Gordon might be tight with his money, but there was no denying he was handsome. Exceptionally so.

When Caitlin returned from walking the dog, she found her parents and grandmother gathered in the living room, looking as if they were in a solemn meeting.

She unclipped Monday's leash. "Grandma, Mom, Dad, what's with the serious faces?"

"Freya, you're back," Stuart said, forcing a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Dad, that smile looks painful," Caitlin observed.

"Does... does it?"

Caitlin nodded slightly. "Very."

Keira licked her lips, trying to broach the subject delicately. "Freya, darling... about what's trending on Twitter... what do you make of it?"

"Trending? What's trending?" Caitlin hadn't had a chance to check Twitter yet.

With that, she opened the app.

The moment she saw it, her brain short-circuited.

Oh, my God. How did this happen? Her secret relationship with Gordon was out in the open for everyone to see.

Before she could form a sentence, Stuart jumped in with a nervous chuckle. "Freya, this is fake, right? Just a prank?"

"Well, Dad... it's true," Caitlin said, deciding there was no point in hiding it now. "I am dating Gordon."

Stuart's forced smile vanished.

So did Carey's. And Keira's.

After a moment, Keira composed her features. "But, Freya... how could you fall for him? What is it about Gordon? Why him, of all people?"

"He's handsome, and he has a good head on his shoulders," Caitlin said, then lowered her voice. "And... Grandma, he has great abs."

Great abs!

Keira's eyes lit up.

Handsome men weren't hard to find. But tall, handsome men with great abs... that was a rarer commodity.

Stuart spoke next. "Freya, are you serious about him?"

"Yes, I am," Caitlin nodded.

Stuart could almost hear his heart breaking.

He took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. "Freya, you're an adult, and I won't stop you from dating. But you have to promise me one thing: no getting married before you're twenty-five!"

"Okay, no marriage," Caitlin said with a smile. "Don't worry, Dad. I'll stay with you, Mom, and Grandma forever."

At that, Stuart could finally breathe properly again.

As long as his daughter wasn't so head-over-heels that she was planning a wedding, there was still hope.

Keira and Carey also let out a sigh of relief.

Back in her room, Caitlin video-called Gordon.

"Catie," he answered, clearly in the middle of a workout at the gym.

"Have you seen what's trending on Twitter?" Caitlin asked.

"No, what's up?"

Caitlin didn't know how to explain. "Just go look and you'll see." "Okay."

Gordon switched over to the Twitter app.

Seeing the trending topic, Gordon couldn't help but blurt out, "Which media outlet was this? They did a brilliant" He caught himself, remembering he was on a call with Caitlin, and quickly changed bis tune. "-a brilliant job of invading our privacy! This is outrageous! How could they take pictures of us without permission?"

He then added, "Boss, do you want me to... take care of this publication?"

"No, don't," Caitlin said, waving her hand dismissively. "If you do that, you'll put a lot

of people out of a job. The economy is bad enough as it is. What's done is done."

"My girlfriend is as kind as she is beautiful," Gordon sighed dramatically.

The comment, however, was delivered with a smug little grin he couldn't quite hide.

Caitlin narrowed her eyes. "You're sure you had nothing to do with this?"

"Absolutely not!" Gordon

immediately held up three fingers as if taking an oath. "Boss, as much as 1 want to make our relationship official) I swear this had nothing to do with me. You can investigate. If you find even the slightest proof I

was involved, accept any

punishment you see fit, no questions asked!"

FindNovel.net

Caitlin smiled. "Alright, I'll trust you this time."

Gordon asked cautiously, "So, your family... your parents and Grandma Keira...

they know about us now?"

"Yes," Caitlin nodded slightly.

Gordon immediately pressed, "And what's their impression of me?"

"Speaking of which," Caitlin said, tapping her chin, "their impression of you is... average, I'd say."

Average...

Hearing that, Gordon breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

Average wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible either. He could work with average.

Meanwhile.

Old Mrs. Somerset had quickly discovered Beatrice's afternoon plans: a trip to the shopping mall.

Beatrice was there to pick out a gift for Caitlin.

From a distance, Old Mrs. Somerset spotted Beatrice walking alongside Alaina.

Three or four bodyguards carrying shopping bags followed behind them.

Composing her expression, Old Mrs. Somerset hurried over. "Beatrice, Miss Sylvester."

Alaina glanced at her. "And you are?"

Old Mrs. Somerset smiled

obsequiously. "Miss Sylvester, Beatrice. I'm Jeremiah Somerset's mother from the Somerset Group. I

setight you out today because

there's something you must know

about Miss Gonzales. I'm sure you're unaware, but she is not as innocent as she seems. She's damaged goods-a divorcée!"