Addiction to Temptation: His Mischievous Sweetheart Captivates Him-Chapter 129: President Thorne Hospitalized After Drinking
Natalie Vaughn’s gloomy mood was considerably dispelled by Carter Chapman’s presence, and now she suddenly understood why Zane Thorne chose Carter to guide her.
Thinking about it carefully, among the people close to Zane, besides Caleb Lawson and Felix Langdon, most of them have a bit of a humorous nature, at least among the people she knows.
Is this what they call complementary personalities?
Natalie put down the wine glass in her hand and asked.
"How’s your driving these days?"
Carter paused for a moment, and upon confirming with Natalie that she had indeed heard about him from Zane, he was delighted.
"Not bad."
His words were laced with visible pride and arrogance. Natalie looked out at the still-falling rain and asked again.
"Can you drive in the rain?"
"Of course."
"Then take me for a drive."
Staying in this bar is rather dull.
Upon hearing this, Carter instinctively looked at Genevieve Joyce beside him. Seeing her frown as he did, he refused without thinking.
What would it look like if he drove Natalie around now? Zane would kill him.
"I’m afraid not."
Natalie withdrew her gaze from the window, raised an eyebrow, and silently looked at Carter, seeking a reasonable excuse.
Carter raised the wine glass in his hand.
"I’ve had too much to drink, not convenient."
Natalie suddenly let out a short laugh. No wonder he was taught by Zane Thorne; they speak the same way. Smiling, Natalie’s mood turned somber again.
She was annoyed at how she thought of Zane no matter what she did or heard. They’ve only known each other for how long exactly? A mere three months.
Undeniably, she and Zane had some kind of chemistry, which is why they got along so well. Perhaps that was also why she fell for him so quickly.
Natalie looked down and smiled silently. She picked up the wine glass and drank it all in one go—flip-flop, truly a fitting name, just like her capricious mood.
Sometimes she missed Zane’s goodness, sometimes annoyed at his questioning that day, sometimes regretted speaking out of turn, and sometimes resented how Zane left her in Veridia without taking the effort to coax her.
Suddenly Natalie wanted to get drunk. She had Genevieve and Carter sit down, then ordered a table full of drinks. Carter and Genevieve exchanged a wordless glance; it was clear Natalie intended to drink her sorrows away and have them accompany her.
Genevieve was a bit restless; if President Thorne found out he was drinking with Natalie in a bar, he might not only miss out on the year-end bonus, but even this job might be gone.
Perhaps because Genevieve was there, Natalie drank recklessly, showing signs of indulgence. Tilting her head back, she drank down a glass while observing Genevieve, who was somewhat uneasy, and snickered.
Her voice, thick with a lazy charm from the alcohol, carried a subtle and drifting tone.
"Assistant Joyce, drink up. What? You don’t want to drink with me? Or is it....."
Natalie reached out, a finger softly tracing the air near his chin, teasingly.
"Restless, need to call that jerk to report, huh."
Genevieve was indeed restless, especially with Natalie’s alluring eyes after drinking; he didn’t dare to look longer. After Natalie made that teasing gesture, he felt numbness creep up his chin, then all over his body—not from shyness, but fear.
If President Thorne found out his wife teased him, his life would be forfeit.
Thinking thus, Genevieve sprang up.
"Madam, drinking is bad for your health. You’ve had enough."
Natalie lifted the corner of her lip and asked.
"What now, you even want to control how much I drink?"
Genevieve was rendered speechless. He had no clue what had transpired between President Thorne and his wife, but he could feel the suppressed anger from both sides these days.
Clearly, they had quarreled, and as a mere assistant, he could only endure the misery.
"I wouldn’t dare."
Natalie let out a cold laugh, waved her hand dismissively at him, prompting Genevieve to quickly walk out and start reporting to Zane.
After teasing Genevieve, Natalie turned her attention to Carter.
"What’s your glasses’ prescription?"
Carter was baffled, but since it was the wife of his boss asking, he should answer truthfully.
"No prescription, I just like wearing glasses."
Natalie nodded as if she understood.
"Oh, so you’re just wearing them to look cool, huh."
Carter:...
Well, that’s not entirely incorrect.
"Then take them off and let me have a try; I also want to look cool."
Carter hesitated a bit, unsure of how intoxicated Natalie was. But she had ordered a table full of drinks, obviously having a high tolerance, and she’d only had two drinks so far.
So, Carter took off his glasses and handed them to Natalie. She took them, but instead of wearing them, she toyed with them absentmindedly, then curled her lips into a smile.
"You look much better without them."
Carter also felt restless.
Natalie was clearly moving in turns; after teasing Genevieve, she was now teasing him! No wonder his earlier attempts at flirting failed to pique her interest; her skill far surpassed his.
"Sis-in-law, please don’t, Zane would kill me."
Hearing Carter’s change in address, Natalie paused briefly, then smiled.
She figured Zane’s friends were all a bunch of peculiar, simple-hearted folks, just like Carter jokingly called her his teacher’s wife to amuse her.
Natalie eased up on the teasing, put the glasses on the table, composed herself, and asked.
"Why are you all so scared of him, one after another?"
Genevieve happened to come back and overheard this, silently answering in his mind: who wouldn’t be afraid of the boss who pays their salary?
However, Carter, after hearing the question, put his glasses back on leisurely, with a faint smile.
"It’s not fear, it’s respect. Zane’s quite exceptional."
Natalie fell silent. Of course, she knew Zane was exceptional; founding the GN Group wasn’t something just anyone could do.
She looked at Genevieve and asked.
"Finished reporting?"
Genevieve scratched his head awkwardly.
"President Thorne has been very busy lately, with lots of company matters piling up. He’s practically staying at the office every day, attending various gatherings; even someone with a high tolerance can’t handle it. It was Seraphina Sutton who answered, President Thorne’s other assistant. She said President Thorne is at the hospital today."
Natalie furrowed her brow deeply.
"What happened to him?"
"Drank too much, his stomach couldn’t handle it. This is an old problem of his."
Natalie’s heart skipped a beat.
"Doesn’t he know to drink less?"
With Zane’s temperament, if he didn’t want to drink, who could force him?
Genevieve thought the same; he truly didn’t understand. In past gatherings with President Thorne, he would only drink a few glasses occasionally if inclined.
Where would such a situation of drinking himself into the hospital come from now?
"I’m not sure either, President Thorne has been busy with The Thorne Group matters recently too."
Natalie was taken aback, suddenly recalling Phoebe Quinn’s words. President Thorne had appeared at the press conference, and it seemed he intended to gradually take over The Thorne Group.
So he’s been busy with matters of both companies recently? Natalie pulled out her phone, realizing her complaints were baseless; she had blocked Zane on WeChat and her phone. How could Zane, far in Astra City, coax her?
Natalie thought for a bit, then removed Zane’s number from the blacklist. After hesitating for a moment, she called Zane directly.
To her surprise, it was quickly connected, and a familiar deep, sexy voice came through.
"Natalie?"
Natalie paused, suddenly looked up at Genevieve, and saw him touching his nose guiltily.
What nonsense, she had actually been deceived by Genevieve.
This time she hung up the phone without any hesitation.
Genevieve:...
Zane:...
