Chapter 294: Sounds Good
Chapter 294: Sounds Good
Nathan smiled as he picked Crystal up. “You must be hungry,” he said. “I’ll take you downstairs. Nancy should have the tea and cake set out by now.”
Although Crystal’s legs still hurt, she could walk, but since Nathan insisted on carrying her, she saw no point in making a fuss about it.
As they descended the stairs, a thought occurred to Crystal, and she said, “A man who can weave braids must be a sissy or a homosexual. Isn’t that right?”
Nathan frowned. “Do you really think so?”
“I do,” Crystal replied. “That’s what my father always said.”
“I don’t think so.” Nathan smiled and said, “At least not in every instance. I, for example, learned how to do it so that I could do it for you. I thought that you would like it.”
Crystal did not say anything.
“This hairstyle suits you well,” Nathan continued. “I saw a woman with this hairstyle, and I wondered what it would look like on you, so I learned how to do it. Honestly, I thought that you would appreciate the effort...”
Am I going mad? - Nathan wondered. Before, when he saw a pretty woman, all that he could think about was having sex with her. Now, though, he had begun to pay more attention to women’s accessories, and when he saw something nice, he would think of Crystal. For example, if he saw a woman with a sexy dress, he would think - I wonder how Crystal would look wearing that... And if he was able, he would buy it for her.
****
Nathan sat Crystal down at the table, and when Nancy saw her braid, she said, “Crystal, you’ve got your hair done up in a braid. How beautiful! It really suits you.”
Crystal pursed her lips uneasily. She thought - It’s just a braid. Is it that big of a deal?
Nathan placed his hand on Crystal’s thigh and said, “You should learn from your friend’s honesty.”
Crystal coughed. “Do you two have to make such a big deal about everything?”
“What do you mean?” Nancy was puzzled.
“It was Nathan who did my hair,” Crystal replied. “Didn’t you know that?”
“What?” Nancy glanced up at Nathan. “Him?”
“How does it look?” Nathan was clearly in a good mood.
Nancy clapped her hands. “It looks great!” she exclaimed. “I am impressed! What a sweet and romantic gesture! Maybe you can do my hair one day!”
Nathan shrugged noncommittally. “Maybe...”
Crystal felt a headache coming on, and she rubbed her temples.
“He is so nice to you,” Nancy continued.
“You are hardly the greatest judge of character!” Crystal scoffed. “You said the same thing about Eric!”
“Did I?” Nancy thought about it for a moment, and then she said, “Maybe I was right on both accounts, maybe they are both good to you!”
“Or maybe they are both bad to me!” Crystal glared at her friend. “Did you ever think about that?!?!”
“Nathan and Eric are still both better than Paul,” Nancy argued.
“Do you have to keep bringing up Eric?” Nathan asked. “It’s killing the mood!”
Crystal raised her eyebrows and said, “In that case, I will have to mention him more often. He is my husband, after all, and in the future, he will be the one braiding my hair!”
Nathan’s pupils dilated, but he kept his anger in check. Instead of lashing out, he pressed a button on his watch, and Crystal’s voice could be heard saying, “I lied when I said I do not love you.
“Nathan!” Crystal shouted. “That is enough!”
Nathan shook his wrist and said, “If you bring up another subject that makes me uncomfortable, I will make you listen to the recording one hundred times!”
Nancy laughed. “That’s funny. You two are really a quarrelsome and loving couple - like Lucy and Ricky Ricardo from l Love Lucy!”
Crystal glared at her. “This isn’t funny. Nancy, you set me up.”
“No, I didn’t,” pleaded Nancy. “Don’t ever think that!”
“Then why are you talking and laughing so early in the morning?” Crystal asked angrily. “How much did you tell him about me?”
“I didn’t say anything about you,” Nancy cried. “He was just asking me questions about what it’s like to be a parent... I swear!”
Crystal took Nathan’s hand and said, “Since you get along so well with my friend, shouldn’t you do her a favor?”
“What can I do for her?” he asked.
Crystal smiled and said, “Her father was in a car accident, and he is in the hospital in Seattle. Her ex-husband is going to bring him to Kuerto, but she wants him to be with her. Will you help?”
“If you come home with me, I will help her and her father,” Nathan replied.
Crystal gritted her teeth. She knew that the cruise ship was now full of Nathan’s bodyguards. So, even if she didn’t agree to return with him, he would make her go with him. She forced herself to smile and said, “Alright, back home it is.”
“What a perfect choice.” Nancy was grinning from ear to ear. “Home is where the heart is, right? This is so great! If you don’t mind, Clark and I will come with you.”
Crystal nodded indifferently.
“Sounds good.” Nathan smiled and said, “Once we’re back, Crystal and I can get to work on making a bride for that boy of yours!”
Crystal glared at Nathan. “I said that I didn’t have children!” she shouted. “Are you planning to cheat on m -”
Nathan cut her sentence short with a passionate kiss. Sometimes he wanted to sew up Crystal’s mouth so that she couldn’t speak, but before he could do it, he always remembered how much he loved to kiss her.
****
Later that day, a series of videos were leaked to the press, and by the next morning, they had gone viral. The first video was the one that Crystal had taken from Clark’s watch. In it, Michelle was abusing the boy and refusing to feed him. The pièce de resistance was when she grabbed the boy’s arm and burned his hand with boiling water.
The world was shocked by these images, and once she was linked to Paul, the public was able to put two and two together, and they realized that he had been the one that had assaulted Nancy in the video from her wedding.
This theory was confirmed by the other videos that were released that day.
The second video contained an interview with Nancy. She was teary-eyed and pathetic-looking.
Nancy looked into the camera and said, “My ex-husband is a perverted maniac. He likes to chew on his socks, tie himself to a chair, and be abused. He’s a masochist, and the more masochistic he gets, the more excited he gets.”
She held up images of Paul tied to a chair in a frog pose, and then she continued: “His private life is very messy. He has numerous mistresses, one of whom he allowed to abuse our son, as you saw in the previous video.”
Suddenly, Nancy began to cry, and the screen went to black.
The next video was similar to the one before, except in this one, Crystal was reading a letter that Nancy had written: “Why do you all condemn me and beat me? I have done nothing to deserve it, and it is unbearable. If not for my son, I would not have come forward to explain. I would have just ended my life. I do not want to be a public figure, and I don’t want anyone’s sympathy. I just want you all to stop attacking me so that I can give my son the normal life that he deserves….”
