Chapter 5
1422 Words
Catherine
Catherine held onto the sink after she finished vomiting in the bathroom. As usual, she would often wake up in the early morning hours with her stomach churning. It was her morning sickness. And after she finished vomiting, she would feel weak.
Catherine lingered in that position for a bit, until she gargled some water from the sink. She splashed water on her face too and then stepped out of the bathroom.
She sat down on the edge of the bed and then caressed her stomach. The bump wasn't very noticeable yet, but she was sure that in a few weeks or so, her stomach would gradually start to show. And she was getting excited to have a baby bump.
She gently stroked it. "Don't make Mommy suffer too much, baby, okay? We don't have anyone to help us," Catherine talked to the baby in her womb.
Since her morning sickness was getting more frequent, she decided to visit her OB-GYN for a check-up. Maybe the vitamins given to her during her last check-up weren't agreeing with her body.
She would likely leave after Travis left for work. She wanted to ask Travis to accompany her, but she didn't bother trying because she knew he wouldn't go with her. She might even hear hurtful words from him. And she don't want that to happen. The least she doesn't want to hear is his hurtful words.
She couldn't help but blink repeatedly as she felt her eyes well up with tears all of sudden. She thought of Travis, especially their conversation last night. After he turned his back on her and told her not to bring Brad to his house, she didn't see him again.
It seems he didn't leave his room. She didn't even know if he ate or not. She hadn't come out of her room either. Lily had brought her food inside her room instead.
Catherine glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table. She saw that it was already 5:00 AM.
She wanted to go back to sleep, but she knew she wouldn't be able to fall back asleep, so she decided to get out of her room instead.
She looked at the closed door to Travis's room. She was sure he was still asleep, since that wasn't his usual waking time.
She averted her gaze and continued walking until she reached the kitchen. There, she found Lily and two of Travis's household staff busy cooking breakfast.
"Good morning, Ma'am Catherine," Lily greeted, noticing her presence.
"Good morning, Lily," she replied to her.
"Do you want anything, Ma'am Catherine? Coffee or water?" Lily offered a moment later.
"Milk will be fine, Lily. Coffee isn't good for my health," she said while stroking her stomach.
"Sorry, Ma'am. I forgot," Lily apologized to her realizing her condition.
Catherine just smiled. "No worries, Lily," she replied to her.
"I'll get your milk ready," Lily said to her. She sat down on the stool while waiting for Lily to finish preparing her milk.
"Thank you," she said when Lily placed the glass of warm milk in front of her.
Lily just smiled in response. She quietly sipped her milk while watching them cook. Thankfully, the smell of the food they were cooking didn't make her nauseous. And as she watched them, an idea occurred to her mind.
She stepped down from the stool and called out Lily attention. "Yes, Ma'am?"
"Lily, do we have ingredients for seafood pasta in the fridge?" she asked.
"Yes, Ma'am Catherine," Lily replied.
"I want to cook seafood pasta," she said to Lily.
"Cravings?" Lily asked her.
She just smiled in response. Lily then took out the ingredients she needed for the seafood pasta. "Your craving is Sir Travis's favorite," Lily commented as she placed the ingredients in front of her.
Catherine bit her lower lip at Lily's words. "It's for Travis," she replied to Lily.
She's cooking seafood pasta not because she's craving it, but because she plans to cook it for Travis. She knows it's his favorite because of Lianne, who often requests her to cook it, saying it's Travis's favorite and that she'll give it to him. Lianne doesn't just request seafood pasta; sometimes she also asks her to cook steak.
Between her and Lianne, she's more knowledgeable about cooking because she studied culinary arts. She plans to open her own restaurant, even if it's just a small one. Lianne, on the other hand, knows nothing about cooking.
"Since you've already cooked breakfast, this will be for lunch," she told Lily. "And please, don't tell him I cooked it, or he might not eat it," she added almost whisper.
Lily just nodded in response. In the next moment, Catherine was busy cooking. She was sautéing the ingredients she needed, but she wrinkled her nose in distaste because she didn't like the smell of garlic. It even made her nauseous.
"Ma'am Catherine, are you okay?" Lily asked, seemingly noticing her expression.
"I just don't like the smell of what I'm sauteing," she replied.
"Let me finish—"
"It's okay, Lily," she replied.
Catherine endured the smell until it subsided once she mixed in the other ingredients.
Before long, she finished cooking. She asked for a container to pack her dish so Travis could take it with him.
Catherine smiled when she saw the finished dish. The presentation in the container looked great, too.
She placed it in a paper bag. "I'll go up to my room first, Lily," she said. She thought Travis might come down and see her there, potentially ruining his day. "When he's about to leave for work, just give this to him," she instructed to Lily.
When Lily nodded, she left the kitchen and went up to the second floor, where her room was located.
Catherine rested for a bit, then went into the bathroom to take a shower. She was preparing to leave, as she needed to visit her OB-GYN.
She didn't take too long in the shower. When she finished, she quickly got dressed in a simple off-shoulder dress. She let her long hair down, letting it air dry after blow-drying it.
She only applied lipstick as makeup on her face. She didn't often wear makeup, only on special occasions.
She was done getting ready, but she stayed in her room for a bit, waiting for Travis to leave the house.
After a few hours, she went out, knowing Travis had left after she saw his car drive out of the gate from the window of her room. She headed back to the kitchen to say goodbye to Lily. But when she arrived, her gaze fell on the paper bag on the dining table—the same bag she had packed with the food she cooked for Travis.
As she looked at it, she felt like a big hand was squeezing her heart, causing it to ache slightly.
Did Travis find out that I cooked it, that's why he didn't bring it?
"Oh, Ma'am Catherine."
She shifted her gaze from the paper bag and turned to Lily when she heard her voice calling her name. "D-did Travis already leave?" she asked.
Lily nodded. Catherine's gaze returned to the paper bag. Her heart sank. And even without looking at her own reflection in the mirror, she knew that sadness would be visible on her face.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Lily following her gaze. "Oh, It looks like Sir Travis forgot to bring his packed lunch," Lily said.
In an instant, the pain that had clouded her eyes disappeared. She looked at Lily. "Forgot?"
Lily didn't speak for a moment, but then nodded in response.
"I'm going out, Lily. I'll just bring this and drop it off at Travis's office," she said. She wouldn't be showing herself to Travis, though. She'd probably just hand it over to his secretary and then leave right away.
"W-wait a minute, Ma'am Catherine. I'll just instruct Damien to drop that off to Sir—"
"I'll do it, Lily. I'll be passing by Travis's office on my way anyway," she cut her off.
She noticed Lily's lips opening and closing, as if she wanted to say something but chose to keep quiet instead. There's something odd in her eyes, but she can't put her finger on it. But she dismisses the thought. "I'll go ahead, Lily," she said goodbye.
Catherine didn't wait for Lily to respond. She clutched the paper bag tightly with hope and left the kitchen.
- Writer
