said, carefully putting the report sheets in her bag, keeping each of them for her child to see someday.
• Looking up, she saw the traffic light had turned green, indicating Sergio should drive. Her voice was playful. "If he finds out, I'll say the child is not his."
• Sergio remained silent, and the sound of a horn from behind made him step on the accelerator. Everyone knew that Lucian hated lies. Otherwise, he wouldn't have hated Catherine so much for all these years. If he found out that Catherine was pregnant, it was possible...
• Sergio barely dared to imagine what would come next. At that moment, he could only focus on driving and taking the woman next to him home.
• ---
• The weekend came in the blink of an eye.
• Catherine went to the company's headquarters and slightly pursed her lips as she looked at the crowd moving up and down. Her family's large stores were well-known in the city and the country. They had recently opened several more stores, and the whole country was celebrating the company's anniversary. It had been busy this weekend. Judging by the current situation, the company's popularity these days made her really happy.
• "Sister," Marcus had just seen her coming out at that moment and quickly stepped forward to take her hand. "What are you doing? Your belly is so big. Why are you going out alone? If you have something to do, just tell me."
• "I'm fine," Catherine waved her hand. "I'm pregnant, not sick."
• "Please," although Marcus had changed a lot, there was still a hint of rebellion in him. He loved his sister with all his heart. "I'm trying to take care of you. Do you still look at your brother with disdain?"
• "Of course not," Catherine tilted her head, looking at Marcus's recent progress. "My little brother is so capable now. No, I dare not despise you."
• "Then go rest, okay? I'm here. I promise I won't make a mistake."
• "Okay," Catherine had climbed two floors and was very tired. "I will go to the café downstairs to sit, but you will come to see me later, and you will take me home in the car."
• "Understood," Marcus nodded.
• After Catherine became pregnant, her family prevented her from driving because her symptoms were particularly severe. She had morning sickness and anemia. It took her a long time to recover. Now it was a habit to have someone take her wherever she went.
• Catherine was helpless. In fact, she was not a weak woman. But these people always seemed to like treating her like a child. Grabbing her small purse, she turned and walked towards the café.
• ---
• Lucian followed Brenda upstairs. He was surprised when he saw the store. He simply accompanied his mother to look at women's and men's clothing. Why did she want to visit the maternity and baby store?
• "Son, Gianna is six months pregnant. What gift should I bring her?"
• Lucian's face showed some impatience. God knows what he dislikes the most is shopping. And he didn't know why his mother subjected him to this ordeal.
• "I don't know, whatever you want."
• Brenda looked at her son without speaking. Since they left until now, no matter what she looked at or asked, the answers were the same:
• "I don't know, whatever you want."
• "It's not bad. I see that you like it."
• "I don't know, check it out yourself."
• These three phrases come and go. Shopping with him isn't even close to shopping with his daughter. At least with Priscilla, although she didn't like shopping either, she tried to say something every time they went out together. Resigned, Brenda walked towards the baby products and began to look at them.
• "Lucian, what do you think of this?" she asked, holding up a little dress.
• Lucian didn't respond. Baby things seemed very simple to him, and the corners of his lips curved down again.
• Brenda didn't ask anything else, always receiving the same indifferent answers. Her heart was truly uncomfortable.
• "Lucian, your brother will become a father very soon. When will you give me a grandchild?" she asked.
• Silence fell between them as Lucian refused to answer. Brenda rejected the employee who offered to help and looked at her son with reproach. "You are the eldest son in the family."
• She couldn't understand why Lucian simply refused to get married.
• "Since you and Catherine divorced..."
• "Mom," Lucian frowned, his face cold enough to freeze. "You said we would go shopping. I'll leave if you don't stop!"
• "You..." Brenda was angry. She didn't understand why her son was so stubborn. "You leave home several times a year. Can't you come shopping with me?"
• Lucian remained silent. Looking at the two sets of baby clothes on the shelf behind his mother, he took them and brought them to the cashier.
• "Wrap these up," he said.
• "Lucian?" Brenda could only watch as he paid and gave his home address for delivery.
• "Is there anything else you want to buy?" Lucian asked, turning to look at Brenda.
