The Imposter Bride (Natalia and Magnus) novel Chapter 20

Natalia couldn't sleep. She felt extremely uncomfortable, knowing that she had chosen this path herself and was determined to follow it, no matter how challenging it might be. However, his attitude today had truly left her feeling hurt.

“What’s the matter, Natalia? Are you throwing a fit because I didn't kiss you today? And now you refuse to eat?” The man’s face was stern as he looked at the hair peeping out of the covers.

Hearing his words, Natalia’s anger surged. She furiously threw off the covers and sat up, glaring at him. “Magnus, I am a human being. I deserve some respect. I am here to take care of you, not to be humiliated by you. Who cares about your kiss!”

Tears welled up in her eyes. It was the first time she had raised her voice at Magnus since she had arrived over twenty days ago.

Magnus looked at her sitting on the bed, yelling at him, and he couldn't help but chuckle. “Respect? So, not kissing you hurt your self-esteem? If you don't care, why aren't you eating, huh?”

He casually took out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter from his pocket, lighting one up right there in the wheelchair, completely disregarding that this was her bedroom.

“I'm not hungry, okay? And Magnus, smoking is not good for the recovery of your legs. Please, try to smoke less.”

Magnus looked at her with interest as she sat on the bed. “Are you worried about me?”

May entered the room with freshly heated food. “Please eat something. I’ve warmed it up.”

Natalia shook her head. “I'm not hungry, May. Take it away, please.”

But...”

“Leave it.” Magnus ordered.

“Yes, sir.” May put down the food and exited the room.

Natalia looked down at the quilt on her bed. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Magnus wheeling himself over to the bedside, with a plate of food in hand.

“Eat.”

Natalia glared at him. “Leave it. I can eat by myself.”

Magnus extended the plate towards her, giving the impression that he would continue to hold it until she took it. “Will you eat on your own, or do I need to feed you?”

Natalia quickly took the plate, beginning to eat under his watchful gaze.

Magnus left the room as she was halfway through her meal, wheeling himself into his own room and shutting the door. He stood up and went to the bathroom, looking at his reflection in the mirror. What was wrong with him today? Why was he so patient with that girl?

He was well aware that she belonged to Lucius. He had a strong aversion to anyone else's woman. Yet, he had held her, and almost kissed her. Even though he had said that it was to humiliate her, at that moment, he had genuinely wanted to kiss her.

Was he going mad? Perhaps he was just longing for a woman's touch after so long. But even so, there was no way he could harbor such feelings for Lucius' woman.

The bathroom filled with the sound of running water as Magnus undressed and stepped under the warm shower.

Meanwhile, Natalia finished her meal and cleared up the dishes. She wanted to check if Magnus had gone to sleep and wanted to give him a leg massage. She had read in a book that a pre-bedtime massage was very beneficial for recovery.

As she was about to push opon his bedroom door, she hesitated, thinking it might be inappropriate to come so late at night. She withdrew her hand and went back to her own room, lying down on her bed. She turned on her phone, which she hadn't used in over twenty days. Hundreds of messages popped up. Most of them were from Hector and Sabrina, and a few from Lexi. There were also two messages from her dad and some from Kendra. Why did they contact her? Didn’t they just wish she could disappear from their lives?

Seeing almost seventy missed calls from Hector, her heart twinged with a momentary pain. Over the years, Hector had been like a ray of sunshine, bringing warmth into her life. She didn't know what her feelings were for him. He was like a brother, a confidant, always there in her life. She had once planned to be with him after graduation. But all of that had been outweighed by her need to take care of her father, and she had to let Hector go.

She opened Twitter and saw a photo of a haggard Hector, which caused her heart to ache even more. His tweet was simple, a photo and a message, “Natalia, I believe in you. Wait for me.”

Natalia almost burst into tears. He believed in her, and he was asking her to wait for him. She quietly turned off her phone and lay on her bed, tossing and turning until she finally fell into a fitful sleep in the middle of the night.

The next day, May woke her up. “Mr. Magnus wants you to help him with his exercises.”

She immediately got up. “Alright, I'm coming.”

Natalia walked into Magnus’s study after freshening up. She saw Magnus in a black shirt, lounging in his wheelchair. He had a contract in one hand and a cell phone in the other.

