Even though Clarissa stayed with Catherine the whole night, her mind was somewhere else. She only had a few bites of her food before she got lost in her thoughts once again.
Naturally, her behavior did not go unnoticed by Catherine. But knowing that Clarissa had a lot on her mind, Catherine chose not to say anything.
After dinner, Clarissa accompanied the old folks to the beach for a stroll. To them, it was a lovely time as they laughed and chatted. To Clarissa, however, every second felt like torture.
It was past nine when they finally made it back to the hotel.
Even the short wait for Catherine to shower and get into bed proved to be arduous for Clarissa.
“Why aren’t you sleeping yet, Clare?”
“Oh, I’m not sleepy. Why don’t you go to bed first, Grandma? I’ll be at the balcony.”
As she watched her granddaughter walk away, Catherine sighed, not saying anything else.
Clarissa stood on the balcony, enjoying the view and night breeze. Before long, Matthew had also come out to join her, albeit on his room’s balcony.
Not only had he changed into a more comfortable outfit of T-shirt and pants, but he also seemed to be in visibly better spirits than before.
Clarissa immediately broke into a radiant smile when she saw him.
She realized how goofy she must look with such a big smile plastered on her face, but she didn’t mind it one bit. Seeing Matthew always brought so much joy to her that she couldn’t help but smile.
She wanted to say something, but the words were stuck in her throat. The more she tried to get them out, the more she hesitated.
In the end, she got so upset at herself that she stood rooted to her spot and pouted.
Matthew chuckled and shook his head. “It’s okay. We’ll just look at each other.”
But I want to do more than just look!
Despite craving physical contact with Matthew, she knew she could only contend herself with looking at him.
If the balconies were any closer, she’d have run over to join him without hesitation.
Alas, she didn’t have the superpowers to carry out that feat, so she could only watch him from a distance.
But with every passing second, it got more torturous when all she could do was look and not touch.
All of a sudden, an idea flashed in Clarissa’s mind. She tiptoed back into her room, only to hear a sound asleep Catherine snoring away. She hurriedly snuck out of the room, her heart pounding away.
After closing her room door and making sure there weren’t any movements in it, she ran to the room beside hers.
She had only just reached the room when the door opened, and Matthew pulled her in. The next thing she knew, she was pushed up against the wall while Matthew kissed her hungrily.
Clarissa responded in kind by wrapping her legs around his waist as she kissed him back just as fiercely.
In that moment of passion, it was like nothing in the world existed except for the two of them.
Amidst their heavy breathing and sensual moans, they soon made their way to the bed.
When Matthew tried to pull away, Clarissa clung on tightly and pouted.
He chuckled before kissing her again, though his kisses were softer this time.
Clarissa, however, wasn’t satisfied. She started to grind against him to titillate him further. It didn’t take long for Matthew’s body to react to that, but he continued to keep himself in control.
He merely kept her in a tight embrace as he continued to kiss her tenderly.
“Matthew… “
The sweet, sensual voice of Clarissa almost pushed him over the edge, but Matthew didn’t give in to the temptation.
He held her down and growled softly, “It’s not appropriate, Clare.”
Clarissa pouted as she stared at him. “Grandma’s sound asleep. She’s not going to know. I’ll head back earlier, so she won’t find out.”
Matthew knew she had a point. The way things were going, it wouldn’t be long before he lost self-control and gave in to temptation. So why not go with the flow?
Just as he was about to take it a step further, there was a sudden knock on the door.
Clarissa immediately pushed Matthew away and sprang out of bed in shock.
Seeing how frightened she was, Matthew felt amused.
“It’s okay, Clare. It’s just room service delivering my dinner.”
“Oh? Dinner?”
Patting her chest, Clarissa heaved a sigh of relief. “I almost died of fright. I’ll go open the door then.”
She was about to chastise Matthew for having his dinner so late when she found a rude shock waiting for her at the door.
Instead of room service, it was Catherine who had paid them a surprise visit.
Matthew had also made his way to the door when he heard Clarissa’s loud gasp. And once Catherine saw him, everything instantly became clear to her.
“Catherine!” Matthew exclaimed.
Catherine ignored him and stared daggers at Clarissa. “Are you trying to drive me to my grave?”
Tears welled up in Clarissa’s eyes as she hurriedly shook her head. “No, no. Grandma, I’m not. We’re just… I…”
Unfortunately, the more she tried to explain herself, the more tongue-tied she became.
Matthew grasped her hand in a bid to calm her down and turned his attention to Catherine.
