Chapter 65 Surrender
Natalie buried her face in the collar of his shirt, and the scent of the man in front of her seemed to soothe her restless heart. At that moment, she wanted to be wrapped in his scent.
His skin turned warm under her evenly long breath.
Luke's smile faded, and he look at her gently but dignifiedly. Then, he placed his hand behind her head and held her tightly, asking in a deep voice, "What happened? Tell me."
Natalie shook her head and said nothing.
Luke touched her chin with his fingertips, trying to raise her face, but Natalie tried her best to lower her head. Her head was lowered, and she did not want him to see the depression in her eyes.
He smiled helplessly and whispered above her ear, "I'll still be here even if the sky collapses. Why are you hiding your problems from your man?"
Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes from just one sentence.
Natalie's eyelashes were inadvertently wet, and in a blink of an eye, they brushed against his skin.
Luke felt the wetness of her eyelashes and kissed her ear through her hair, "Did you run into that person in the hospital?"
Natalie stiffened, wondering how he guessed it.
Luke said succinctly, seemingly knowing what she was thinking, "I saw the news of the accident on stage at the theater this afternoon."
So, that was the case, hence it was easy for him to guess that the person came to the hospital. She did not want to tell him initially… Natalie wrapped her arms around his waist and stayed silent for a moment before grunting with a "well"..
"Did he recognize you?" Luke asked.
Natalie shook her head and said in a deep nasally voice, "I don't want to look at him."
Although Natalie never expected Jepson to be able to repent, it was impossible for her to write off her grievance and harbor no hatred toward him at all.
However, as long as Luke was here, she did not seem to need to be sad on her own like she used to.
"I don't want to look at him…" Natalie repeated, throwing a tantrum in his arms somewhat unreasonably, releasing her suppressed emotions.
Luke patted her head like he was coaxing a child. "Alright, we won't, whatever you say."
"However, he has a comminuted fracture on his patella… and he needs to stay in the hospital and get surgery." Natalie said in a sob, she sounded so aggrieved. It was very hard to maneuver between her personal grievances and occupational integrity.
She needed to follow the other director for rounds occasionally, so she would still see him frequently. Natalie truly could not imagine how she would forgo the past and be concerned about his condition.
Luke's finger slid down her hair and then grabbed the back of her neck, lifting her head gently.
At this moment, Natalie did not fight back. She looked into his eyes, and her eyes crimson.
"Baby, you're a doctor. You have to save him even if he's a murderer." It was rare for Luke to be so proper and at this moment, he was very serious. "Why do you feel so conflicted? Just do what you should. I waited three years to get my Dr. Moore, so I can't let that punk ruin this for me."
She thought he wanted to say something mean to vent for her childishly, but he was not. At the end of the day, what he was worried about was the effect that this would bring on her.
This should not be how Luke treated anything or anyone, but she clearly feel that he was considerate of her in every aspect and he would put her first. He would not be so egotistical to think that everything did not matter just like he used to.
Natalie was touched when she heard that, but at the same time, she did not know how to feel.
Of course, she did not want to lose her medical ethics.
"I know…" Natalie nodded lightly.
Luke used the pad of his finger to wipe away the moisture in the corner of her eye. In the next second, a lazy and obnoxious smile appeared on his lips again. "Say, what do you want to happen to him? When this is over, I'll go fix him for you."
Natalie shook her head.
She was not a vengeful person. She just wanted to stay away from him and had no more connections with her so-called father.
Jepson must have the same idea in mind.
"I'm hungry…" Natalie did not want to think about this anymore. So, she wrapped her arms around his waist and complained softly, "Bring me to eat."
Luke said okay and lowered his head. He then touched his lips to her cheek and asked, "My friend's shooting club just opened, do you want to go have some fun?"
Natalie's thoughts were immediately distracted. She blinked and asked curiously, "With real guns?"
"Yes."
"I don't know how…" She looked at him sadly, feeling distressed,
She was interested in it, hence Luke smiled and grabbed her hands from his waist and put them around his neck. "Don't you have a teacher right now?"
