The Promise of Happiness novel Atalie and Samuel

Samuel glanced at Natalie briefly with a meaningful look in his eyes. With his lips slightly raised, he

said, “Ms. Nichols, your vigilance is truly over-the-top. However, what are you afraid of? Are you

worried that I’d want something from you?” Natalie was feeling extremely uncomfortable under his

gaze. The man’s eyes were focused on her face as if he was trying to stare right through her soul.

Finally, she understood why he was rumored to be an immensely dominant and difficult-to-deal-with

man. None of the people who were once targeted by Samuel was able to escape from his clutches. It

wasn’t that she didn’t take him seriously before this, but she simply didn’t want to be associated with

such a dangerous person in any way. At that moment, Gavin came in and reported, “Sir, the meal is

ready.” Samuel’s lips were slightly curved upward when he said, “Ms. Nichols, let’s dine together. Have

a taste of my chef’s work.” Natalie didn’t try to reject, merely following Samuel into the dining hall to

have their meal. The dining table was laden with all sorts of delicacies. Right after she took her seat,

she began digging in. Although she was pleasantly surprised by the chef’s cooking, she still managed

to control herself while she ate. Thus, she survived the session without any incident. Right as she was

almost done with her food, Samuel’s phone began vibrating. “Please excuse me,” he said. “Go ahead.”

When Samuel left, Natalie was finally able to relax for a bit. I can’t believe I managed to finish the meal without Samuel making things unnecessarily difficult for me. Could it be possible that I was the one who was being too paranoid? Did I really think of him too badly? She was just about to finish her food

when she felt something cool and soft on her calf all of a sudden. What the hell? Natalie looked

downward, only to see a snow-white snake twirling itself around her calf, slowly inching its way up her

leg. Its eyes were clear and amber-colored, and it kept flicking its tongue from time to time. Natalie was

unlike Yara, who grew up in the city. Before she turned nineteen, Natalie had been living in the

countryside. There would always be snakes in the fields and rivers, so she wasn’t afraid of the snake.

She had even caught snakes for fun with her childhood friends back then. However, when she came to

the city, she rarely had the chance to see snakes anymore. She put down her fork and pried the little

fellow that was wrapped around her leg off herself before lifting it right in front of her face. Then, she

caressed the snake’s head gently while saying, “Hello, little guy. You look special. Are you an albino?”

She was planning to take the snake home with her if it didn’t have an owner. Xavian would love to keep

it as a pet. “You’re not afraid of Moony?” A childish voice could be heard. “M-Moony?” Natalie’s sight

shifted from Moony to a little boy, who was standing at the door of the dining hall. The little boy had

pretty looks, and his dark eyes were fixed intently on her. His good looks were even comparable with

that of Xavian and Clayton’s. Upon closer observation, she noticed that the little boy looked somewhat

similar to Xavian and Clayton. Maybe it was because of this similarity that made her smile slightly. She

took Moony in her hand and walked toward Franklin before squatting down in front of him. “Is this

snake yours? It’s cute!” Natalie was smiling when she looked into the little boy’s dark eyes. “Is its name

Moony?” The little boy pursed his lips and snorted. “You’re unattractive, but you’re rather brave. At

least you’re better than those women who screamed when they saw Moony.” “Here. I’ll return it back to

you.” Natalie placed Moony on Franklin’s small palms. Franklin snorted again, never once averting his

eyes from her face. “I called you unattractive just now. Why are you not mad at me?” As Natalie had a

hyper-realistic mask on her face to make her appear ugly, she wasn’t the slightest bit bothered by the

little boy’s harsh words. “Well, it’s a fact that I’m unattractive. Therefore, there’s no reason for me to be

mad about it.” She rubbed Franklin’s head, which was bristly because of his short hair, while she

spoke. “Moreover, I’m already ugly. Won’t it just make me uglier if I still get angry about it?” Franklin

was already five years old. Still, his head had never been touched by anyone other than his

grandfather. His father had never touched him, whereas others wouldn’t even dare to think about it.

Even the woman who gave birth to him would be frightened by a few words from him. Thus, she would

never approach him. An indescribable warmth surged in the boy’s chest when Natalie caressed his

head. It was a feeling he had never experienced before. “Y-You…” He clenched his little fists. “Hmm?

What is it?” Natalie paused her action before lifting her head to look at the boy, who seemed to be

struggling with something. “Woman, you touched my head! You’ll have to take responsibility.” Franklin

stared straight into her eyes as he spoke. “Be my woman from now on. I swear that I’ll take care of you

to the best of my abilities for the rest of my life. No one will dare to bully you!” “Pfft!” Natalie couldn’t

stop herself from letting out a snort. This little fellow is only about the same age as Clayton and Xavian, yet he confessed his feelings to me just like that? What was funny was that the little boy was so

adorable, yet he said something so domineering like he was the president of a company. The contrast

was so jarring that she couldn’t stop herself from laughing. “Why are you laughing?” Franklin puffed up

his cheeks and stared at her in all seriousness. “There aren’t a lot of women who can meet my

standards. You’re the first. Since both Moony and I find you acceptable, you should stay by my side

from today onward.” Natalie could just imagine how enraged this child’s father would be if he were to

hear this. While she was in the middle of her thoughts, a tall and lean figure came in from the living

room. The man’s eyes were stern and frosty as he called out, “Franklin Bowers.”