“Catherine, you know how much Clare cares about you. That’s why she promised not to marry into the Tyson family. She may have interacted with me, but she hasn’t broken that promise. I admit that my family has humiliated you and Clare, and I’d offer my sincerest apology if you’d accept it. One thing’s for sure, though. Clare and I are truly in love. We can—”
Before he could finish his words, Catherine held her hand up to him. “That’s enough.”
She then walked into the room and took a seat, her calm demeanor a stark contrast to her outburst in D City.
Clarissa’s heart was racing so fast that Matthew had to calm her down.
Hand in hand, the two of them walked toward Catherine and sat in front of her.
“Matt, I know you’re a good one. But if I had known earlier what your family was like, I wouldn’t have agreed to you and Clare being together. Of course, I am partly to blame for this. I was too naive and didn’t realize how discriminating wealthy families could be when it came to social statuses.”
Matthew looked like he was about to say something when Catherine once again held her hand up to stop him.
“Let me finish what I have to say.”
Matthew nodded and stayed silent.
Catherine glanced at her granddaughter, who was feeling guilty after getting caught red-handed. Despite that, her hand was still tightly clasped with Matthew’s.
“Clare, I can’t stand being humiliated and bullied by the Tysons. But more than anything else, I can’t stand the shame I have to face. Never had I expected Gloria and Mimi to be so despicable. Do you know how depressed I get every time I think of the shame they’ve brought to our family? It’s no wonder others look down on us. I can sever my ties with them, but their actions will still be an eternal stain on our family’s name. Unfortunately, that stain is what will follow you like a plague for the rest of your life. That’s also the reason the Tysons will never give you the respect you deserve.”
Catherine sighed at the mention of her daughter’s family. The Lesters’ greed was something outsiders would never be able to fathom.
“I may be old, but even I could tell that the Tysons set you up that day. Even if they accepted you, you still wouldn’t be able to hold your head up high in their presence. Clare, we’ve been through a lot, but look how far you’ve come. You’ve turned out to be a beautiful and independent woman, and you’re so much more capable than your peers. You may not mind putting up with the Tysons, but I do. Even if you hate me for it, there’s no way I’d let you get mistreated by them. Besides, you won’t have a lack of suitors, so why limit yourself to one man and put up with his family’s disdain for the rest of your life?”
Tears started to stream down Clarissa’s face as she listened to Catherine’s words intently.
She didn’t even cry after the humiliation she faced on her birthday, yet she found herself unable to hold back her tears at that moment.
Once again, Catherine turned her attention to Matthew. “Matt, I do understand your intentions. But the truth is, love alone wouldn’t be enough to sustain your relationship. Clare might eventually give in, so let me be the villain to end your relationship once and for all. If you must, you can direct all your anger and hate at me. I can live with that, as long as it’s for Clare.”
Matthew pursed his lips and contemplated Catherine’s words for a moment before he finally said, “You did nothing wrong, Catherine. I can understand where you’re coming from.”
Catherine shook her head sadly. “No one can truly understand another person unless they’ve been through the same experience. Perhaps you and Clare just aren’t destined to be together. Clare, stop crying. I won’t let you be with Matthew, and that’s final. If you still treat me as your grandmother, walk out of this room with me right now and never see him again. After today, I won’t restrict you anymore. You’ll have to make your own choices. But if you think I’m wrong, you’re free to stay, and I’ll stay out of your affairs from now on.”
Clarissa knew Catherine was implying that if she chose to stay with Matthew, it’d be as good as cutting all ties with her grandmother.
“Grandma…”
Catherine steeled her heart against her granddaughter and walked out of the room without any hesitation.
Meanwhile, Clarissa stood frozen in the room, torn between following her grandmother or staying with the love of her life.
She was on the verge of hyperventilating as her cries got louder. Faced with the hardest and almost impossible choice to make, her heart ached like never before.
Matthew was devastated, seeing Clarissa in so much pain. He felt like his heart was being stabbed and slowly ripped apart with every tear that rolled down her face.
“Clare…” he called out to her.
Both of them knew that if Clarissa left, it would spell the end of their relationship. Matthew tightened his grip on her hand, not wanting to let her go.
Suddenly, Clarissa turned around and hugged him tightly, bawling even louder as she did. Matthew was her world, and the thought of losing him terrified her.
Matthew’s heart sank even further, weighed down by his inexpressible sadness, for he knew that Clarissa had made up her mind.
It took all of her strength, but Clarissa finally walked out of the room, and it was a decision she would have to live with for the rest of her life.
