Fake Mate Beta Rises to Alpha Heiress (Natalie and Landon) novel Chapter 85

Chapter 85 Unexpected

Chapter 85 Unexpected

Landon’s POV:

Sitting solo in a fancy restaurant, I gulped down half a bottle of red wine in one swig.

As I gazed at the phone with the call ended, my disappointment was palpable.

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In hindsight, I’d fallen short with Natalie over the past couple of years. She’d always been dying to celebrate Valentine’s Day, yet each year, I’d been with Aaliyah and Nathan.

When Natalie crossed my mind, I ought to have been mad, but there was this hollow ache in my chest, a nagging sadness I couldn’t shake.

Was it the sense of losing control? Or was it that I just couldn’t be stone-cold to her?

I stuck around until the restaurant shut down, completely plastered.

Aaliyah’s POV:

By the time I got to the restaurant, there he was, passed out at the table.

“Landon…” I mumbled.

I’d been trying to reach Landon all night, but he didn’t answer. The waiter finally picked up the last call and told me he was drunk.

As soon as I got the address, I hightailed it over.

“Sorry. I shouldn’t have put you through this,” I whispered.

All the anger and frustration I’d been holding in vanished when I saw him in such a mess.

When I first met Landon, he was just a young guy, but he was already so grown-up and charming. Landon was always so careful in everything he did and never let his emotions run wild.

Getting drunk in a restaurant was way below his standards.

The faint tear streaks on his face showed he was at his limit because of us.

The more I thought about it, the sorrier I felt. With the staff’s help, I got him into the car.

As I watched Landon slumped in the passenger seat, I frowned and gently ran my hand over

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Chapter 85 Unexpected

his face.

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Just as I was about to give him a peck on the lips, I heard him mutter, “Natalie… don’t do this to

me…”

Landon suddenly grabbed my hand and pulled me close, but all he kept saying was Natalie’s

name!

I was stunned, and it felt like my heart had been stabbed. The pain was killing me.

It took me forever to snap back to reality. Then I pushed him away hard and yelled, “Landon! Have you grown feelings for her?”

But Landon was so drunk he just kept calling for Natalie, “Natalie, forgive me…”

“You…”

I was so mad I couldn’t hold it in. I slapped Landon across the face and stormed out of the car.

Natalie’s POV:

I’d been lingering in the restaurant for what felt like an eternity. Finally, the waiter approached me with an apologetic look, reminding me that it was time to close. Peering out of the window, I noticed that most of the city lights had already turned off, and the night was as black as pitch.

It was already 11:30. Leonardo still hadn’t made an appearance.

I kept staring at the message he’d sent two and a half hours ago. It simply said there was an unexpected problem that would make him late. After that, there had been complete radio silence.

When I tried calling him, there was no answer.

Was I being stood up?

As I glanced at the exquisitely wrapped gift on the adjacent seat, a wave of inexpressible disappointment washed over me. Ours was just a marriage of convenience. It was only natural for Leonardo to have more pressing matters and ditch our date. But perhaps because it was Valentine’s Day, I’d somehow developed these baseless hopes.

Right at midnight, I returned to my cold apartment. A pang of hunger hit me, and I was about to quickly whip up something to eat when my phone suddenly rang-it was Leonardo.

“Are

you home? I saw the restaurant had shut down,” he said. His voice sounded a bit anxious, and his breathing was heavy, as if he’d just engaged in some intense physical activity, nothing

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Chapter 85 Unexpected

like his usual composed self.

:

“Mr. Sanchez, didn’t I text you that I’d gone back already?” I asked, taken aback.

“Didn’t see the message. I’m outside your door now,” he replied.

My heart skipped a beat, and I hastened to open the door.

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There Leonardo was. The sight of him outside made me catch my breath. There was a bandage on his forehead, and there were slight bruises on his cheeks and the corner of his mouth. Under his expensive overcoat, the collar of his shirt was open, revealing tiny bloodstains on his neck. He looked haggard, still carrying the chill of the night wind and a faint, almost unnoticeable smell of blood.

“Mr. Sanchez, what on earth happened to you?” I exclaimed, wanting to reach out and touch him but too afraid to, my fingers trembling slightly.

“Got into a car accident on the way and had to sort it out. Sorry for making you wait so long,” he said. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he spoke in such a calm tone, as if he were talking about something insignificant.

A car accident?! My mind went blank for a moment. “So… the unexpected thing you mentioned was a car accident?” My voice quivered without me even being aware of it.

“Yeah,” he replied laconically, then went on to explain what had happened. In his rush to get on the highway, there had been a multi-vehicle pileup, and his car was involved. He wasn’t seriously injured, but it took ages to deal with the scene. To avoid worrying me, Leonardo hadn’t gone into details on the phone. He’d just given his wounds some basic first-aid and rushed over.

“How could you not tell me about such a big deal!” A strong sense of fear and concern welled up in my heart, and my voice involuntarily grew louder. “Our date is nowhere near as important as your safety!”

On an impulse, I stepped forward and hugged Leonardo tightly. Only when I felt his real, warm body in my arms did the panic in my heart case a little.

“Natalie…” He seemed startled for a moment, his voice hoarse. Then, a warm, slightly hesitant hand gently rested on my back and stroked my loose hair.

Leonardo’s embrace was broad and firm, carrying a cold, pine-wood scent and a faint smell of medicine, which strangely soothed my earlier panic and grievances. After a while, I reluctantly let go of him, my face flushing. “Sorry, I lost my cool… I was so terrified when I saw you hurt. If you got into an accident because of our date, I’d feel guilty for the rest of my life.”

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Chapter 85 Unexpected

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I looked up at Leonardo, my eyes a bit teary, and carefully inspected him to see if there were any other injuries. “Let’s go to the hospital right away for a comprehensive check-up.” He came here in such a rush; he mustn’t have had a proper examination at the hospital.

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