Addiction to Temptation: His Mischievous Sweetheart Captivates Him-Chapter 154: I Was Looking for Your Cigarettes

Chapter 154: Chapter 154: I Was Looking for Your Cigarettes

When Natalie Vaughn finished eating the lamb leg, she realized that the people who had come to celebrate her birthday had all disappeared; only she and Zane Thorne remained in the yard.

After eating and drinking her fill, Natalie Vaughn leaned against Zane Thorne.

"Where did everyone go? It’s so nice outside."

The bonfire was burning, so it wasn’t cold, and the occasional breeze helped alleviate the heat from the fire.

Zane Thorne lowered his head, pecked her lips, and his eyebrows arched.

"What do you think?"

They naturally didn’t like seeing them so intimate, but it also meant to give the couple some space to spend time together.

Looking at the somewhat desolate night sky, Natalie’s heart calmed down.

"When are you leaving?"

Zane Thorne’s action of gently patting her back paused for a moment, but then he resumed his original pace.

"Staying with you one more day."

Natalie Vaughn wrinkled her nose, her voice low.

"But I have to film."

She had already taken today off, and it was impossible to request another day off tomorrow; the crew couldn’t afford any delays.

"I know."

Natalie looked up at Zane, a bit surprised. She thought with his usual temperament, he’d encourage her to rest another day. Not because he wanted her company, but out of concern for her health.

He chuckled softly a few times, sighed helplessly, and then, as if venting, pinched Natalie’s earlobe until it turned red.

"I’m worried about you. If I tell you not to film, will you actually listen? Do you think I don’t know your temperament, Natalie Vaughn?"

Despite looking delicate, she had a determined spirit. She intended to push forward with the filming schedule and wouldn’t allow herself to be absent for two consecutive days.

He knew it all too well.

But knowing is one thing, feeling heartache is another. He knew better than anyone how rough he was last night, and how bad Natalie felt.

However, Zane Thorne hadn’t thought about how Natalie would tackle the wire scenes tomorrow, especially given such a challenging action sequence in the whole drama.

If he knew, he certainly wouldn’t have agreed to let Natalie overextend herself.

During the latter half of the birthday party, somehow it turned into a card game.

Genevieve Joyce was on one side, Jim Archer on another, Zoe Chandler on another, and Natalie Vaughn on hers. But more accurately, it was Natalie and Zane’s side.

Exhausted and not very skilled at cards, Natalie mostly held the cards in her hand, like a soulless doll, while letting Zane guide her hand to play.

Eventually, Natalie got too lazy to even hold her cards and let Zane sit in for her while she rested on a soft divan nearby.

But Zane wouldn’t allow it, and it ended with Natalie resting on his lap while he leisurely played cards.

The other three: ...

Genevieve: We have to put up with the boss and the lady boss’s public display of affection.

Jim: How can the young miss sleep so soundly in this situation?

Zoe: No wonder it’s Natalie Vaughn, but her man is too good at playing cards! Why is a regular employee giving money to a wealthy person like a fool?

The thoughts of those at the table varied.

In his youth, Zane Thorne frequented various scenes, participating in countless card games. At the age of eighteen, he even made a trip to Zentara, planning to learn something but ended up winning tens of millions on his first go.

As a result, he became unbeatable in card games, and over time, no one wanted to play with him. The final winner was always Zane; it got boring.

Zane wasn’t particularly interested, just accompanying Natalie. Now, with Natalie quietly asleep on his lap, his interest was piqued.

It was his first time playing cards while holding Natalie; he found it quite interesting.

However, after a while, Zane felt the urge to smoke. During his hospital stay, he couldn’t smoke because Seraphina Sutton was always nagging Natalie, and now he was here, sticking close to Natalie. He’d only sneak a cigarette when she wasn’t around.

Natalie knew Zane so well that even with just a subtle movement, she could tell his craving was back. Moments ago, when her eyes were shut tight, she’d now opened them to grab his hand.

Zane looked down to see Natalie’s eyes still hazy but not tightly shut.

"You want to smoke again?"

Zane acknowledged without denying it. Natalie sat up straight and began searching his pockets, determined to find his cigarettes and throw them away.

"You just had one, no more now."

Still drowsy, Natalie’s hands were fumbling around on Zane’s body. Unable to find his cigarettes, she inadvertently ignited a fire in him.

His body instantly tensed, his previously languid expression vanished. He quickly grabbed Natalie’s hand, his voice tense and hoarse.

"What are you groping for?"

Meeting Zane’s eyes smoldering with a dark flame, her heart skipped a beat, realizing why he was reacting this way. Seriously? She only touched him a few times and he was already worked up?

"I’m looking for your cigarettes."

Zane held onto Natalie’s hand, unwilling to let go.

"They’re not here."

"You’re not allowed to smoke."

"Alright."

Even though he resisted earlier, now the craving was unbearable. Natalie’s touch had only heightened his tension, and Zane wasn’t looking too pleased.

The three others at the table, one being Zane’s assistant of several years, naturally picked up on his mood changes, and the other two were smart enough not to look up, keeping their eyes fixed on their cards.

Natalie felt more awake, watching the cards in Zane’s hand while sitting on his lap.

"Why do you have such good luck?"

Earlier, when she was drawing cards, she hadn’t gotten such a strong hand.

While she spoke, she adjusted her posture several times on Zane’s lap, which rekindled the fire in him that he had tried hard to suppress.

Natalie could feel the muscles in Zane’s legs tense and his body temperature rising; before she could ask, Zane picked her up and quickly set her in his seat, then stood up and walked away without a word.

Genevieve and the other two stayed silent, observing without expression, while Natalie finally understood Zane’s reaction.

She couldn’t help it; she burst into laughter.

The other three: ...

After a brief nap, Natalie felt refreshed and finally focused on the card game.

But her skills were lacking, and despite Zane giving her such a good hand earlier, she still played terribly, losing all the chips Zane had won in under half an hour.

Zoe Chandler raised her eyebrows.

"Nina, you should have taken over earlier."

Natalie detected the teasing in her tone and simply smiled.

"Opportunities come and go, Ms. Chandler, make the most of them."

For Natalie, it wasn’t about the money; she was happy on her birthday, and losing some cash was fine.

Zoe didn’t hold back, and within another half hour, Natalie was heavily in the red.

Seeing the other three enjoying their wins, Natalie finally ended the card game, not because of the money, but because she couldn’t stand losing continuously.

It was getting late, and after the group broke up, each found their form of entertainment while Natalie went upstairs to find Zane.

Zane was in the same media room where she’d been resting earlier, watching a classic film with the sound off, half-reclining as he talked on the phone.

At the sound of her entry, Zane spoke softly into the phone, then hung up, motioning for Natalie to come over.

She obediently sat in his lap.

"Done playing?"

"Yeah, lost all the money you won."

Unbothered, Zane let out a laugh; he knew Natalie’s card skills meant she’d only end up losing.

Natalie’s nose twitched, not detecting any cigarette smell on Zane. It seemed he had listened to her and resisted smoking. Unable to smoke, he must have channeled his restlessness into work.

Suddenly, Natalie thought of something and grabbed Zane’s left hand.