Caught Him Cheating My Life Restarted (Natalie) novel Chapter 283

"My older brother was the one raised to be the heir. I never knew how to run a corporation. When he had his accident and I was suddenly put in charge, I was terrified of letting him down. All I wanted was to protect the Cross Group, but I neglected you. I poured all my energy into the company and didn't save any for you."

Natalie stared at Darren, trying to see through him.

"I thought you belonged to me, that you would never leave. I was wrong. I never realized how painful it is when you can't win someone's affection, and that eventually, they give up. Just like you gave up on me."

Darren's tone was sincere, but to Natalie, it was just a joke. His acting skills were getting better and better. To think she had been played for a fool—so this is what it felt like.

"Why did you ask me here today, to this specific place?"

Natalie remained cold and distant. If she was going to watch a play, she might as well see it through to the end. See what he was really up to.

"Something that shouldn't have happened almost occurred here, which made you misunderstand me.

I was too proud. I was the one who made a mistake, but I didn't even apologize. Instead, I got angry that you didn't trust me.

'You love me so much, why don't you trust me?'

But how could anyone trust me in that situation? Now, I just want to explain everything to you properly.

That day, Marie and I did not sleep together. I was set up, but thankfully, your arrival stopped it from happening.

I chose not to explain back then partly because I felt that as my wife, you should trust me unconditionally, but also because telling the truth would have had a negative impact on my mother and Marie.

My first instinct was to protect my mom and Marie, to shield them from gossip and harm.

So that's how it was.

His own mother had set him up, and on their wedding anniversary, no less.

She could even imagine how they would have used this against her later to kick her out, claiming Darren had been with Marie on their anniversary. The thought of that pain made her skin crawl.

She even suspected that Marie had deliberately touched Darren's leg with her foot under the table that day, just to arouse her suspicion and lead her to discover their "secret."

Now, the truth of what happened didn't matter anymore.

After all, when everything came to light, his only concern was protecting his family. His family consisted of his mother and Marie. She was the one he had chosen to abandon. So what was the point of this explanation now?