Chapter 76

"Maybe it fell out before I found you, or someone took it." Damien handed her his phone. "I'll be at the restaurant waiting." With that, he turned and walked out, softly pulling the door shut behind him to give her some space. Cassandra wasted no time dialing that number she knew by heart. On the other end, Gerald launched straight into a long-winded lecture about her sudden disappearance. She didn’t bother explaining what happened, just apologized and gently reassured him until he calmed down enough to hang up. "Need me to step in for anything today?" Damien lifted his gaze, watching the pretty girl quietly cutting her steak with an aura of elegance. Cassandra's knife paused mid-cut, fingers tightening around the handle. A beat passed before she lifted her lips into a soft smile, radiant and calm. "Thanks… but I haven’t quite figured out how I want to deal with this yet." Sure, Damien might be able to help her out of this jam, but he couldn’t be her safety net forever. And who knows w