Sebastian felt dejected. How could she deprive him of the right to kiss her?
He had just leaned on Natalie’s shoulder but didn’t do anything to offend her.
They had made out countless times in the past, and she had never resisted it. ‘What’s with the sudden change in her attitude?’
He couldn’t figure out what was on her mind.
Natalie came out of her room during dinner. A faint smile graced her face, but it was not as genuine as a few days ago.
Sebastian felt upset and confused. The growing distance made him uncomfortable.
Later that night, he called Garrett. The phone rang several times before it got connected.
“I’m busy right now. What’s the matter? Can’t you check the time before calling me?” Garrett grunted in frustration. He could hear the wind from the other end of the line and assumed Sebastian was standing on the balcony.
“I have something to ask you. After that, you can carry on with whatever you’re busy doing.” Sebastian was standing on the balcony with a bottle of beer. His dark eyes stared into the distance.
The apartment was near the beach. The salty air filled his nostrils. It was refreshing, yet the confusion seemed to gnaw his heart.
“Fine. Go ahead. You just got married, and it’s making all of us restless. Gosh, it’s annoying.” Garrett scratched his hair as his desire to have sex died in an instant. He patted the woman on his bed and listened to what Sebastian had to say.
After listening to the entire story, Garrett burst out laughing.
“Congratulations! Your wife cares about you too.”
The frown on Sebastian’s face deepened. He became even more confused.
“I don’t quite get it. Explain what you mean clearly.” He took a sip of the beer and stared blankly at the sea of lights in a distance.
Garrett shook his head and narrowed his eyes. “I think you deserve it. You are married, but you still behave like a bachelor. It’s appalling that you don’t even understand a woman’s behavior. Listen to me. Your wife just told you that some men are making advances at her. A normal husband would get jealous and ask questions about these men, but you just waved it off. You didn’t show care. What do you expect her to think? She’s unhappy because of your nonchalance. She thinks you don’t care about her. Doesn’t her unhappiness show that she cares about you and how you feel about her? Dude, you need to learn how to interpret the signals women give!”
Everything dawned on Sebastian at this moment. He leaned against the railing and smiled brightly. His side profile was so handsome.
It gladdened his heart to know that this was why she was displeased.
“I just hope that she can ask Brandon for help when necessary. That means they have to become close first. What should I do now?”
After pondering for a while, Garrett replied, “Well, you can’t possibly get jealous of yourself. In the end, you would at least prove to your wife that you genuinely love her. I’m sure she would be happy when her feelings are reciprocated. I’m not supposed to be teaching you this. Your relationship with her is hopeless if you can’t do it without any help. Man up!”
In a low voice, he continued, “You have turned me into your marriage counselor. I’m helping you build your marriage for free, but you will reap all the benefits in the end.”
Garrett knew Sebastian well. He saw him as an opportunist right from their high school days.
Sebastian chuckled and waved his hand playfully. “What are friends for? Anyway, I will give it a try.”
“Keeping secrets can cause a strain and even destroy a marriage. You can’t just keep her in the dark forever. When are you going to reveal your true identity to her?” Garrett asked seriously.
Sebastian was silent for a moment.
“You have a point there, Garrett. But I can’t tell her just yet,” he finally replied.
“Why? Are you afraid that she will be in danger? I have to admit that your family is a mess. Even I am wary of them.” Garrett tut-tutted with a fake shiver.
“How is the task I gave you coming along? Hope you are monitoring them well?” Sebastian stared down at the beer bottle in his hand.
The cold night wind blew. The trees swayed from side to side and their leaves rustled. At this time, the clouds darkened. It indicated that there would be a heavy downpour soon.
“Your two brothers? Nothing is up with them. They haven’t done anything suspicious recently. But you have to be wary of your father. He always keeps a close watch on us. It seems like he’s smelling something fishy and we would be found out if care is not taken.”
“Okay, I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Are you really not going to tell her the truth? I think you owe her that, buddy,” Garrett queried further.
He felt that the problem would be easier to solve if Sebastian opened up to his wife soon. ‘Two heads are better than one. There’s nothing like having the support of your wife.’ He felt this way because Sebastian had been trying to solve this problem for a long time. If he wanted to come clean only after he took care of everything, it would take quite a while.
“No, I don’t want her to get involved in this matter. I’m still at loggerheads with my family. They already know that I married her. Sebastian’s just an illegitimate child to them and they don’t take me seriously. Things would become harder for her and she would be in grave danger if I reveal my identity to her and officially make her Mrs. Larson. I don’t want her to be caught in the middle before I solve the matter about my mother,” Sebastian responded calmly.
He closed his eyes for a while and then opened them again. The wind blew back the separate dark wisp of hair, revealing his shiny forehead.
“Okay, I get it. I won’t bring up that topic again.” Garrett sighed.
Afterward, he said with a giggle, “I wish you can win the beauty’s heart as soon as possible. I’m rooting for you!”
“Thank you. You can have a long vacation once I succeed.” Sebastian chuckled. His eyes were void of any coldness at this moment.
He opened the glass door and entered the room. As soon as he shut the door, the sound of the howling wind and rustling leaves was no more. The lights in the room had already been turned off, and the moon was covered by clouds. Only the dim light of street lamps outside flooded into the room.
Sebastian put down his phone and lay on the sofa. He was lost in thought for a long time before he dozed off.
The sound of cooking utensils clunking together in the kitchen woke him up the next morning.
He stood up and stretched his body. While yawning, he looked at the kitchen with misty eyes.
A woman was standing there in a thin and long white dress that covered her legs down to her ankles. He stared at her in a daze for a long time.
“Sebastian, don’t stand here. You’re in my way,” Natalie said in a lukewarm tone, blinking her big watery eyes.
