Chapter 56

Xavier shook his head. “Mr. Garcia, I haven’t been able to find out where Ms. Shawn is living.”

Easton frowned. “How could that be? Shagrity is a big city, but I don’t think there are many people named Natalie Shawn! Why do you call her Ms. Shawn? Why not Mrs. Garcia?” he asked.

Xavier paused, confused. He was just following what Easton had instructed. “Mr. Garcia, didn’t you tell us not to call her Mrs. Garcia? We occasionally do so among ourselves,” he explained. “I saw a post from her the other day, where she said it was foolish to become small and lose oneself for loving someone.”

“Today I saw another post from her, where she said she had completely fallen in love with herself and that loving herself was happier than loving others,” he added.

Easton tightened his grip on his phone, suddenly realizing he had never seen Natalie’s posts and she must have blocked him.

A surge of anger washed over him. “Are you two friends?” Easton’s voice grew even more suppressed and chilling.

Xavier felt a chill run down his spine but forced himself to nod. “Yes, Ms. Shawn sometimes asks me when you’ll be back so she can prepare a late-night snack or dinner. But she never bothers me; she just asks about your schedule.”

In Xavier’s eyes, Natalie was truly a good girl and a good wife. Aside from being too cautious around Easton, she was usually spirited, confident, vibrant, and pretty.

“Mr. Garcia, to be honest, Ms. Shawn really cares for you. I’m not trying to speak ill of Ms. Simpson, but she has never done anything for you. She doesn’t seem to have prepared your meals; you always eat out,” Xavier said.

“Ms. Shawn has been carefully looking after your diet and daily needs all year round. Yet Ms. Simpson only wants you to take her out for fancy meals, just so she can flaunt it on social media. That’s the difference…” he continued.

“Enough! Don’t say any more. I don’t want to hear this,” Easton growled in frustration.

After Natalie left, he began to realize the significance of all the things she had done for him.

“Natalie was vicious; she could never compare to Jennifer,” he said.

If Jennifer had heard this, she might laugh at Easton’s stupidity.

Xavier sneered inwardly, ‘Still confident with your charm? In Ms. Shawn’s eyes, you’re a nobody now. And you think Jennifer is kind and gentle? Easton, you’re truly blind.’ He wanted to call Xavier an ungrateful bastard in front of the whole world and tell him to get lost.

With that thought, Xavier couldn’t hold back anymore. “Mr. Garcia, if you think so highly of Ms. Simpson, then stop being a hypocrite and leave Ms. Shawn alone. Don’t you know that the divorce is the end of your relationship?”

“Mr. Garcia, you were the one who pushed Ms. Shawn to divorce, yet you’re the one who refuses to let go. Don’t you find yourself unreasonable?” he scoffed.

Natalie had helped Xavier a lot, so he naturally sided with her. Easton’s beautiful neck seemed to be atop a stupid head, and Xavier thought it was too late for him to become smart.

In fact, Xavier felt helpless. He knew no matter how much he said, Easton wouldn’t listen. The beauty of certain relationships lies in their uncertainty. If one could foresee the outcome from the start, love would lose its charm. The relationship between Jennifer and Easton was just like that; and so was the relationship between Easton and Natalie. Jennifer was clingy to the one she loved, while Easton was unsure of his feelings. After marrying Natalie, Easton was still entangled in his relationship with Jennifer.

‘Oh, Easton, one day you’ll become the embodiment of an unfaithful lover; perhaps the cheaters will even award you for that,’ Xavier thought.

Easton glared at Xavier, his expression icy. “Xavier, focus on driving. What’s with all the unnecessary chatter?” he shouted in irritation.

Therefore, Xavier stopped talking.

Easton recalled the heart-wrenching sight of Natalie sitting on the stairs, crying, and he remembered her saying she had spent thirty million dollars finding herbs for him. His mood turned serious; at that time, he had been blind. But he didn’t understand why Natalie had lied to him.

Easton picked up his phone and called his grandmother, Anne. “Hello! Grandma, it’s me.”

“Oh, it’s you! I thought it was some ungrateful brat calling. What do you need from this old lady?” Anne said in a mocking tone.

Easton hesitated, unsure how to respond. Anne was quite discontent about his divorce; she had always liked Natalie.

“Grandma, I have a question. Was it really you who arranged for the doctors to treat me back then?” he asked.

Upon hearing this, Anne immediately understood he was doubting Natalie. She knew Natalie didn’t want him to find out the truth. But the reality was that Natalie had been the one to treat him.

“No, it wasn’t me. I was too busy trying to keep the Garcia family from going bankrupt to pay any attention to you. It was Natalie who saved you,” Anne replied.

“She knew you had feelings for Jennifer, and to spare you from feeling guilty, she didn’t let me tell you the truth,” she explained.

“Now, for that woman, you’ve pushed Natalie away. Just pretend you don’t know about this, and don’t go looking for her again; she won’t be happy to see you,” Anne sighed.

“I can only imagine that when Natalie sees you, thinking about how you’ve tortured her for Jennifer, she might feel that even the air around you is disgusting,” she added.

Easton remained silent on the line as Anne hung up. He tightened his grip on his phone.

“Xavier, pull over. Find out where Natalie is. I need to talk to her,” he demanded.

“Mr. Garcia, why don’t you just call her?” Xavier said this on purpose.

Easton froze, remembering that Natalie had already blocked him.

“You make the call,” he shot Xavier an icy glance.

Xavier was nervous. He turned on his signal, pulled over, and picked up his phone to call Natalie. After two attempts with no answer, he felt uneasy. Natalie wasn’t even picking up his calls now.

He turned to Easton, whose expression was frosty. Before Xavier could say anything, Easton shouted, “Locate her phone number!”

Xavier pulled out his phone again and traced Natalie’s location.

After a moment, he excitedly reported, “Mr. Garcia, Ms. Shawn’s phone is moving toward the outskirts of the city. Should we follow her?” Easton nodded, maintaining a nonchalant expression. “Let’s follow her.”

Valerie drove Natalie to the hot spring resort on the outskirts of town. When they parked, Natalie looked around at the surrounding mountains, and her mood lifted instantly. After they got out of the car, Valerie pulled the suitcase from the trunk.

“Natalie, let’s go! I made a reservation in advance,” she said happily.

“Okay!” Natalie looked up at the resort, taking in the sights.

The resort was nestled in a valley, and after some development, the scenery had become even more beautiful. Midway up the mountain, there were standalone hotel cottages. A gentle breeze rustled the flowers and trees, and occasionally, the cheerful songs of birds could be heard. Here, it felt like all worries could be forgotten, allowing one to fully enjoy the tranquility and harmony that nature offered.

“Well, Valerie, I absolutely love it here! Let’s hurry inside!” Natalie exclaimed, running ahead with happiness.