Natalie knew he just wanted to make her happy, so she stopped looking sad and lifted her fair face. Her voice sounded a little hoarse and soft after sobbing just now.
"You can't laugh at me if I can't understand."
"If that's the case…" Luke fell silent for a while and purposely said grudgingly, "I'm afraid you'll have to bribe me then."
"You even want a bribe?" Natalie looked at him, her eyes filled with dissatisfaction.
"Yeah." He smiled and pointed at his lips.
He wanted her to get close to him and kiss him.
Natalie peered at the driver's seat and then looked back in embarrassment. She seemed to be protesting coquettishly, telling him "the driver was still driving in front" with her eyes.
Luke was smiling magnanimously. He seemed to be telling her, "So what? Do you think he will have the guts to tell other people about this?"
Her face turned red and she removed her arms that were around his neck. She did not want to hug him anymore.
When she wanted to move back to her seat, the man's palm grabbed the back of her head and pulled her head back. Before she could react, he suddenly lowered his head and placed his lips on hers.
Since he was pretty strong, Natalie fell into his arms due to the inertia. The warmth of his lips overwhelmed her and his lips were moving as he kissed her. Occasionally, he would bite her bottom lip as well.
Natalie panicked and she grabbed his shirt, creating a layer of wrinkles. She tried her best to control her breathing and she was scared that if she made some noises or let out a slightly bigger exhale, the driver would hear what they were doing in the backseat.
For some reason, Natalie recalled how Mia would share inappropriate novels from certain websites in the name of sexual education.
Right now, she felt as if she was in a scene that those novels would often have… While the driver was driving in front, the male and female leads were doing something unspeakable at the back.
Back then, when they were watching this, Natalie asked mia, "The female lead is making so many noises and she sounds so happy. The driver heard everything too, how shameful."
Back then, this was how Mia answered.
"Throw your logic away. You only need to feel excited when you read stories like this. The male lead will take the female lead to a shooting club so that she can sit on his lap and he can teach her how to shoot step by step. After that, they will do this and that, then, he will say, 'Baby, if you don't pay attention, we'll do this until you shoot the bull's eye'. Ah! Gosh, I'm sure you know!"
"..." Thinking about it, Natalie was still confused.
"Wait."
She suddenly jolted back to her senses.
"A shooting club?"
…
The shooting club of Luke's friend was located in the best location near the city center. It was not easy to develop this place into a comprehensive sports and leisure center by renting hundreds of acres of land in such a place where every inch of land is expensive. Aside from his immense wealth, he should also have strong connections.
Of course, Luke helped him with the networking too.
Although Luke had always been lukewarm towards others, he was horrible at being a hypocrite. As long as they did not cross the boundaries of morality and law, he would support those people and he would also help them with things like this.
A person who was admired by a lot of people would undoubtedly have his irreplaceable charisma. Otherwise, those respectable and dignified big shots would not follow him willingly like they were his footmen.
Natalie had a deep understanding during the days she was in Athana.
They had dinner nearby first. It was a private restaurant that was also run by Luke's friend. The waiters were very warm when they served Natalie and Luke.
Natalie realized that no matter where Luke was, he would not have to worry about food, clothing, housing, and transportation. There were always people rushing to arrange for him, it was like he was no different from a prince in ancient times.
After listening to her thoughts, Luke flicked her forehead and joked, "Do you think they're so respectful toward me for nothing?"
Luke was very considerate throughout the dinner. Whenever she wanted him to coax her, he would make her feel his warmth a thousand times over.
Natalie was still thinking about the injury on his right hand and she wanted to feed him some vegetables. When she looked up, Luke was already taking soup and peeling shrimp for her.
She thought the soup was too hot, so he patiently blew it to cool it down for her. When she got sauce on the corners of her mouth, he would lean over and wipe it off of her with his fingertips.
In the end, Natalie felt uncomfortable being waited on hand and foot. Hence, she kicked his shoe under the table. "You should eat too. Does your hand still hurt?"
