Chapter 197

The tone of the message was unmistakable. He was angry. Very angry.

Her heart sank, and her fingers turned white as she clutched the phone. She had been so excited to see Marguerite that she had forgotten: the dinosaur didn't allow her to sleep out. The few times she had run off to a friend's house after a fight, he had called them, and they had looked at her with such pity that she had no choice but to go back.

Returning home meant facing his punishment. A sore body was the least of it. Her father, hearing they had fought, would call and berate her. In seven years, she had never once spent the night at her family home.

Lindsay squeezed the phone and looked at Marguerite. "Maggie, I have to go." She didn't want to put Marguerite in a difficult position.

They were sitting close enough that Marguerite saw the message on Lindsay's screen. She frowned. "Do you want to go back?”

Lindsay's lashes lowered. “If I don't, he'll cause trouble for you. It's fine. I'll see you this weekend."

"I respect your decision," Marguerite said firmly. "If you want to go back, then go. But it should be because you want to, not because of what Timothy says. If you don't want to, then don't. I'm not afraid of him. You're his wife, not his property. His money isn't that special. You can spend mine from now on. We might not be able to live extravagantly right away, but we'll be fine. Trust me, I'm going to be a rich woman one day-a self-made one."

Lindsay, touched, hugged Marguerite tightly. “Having you back makes everything worth it. But I do want to go back,” she said, forcing a laugh. “You have to get up so early for school, and I need my beauty sleep. I don't want you waking me up!"

If Marguerite didn't know her so well, she might have believed her. But Lindsay was already getting up to change. Marguerite knew what she was worried about. The Harris family was not a force to be trifled with.

Lindsay, dressed, knelt on the bed and squeezed Marguerite's cheek. "It's okay, Maggie. Don't worry about me. This is my life to figure out. Having you back is the greatest gift I could have asked for."

Everyone had their own battles to fight.

"I'll call my driver to take you home," Marguerite offered. "I don't want you driving alone this late."

Lindsay shook her head. "It's fine. I drive alone at night all the time. No need to trouble your driver."

Marguerite walked Lindsay out of the villa. She watched the red sports car disappear down the street and sighed. When she turned around, she saw George standing in the doorway of the living room.

"You're still up?" she asked.

George's voice was warm and pleasant. "I had some work to finish. Did your friend leave?"

Marguerite shrugged. “Something came up.”

She walked into the living room, ready to head upstairs. But as her foot touched the first step, she remembered what Lindsay had said. George had told Wendy to get lost as soon as he found out shetiked

him.

What if he really thought her words at the gate had been a test? Would he let her keep living here? To avoid being kicked out she had to clear the air.

She turned to face the handsome man. "George," she said, "there's something I

need to make clear. I don't like you."