CHAPTER 17: CHAPTER 17-DO WE KNOW EACH OTHER?

Tracy’s words were not only a jab at Riley but also a veiled dig at Catherine—essentially implying that both Catherine and Riley were ill-mannered.

If Tracy had only insulted Riley, Riley might have held back. But since Catherine was also included, Riley couldn’t let it slide. A cold laugh escaped her as she shot back:

"Of course, birds of a feather flock together. Scumbags get scumbags, and scumbags also have scumbag parents!"

Riley’s words cut deeper. Tracy had insulted only Riley and Catherine, but Riley lashed out at Channing, Tracy, Lucca, and Gerald too. Furious, Tracy stepped forward, attempting to slap Riley, but then remembered they were in a police station. She was here to stand up for her daughter and, as the head of the Channing household, had to maintain her dignity. She reluctantly lowered her hand, gritting her teeth and seething:

"Just you wait!"

Riley sat there unfazed, crossing her legs and swinging them nonchalantly:

"Officer, you saw that, right? This lady just tried to hit me, and I’m sure you also saw how her daughter behaves."

The police officer groaned inwardly. Two fighting girls had already been enough trouble, and now here came a mother who clearly loved to stir things up.

For the officers, this was a minor incident—they just wanted to resolve it quickly and have everyone go home. They began to try and mediate, but Tracy wouldn’t listen, immediately calling her lawyer. The police were helpless; as Lucca had filed the complaint, they couldn’t just end the matter without her consent.

Meanwhile, Riley stepped aside and called Catherine. She had originally planned to accompany Catherine at the hospital while waiting for Renata’s surgery, but now with this chaos, she had no idea when she could leave the station. She worried that by the time Renata’s surgery was over, she might still be stuck there.

Yet Riley wouldn’t tell Catherine about the fight or that she was currently in a police station—she refused to cause her friend more trouble.

At the hospital...

After Gerald and Lucca had left, the atmosphere settled into an uneasy silence.

Catherine didn’t know what to say at first. Gerald had stood up for her earlier, and his remarks mocking Lucca clearly showed he was on her side—though Catherine wasn’t sure why he had chosen to defend her.

And she had also accidentally learned one of his secrets: he was actually... a bastard.

Finally, Catherine broke the silence, raising her face to look at him and asking:

"My mom suddenly changed the chief surgeon this morning... that was your doing, wasn’t it?"

Catherine had thought it through and could only conclude that he must have been the one behind it.

The man’s gaze met hers, deep and unreadable. He didn’t give a direct answer, but his posture was an unspoken acknowledgment.

"Thank you..."

Catherine spoke sincerely, then quickly followed with her question.

"Why... did you help me?"

His eyes darkened slightly as he looked at her. Catherine couldn’t decipher the emotions in his gaze, and seeing that he had no intention of answering, she continued hesitantly:

"We’ve never met before... I don’t even know your name—"

She had wanted to say, I know nothing about you, yet you went out of your way to help me. But before the words could leave her lips, he interrupted.

"You really don’t know me?"

His brow furrowed slightly, a faint trace of displeasure on his face.

Bert’s irritation came from the fact that this woman truly didn’t remember him.

Being so thoroughly ignored was not a comfortable feeling. Bert had originally planned that after Renata’s surgery ended successfully, he would reveal his identity to her, and say that his help today was compensation for that night. After that, they wouldn’t cross paths again. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have come here at all.

Now, however, he found himself losing interest in revealing the truth. Who knew how she might react? She could even get angry and attack him—he wasn’t sure he wanted to take that risk.

Catherine grew even more puzzled.

"Do... we... know each other?"

Bert, tired of her questions, snorted coldly.

"Fine, if you say we don’t know each other, then we don’t."

Catherine "...."

His words implied that they did, in fact, know each other. But for her, there was genuinely no memory. And with his complete refusal to explain anything, she didn’t know what else to say.

She stayed silent. He stayed silent.

They stood there, face to face, just outside the operating room. Thanks to all the chaos Lucca and Gerald had caused, Catherine’s mind wasn’t even focused on Renata’s surgery anymore.

Because of the height difference between them, when Catherine looked straight ahead, all she could see were the buttons on his shirt—neatly arranged, each one exquisitely detailed, reflecting his personal taste.

She could feel his gaze studying her face. Even without meeting his eyes directly, Catherine sensed the overwhelming pressure emanating from his stare. An uneasy warmth spread through her chest, and her cheeks flushed.

Catherine’s fair skin made the blush obvious. Bert stood there, tall and statuesque, watching the red spread across her cheeks and up to her delicate ears.

Coupled with her shy, downcast expression, she looked irresistibly cute.

His gaze seemed to pierce right through her. After a few moments under it, Catherine felt her head spin, her thoughts scattering. She considered finding an excuse to step away to the restroom, just to escape the tension.

But before she could speak, her phone rang.

Seeing that it was Riley calling, she hurried to answer. Thankfully, it was Riley’s call—it broke the awkward tension between her and Bert.

Catherine guessed Riley must have woken up by now, and she would definitely rush to the hospital to see her first thing. Catherine assumed Riley was calling to ask which floor the operating room was on. But instead, Riley said from the other end:

"Cici, I’m really sorry... something urgent came up on my end. I might not be able to come to the hospital with you."

Catherine’s concern immediately surfaced.

"What happened?"

Riley chuckled lightly on the other end.

"It’s work-related... I need to handle something unexpectedly."

Catherine’s brows furrowed. She knew Riley’s personality very well—Riley was deeply loyal and caring. On such an important day like Renata’s surgery, she had rushed back overnight just to be with Catherine. Even if something urgent came up now, knowing Riley, she wouldn’t have agreed to leave at a time like this.

Even if it were work-related, Riley’s character meant that she would never abandon Catherine in a moment like this, not even at the risk of losing her job. She would have stayed by her side, without hesitation.

But now Riley was saying something about work, so Catherine pressed on insistently:

"Riley, what’s really going on over there?"

Catherine couldn’t just sit back when she knew how deeply Riley cared for her.

Suddenly, a sharp voice came through the line:

"Riley, this isn’t over!"

Riley seemed to be hurriedly covering the phone, but Catherine heard everything clearly.

Alarmed, she asked, "What’s going on? Why did I just hear Lucca’s voice?"

For once, Catherine’s usual gentle demeanor hardened. Her small face grew serious; hearing Lucca’s voice meant trouble was inevitable.

Riley had no choice but to explain the whole feud with Lucca in the parking lot. Catherine listened as Riley described how Lucca and Tracy were threatening to sue her. Anger flared inside her.

"Wait, didn’t you say Lucca pushed you first? How dare she act so arrogantly?"

But after saying that, Catherine gripped her phone tightly.

This was a world that revolved around money and power. Even if the parking lot cameras proved that Lucca had pushed Riley first, it wouldn’t matter against Channing’s influence. No matter how much trouble his company might be in, a camel, even skinny, was still bigger than a horse.

Although Riley came from a wealthy family, she was still far outmatched when facing Channing’s power.

And Catherine knew Tracy’s character well—overly protective and quick to act. Even if Riley had only injured Lucca slightly, Tracy would be furious enough to want to fight her. And knowing Riley’s wild, fearless nature, Catherine could only imagine how badly Lucca must have been taught a lesson.

For a moment, Catherine felt trapped in worry and anxiety.