A Bird in the Cage

Chapter 9

Chapter 9 I Didn’t Know Your Husband Was Here

“… I didn’t know your husband was here. I should probably leave the two of you alone. Let’s meet

another day!” Turning around, Catherine said quickly before leaving.

“No, wait! I have something important to tell you!” Jasmine panicked and grabbed her arm.

“Let’s meet another day and talk in private!”

“Have a seat! Do I look that intimidating to you?‘ Ryan spoke with a plain attitude.

“It’s all your fault! Your poker face is scaring Catherine. You should put on a friendly smile whenever

you meet my friends next time.”

Jasmine pretended to be upset and teased him.

She then dragged Catherine over to the table.

Without a choice, Catherine bit the bullet and sat down opposite her, but her eyes flickered around

nervously, not knowing where to look.

“Catherine, why are your eyebags so heavy? Are you having trouble sleeping?”

Even though it was merely a common greeting, Catherine’s guilty conscience took a hold of her. It

sounded as if Jas knew about the secret relationship between Ryan and her.

Catherine’s heart skipped a beat as she clenched her fists underneath the table.

Her face turned crimson, and her expression twisted as she looked at Jasmine. Catherine wanted to

explain, but she was afraid that she would expose their relationship.

“Excuse me!” Ryan called out, successfully diverting Jasmine’s attention.

“Yes, sir! How may I help you?”

“Please make a cup of chamomile tea for this lady, thanks.”

Chamomile tea was used to calm the mind, but Catherine was sceptical because he never treated her

with so much care before. Now, this situation really drove her crazy.

‘Does he have to make it so obvious? Isn’t he afraid that Jas would be suspicious about his behaviors?’

Sitting on the table, Catherine felt anxious and uncomfortable.

“Why isn’t he here yet?” Jasmine muttered to herself and looked down at her watch.

“Who else did you invite, honey?” Ryan asked gently.

“You’ll know when they arrive, darling!” Jasmine replied with a smile.

Watching the couple in front of her calling each

other with pet names, Catherine felt like a redundant presence.

If she weren’t there, they might have already started making out with each other. When she imagined

that intimate scene, she couldn’t help but feel nauseous.

“Why do you always have to be so mysterious?” Ryan asked before leaning his face close to

Jasmine’s. Without shame, he was about to peck Jasmine on the cheeks, completely ignoring

Catherine’s presence.

“Hey! Catherine’s still here…”

“Um… I’m going to the bathroom.” Catherine felt suffocated. She even had the urge to cry.

Getting up from her seat, she quickly disappeared in front of the loving couple and hid in the bathroom.

She stood in front of the sink and repeated the same question to herself.

“Since when did things become like this? Should I leave now, or tell Jas the truth?”

Jas looked so happy just now. Was it cruel to tell her the truth?

Catherine closed her eyes and took a deep breath, hoping that it could help her think rationally.

“Are you jealous?” someone suddenly whispered in her ear while embracing her into a tight hug from

behind.

“Let go of me!” She struggled with all her might.

“Your eyes were hinting that you wanted me to kiss you just now. Why are you resisting now? Are you

trying to play hard to get?” he murmured.

When she heard what he said, anger overpowered her as she stepped hard on his feet with her high

heels.

As soon as her heels touched his feet, he quickly dodged and let go of her out of instinct.

Catherine was seething with anger. She wanted nothing but to slap him hard in the face. However, her

angry face really turned him on.

“Trying to step on me, huh? Are you looking for trouble? Believe it or not, I’ll…”

“Yeah, I believe that you can even do it on the streets because you have no shame.” Catherine

raised her chin and refuted.

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he tightened his grip and leaned his face against hers.

She knew that he was going to tell her, “You have no right to resist.”

Shutting her eyes, she let tears fall silently down her cheeks before his lips touched hers.

However, the grip on her waist suddenly loosened, and she regained freedom.

“If Jas notices that you cried, you’ll get punished!” Ryan warned before leaving the bathroom in a hurry.

After wiping her tears away, she realized that she didn’t have the courage to tell her friend the truth.

She didn’t know how to deal with her sadness and was also afraid of losing her only friend.

In order to hide it from Jasmine, she let the tears dry up and forced a smile in front of the mirror before

returning to the VIP Room.

“Someone’s gonna call the police if you still don’t come out, Catherine!” Jasmine covered her mouth

while giggling while looking at the man sitting opposite Ryan.

Only then did Catherine notice that there was another person sitting next to her seat. It was none other

than Leonardo Walker, who had tried to flirt with her at Ryan’s wedding.

“Come on, let me introduce you to each other. This is Leonardo, the third son of the Walker family. I

asked you out today because he kept pestering me! Even our renowned playboy is acting shy in

front of you. He didn’t dare to ask you out directly,” Jasmine exclaimed excitedly.

When Catherine took a quick glance at Ryan, his