• "I'm tired of walking. Let's sit down for a while," she replied.
• "Okay," Lucian nodded. "Where do you want to sit?"
• "Sir, we have a café on the ground floor. It's very nice, and the afternoon tea is delicious," the employee suggested.
• Lucian nodded and gestured to his mother. "Mom, let's go."
• "Okay," Brenda smiled at the employee and followed Lucian to the café downstairs.
• The café "MIMI" on the ground floor was Catherine's favorite place to go. Upon entering, you could smell the strong aroma of coffee. Although she was pregnant and couldn't drink it, it didn't affect her taste for it. More importantly, the desserts here were very good. The cakes and snacks sold at the café were her favorites. The baker's skills were excellent, and the chocolate cake was her favorite. She hadn't liked these snacks before, but her taste had changed a bit since she got pregnant. She really liked these sweets now.
• She ordered two small sandwiches and a glass of milk. Catherine took out a pregnancy magazine and started reading. She usually had a lot on her mind, and by the time she got home, she was exhausted. Even after three months, she hadn't read half of it. She was focused on reading and, sitting with her back to the door, she didn't see the two people enter shortly after her.
• She flipped through some pages and saw things to consider during the seventh month of pregnancy. At that moment, the waiter brought her the snack she ordered.
• "Thank you," she said, setting aside the pregnancy manual.
• She was about to try a piece of cake when she felt the urge to go to the restroom. She stood up and walked towards the bathroom. Another problem during pregnancy was that she often had to go to the bathroom, sometimes every half hour. The doctor said it was because the uterus was compressing the bladder. After washing her hands, she was about to leave when she saw a familiar figure in a corner.
• At that moment, someone turned the corner, and Catherine suddenly felt dizzy. Her body was about to fall. Thinking of the child in her belly, she instinctively reached out to grab the wall. A pair of strong hands caught her in time and saved her from falling.
• She tried to stabilize herself, straightened up, and made sure she wouldn't fall again. She looked up to thank the person.
• "Thank you, I felt a bit dizzy. Sorry if..."
• When she looked up, the words disappeared from her lips. Looking at the man who suddenly stood in front of her, for a moment, she thought she was hallucinating.
• "Lucian?"
• "Lucian," he said, with evident annoyance.
• The beautiful woman's face was somewhat indifferent. Seeing the confusion in Catherine's eyes, he slightly furrowed his brows but made sure she was stable before letting her go and stepping back. The displeasure in his eyes was very obvious. He just wanted to leave Catherine and go, but unintentionally, he noticed her belly.
• The flowing white skirt, the wide hem, and the bulging part of the abdomen were exactly like Gianna's. A pair of flat sandals accompanied her delicate feet. Under his scrutinizing gaze, she instinctively covered her abdomen.
• This explained one thing: she was pregnant.
• Is Catherine pregnant?
• Lucian's eyes sharpened in an instant, and his gaze turned to her face. He saw surprise, confusion, and a flash of panic in her eyes.
• The panic came and went quickly, and her frightened eyes instantly regained their calm. She wanted to turn around and leave as if nothing had happened. But Lucian quickly approached, reaching out and taking her arm.
• "You're pregnant." It was a fact, an affirmative statement.
• Catherine did not expect to encounter Lucian, especially after seeing Gianna and Jack yesterday. Although she was scared, she spoke naturally and laughed freely in front of Sergio. But once she was home, she did not sleep well, and her nightmare repeated the scene in which Lucian asked her to get rid of the child and then divorce.
• After waking up, the first thing she thought about was what would happen if Lucian found out. This thought worried her for a long time and she couldn't go back to sleep.
• Then she remembered that Lucian was in Washington and would not be back for a while. Even if he returned, they wouldn't coincide.
• She thought she didn't need to face things, but she never imagined she would see Lucian so quickly. This instantly sent her into a panic.
• Even though she quickly stabilized her emotions, she was still a little worried, worried that Lucian would find out. At this moment, he was holding her hand, his cold face full of seriousness and fierceness. She forced herself to muster courage.
• She took a deep breath, told herself she would face it with courage, and answered with a stubborn and indifferent expression.
• "Yes, I'm pregnant. Do you have a problem?"