She made him a cup of tea and lit some incense. Seeing him finish his phone call, she walked over to push his wheelchair. “Today, I want to try a different kind of exercise with you. Do you have anything else planned for today?”

“Yes.” He didn't look up at her but continued to wheel himself over to the table to sign the contract. He then turned his chair to face her.

“What kind of exercise?” He rested his hands on the wheelchair, with an indifferent expression on his handsome face as he waited for her reply.

Natalia turned to retrieve a blanket from a cupboard and spread it out on the spacious balcony. The study’s balcony on the second floor was quite large, about the size of a room. After she had set everything up, she wheeled Magnus over. “Come, I'll help you lie down.”

Magnus complied, curious to see what she had in mind. He realized that he was even more patient than she was. He was even willing to spend time with her, despite his innate aversion to her being Lucius’ woman.

When Magnus was lying down on the blanket, Natalia fetched a small wooden hammer from the cupboard. She then took off his socks. Magnus watched everything she was doing and had a feeling like a fish on a cutting board, ready to be carved up.

Natalia started by using the wooden hammer to tap his legs. Once, she hit a nerve and his leg tingled sharply. Magnus bore the discomfort in silence. Finally, she sat at his feet, using the wooden hammer to tap the soles of his feet.

“Can you feel that?” Her deep blue eyes met his.

Magnus responded with a blank expression. “No.”

Natalia put down the hammer, grabbed his foot with both hands, and pressed her thumb into his sole.

Magnus felt like there was a feather brushing against the soles of his feet, and he suddenly shuddered. It was so itchy. He raised his gaze and saw the girl staring straight at him. He tried to resist, but the tingling sensation under his foot made him break out in a sweat.

Natalia continued to massage the sole of Magnus' foot. Sometimes she would frown, other times she would look at the man's suppressed expression, "Strange, your foot feels warm and there's even some elasticity. I don't see any muscle atrophy. Why can't you feel anything?"

Magnus felt like a million ants were crawling on his foot, his face alternating between shades of red and white. He really wanted to kick her away, but he couldn't.

After a while, Natalia noticed Magnus' foot getting hotter, she chuckled, "Seems like it's warming up, do you feel anything now?"

"No, now help me up." How could he possibly not feel anything? He was uncomfortable, to say the least.

"No way, I still need to work on your leg." She stood up, grabbed a small wooden mallet, and started tapping on Magnus' leg with slightly more force. A few hits landed on a sensitive muscle and he grimaced in pain. This was a self-inflicted punishment. After what seemed like an eternity, Natalia finally helped him up.

Magnus settled into his wheelchair, watching the girl help him put on socks and shoes. She was close to him, her subtle fragrance wafted into his nostrils, and Magnus felt a sudden heat rush.

When Natalia stood up and looked at him, her gaze met his dark eyes, causing her heart to skip a beat. She remembered sitting on his lap the day before and her face instantly flushed.

In the following days, there was no discord between them. To avoid suspicion, Magnus allowed Natalia to 'torture' him once a day, and they both seemed accustomed to it.

One evening, Magnus received a call from James, who said he was coming to Sapphire Island to discuss something important. Soon, a limited-edition white Lamborghini arrived on the beach. The car door opened, and James, backlit by the sun, walked towards the villa.

"What's up?" Magnus asked as he saw James enter.

James' handsome face showed no emotion. He said, "I want to see your new wife."

Upon hearing this, Magnus looked up and gave James a cold stare. He came all this way just to see his wife? Although he didn't like this girl, such a joke was not acceptable between buddies. James staggered slightly under Magnus' icy stare.

He took a step back, waving his hands, "Don't get me wrong. I have no ulterior motives. I just want to confirm... umm, if the girl is worthy of you."

Without speaking, Magnus wheeled himself over to the edge of the couch, propped himself up with both hands, and sat down, "Ask her to come down and make some coffee."

Magnus sensed that James' intention was not as simple as seeing Natalia. He ordered a servant to fetch her. Soon, a girl descended gently from the stairs. James looked up, Natalia was wearing a blue dress and white slippers.

She had no makeup on, and her hair was casually tied up at the back of her head. She descended the stairs gracefully. When she saw James, she nodded and said, "Magnus, I didn’t know have a guest. Hello!"

