Chapter 541 Oliver, What Am I to You?
Holding a card inscribed with a little story, he gently caressed it between his fingers.
He had thought himself the sole decoder of the tales' secrets, yet Natalie had unearthed them too. The difference, however, laid in his complete lack of interest in hunting for the treasure—he hated walking.
Locating five nearby would suffice; that count wouldn't be shameful.
Eventually, Lucas and Natalie secured the top two spots in points for the event, with Leonard trailing at third.
A murmur of admiration rippled through the crowd, acknowledging Natalie and Lucas's quick wits. While they were competitive, winning or losing didn't seem all that critical to them.
Before, everyone was too engrossed in the hunt for treasure chests to care about their contents.
Ethan nonchalantly opened his and swore under his breath—an earth-shattering "Damn!"
The onlookers peered into the chests to find oddities: a plucked and bagged chicken, sanitized and sealed.
Silent glances exchanged as others revealed more surprises: leeks, codfish, rice, tomatoes, eggs, and beef.
"You're not seriously expecting us to hawk this stuff, are you?" Mia, seasoned in the world of reality shows, was cautious. She's seen enough outlandish challenges where guests would be tasked to upsell regular veggies at ludicrous prices.
"Of course not, Mia is overthinking it," the organizer assured.
Relieved sighs followed. The idea of vending produce was a nightmare. They hadn't even shopped for groceries before!
"These ingredients are for the participants to prepare their own dinner," the organizer explained, "part of a challenge to cultivate life skills among couples and partners."
A collective look of bewilderment spread among the culinary novices.
"What are you talking about?"
"Who's cooking?"
The event had booked a grand ancient castle, equipped with enough space and amenities for thirty people—including a kitchen per couple, eliminating any excuse to dodge the evening's cooking task.
The kitchens downstairs were in chaos, filled with the smell of scorched cookery.
Only Natalie seemed to handle her domain with ease. She divided her ingredients into two portions, one for herself and one set aside for Oliver, who leaned against the doorframe.
"Mr. Windsor," Natalie said, a touch of irritation in her voice, "this batch is yours—cook it yourself."
Oliver frowned in confusion, "Why?"
She didn't even want to be at this camp, had run into the last person she wished to see—Susan—and now Oliver was inexplicably snapping at her! Others envied her smarts, but Oliver chose to vent at her!
Cook for him? In his dreams!
Natalie set the washed vegetables aside to drain and turned back, leaning against the kitchen counter.
"Why?" Oliver asked.
"I used to cook for you because I was your wife. What’s the reason now?" Natalie's voice rose with frustration, "Even Barrett pays Cadence ten thousand dollars a day."
She got nothing but grief, while Cadence and Barrett seemed so chummy.
Oliver finally got it and said with a nonchalant face. "Then I'll give you a hundred thousand dollars a day."
He thought ten thousand a day was a slap in the face for Natalie, whose standards for money were way too low.
Actually, half a million a day sounded fine.
"Oliver!" Natalie, infuriated, grabbed a bunch of greens and tossed them his way, "What do you take me for? Something you can buy with money? You thought the same during the divorce. I know you're loaded; no need to flaunt it in my face! I'm not that kind of woman!"
"Natalie, you were the one who cared about money most," Oliver said as he bent down to pick up the greens and placed them back in the basket.
He towered over her, looking down from his height advantage with an intimidating presence.
Caught off-guard, Natalie paused for a half second then, feeling awkward, she lowered her head and turned back to start chopping the vegetables as if nothing happened.
The more she had spoken, the angrier and more incoherent she became.
She just... just hated how Oliver equated their past with money, widening the already vast gap between them.
To anyone looking in, she'd seem like a woman who married Oliver for money, and now, post-divorce, was looking to squeeze some out of him.
But she wasn't.
She initially married him to honor her family's wishes.
Taking care of him was part of her commitment as his wife, a commitment that was once driven by the love she felt for him.
But Oliver, he just didn't get it. Did he think he could make amends with money, or did he believe that everything could be settled with a transaction, expecting her to treat him now as she did before?
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