Chapter 436 I Will Not Let Go
If this had occurred in the past, she might have shown signs of softening by now, right?
Oliver was completely ignored. He spent the entire night without receiving a single word from Natalie. Even when he wanted to sleep in the master bedroom with Natalie, she seemed uninterested. She merely lay on her side of the bed, treating him as if he were not there.
She was like a pool of still water, devoid of emotions like blame, fear, tears, and accusations.
To Oliver, this version of Natalie was the most frightening; she was like someone who had lost her emotions and lost all zest for life. She became increasingly alienated from him. Although she was physically next to him, her heart seemed miles away.
Worried that she might not be able to sleep, Natalie took a sleeping pill. Even then, it took her half an hour before she finally succumbed to sleep. She only covered herself a little with the blanket, as though she was wary of any contact with him.
Oliver waited until he was certain her breathing had become regular and deep before he opened his eyes, turned toward her, and propped his head up to observe the woman lying next to him.
Her leg, encased in a plaster cast, necessitated that she lay flat, and the discomfort from her abdominal injury caused her eyebrows to knit together even in her sleep.
"Does it hurt a lot?" Oliver's whisper was so soft, it was barely audible. He extended his hand, carefully attempting to ease the tension between Natalie's brows.
Seemingly trapped in a nightmare, Natalie's frown deepened. She shook her head slightly as she murmured in her sleep.
Oliver leaned in closer, striving to understand her mumbled words.
"Don't… go… Oliver…"
"Don’t..."
"No!"
Her words faded into silence as tears began to stream down from the corners of her eyes. She shivered with fear.
Oliver froze, chilled to the bones, wishing he could slap some sense into himself. After a moment, he hugged her gently and stroked her arm to soothe her, careful to avoid her wounds as he said, “Don’t be scared. I’m here…”
Due to the numerous injuries on her body, Oliver could no longer smell her familiar scent. It had been replaced by the smell of medicinal ointment. This scent served as a constant reminder of his wrongdoings.
"Natalie, wake up."
She was still ensnared in her nightmare, prompting Oliver to attempt to rouse her.
Eventually, Natalie opened her eyes, her gaze landing on the familiar ceiling with a mix of confusion and relief. She recognized that she was not in that grim room with the unscrupulous men and cameras, nor was she in the ominous hospital ward, but rather in the master bedroom of Rosewood Estate.
"Did you have a nightmare?"
A familiar male voice reached her, imbued with the unique tenderness of the midnight silence.
Oliver watched as the woman turned to him, her eyes were devoid of emotions; there was no fear, panic, or reliance. If it were not for the tears clinging to her eyelashes, he might have wondered about the scene he had just witnessed a moment ago.
"What did you dream about?" Oliver wanted to kiss the tears from Natalie's eyes, but she turned her face away to avoid him.
Natalie hid most of her face with the blanket, attempting to shield her eyes from Oliver. "You wouldn’t want to know."
Oliver could vaguely guess what she had dreamed about.
She had reached out to him for help, but he was absent. Instead, it was Roger who came to her rescue.
Oliver left the bed to fetch Natalie a cup of warm water, offering it to her as he said gently, “Drink some water.”
Natalie hesitated briefly before taking a few sips. She then lay back down and swiftly returned to sleep.
Oliver poured away the remaining water, which contained a dissolved sleeping pill. He was aware that Natalie had taken one on her own. However, her sleep was still restless, plagued by nightmares.
"Natalie, I know what they did to you. Your harsh words won’t fool me. Goodnight, my love. I will never let you go.”
Gently removing the blanket from Natalie's face, Oliver tenderly kissed the tears from her cheeks, concluding with a kiss on her forehead.
…
Despite the effects of the sleeping pill, Natalie awoke early the next morning.
Oliver, impeccably dressed, was seated on a couch not far from the bed, reading his emails on his iPad. As if he had a second pair of eyes, the instant Natalie awakened, he set aside his earphones and iPad, approached her, and brushed the strands of hair away from her forehead.
"Why did you wake up so early?"
"Divorce," Natalie rasped, her voice still hoarse from sleep.
Upon hearing this, Oliver's expression darkened.
“I didn’t agree yesterday. What makes you think I’ll agree today?”
Natalie could not fathom what Oliver was clinging to. What could he possibly gain from maintaining this stance?
"Oliver, even if you don’t let me go now, I’ll leave as soon as my injuries are healed,” Natalie asserted, bolstering herself up, "If you want me to stay by your side, you’ll have to break my legs permanently."
Oliver carefully lifted her. Mindful of her fractured lower leg, he placed her in the wheelchair instead of risking further injury by carrying her. He then prepared the bathroom for her morning routine, providing her with toothpaste and mouthwash before handing her the toothbrush.
"Brush first. Breakfast is ready."
He behaved as though he had not heard her words.
Natalie closed her eyes, attempting to quell her irritation, and began brushing her teeth. She had said everything she needed to say, and there was no helping it if someone chose to be oblivious and unresponsive.
Oliver was familiar with Natalie's grooming routine, timing his assistance with the mouthwash perfectly to coincide with her needs.
However, when Natalie reached out to take the mouthwash herself, Oliver said, "Let me do it. You’re injured."
"I’m not so fragile," Natalie responded, her expression neutral.
"Just in case. Let me do it," Oliver said expressionlessly, holding the mouthwash to her lips.
Natalie did not want to argue with him and allowed him to do as he pleased.
Oliver proceeded to wash her face. He moistened a towel, squeezed out the excess water, and applied it to Natalie's face with such gentleness that she doubted he had cleaned her face adequately. Yet, after inspecting her reflection and noticing no apparent issues, she decided against voicing her concerns.
"Which one do you want to use?" Oliver inquired, gazing at the assortment of skincare and makeup products before him with bewilderment. It was an unfamiliar territory.
Natalie turned her head away, ignoring him. When she glanced back, she saw Oliver holding one of her skincare products in his right hand while consulting his phone with his left, trying to familiarize himself with each item. Within a moment, he accurately selected the moisturizing toner.
"Begin with this, followed by this, this, and then this, right?"
Oliver listed the sequence with confidence. He looked at her proudly, as though he was waiting for her to praise him.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