"No." Luke went to get some drinks and then he filled her half-full glass with grapefruit juice. "You seem to eat more recently."
"Really?"
Natalie hurriedly asked him if she had gained weight.
Luke lifted his eyes and smiled at her. Then, he slowly said the last half of his sentence, "Is it because I tire you out?"
Natalie was slightly stunned. Then, she realized the bad intentions in his smile. Immediately, her ears turned hot. She did not reply and she scoffed at him angrily. Afterward, she got up and went to the restroom.
Who knew, Luke did not restrain himself.
When she walked past him, he reached out his arm and pulled her to sit on his lip. After that, he rubbed her thin waist.
The private room was warm and her coat was on the back of the chair. Right now, she only had a low-cut black sweater.
He lifted his head and used his lip to caress her chin. However, his eyes wandered downward, and then he smiled profoundly. "My Nata is so tired and she won't gain weight no matter how much she eats."
When she sat on his lap, Natalie did not have time to think about what he said or feel shy. Instead, that scene from the novel started playing in her head uncontrollably.
After a few seconds, she replied, reaching out her hands to cover his eyes, "Luke! Do you think you'll get full just from looking at me?"
"No." Luke pulled her hands that were covering his eyes away. He said, "You still need to feed me with your body when we go back later."
Then, he smiled as the woman looked at him shyly and angrily.
The restaurant was not far away from the club, so Luke brought Natalie for a walk after dinner.
The person who came out to welcome them was a young man that Natalie had not met before. However, she was not surprised as there were still a lot of people in his circle that she had not met.
The man was taller and steadier than Mark, and he looked like he was career-driven. He was good conversationalist and he knew how to act within the norms. "I've been waiting so long for your arrival, Luke."
He smiled and looked at Natalie. "This must be Natalie."
Natalie smiled softly and greeted him magnanimously.
After the man finished introducing himself, he said that he finally got to meet Natalie. If he was not so busy with the opening of his business, he would not miss the gathering yesterday.
"Those people were laughing at me just now. I'm the only one who hasn't met Luke's wife." The man said casually.
"Wife..."
Natalie's heart skipped a beat when she heard that. Then, her cheek started to turn red. She shifted her gaze and pretended to not understand.
On the contrary, Luke was pretty happy with that title. He placed one hand in his pocket and the other was holding Natalie's hand as they walked to the shooting club slowly. "Let's go, get her a CZ 512 to play with."
The man answered with a "yes" frankly.
Natalie coughed lowly and changed the topic, pretending as if nothing had happened. "I've never heard of 512. Are there any AK47 or something like that?"
"AKs have a strong recoil so you won't be able to aim well," Luke said, turning around with a grin. "You can play with it if you want, I will teach you step-by-step at most."
He turned his face and smiled obnoxiously.
When she saw his face, Natalie suddenly thought of that sentence, "Baby, if you don't pay attention, we'll do this until you shoot the bull's eye…"
"N-No, that one is fine." She stopped asking.
The shooting club had a "one person one room" system.
After a while, the man came in with a safety box and put it on the table. He then opened it for her to look over. "Natalie, look, this gun is good to go. I'll load a magazine for you."
It was brown in black leather, and the barrel was a little long, so it should be a rifle.
This was the first time Natalie came to a shooting club. She picked it up curiously and looked at it, she found that it was quite heavy.
The man went to talk to Luke again, and then he asked with interest, "Luke, say, why don't you prepare your marriage since you are in this age?"
Natalie watched them while holding the gun. As she heard that, she unconsciously slowed down her breathing.
Luke lifted his eyebrows and he made a smile to look at the girl who was fiddling with the gun. After that, he said slowly, "Shouldn't you ask Natalie this question?"
In that instance, her heart started racing.
In order to hide her blush and racing heart, Natalie suddenly turned around and aimed the gun at Luke's face.
The man let out a gasp.
"She dares to point the gun at Luke…"
Luke was slightly stunned and he lowered his eyes with a grin. After that, he lifted his hands above his head slowly and made a surrender gesture.