Filed to story: The Return Novel (Natalie & Bryce) PDF Read Online Free >>
Bryce leaned against the doorframe as he drank his water, watching Natalie cook. He wondered what kind of person Liam’s real father must be to reject a fine woman like Natalie. Then he reminded himself that his arrangement with Natalie was just a formal contract. What did her past have to do with him, really?
A weak laugh escaped Bryce’s lips, startling Natalie. She looked up and saw Bryce standing at the door. While her attention was distracted, the knife she was holding nicked her finger.
“Ouch,” Natalie exclaimed softly. She looked down at her finger and saw that it was bleeding. Bryce strode across and grabbed her hand, putting it under the flow of cold water from the faucet.
He said, “When did you learn to be so careless?” He looked sideways at her, annoyed.
Natalie scoffed, “Me, careless? It’s the middle of the night, and you creep up on me without saying anything. How could I not be startled when you make a sound? It’s your fault. It has nothing to do with me being careless.”
Bryce grunted. Seeing that the bleeding continued, he ushered her across the hall to the living room, where he sat her down on the sofa. He put a towel underneath her hand to soak up the blood and then said, “Stay right here. Don’t move.”
He went to the room next door and returned a short while later with a medical kit. Natalie had been fuming with annoyance, but when Bryce picked up her hand and carefully disinfected it, her anger vanished in an instant. She let him disinfect her wound, looking closely at the expression of concentration on his face as he bent over her hand. His face was quite close to hers. Looking at him, Natalie thought that Bryce was actually a pretty handsome guy. Compared to Tony Bovel’s fine features, Bryce’s face had a craggier look, but it was more distinguished and interesting. Somehow, the real difference between the two men was that Bryce often emitted an aura of unapproachability that made people reluctant to look directly at him. Natalie felt strange thinking about Bryce like this, and a slight flush of embarrassment crept across her face.
After disinfecting the cut on her hand, Bryce took out a piece of gauze and wrapped it around her finger. In doing so, he accidentally touched the wound, causing Natalie to exclaim breathily, “Please, be more gentle with me, Bryce. Gently.”
She looked at him with an air of grievance. Bryce frowned, and his face darkened for a moment, then he began to patiently bind the wound again.
Mrs. Perkins, who had heard the slight commotion as Bryce and Natalie had crossed the hallway earlier, had just reached the living room door when she heard Natalie’s soft exclamation. Mrs. Perkins froze, having immediately jumped to the wrong conclusion, imagining that Bryce and Natalie were in the throes of passion. Mrs. Perkins withdrew the hand with which she had been about to knock on the door. She thought, well, they are husband and wife after all, so it’s normal for something like this to happen between them. Awkwardness suddenly flooded into Mrs. Perkins’s mind, and she retreated from the door and returned to her bed.
Bryce eventually finished bandaging Natalie’s finger. He looked down at his clumsy handiwork and frowned. He’d made a bit of a mess of it; the bandage was uneven and lumpy.
He said, “There, it’s done.” Then, with a touch of déjà vu, he added, “Keep that dry for the next few days.” He realized that it was only the other night that he had bandaged up her leg. Ugh, she was accident-prone, that was for sure.
Natalie raised her hand and looked at the dressing. It was only a small wound, but now it looked like she had broken all of her fingers and had a major dressing applied. She couldn’t help but laugh, but she was still touched by Bryce’s kindness. Her face softened a little, and she said, “Thank you.”
At that same moment, her stomach growled again. If Bryce hadn’t startled her, she would have already finished her meal and been in bed by now. She looked at Bryce in amusement and said, “I’m still very hungry. You interrupted me with your creeping around, remember?”
A feeling of sympathy blossomed in Bryce’s heart. He said, “Wait here,” then stood up and went to the kitchen. Through the doorway, Natalie saw him put on the apron she’d been using. Could it be that this man knew how to cook? If he could, then why did he drink water every night to assuage his hunger?
Not long later, Bryce put a bowl of plain pasta in front of Natalie, saying, “Here, eat.”
Natalie looked at the pasta quizzically. Bryce immediately twitched his mouth and said sarcastically, “I only serve pasta. Don’t you like pasta?”
Seeing that Bryce was irritated, Natalie started to eat, saying, “There’s absolutely nothing that I won’t eat. I guess I was just surprised to see that you’ve taken the trouble to cook for me.”
Bryce raised his eyebrows but didn’t say anything. He was still a bit affronted. Seeing him like this, Natalie lowered her head and finished the pasta. It was actually pretty tasty. Somehow, she found herself wondering if this was the first time Bryce had cooked for a woman. When this thought occurred to her, she couldn’t help but wonder if it was true. Then she noticed Bryce’s stern face looking at her and quickly retracted her gaze. Natalie regretted that she had had such a thought and quickly dismissed it.