Chapter 217

Natalie watched as Murray suddenly ran off when she was about to say something.

Murray said, "Natalie, I think Lambert is right. I’ll come find you tomorrow and we’ll go on a date. But tonight I have something important to do, so be careful on your way home.”

With that, he dashed off with a cheeky smile, his good mood obvious from his retreating figure.

Natalie shook her head, realizing Murray had misunderstood. Lambert was always causing misunderstandings.

Natalie felt helpless, not noticing the dark figure approaching behind her.

She hung up, put her phone back in her bag, and looked up. Her gaze suddenly darkened as she caught a familiar scent.

After spending two years together, she was all too familiar with this scent.

She quickly turned around to face Easton’s intense eyes. His gaze was so fierce, it seemed like he wanted to tear her apart.

Natalie took a fearful step back. She had seen Easton like this in her previous life–he was out for blood.

She swallowed hard and thought, ‘Surely, is he planning to kill me?’

“You… how did you…” Before Natalie could finish speaking, Easton’s iron grip grabbed her hand tightly.

Natalie’s eyes widened as she tried to pull away, but she couldn’t break free.

His hand felt very hot, the searing heat spreading through her body and making her heart shudder.

Easton glared at her with intense anger. “Come back with me.” His words were straightforward, without any unnecessary talk. Natalie gave him a cold glance. “Easton, aren’t you afraid Jennifer will get jealous if I go back with you?”

“Her jealousy isn’t my problem.” He had been kind to Jennifer because she had saved him from a fire, but now he knew it was Natalie who saved him, not her. All of Jennifer’s goodness and favors were already taken advantage of.

Natalie was surprised as she looked at him, feeling deeply wronged. “How can this have nothing to do with you? You blindly believed her and joined the Simpson family in bullying me? How is that unrelated to you?”

Easton didn’t deny it because he didn’t like Natalie; he only felt gratitude towards her. He didn’t know how to love since no one had ever explained to him what love truly was.

But after two years together, he still didn’t understand his own feelings.

“You were pretty unlucky back then, too. I saw it with my own eyes every time,” Easton said, his deep eyes showing regret.

Easton continued, “Back then, my company was really busy. You know I had just taken over the Garcia Group, and it was quite chaotic with lots of issues every day…”

“Stop it, Easton. That’s no excuse for you to bully me.” Natalie interrupted him coldly, her voice becoming even quieter.

Easton just looked at her without saying a word.

Natalie looked at her wrist being held; it was painful and hot. She hated this kind of touch. "Easton, I’m telling you again. Let go of me.”

“I already told you, come back with me. You’re still my wife, and I won’t tolerate you being with another man. I can’t afford that humiliation,” Easton said firmly.

Easton dragged her towards the car. Natalie was strong, but there was a clear difference in strength between them.

She was no match for Easton. She was pulled along by him, stumbling into the car.

Easton swung open the car door and lifted Natalie, placing her inside. She had no strength to resist; Easton’s strength was overwhelming.

Jennifer came downstairs and saw Easton dragging Natalie into the car and driving away. Her eyes were filled with hate, and she thought, ‘Easton, why don’t you love me anymore?’

She had created so many chances, staged so many “accidents,” constantly testing Easton’s boundaries. At this moment, she suddenly felt she had gone too far, become too addicted to her act, and now Easton wouldn’t believe her anymore.

She could no longer control Easton. Easton, on the other hand, seemed to consider Natalie very important.

Jennifer was furious, thinking, ‘Is it really true that the tighter I try to hold onto something, the easier it is to lose it?”

“No way, Easton, you’re my stepping stone and my bargaining chip. I absolutely can’t hand you over.” Jennifer, her eyes filled with hatred, asked Oliver to pick her up, and she went straight to Easton’s villa.

Easton wanted to take Natalie home; that could only mean one place.

Once in the car, Natalie stopped struggling. She couldn’t escape now anyway, and it would only leave her bruised. Once they got home, she’d have her chance to get away.

Easton was a mysterious man. In her past life, she had always followed him, watching him take down competitors one by one. His aura was a mix of different qualities, especially his inscrutability, making him impossible to read.

Throughout both lives, she never fully understood Easton.

Easton was quite pleased when he saw her behave and not cause a fuss.

“You’ve been having fun outside for over half a year. It’s time to come home.” Easton’s voice was deep and emotionless, stating the facts.

Xavier felt like cursing at Easton. He thought, ‘Couldn’t he just show a bit of softness? Is it really that hard to be a little gentle?’

Easton’s mindset was fit for a lifelong bachelor, not for marriage. Natalie ignored him; talking to him was truly exhausting. He was the one who told her to leave, and then he was changing his mind.

Seeing her silence, Easton frowned. “Natalie, you used to be so agreeable and understanding…”

Natalie said, “That’s because I loved you back then, and I hoped the Simpsons would have some feelings for me. But now, without any expectations or hope, who would stick around to be bullied and treated like a maid?"

“Jennifer said it right—I was your unpaid maid, but now I don’t want to do it anymore. None of you can do anything to make me.”

Easton rubbed his temples in frustration. “Why would you think like that…?”

Easton wanted to say something but stopped. The damage was done, and no amount of words could change that. The hurt was real. He closed his mouth and didn’t speak, and the car fell silent.

As the city night became more bustling with neon lights flashing by, Natalie felt a wave of loneliness.

Easton glanced sideways, seeing Natalie as if she belonged to a different era, feeling so distant. In that moment, Natalie seemed out of reach to him.

Chapter 217

Forty minutes later, the car drove into the villa’s driveway.

After getting out, Xavier gave Easton an encouraging look, clearly telling him, “Don’t lose your wife again."

Easton didn’t say anything as he leaned in to help Natalie out of the car.

Seeing they were back at the old villa, Natalie laughed bitterly—this was the last place she wanted to be.

This was the new house Easton had bought for Jennifer as a wedding gift. Natalie had lived here for two years without knowing. Now, every visit pained her deeply.

She said, “Easton, how long are you going to keep humiliating me? This was meant for you and Jennifer, and I lived here for two years. Wasn’t that enough? Now you bring me back here just to insult me again?”

Easton frowned, looking at the villa in front of him. “Back then, I thought I would marry her. But didn’t I end up not marrying her?”

He said, “Now she won’t be coming here anymore. I’ve changed the password. It is the last six digits of your ID number.”

Natalie was a bit surprised. She thought, ‘Can he really remember my ID number?’