"Okay, Marcus?" Natalie looked at him without blinking, gently hooking his pinky with hers. Without caring that Walter was right there, she used her other hand to tug lightly on Marcus'' tie.


    He lowered his head toward her. Natalie leaned close to his ear and whispered something, and in the next second, Marcus'' ears turned red.


    "Okay, I''ll talk to my grandpa. But you have to be careful, no matter what," he said, pressing his forehead to hers. Then, he turned to Walter. "Mr. Watson, I''ll have to trouble you to apany Nat to the arcade. If anything happens, please make sure she''s safe. I''ll give you a generous reward—or if you have any request, you can tell me directly,"


    Walter nodded calmly. "Alright. I will."


    "Thank you," Marcus said, lowering his head to kiss Natalie gently on the forehead. "Promise me. No matter what happens, you''ll put your safety first. No matter what happens after, I''ll take care of it."


    "I will," Natalie replied, tilting her head up. Marcus leaned in, and she kissed the corner of his lips, then reached up and pinched his ear. "Remember what you said. Once this is all over, you''re proposing to me."


    "I will."


    The two were being openly affectionate, not caring in the slightest about Walter''s presence. Or perhaps they did care and were doing it on purpose for him to see. Walter lowered his gaze and looked away from the scene.


    Marcus left the Langley residence soon after. Once his car had pulled away, Natalie turned to Walter. "Sorry. Marcus gets insecure easily, so I spoil him a bit more."


    "Nat, you don''t need to exin anything to me," Walter replied with a bitter smile. "Seeing you happy makes me happier than anyone else."


    "Walter, you like me, don''t you?" Natalie''s tone was certain, her expression calm. She had always been honest with him-never one to keep things bottled up.


    "You saw through me," Walter said bitterly. "Sorry if I caused you trouble."


    "Walter, we grew up together. More than anyone, I want you to be happy. But feelings don''t always follow rules or timelines.


    "Back then, I had Tyler as my fiancé, so you kept your distance. Later, after I broke off the engagement, you still didn''t take that step. And now that I''m with Marcus, there''s even less of a possibility between us.


    "Walter, I''ve always seen you as an older brother. I truly hope you find your own happiness someday. I may not be the right person for you, but I''ll always be the best sister you''ll ever have. I''ll always be someone you can count on.


    "You''ve always held an important ce in my heart—and you always will."


    "Nat, you''re not even giving me a sliver of a dream to hold on to," Walter said, walking over to the window. "You''re right-I do like you. But I didn''t dare act on it. "Back then, you had Tyler, and I was afraid that confessing would put you in a difficult position. Later, when Selena returned to the Langley family and you broke off your engagement with Tyler, you were always so busy with work. I still didn''t speak up because I knew you weren''t someone who''d jump into a new rtionship just to forget thest.


    "For you to be moved enough and enter a new rtionship, it''d have to be with someone truly great. I wasn''t sure I was that person."


    His eyes turned red as he spoke. "I''m an orphan. You''re the real daughter of the Walker family who was switched at birth. Even if I''ve made something of myself now, I still don''t belong to your world.


    "You never looked down on me but I looked down on myself. Nat, you''ve always been honest with me. But I haven''t been honest or confident with you.


    "At first, I really didn''t like Marcus. In fact, I hated him. But deep down, I also envied him. He''s the heir to the Holden family. The Walkers and the Holdens have been close for generations. If you hadn''t been switched at birth, the one engaged to him from the start would''ve been you, not Emma.


    "You broke off the engagement but still ended up with him. That only proves you were meant to be.


    "Nat, I missed my chance with you,


    didn''t I?" Walter''s eyes were


    But Natalie had been too honest with him-so honest that she could openly show affection to Marcus in front of him, so honest she couldy it all bare, so honest that she told him she would always be his family.


    And those words were the warmest thing in Walter''s entire life. He was an orphan, and it was little Natalie who had brought him home and used her pocket money to raise him. Everything he had now was thanks to her. He had no right to have any impure thoughts about her.


    "Nat, I should''ve been just as honest with you. Now that it''s all out in the open, can we still be friends?"


    "Of course," Natalie said sincerely. "Walter, I never said that just because I have a boyfriend—or you might have a girlfriend our rtionship has to end. You like me because I''m a good person. And if we never became lovers, it only means those feelings weren''t meant to be.


    "I''m someone worth liking and so are you. I like you, just not in a romantic way. I''ll always see you as my brother.


    "I trust you, just like I trust Marcus. Your ce in my heart isn''t below his but I do favor Marcus a little more because he''s the one who''ll be by my side for life.


    "I''ll share a bed with him. I''ll have children with him. He''ll be the first face I see in the morning and thest one I say goodnight to at night.


    "I''ll have a beautiful love story," Natalie said, the corners of her mouth lifting into a soft smile. "And Walter, so will you."


    Walter''s eyes were still red. He stared at Natalie, and as he watched her, tears finally fell. He wiped them away and spoke again, his voice slightly choked. "Yeah, I''ll have that kind of love too. I''ll have a wonderful wife.


    "Nat, if you meet someone great in the future, remember to introduce her to me."


    "Of course. Definitely." Natalie let out a smallugh. "Now, can we head to the arcade?"


    "Yeah, let''s go. I''ll protect you," Walter said, wiping away thest of his tears. He reached into his pocket and handed her a bar of chocte.


    "Marcus gave me this earlier. He said it''s your favorite brand. It''s hard to find. He practically gave the business to Lincoln for free, just so he could build factories across the country under your name. That way, no matter what city you''re in, you''ll always be able to eat this


    chocte."


    Walter forced a bitter smile. "See, that''s where I can''tpete with Marcus. That


    damn guy and his money. If I were a woman, I''d fall for it too."