Chapter 609 Foolish Natalie
In his mind, Oliver figured it wasn't just likely that Natalie would want to hit Lucas—he would too, and without any doubt.
"Please, won't you?" Lilian worried about her new boyfriend's well-being.
"Are you planning to keep this from her forever?"
"You should ask Lucas." It wasn't her who was in danger of getting hit, after all.
An idea struck Oliver, and he asked, "What's in it for me if I keep your secret?"
"What do you want in exchange for my silence?" Lilian felt like her cousin had set a trap for her to fall into.
"From now on, you take my side in matters concerning Natalie and me."
"How can I do that? What if you're mean to Natalie?" Lilian shook her head without a moment's hesitation.
"Would I mistreat my own wife?" Oliver asked, his eyes betraying a hint of coldness.
To Lilian, who was not in on the secret, she thought, 'Natalie isn't your wife right now!'
But considering the safety of her new boyfriend's "life" and her strong desire to make Natalie her sister-in-law once again, Lilian agreed to Oliver's terms.
"Then what about my engagement to Morris?"
"Be honest with your parents. If you can't say it, have Lucas do it."
"Is Lucas up for it?"
“If he can't handle that much, how can he expect to marry you? He might as well dream on."
The organizer arranged for three cars: one for Natalie and Oliver with their bodyguards, another for Lilian and Lucas with theirs, and a third for the rest of the group.
Lucas stood by the car, his gaze lingering on the door, waiting for Lilian to get in.
Natalie felt sleepy but couldn't doze off. She caught sight of Lucas not far away and asked, "Lucas, are you feeling okay?"
He shook his head, wrestling with his thoughts before approaching Natalie. "Sis, when do you think it's okay for me to date?"
Natalie's sleepiness vanished as she asked seriously, "Do you have a girl you like?"
"No way!" Lucas gave a dismissive laugh and waved his hand, brushing off the very notion. "You know the major I’m studying in college. Where would I even find a girl?"
The ratio in Lucas's major was about four guys to one girl.
Natalie squinted at Lucas, suspicious.
"Hey Sis, you haven't answered my question yet," Lucas said. "Can you at least give me a hint, so I'm prepared, you know?"
"What's there to prepare for?" Natalie replied. "If you like someone, just go for it. You're in college now, and I'm not going to stop you. But you've got to be careful... you know, as a guy, you can't mess around. If you really like a girl, you need to treat her with respect."
Natalie paused for a moment. "You get what I'm saying, right?"
"Yeah, I get it," Lucas mumbled, clenching his hands at his sides. Last night's impromptu decision felt risky in hindsight.
Feeling a pang of guilt, Lucas felt even guiltier after his sister's words.
Oblivious to Lucas's subtle discomfort, Natalie continued, "Good, as long as you understand that. And if you ever do something you shouldn't, I won't let you off easy."
Lucas swallowed hard, feeling the chill of his sister's potential wrath. Grateful for his own foresight in agreeing with Lilian to keep things from Natalie for now, he also worried about how he would eventually explain things to her.
"So, Sis, do you have any preferences about who I should date?" Lucas prodded, wondering, for instance, if his date couldn't be, say, her sister-in-law?
"Why would I have requirements? It's your girlfriend, not mine," Natalie said, finding the question absurd. She wasn't the type to be overly conservative.
Oliver and Lilian walked by side by side.
Lilian looked ecstatic, chatting joyously with Oliver as if she'd just heard great news.
Spotting Lucas, her smile widened as she bounded over to him.
In stark contrast to Lilian's cheerful face was Oliver's demeanor.
He usually appeared cool and detached but maintained a gentlemanly facade as long as he wasn't provoked. Right now, however, his face was a mask of coldness.
Before getting into the car, Oliver gave Lucas a meaningful glance.
Lucas shifted uncomfortably, feeling as if he had been read like an open book.
"Why were you glaring at Lucas earlier?" Natalie asked Oliver as they got into the car.
Oliver looked at Natalie as if she were hopelessly naïve and said nothing.
Not getting a response, Natalie didn't pursue the matter. After all, it wasn't unusual for Oliver and Lucas to be at odds with each other.
Oliver waited for a moment, but when Natalie didn't continue the conversation, his already sour mood darkened further.
"Liliana came to see me and mentioned she's thinking of breaking off her engagement," Oliver initiated with a slight sense of duty.
"It makes sense. If she doesn't like the fella from the Holder family, calling it quits is a logical step," Natalie pondered, surprised by the girl's sudden rebellion.
"She's got a crush," he revealed.
Natalie, who was on the brink of dozing off, woke with a start and sat upright, "Who?"
Oliver's lips curled in satisfaction with her reaction and engagement. He delighted in having Natalie's full attention and conversation revolve around him.
"Missed a word there—thinking. She's thinking of falling in love."
Having promised Liliana to keep it a secret, and considering the leverage he needed from her, Oliver was naturally not going to spill the beans to Natalie.
"Jeez, you scared me!" Natalie sighed in relief. "Lil is a bit naive. You should look out for her as her brother."
"Handle my own love life first, then worry about her?" Oliver scoffed.
Natalie shot him an awkward glance, uncertain if he was dismissive of caring for Liliana or just disdainful of his own romantic entanglements.
Indeed, if they were confused about their own affairs, how could they advise others?
"Lucas also brought up romance with me," Natalie said, tilting her head back and closing her eyes with a murmur, "Do you think they had some heart-to-heart last night? It's curious how they're in sync, both bringing up this topic."
"You don't suspect they're planning on getting together?" Oliver teased.
"No way, Lucas wouldn’t make that move, and Lilian wouldn't hide it from me because..."
Her voice trailed off until it disappeared.
Oliver, catching only the word "because," looked closely and realized Natalie had drifted off to sleep.
After a rough night, Natalie’s stamina wasn’t the best to begin with, and the shock had pushed her into exhaustion.
Suppressing his laughter, Oliver whispered affectionately, "Not a chance, huh? Silly Natalie, my silly darling."
“Not only is there a chance, but those two are planning to keep it a secret with my help.”
"Trust them to pull one over on someone as trusting as you!"
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