The Princess and the Pauper (Arabella) novel Chapter 1478

Before Romeo could finish his sentence, his car's display lit up with an incoming call from an unfamiliar number with no saved contact name.

"Is that her cell?" Arabella teased with a chuckle, "You've got it memorized?"

He hesitated to pick up. Knowing who it was without a saved name meant the number was etched in his heart.

"No, you've got it all wrong. She's just...she's never changed her number since we were kids," Romeo quickly dismissed the call.

"So you've known each other since childhood?"

Arabella's meaningful glance made Romeo slam on the brakes, eager to clarify, "We knew of each other, but weren't close, totally unrelated."

"She's your buddy's younger sister, right? You said you knew her number by heart. Grew up together but still no connection?"

"That's 'cause a long time ago, my folks looked after her for a while."

Watching Arabella's knowing nod, Romeo grew more anxious, "Not like that, her family had some troubles."

He grabbed Arabella's hand, pleading with his eyes, "Anyway, they moved to Dawnstar after that, and we barely saw each other once a year."

"That's kind of a shame."

"Bella," Romeo was truly frantic now, "don't get it wrong. Should I block her to make you happy?"

"That might not be enough, given she's your friend's sister," Arabella feigned a dilemma.

"Then I'll change my number."

"No can do, your current number's tied to so many things, like bank accounts, WhatsApp."

"I can update all that."

"What if you miss something?"

Although other drivers wouldn't dare mess with his license plate, it was still a public road after all.

Stopping like that looked bad.

Seeing Arabella smile and act nonchalant, Romeo finally relaxed, caressing her face, "You scared me. I was about to drag you to my friend's place to vouch for me."

He had no extra feelings for Natalie, not even a sliver.

"If I do that, I'll lose face in front of your friends. They'll think I'm a shrew."

"It's my own choice to steer clear of flirts, nothing to do with you. Besides," Romeo gazed into her eyes, "I like it when you're in charge."

Feeling her concern, he knew he was cherished.

Just then, his friend called again. Romeo tapped the answer button without hesitation, "You got a death wish? You think I'm too busy to deal with you? If you dare play messenger for someone else again, we'll see if I let you off the hook."