After Catherine asked that question, Bert's lips curved into a smile.
"If everyone were like you—needing to dig out the reason behind everything—wouldn't we all die of exhaustion?"
He still didn't answer her.
Catherine felt discouraged, even a little irritated, and finally chose to lower her head and continue eating.
Since he wasn't willing to say it, she no longer wanted to hear it.
No matter what his motives were, Catherine couldn't deny that he had been a great help regarding Renata. Toward him, gratitude outweighed everything else.
As for why Bert chose to hide his feelings from her for now—it was because he had carefully thought things through.
He hadn't slept well last night. The other bedroom was prepared for Renata, and he had no reason to sleep there. But if he slept beside Catherine, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to control himself. In the end, he curled up on the tiny sofa.
