442 Holding Hands

Golden Phoenix Residences

Katherine's phone buzzed and she absent-mindedly patted the bed to look for it with a pen cap between her teeth and a ballpen in her right. She was so immersed in her work that she didn't take a break since Damien left earlier. That was almost four hours ago.

When she found her phone, she quickly tapped the screen and read his text.

[My King: I'll be there in 20.]

Her eyes grew wide and the pen cap fell from her mouth when she saw his text and the time. "Oh, my god," she mumbled before tossing her phone on the bed and hurriedly cleared the binders and then shoved everything back to one of the bottom drawers of her closet. Then, she quickly showered, blow-dried her hair, and changed into the dress that she hung up earlier.

Katherine wore a white long sleeve wrap silk dress by Samuel West and it had a hand-painted turquoise themed multi-color floral design by Wallace White. It was one of the dresses that Damien got from last night's auction. It had been dry cleaned and adjusted to fit Katherine's measurements. Considering that the auction only happened last night, it was quite fast.

She received another text from Damien twenty minutes after the first one, saying that he was already out at the front.

…

Since they needed to drive a distance, Damien kept the engine of his Range Rover running as he waited for Katherine to arrive. He had his left hand on the top of his steering wheel while his other hand played with his phone.

He turned his head when he noticed a figure approached his car and a boyish smile ghosted his lips as soon as he saw her. The white silk dress with floral design looked great on her. The long sleeves were perfect for the current weather, but the long slit that reached the upper part of her thigh exposed her to the cold wind. Nonetheless, it appeared as if it was made for her—it was so Katherine.

"Hey…" Katherine smiled as she got inside the passenger's seat, leaning in to greet him with a kiss.

"Hey yourself…" he responded after the kiss, "You look incredible," and then placed another one on her neck, inhaling her scent as he did, "...and you smell divine. Want to skip lunch instead?" The tip of his nose grazed along the side of her neck, causing her to slightly shiver.

Katherine giggled, holding his hand when he reached for hers. "We could… If you want Grandpa to scold you."

Damien leaned back, chuckling as he put the car in gear, and then stepped on the gas. He certainly didn't want Grandfather Theo to get mad at him—he was his huge backing.

"You brought the files I asked you earlier?" he probed.

"Yeah, I have them here." Katherine wiggled the tablet in her hand and placed it in her bag. Damien reached for her hand again and she interlaced their fingers together.

"You didn't tell me that William saw you that night."

"..." Damien glanced at her and focused back on the road. "No one told me that."

Squeezing his hand, she placed another one on top of it, covering his with her warmth. "It was only for a few seconds. It happened before we got out."

"Did he see you? Do you think he recognized you?"

"I don't think so… He pointed a gun at me."

The traffic light turned red and he stepped on the breaks just as she spoke. He didn't know what to say, so he could only sigh.

…

Young Mansion

There was a feast on the long table but there were only five of them. It was filled with all of Katherine's favorite dishes when she was still a child. And Damien enjoyed listening to Grandfather Theo's stories about her childhood.

Deborah smiled at Katherine when she complimented, "You look glowing, dear."

"Thank you, Aunt Deb. Damien treated me to a spa yesterday…" Katherine formed a knowing smile, sliding her hand onto Damien's thigh under the table. She felt his muscles tense, but his expression remained unchanged. Even after she slid it a bit higher seconds later.

She was merely teasing him. But if she thought that she could surpass his shamelessness, that's where she was wrong.

Because while she smiled like she wasn't doing anything naughty, he grabbed her hand, placed it on top of his growing erection and held it there. She wanted to tease... Well, that's what she got for teasing.

Katherine swallowed and her hand stilled. With her other hand, she grabbed her glass of water and drank it all. Thirsty. She was thirsty.

For others, it would look like they were only holding hands. So as long as they wouldn't look under the table.

Deborah's face brightened. "Oh, is that so? Where is this spa? I'd love to try their services sometime."

With his hand still 'holding' Katherine's under the table, Damien answered in a casual tone, "It was a house service yesterday, but I can arrange an appointment for you and Caroline when you're free."

"I'm free tonight!" Caroline chimed in.

"Caroline!" Deborah laughed. "I apologize, Chairman Park."

"Please, feel free to call me Damien. We're not at work right now… And any of Katherine's family is already mine." He smiled, and Caroline stupidly giggled. "Sure… I'll give them a call and have them ready for tonight."

The rest of the lunch went by smoothly and everything looked normal. They had tea in the tea room after lunch where Damien talked about his childhood—minus the unspeakable ones, of course. And how he started Crown Resort Group from the ground up. Just like what her aunt said before, she just wanted to get to know the two, so her questions were somewhat centered on their relationship and nothing businessy. However, that still didn't brush away Katherine's growing strange feeling about her aunt. 

It was already late in the afternoon when they decided to leave. On the way home, Katherine asked Damien if he could ask someone to check the reason why her aunt got rejected by the club. She didn't know why but that bothered her a bit because she couldn't think of a reason why the council would decline her application. At first, she wanted to do it herself but she was still new and didn't know people in the club like Damien did.

He was happy that she asked him. He knew how Katherine liked to do things on her own, but now, she was depending on him.

"Oh… Um…" Katherine cleared her throat. "By the way… I need to go on a business trip."

"You do? They're sending you to one this soon?" He wondered.

"Mm. They think it would help me. Actually, I proposed it. I wish to learn my own way and I think visiting some places would be helpful."

Damien couldn't agree more. It's how he does it most of the time. Immersion was one of the best teachers. "I see… When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow…"

"Already?" His brows furrowed at the sudden announcement. "And how many days will you be away?"

"Hmmm… A few days to a week? I can't be sure yet… I have to check with the company tomorrow."

They arrived at the basement parking of Golden Phoenix Residences and after parking on his spot, Damien helped her out of the car, then they headed to the elevator. He was quiet the entire time that they rode and reached her penthouse. He was used to going on trips… but he wasn't used to her going to one. The urge to go with her coursed through him.

"I'm not comfortable with you traveling by yourself," he said as they alighted the elevator.

They stopped in their tracks and she faced him, thinking for a minute before she nodded. "How about I bring Felix with me? Will that make you feel more at ease?"

He would have wanted to go himself but with this week's workload, that would be impossible. At least she was willing to be accompanied. "Definitely."

Katherine hooked her arms around his neck and looked at him straight in the eye. "But you have to promise me something."

Damien naturally held her by the waist and matched her serious gaze. "What is it?"

"You can't ask me… You can't find out where I go or what I do. From Felix or anyone else." Her voice was gentle and careful as she spoke. She saw his brows crease deeply when he heard her.

"And why is that?"

"I'll be going out on a business trip… at the same time, I will also be doing something personal. But I need you to trust me. Please? I promise I will tell you everything when I come back. You can ask me anything then—just not while I'm away."

Katherine asked him to trust her. And although he was a bit nervous with the secrecy, that's what he was going to do. She did promise to tell him once she returned. "Are you going to be safe? Can you assure me that?"

A sweet smile formed on her lips as she nodded. "I promise I will be. And I will call you every single day. You have nothing to worry about."

"Okay…" Damien gently squeezed her waist and kissed her. "You better."