Natalie sprang out of Brandon’s arms in terror. She peered anxiously at the elevator door and noticed a familiar face.
Derek was the one outside the elevator!
Derek looked haggard. He had dark circles around his eyes and one could clearly see from a glance at him that he hadn’t managed to get a wink of sleep all night.
“Go and ask the police to see how the investigation is coming along,” he said. Derek was drained of all energy and didn’t even notice that there were other people in the elevator ahead of them.
“Don’t bother. Look ahead.” Wilder nudged Derek’s arm and signaled him to look up.
Derek looked up at the elevator in confusion. When his gaze fell on Natalie, there was a spark of surprise in his eyes.
But soon, he also noticed the man standing beside her.
Derek’s face darkened. Without saying a word, he pulled Natalie away from Brandon and straight out of the elevator.
“You bastard!” Derek stood in front of Natalie and angrily questioned Brandon, “Where did you take my Natalie last night?”
He assumed that the man before him must have had some bad intentions with Natalie.
Brandon had an aura of iciness. His eyes were dark like a bottomless pit. “Your… Natalie?”
He took a step forward and sneered.
Derek felt a little anxious being stared at by Brandon in such a vindictive manner. He straightened his neck and said, “I have asked you a direct question. Don’t change the subject. Believe me or not, but I
will call the police to arrest you!”
Seeing that Brandon didn’t say anything, Derek instructed his manager, “Wilder, call the police immediately. Tell them that there’s another one of those rapists.”
“What makes you eligible to meddle in Natalie’s affairs?” Brandon said with a derisive chuckle. He raised his chin and asked Natalie, “Who is this man?”
Natalie pursed her lips and braced herself to explain, “He is…”
However, Derek immediately cut her off. “Don’t be scared of him, Natalie. The police will deal with him!”
Natalie was nervous now. She wanted to return to Brandon’s side but Derek pulled her aside once more.
“Let her go,” Brandon said, his eyes threateningly cold. He grabbed Natalie by the wrist and was about to pull her back to him.
“No way! Who do you think you are to take Natalie away?” Derek was also trying to pull Natalie to his side. He looked at Wilder unhappily and said, “I asked you to call the police. Didn’t you hear me? Why are you still standing there?”
The two men were like two bulls who had locked horns and a battle was about to ensue.
The two men jostled and pulled her from two opposite directions. She felt as if her arms were going to dislocate and pop out of their sockets. She couldn’t bare the pain, and heatedly shouted, “Stop it!”
Both Derek and Brandon were shocked and loosened their grips on her.
Natalie looked at Derek with no expression on her face. “Derek, you misunderstand him. He isn’t a bad guy. There is no reason for you to call the police. He is the most qualified man in the world to take me away.”
She walked up to Brandon’s side and explained, “He is my husband, Brandon Larson.”
Gesturing to Derek, Natalie then said to Brandon, “This is Derek Ramsey. I had an accident on the Iridescent Show. He helped W Marks finish the show.”
Derek was so shocked that he didn’t know what to say. After a few seconds, he f0rced himself to calm down and then asked, “Are you lying to me again? You told me you were married before, but…”
Natalie shook her head. Derek was too stubborn to believe that what she had said was indeed the cold hard truth. For a moment, she didn’t know what else to say.
“Derek, don’t be rude. Let them go.” Wilder stopped Derek harshly and whispered in his ear, “I ran a background check on Natalie last night. She is indeed Brandon Larson’s wife. We can’t afford to offend them.” Derek was surprised. He could only vent his anger on Wilder, “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
He had thought that it was a lie when Natalie said she was married.
He hadn’t imagined that she was in fact married and that her husband was actually Brandon.
The Larson Group was internationally famous, so Derek had heard of its CEO since he lived overseas for the greater part of the year. He calmed down and told Natalie before he left, “Don’t get me wrong. It’s just… We heard about the accident last night. Wilder and I had been looking for you the whole night. We were afraid that something bad would happen to you. It’s good that you are fine now.”
Natalie looked at the haggard look on Derek’s face and felt guilt wash over her. “Thank you. As you can see, I’m fine. You’d better go back and have a good rest.”
Natalie knew that Derek wasn’t lying, but she could do nothing but thank him.
Caressing Natalie’s back, Brandon reminded her, “The driver has been waiting outside for a long time.”
Natalie nodded and looked up at Derek for a few seconds. Then she turned around and left with Brandon.
In a high-end restaurant in Northcliffe.
Brandon and Natalie were seated in VIP room. Its floor-to -ceiling windows allowed them to overlook the lush garden outside, but Natalie was not really in the mood to sightsee.
The atmosphere was tense, and perhaps a little awkward. “Take a look,” Brandon said as he handed her the menu. “See what you would like to eat.”
Natalie took the booklet and pretended to read it while closely observing Brandon’s expressions.
“I asked you to check the menu. Why are you staring at me instead? Do I have the food items written on my face?” Brandon seemed like his usual self.
Convinced that he wasn’t jealous or cranky after all, Natalie finally allowed herself a small sigh of relief. She proceeded to peruse the menu for real.
The restaurant had a wide selection of specialty dishes, and they all looked absolutely scrumptious.
New Book: Beginning with a Daring Encounter
Celsie was tired of being labeled as an introvert, workaholic, and dull virgin by her friends. Determined to prove them wrong, she made a bet that she would do something daring on her 25th birthday. Now that the day had arrived, it was time to fulfill her promise. On her daring to-do list, there was one task: a one-night stand with someone.
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