Chapter 552 Sharing The Same Space
A subtle smile lingered in Oliver's eyes. “Average.”
“Pfft!” Natalie playfully rolled her eyes, but couldn't hide a trace of pride. “I won first place in the singing competition when I was a kid.”
She should have gone on to the nationals, but the Watson family insisted that she step aside for Hailey, who ended up not even managing a third-place finish nationally – just a consolation prize for participation.
Oliver's eyebrows gave the smallest of lifts.
“Oliver.” Natalie suddenly paused mid-stride, twirling the pastries in her hand.
“Hmm?”
They were already on the way back, the alley scarcely populated. Under the desolate night sky, a dim streetlight illuminated the space behind the man, with stars and a crescent moon above.
Natalie hadn't felt such a tranquil air between her and Oliver in ages.
With a fluttering heart, she asked, "Are we...are we okay now?"
Oliver's pupils involuntarily constricted, a flicker of joy sweeping through his eyes.
He stared intently at Natalie, his gaze profound.
After a moment, his voice was rough with hopeful anticipation as he asked, "What do you mean by okay?"
"Just friends," Natalie said. "If we can't be lovers, we can still be friends, right?"
The light in Oliver's eyes abruptly dimmed and his face turned cold as he retorted, "Friends?"
"Yeah."
"Naive!"
How could ex-lovers remain friends? If they could, it only meant the love was never deep enough.
Such a thing could never happen to him!
He thought Natalie had come to a realization, but it was just his wishful thinking!
Oliver strode past her, his tall frame disappearing from Natalie's view in seconds.
"What's his problem now?" Natalie fumed, punching the air in the direction Oliver had gone.
Still feeling unsatisfied, she landed another air punch before heading towards the castle.
She half-expected to bump into Oliver after a short walk, but even upon entering the castle, she didn't catch a glimpse of him.
"Natalie, did you come back alone?" asked Lilian, who had been waiting in the castle for both Natalie and Oliver.
"Hasn't Oliver returned?" Natalie was surprised.
Lilian nodded.
Lucas, nonchalantly chiming in, said, "He's no spring chicken; he won't get lost. Sis, what's in your hand?"
His comment successfully shifted Natalie's focus.
"It's pastries I bought for you guys, the shop was really crowded." Natalie set the box on the coffee table and told Lucas, "Take some over to Cadence and Mia."
"You're the best, Natalie!" Lilian hugged her and kissed her cheek before grabbing a pastry to munch on, cheerfully heading out to share the rest.
Oliver, just arriving at the entrance of the house, caught this interaction, his brows furrowed.
He hadn't kissed Natalie in a long time.
Hearing footsteps, Natalie turned to see Oliver come in and asked with surprise, "How come you're behind me?"
Oliver glared at her and headed back to his room.
Was he about to confess? Perhaps after a few steps, he worried about leaving Natalie behind . But too proud to admit it, he hid around a corner and waited for her to pass so he could follow discreetly.
It sounded downright creepy.
"Ugh!" Natalie rolled her eyes in exasperation.
The room was spacious and lavish, comparable to the presidential suite of a five-star hotel.
Despite the quaint exterior of the house, it boasted all the modern amenities one could wish for.
As Natalie entered the room, Oliver was already in the shower, the frosted glass only partially concealing the vague silhouette of a figure, and the sound of water running set a suggestive tone.
A sense of heat crept up Natalie's cheeks, and she suddenly had a bad feeling.
She quickly walked around the screen to the other side where the bed was.
Just one vintage-looking bed.
Only one!
This was a nightmare.
When Oliver came out, he found Natalie with a despondent look, sitting on the sofa, staring blankly at the large bed. He didn't need to guess what was on her mind.
He rarely saw this expression on Natalie's face and found it amusing, a playful smile flickering in his eyes.
"Hey! Why do you keep coming out half-dressed?" she asked, lifting her eyes to see Oliver with a bare chest, wrapped only in a towel around his hips, revealing a chiseled eight-pack and Adonis belt disappearing beneath the towel. Droplets of water rolled down his muscular chest, slipping into the crevices where the towel met his skin. Below were his long legs, barefoot on the carpet.
Natalie felt her face flush but managed to keep her composure.
"You've seen more; what's there to be shy about?" Oliver said, turning his back to her to dry his hair.
This angle was even more alluring; his broad back, perfectly defined muscles, and narrow waist...
"I'm going to shower," Natalie said, picking up her clothes and rushing into the bathroom.
What did he mean by "you've seen more"?
Did he think I wanted to see?
And was our relationship the same then as it is now?
So what if he has a good body? Isn't that common?
The sound of water once again filled the bathroom.
Natalie gradually calmed her embarrassment and fell into despondency - tonight was going to be so awkward.
