Married To My Billionaire Stepbrother - Chapter 78

Chapter 78: Desirable Man

Sephina stood fuming, her anger now directed at Albert. “Who is that man she married? How dare he insult us? And you, you support him?”

Albert remained quiet, choosing not to engage. “I need to sleep,” he muttered, his mind already set on sneaking out later to visit Natalie instead of wasting energy arguing with his stubborn wife. He needed to save his strength.

“Always the same excuse when you want to avoid my questions,” Sephina spat, frustrated by his silence.

Sephina turned to Jay. “What’s the name of her husband?”

Jay shrugged. “Mother, I don’t even remember. I didn’t bother looking at her marriage certificate.”

“Aiden Handrix,” Clara finally spoke up, breaking her silence. “I remember that name. It was on her marriage certificate, and I’ve seen his picture on it as well.”

“Aiden Handrix?” Sephina repeated, her teeth gritted in anger. “Jay, I want you to find out everything about him. Where he comes from, what he does—everything.”

“Did you see the clothes he was wearing, Mother?” Clara added. “They looked ordinary. What if he’s just faking that confidence to scare us? Poor people often know how to act well in front of the wealthy. If he were really someone important, we’d have heard of Aiden Handrix before.”

Sephina stayed silent for a moment, her thoughts swirling. “We’ll know soon enough once we investigate.”

But her senses were telling her that it was not an act the way Justin carried himself, that air of nobility—it was indeed inherent, making her wonder, what kind of a man her grand-daughter had even married.

—-

Natalie and Justin reached the hospital parking lot. Throughout the walk, Justin hadn’t let go of her hand, and Natalie didn’t have the heart to pull it back. His large palm wrapped around hers, radiating warmth and a sense of protection.

For the first time in her life, someone had held her hand with such care, and she found herself wishing she could hold onto that feeling a little longer.

“I’ll get the car. Stay here,” Justin said, letting go of her hand before walking toward his ordinary car.

She watched his retreating back, with a conflicted gaze with the new found feeling this man was igniting inside her. She looked at her hand that now lacked his warmth.

How I wish he’d kept holding it…

“Natalie?”

A familiar voice broke through her thoughts. She turned to see Briena and Ivan standing before her. She avoided Briena’s gaze but found herself looking at Ivan, who stared at her like a stranger.

Is this really the same Ivan I used to talk to when in Xyros? What changed him so much? Was I imagining it all—did he never really love me? What Justin said, was it right?

Sensing Natalie’s gaze lingering on Ivan, Briena tightened her grip on his hand, her voice falsely sweet. “Natalie, we came to visit Grandpa. How is he?”

“Go find out yourself,” Natalie replied impatiently, scanning the lot for Justin’s car. When she spotted it, she immediately turned to leave.

“Nat—” Briena started.

“Natalie, to you,” she corrected coldly, before walking to the car and slipping into the passenger seat.

“She still hates me,” Briena sighed, her voice feigned sadness.

Ivan comforted her, as she relished on wanting to protect a weak and innocent looking Briena, which he never get to do with Natalie, who never acted weak to give him such a chance. “Don’t pay attention to her.”

Briena’s eyes followed the car as it drove off. “That’s her husband again, isn’t it? Grandma wants to meet him, but I bet she’s too ashamed to introduce her poor husband to the family.”

Ivan’s gaze narrowed as he watched the car disappear. He was curious about the man Natalie had married, but seeing him drive such an ordinary car gave him a sense of superiority. There’s no way she could find anyone better than me, he thought, feeling reassured.

—–

Inside the car, Natalie was sitting silently while blankly staring outside the car. Justin had seen the way Natalie was looking at Ivan. Though it made him jealous, he decided to be understanding towards her.

“It’ll take time to get over him, especially seeing him with your sister,” Justin said, his voice firm as usual, with no hint of comfort. “You’ll be alright, especially when you have better people around you.”

She kept her gaze outside, her voice distant as she replied, “Better people? Are you talking about yourself?”

“There’s no one better than me you’ll ever find,” he stated confidently, his eyes fixed on the road.

Instead of feeling annoyed by his usual narcissism, a faint smile tugged at her lips. Despite being a stranger, and often infuriating, he had been there for her every time she needed help. She couldn’t deny that, at least for now, he was not just ‘better’ but the ‘best’ person around her.

“You played your role as my husband well,” she said after a pause. “You left them all speechless.”

“Role? I meant every word I said.”

“Which part exactly?”

“Which part do you want it to be?” he countered smoothly.

There was a brief silence before she asked, “Why are you being so good to me?”

“Maybe I’m just in the mood for charity,” his deep tone light but teasing.

“Quite generous with your charity, aren’t you?” she said, her smile growing.

“Hmm, letting you kill someone while I promise to take care of it—that’s generous.”

“I’ll look forward to more of your generosity, then.”

“Sure.”

Though their words were formal, the air between them had a relaxed, easy comfort. Natalie found herself smiling as she closed her eyes, not even bothering to ask where he was taking her.

The car eventually stopped, and when she opened her eyes, she found herself in front of her new office building. Surprised, she realized he had brought her exactly where she needed to be without even asking.

“Thank you,” she said softly and stepped out of the car.

He offered a curt nod and drove away.

She continued to stare at the car disappearing from her sight. What kind of a man he was, difficult to understand, yet so desirable.