Natalie''s gaze looked cold, and for some inexplicable reason, Marcus felt a sudden panic rush over him. After a while, he finally spoke, his voice tinged with bitterness.


    "Natalie, I wasn''t threatening you, nor would I dare. I would also never do anything to Sophia. If anyone is to me for mistakenly identifying my savior, it should be


    me.


    "If, at the time you saved me, I had opened my eyes immediately and seen you clearly, I wouldn''t have been mistaken afterward. I regret it deeply, and I''m truly sorry. I just want you to give me a chance, especially since I rashly called off the engagement out of anger when I was drunk.


    "I owe you even more for that. If we can''t be fiancé and fiancée, can we at least be friends?


    "Natalie, I really want to apologize to you, and I want to properly say thank you. Is that okay?"


    Marcus deliberately lowered his baritone voice, making him sound a little pitiful. He had always been high and mighty, noble and elegant, but this was the first time he had lowered himself like this. It kind of gave him the look of a helpless


    little puppy.


    This stark contrast instantly struck a certain mischievous nerve buried deep within Natalie. She suddenly had the urge... to bully Marcus even more.


    "Fine then!" Natalie suppressed her urge to continue teasing Marcus and reluctantly agreed. "Let me make this clear first—since you said you wouldn''t trouble Sophia, you must keep your word."


    "Of course," Marcus replied with a smile. "I can guarantee that."


    At the end of the day, Sophia was also a pitiful person, and Marcus didn''t really need to make things difficult for her.


    But from this incident, he also realized that Natalie was someone who was stubborn on the outside but soft-hearted inside. In other words, she responded better to gentleness than force.


    "Sophia, you get some rest," Natalie said to her.


    "Alright, Ms. Walker. Thank you," Sophia expressed her gratitude again. "Shane should still be at the Walker residence. Ms. Walker, be careful of him-he''s one of Emma''s people.


    "If Emma hates you, she will definitelye after you again."


    Natalie nodded. "I know. Thank you for reminding me."


    "I''m sorry. I should have been honest with you from the beginning. But at that time, my mind was inplete chaos. I hesitated, feared everything, and in the end, I only trapped myself in a deeper pit.


    "I deserved it. But then, I met you, Natalie."


    By meeting Natalie, she ended up meeting a soft-hearted angel.


    "Alright! Get some rest now," Natalie said as she reached out and ruffled Sophia''s hair. Even though Sophia was older than her, she seemed so much weaker in front of her.


    From beginning to end, the only thing Sophia had truly done wrong was iming Natalie''s credit, but in reality, she had never actually truly harmed anyone.


    On the contrary, she had always been the one being bullied.


    If it weren''t for Marcus protecting her, Sophia probably would have been forced intomitting suicide long ago.


    At the end of the day, she was just another pitiful soul.


    Natalie and Marcus left Sophia''s room one after the other. After they stepped out, Marcus asked Natalie what she wanted to eat, and she just pointed to Goodwill Pharmacy''s kitchen.


    "Marcus, if you really want to treat me to a meal, why don''t you show some sincerity and personally cook for me?"


    "Sure." Marcus agreed without hesitation. He rolled up his sleeves and walked into the kitchen that Natalie pointed to.


    "What would you like to eat? Pick something," he said.


    "Hmm?" Natalie''s interest was piqued after hearing what he said. "You actually know how to cook?"


    "Yup."


    Marcus opened the fridge and took out some meat and vegetables. "How about some pan-fried steak, tomato soup, cucumber sd, and mashed potatoes with cayenne?"


    "Those are all home-cooked dishes!" Natalie was even more surprised upon hearing what was on the menu. "You really can cook?"


    He chuckled. "I really can. The fridge only has these ingredients. Even if I wanted to cook something else, wouldn''t be able to. I could ask Elijah to go buy more now, but I''m afraid you''d starve in the meantime.


    "Grab a chair and sit down. y your phone or something. If there''s anything you don''t eat, just tell me."


    Marcus'' tone had unwittingly softened slightly while he spoke. Apart from cooking for Charles, he had never cooked for anyone else before.


    Natalie was the first.


    He could tell that she responded better to gentleness rather than force, and if he wanted to get along with her, he couldn''t be too overbearing.


    Sometimes, it was even necessary to make himself seem a little more pitiful. For example, when cutting vegetablester, he might just "identally" cut himself.


    Natalie looked at him as if she were staring at a lunatic. Then, she remarked, "Marcus, could you act a little more realistically? Now that you know I saved your life, you''vepletely changed your attitude?"


    Marcus was at a loss for words. "Then, tell me what I should do to earn your forgiveness."


    "I never med you either," Natalie said with a slight tilt of her head. "Actually, you really don''t have to do this. Back then, whether it was you or someone else, I would''ve saved them regardless.


    "As for Mr. Holden Senior, you paid me, and I took the money. It was just a regr transaction. There''s no need for you to be so grateful to me. Marcus, you really don''t need to do all this."


    Just then, Marcus let out a pained hiss. The kitchen knife he was holding had "identally" cut his finger, and blood immediately began to ooze out.


    "How can you be so careless?" Natalie''s expression shifted to one of worry as she stepped forward and grabbed the kitchen knife from his hand, throwing it onto the chopping board. "Don''t you let anything


    happen to you in Goodwill


    Pharmacy! Otherwise, I''ll sue you for


    faking an injury to extort money!"


    She held his finger and swiftly ced it under the running water, letting the stream


    wash away the blood.


    Marcus simply stared at Natalie, who was furrowing her brows with a serious expression on her face.


    The hand grasping his was slender and fair, with neatly trimmed nails and a beautiful, faint pink hue.


    Natalie''s long hair was casually tied up into a bun, with a few loose strands brushing against his cheek. The faint scent of jasmines lingered around his nose


    too.


    "Marcus, are you stupid? Don''t you know you''re holding a kitchen knife in your hand? If you want to talk, then talk—why are you getting distracted?"


    Natalie chided him coldly while


    rinsing his finger under the running


    water. Then, after finishing, she


    pulled him out of the kitchen and straight into her office, grabbing the first aid kit and mming it open.


    "Endure the pain."


    Marcus said nothing. He simply let her grab the antiseptic solution, open it, and


    pour it directly onto his wound.


    At that, he let out a quiet gasp of pain, and he even trembled just the right amount. Before Natalie could speak, he immediately put on a strong front and said, "It doesn''t hurt. It really doesn''t hurt."


    "You deserve it if it does." Natalie sneered. "If you didn''t want to cook, just say so. Here I was, actually thinking you were a real chef."


    Once again, Marcus was at a loss for words on how to respond. "Natalie, I really can cook. I swear I can."


    He sat still as he let Natalie finish dressing his wound. "This was just an ident.


    I wasn''t careful."


    Standing up, he said, "I''ll go and cook right now."


    "You dare to cook, but I dare not eat it." Natalie pressed Marcus back down in his seat. "Who knows if you''ll add a few drops of your own blood or even chunks of your own flesh?"


    Marcus couldn''t help but chuckle softly at that. "I wouldn''t do that."


    But after all this fuss, the previously cold and distant atmosphere between them had eased up a little.