From the moment she descended the stairs to stand beside Magnus, James' eyes were fixed on her. He was taken aback by how beautiful this girl was. Her eyes, like a deep pool of clear blue water, exuded a purity that was captivating. She stood next to Magnus, smiling and greeting him, and he was utterly stunned.

Magnus saw James' stunned expression, and his expression immediately darkened. This guy dared to stare at her for so long. Although this girl was Lucius' woman, she was now his wife. He felt a sense of intrusion.

"Cough, go make some coffee." He said to Natalia.

"Alright." Natalia turned and headed into the kitchen. James snapped back to reality, "Magnus, god, this girl is beautiful. No wonder you've been avoiding us lately. Spending all your time with such a beauty, when do you have time to drink with us?"

James whispered into Magnus' ear, earning him another cold stare, "So you think she's beautiful?"

"To be honest, she's the most unpretentious woman I've ever seen." He said thoughtfully.

Magnus glanced at him, then at the figure in the kitchen. Over the past month, aside from resenting her for being Lucius' woman, he found himself developing affection for her. It was an indescribable feeling. She didn't seem like she was here to hurt him. Every time she looked at him with those innocent eyes, his anger would instantly dissipate. He couldn't believe he didn't dislike this girl at all. Yes, she was Lucius' woman, but he couldn't bring himself to hate her. And every day, he played along with her, letting her 'torture' his legs.

After Natalia made the coffee, she left the living room.

James then turned to Magnus, "Magnus, I have something to tell you. But you mustn't overreact. After seeing your woman, I think this might actually be good news for you."

"What is it?" Magnus' eyebrows furrowed, his face radiating impatience.

"This girl is not Kendra." His voice was low, and he looked deep into Magnus’ eyes.

The man's eyebrows furrowed even more, clearly not believing James' words. "Then who is she?"

He intentionally arranged for his grandfather to make the marriage alliance, all to get back at Lucius. He stole the woman Lucius loved the most, with the sole intention of delivering a fatal blow. How could she not be Kendra?

"Yesterday at the bar, Chase and I bumped into Lucius. He was with a girl, and he called her Kendra. They were clearly very affectionate. I've seen that girl once, and she indeed is Kendra."

James finished speaking and then saw Magnus suddenly turn around, staring at him intently.,"Are you telling the truth?"

In fact, he didn't know Kendra either. Over the years, although the Andersen family and the Clarkson family were among the top in Melfort, Kendra had rarely appeared in public. For this marriage alliance, apart from the newspaper reports, no photos of the couple were published.

At that time, Magnus was resentful and didn't want wedding photos, nor did he check the marriage license , so the marriage was arranged privately by Morgan and the Clarkson family.

To this day, their marriage license was still at the Andersen Family Estate. So when Natalia was sent to the island, he only knew that she was Kendra, the woman Lucius had loved for years.

"You're coming with me to the Golden Groove, pronto." After he said this, James stood up and assisted Magnus onto a wheelchair, pushing him out of the mansion. After they got into the car, the quiet beach was left with the fading scent of exhaust fumes.

The car sped away from the island like a gust of wind, heading straight for the Melfort's entertainment hub, the Golden Groove.

The entertainment hub was bustling as usual, with pole dancers gracing the main hall early on. Magnus stepped out of the car and slipped on his sunglasses, heading straight for the rooftop. James immediately ordered Chase to pull up the surveillance footage from the private booth last night. A few minutes later, Chase strode in, "Jeez, Magnus, you get a girl and forget your mates, huh? It's been a while, man. Don't forget this is your joint, I'm breaking my back running this place for you every day."

"Cut the crap. Get to the point." Magnus's deep voice tinged with danger.

Chase glanced at James, then turned back to play the DVD. The images in the booth were crystal clear. Lucius was grinning, with a giggling girl in his arms. Their happiness appeared genuine, not feigned.

Lucius might be ruthless, but his love for Kendra seemed heartfelt. Otherwise, Magnus would not have sacrificed his own marriage to use Kendra to get back at him.

"Magnus," Chase pointed at the screen, "See that girl? That's the real Kendra. And honestly, she's not as pretty as the girl back at your mansion."

"I'm not sure who this woman at your mansion is, whether this is some trick by Lucius or a decoy by the Clarkson family. But one thing's for sure, Magnus," he paused for effect, "the woman at your mansion is not Lucius' girl."