"Let me do it."

The plates were taken out of Lilah's hands by a strong hand. She pursed her lips but did not try to stop him. She joined him in the kitchen after he had cleared the table.

"I want to talk to you."

Lilah gazed at him with her pretty eyes.

"Yes?" With only a glance, Gerard could tell that she had something important to discuss. Immediately, he set the plates down and gave her a questioning look.

Lilah braced herself and opened her mouth to speak. However, tears welled up in her eyes before she could say anything. Her eyes blurred as she explained, “The man I entered the hotel with was my grandfather's lawyer. Before he passed away, Grandpa intended for me to take over the Phillips Group, but only his lawyer had a copy of his will. I'd been looking for him for a long time, but I only found him recently. I didn't know someone had photographed us. I'm so sorry.

Did the photo affect you?"

Lilah spoke with a quaver in her voice.

Gerard was silent for a long time, and she felt her chest constrict.

Was he angry? Did he not believe her?

"I know you're the Harris family's heir and that you could be severely impacted by any scandals. I'm really sorry..."

She was embraced before she could complete her sentence.

"Silly girl."

His embrace was firm and comforting. He ran his fingers through her hair and sighed. “Why are you thinking such things?"

“You obviously saw the photo and prevented it from going viral right away. I thought you did that because it would have a negative impact on your reputation." Lilah was so upset that she began to question if she was really good for Gerard.

Simply pretending that the distance between them did not exist would not make it go away.

"You're smart, but you can be stupid sometimes." Gerard sighed helplessly before continuing in a low voice, “I should be the one apologizing. It was me who wanted to be with you so badly that I ended up hurting you. Don't worry, though. From now on, you won't have to worry about anything because it will be handled right away."

Lilah was taken aback by his declaration.

She recalled how, when she was still with Iker, he had warned her against going out late, drinking, or doing anything that might bring shame on the Lewis family.

At that time, she was always worried that her mistake would have a negative impact on Iker's reputation.

She was just as frightened, if not more so, about it happening now that she was with Gerard.

That was why she was surprised that Gerard was not bothered by the photo.

“Does that mean you believe me?" Lilah asked straightforwardly.

"Did you think I wouldn't?" Slowly, Gerard pulled away from her and cupped her face, his thumb caressing her cheekbone. “You're the treasure I've tried so hard to get. There's no way that I'll get enough of cherishing you."