Interestingly, this time, it wasn't Anthony who noticed her.

On the contrary, her girlfriend was looking at her thoughtfully.

Wishing to avoid any drama, Claudia merely threw a fleeting glance their way before quickly heading back to her own table.

Their spot by the window was a good distance from where Anthony had approached her earlier, so Bennett was oblivious to the encounter.

Noticing her return, he handed her the menu, saying, “Order whatever you want."

Glancing at him, Claudia clenched her menu and chewed her lower lip.

After a moment, she handed the menu back to Bennett and said, “I ran into Anthony earlier."

“What ?"

Hearing her words, Bennett raised his eyebrows.

“Did he give you a hard time?"

Claudia hesitated before sharing, "He pulled me aside and mentioned something odd."

She had no idea what Anthony meant.

Was he trying to be more of a bother?

Now he started bringing up discussions about her dad?

"What did he exactly say?" Bennett asked her while selecting the dishes on the menu.

"He mentioned he had something to discuss with me, related to my father."

Then she raised her chin and looked at him.

"That's all he said."

Handing the menu to an attendant nearby, Bennett asked, "Is he aware of who's been contacting your dad?"

His words enlightened Claudia.

"I... I walked away without really hearing him out."

"Don't worry about it. He might be making things up."

He took a moment before saying, "Claudia, don't trust strangers so easily."

Claudia, almost pointing out that Anthony was known to her, held back when she met Bennett's intense eyes, admitting, "I didn't talk to him much."