Daddy's Best Friend

58

CHAPTER 58

HENRY 

I stormed into Lynda's office, the weight of Catherine's blackmail heavy on my shoulders. Lynda looked up from her desk, her eyes widening as she saw the frustration etched on my face.

"Lynda, we have a problem," I blurted out, collapsing into the chair across from her.

She raised an eyebrow, concern furrowing her brow. "What happened?"

I took a deep breath, trying to find the right words. "Catherine. She's here, and she's blackmailing me."

Lynda's eyes flashed with a mix of disbelief and anger. "Blackmailing you? What on earth for?"

I leaned forward, resting my elbows on her desk. "She found out about Sophia and me. Now she wants a million dollars to keep quiet and not tell Collins."

Lynda's jaw dropped, and she let out an exasperated sigh. "You've got to be kidding me. Catherine, of all people?"

I nodded, frustration evident in my voice. "I can't believe she'd stoop this low. I need your help, Lynda. What do I do?"

She leaned back in her chair, tapping a pen against her desk in thought. "We can't let her ruin your life, Henry. We need to strategize."

As we delved into the details, Lynda's disappointment in her friend mingled with a fierce determination to protect me. She understood the stakes, not just for me but for Sophia and our relationship.

"She's playing dirty, but we won't let her win," Lynda declared, her eyes narrowing.

I felt a glimmer of hope. Lynda had always been a force to be reckoned with, and her loyalty in this moment meant the world to me.

"But we need a plan," she continued. "We have to expose her motives, turn the tables. I'll talk to Catherine. Maybe I can get her to reconsider."

I took a deep breath, preparing to reveal the skeletons in Catherine's closet. "Lynda, it's not just about her disapproval of my relationship with Sophia. There's more to it."

Lynda leaned forward, her expression a mix of curiosity and concern. "What do you mean?"

"Catherine has a gambling problem," I confessed. "She got involved with some shady characters, and it led to financial trouble. That's why she's resorting to blackmail. She needs money to cover her debts."

Lynda's eyes widened in surprise. "Gambling? I had no idea."

I nodded solemnly. "It's been going on for a while, and I tried to help her. But she was secretive about it, always insisting she could handle it. Turns out, she couldn't."

She sat back, processing the information. "So, she's using this situation to extort money from you. That's despicable."

"There's more," I continued. "During our marriage, she was having an affair. I never caught her red-handed, but I found messages, calls. I confronted her, and she denied it. I guess I wanted to believe her, or maybe I didn't want to face the truth."

I leaned back in the chair, frustration evident in my eyes as I recounted the tangled web of Catherine's deceit to Lynda. She listened attentively, her expression shifting from disbelief to understanding.

"Catherine's always been a bit of a wild card, but this..." Lynda trailed off, shaking her head.

"Yeah, it's a mess," I replied, running a hand through my hair.

"Why didn't you tell anyone about her gambling problem before?" Lynda asked, her brow furrowing.

I sighed, a mix of regret and frustration welling up inside me. "I thought I could handle it, Lynda. I didn't want to burden anyone with my problems. And I... I didn't want to admit to myself that my marriage was falling apart."