If the two of us were still giving each other the cold shoulder like a month ago, I might actually find it easier to deal with. After all, if we ignored each other or even exchanged barbs, at least it would clear the air.
There's something oddly satisfying about a good spat compared to the awkwardness, especially when that awkwardness hides a hint of flirtation you can't quite catch.
Natalie lingered in the bathroom, reluctant to leave. She indulged in a hair mask during her lengthy shampoo, took her time in the shower, and even applied essential oils after blow-drying her hair. She finished her leisurely routine with makeup removal, a facial cleanse, and skin care before eventually stepping out, having run out of things to do.
Oliver sat on the bed, a tablet in his left hand, periodically swiping the screen with his right, seemingly busy with work. He lounged against the headboard, with one knee bent and without a blanket on, exuding an air reminiscent of a nobleman from a bygone era.
Hearing Natalie emerge, Oliver glanced at the time before looking up and commenting, "Two hours, forty-eight minutes, and thirty-six seconds – impressive." The word "impressive" came out crisp and clear but flat, carrying an undercurrent of sarcasm.
He added, "Had you stayed any longer, I would've started to wonder if you were bedding down in there for the night."
Natalie was speechless.
Instead, she just rolled her eyes, not in the mood to bicker with the ill-tempered gent.
She turned to rummage through the dresser, only to discover, to her dismay, there was not a single spare blanket!
Oliver watched her search the room with an amused gaze, quickly shifting his focus back to the tablet as she turned around so he could feign preoccupation.
"Oliver, isn't there a spare blanket around here?" Natalie inquired.
He looked up, feigning ignorance.
Natalie stubbornly searched again but found nothing. By the time she returned to the bed, Oliver had neatly arranged the bedding for himself.
The blanket was large, with Oliver only using half and leaving the rest on the other side of the capacious bed.
"Aren't you sleeping? If not, turn off the lights," Oliver said as he set down the tablet and lay back.
His comment came off as, "I don't care if you sleep, just turn off the lights so you don't disturb my rest."
"We're... sharing the bed?" Natalie hesitated, standing at the edge of the bed.
Oliver closed his eyes as if still peeved about the absurd annoyance they endured in the old town, "If you don't want to sleep, don't. I'm not the one who's tired."
Nights in Silvercrest were usually chilly, around the low sixties, and forgoing a blanket would certainly lead to a cold.
"Oliver, don't you think this is... strange?" she questioned him.
Where else do divorced couples casually share a bed?
Oliver didn't open his eyes, as if he hadn't quite grasped what she meant, and muttered, "You ran around all day, and now you're not sleeping in the middle of the night. Yeah, that's pretty odd."
“I have a feeling you're poking fun at me, but I can't prove it.”
Natalie took a shallow breath, trying to calm herself with some inner pep talk:
Since he didn't make a big deal out of it, fussing about it would just seem overly dramatic.
She slipped off her shoes, crawled onto the foot of the bed, and made her way to her side since Oliver had left her the inner half.
Suddenly, Oliver turned over, his long leg hooking inadvertently, and catching Natalie's leg just right, tumbling her forward.
Her cheek collided with the solid muscle of his thigh, nose and lips grazing against him.
The first thing she felt was how odd it was.
At the same time, she heard him hiss sharply, obviously sucking in a breath from the pain.
"Natalie, we can talk about this," Oliver said, his voice strained, clearly hurt.
Realizing what had happened, Natalie propped herself up, head on collision with his gaze, her cheeks blushing fiercely from the heat.
The embarrassment was overwhelming, and this was it!
"I didn't mean to..." She saw Oliver's pained expression and swallowed her words of defense, asking guiltily, "That...does it...hurt a lot?"
"What do you think?" Oliver replied tersely, clearly not in a good mood from the bump.
How would I know? Natalie thought bitterly but didn't dare say out loud - she feared Oliver might lose it and lash out at her.
"It was an accident, and you’re partly to blame too. If you hadn’t lifted your foot and tripped me, I wouldn’t have fallen...you know..."
"Are you saying I did it on purpose?" Oliver scoffed.
If she hadn't hurt Oliver, Natalie might have indeed suspected that.
But he couldn't be foolish enough to hurt himself just to play a prank on her.
Right?
It definitely wasn't on purpose!
"I already said it was an accident! I’m sorry, OK?"
The more she spoke, the more guilty Natalie felt, quickly burrowing under the covers, worried that Oliver might get so upset with her that he wouldn't even let her use the blanket. All her previous concerns slipped away momentarily.
Oliver gritted his teeth, waiting for his irritation to subside.
Truth be told, he had done it on purpose.
He wanted Natalie to fall on him.
However, Oliver had never anticipated that Natalie would bump him just so!
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
