Chapter 279: Telling The Truth

Justin returned home, where Natalie was waiting for him after she had finished her work. These days, she could feel the tense air around him, though he tried to conceal it.

Entering the drawing room, Justin saw Natalie lying on the sofa, looking through her mobile—so engrossed as if she were reading something truly important. Since he had asked her not to sit for long, she preferred to lounge on the sofa like this. Seeing her in such a relaxed state, he found his home felt more homely, cozy.

He stood silently to the side, watching her just like that.

Suddenly, she sensed a gaze on her and finally turned to look at him. She sat up immediately. "You’re back?"

Justin hummed and walked over to her. "Were you waiting for me?"

She nodded and looked at him, as if wondering whether it was the right time to ask him what was going on.

As if reading her thoughts, he held her hand and sat with her in his lap. "Let’s have a talk."

Natalie felt relieved that he was finally going to tell her on his own.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I met your mother today," he answered, causing her eyes to widen. The shock on her face revealed a thousand unspoken questions, yet not a single one escaped her lips.

"She wanted to meet your husband, so I met her," he said.

"That means she knows everything about me," Natalie concluded first curious and then her expressions turned to not so pleased. "But... didn’t she want to meet me first even before meeting my husband? Though she is my mother, we are not close anymore for her to summon my husband."

"She wants to, and I will take you to her soon," he said with a soft chuckle, seeing her acting like a typica wife, only to be interrupted by her. "So you met her as Aiden Handrix or Justin Harper?"

"Aiden Handrix, for now," Justin answered.

"Justin Harper would have left a better impression on her," Natalie said, her expression showing a hint of pride, as if she wanted to show off her husband in front of her mother.

Justin chuckled. "I used the name that’s on our marriage certificate. And it doesn’t matter whether it’s Aiden Handrix or Justin Harper—the fact remains that I am your husband."

She could only hum in response, while Justin knew that telling Caryn he was someone related to James Harper would create another conflict.

At this moment, he didn’t want to add to the troubles already brewing. Moreover, he was still unsure about letting Natalie know they were step-siblings. He was worried she might distance herself from him before they even had a chance to grow closer.

"There are more things I need to tell you, and I want you to stay calm and listen to everything," he proposed. "I promised you I’d tell you everything once I knew the truth, didn’t I?"

She nodded. She had been waiting patiently for this moment, despite the countless times she’d been tempted to ask but held herself back.

Justin began explaining everything—her mother, the attacks on both of them, and her lineage from Belvorn—carefully leaving out parts about his own life, as they had no connection to Belvorn or Caryn.

"So... those people are the reason my mother had to fake her death, live in hiding, and force me to grow up like an orphan?" Natalie’s voice grew colder, despite the storm of emotions brewing inside her.

Justin hummed once more in quiet confirmation.

Even when Caryn was on the brink of death, they didn’t want her to survive. The more Natalie thought about it and how her life had been nothing but pain, the angrier she felt. She didn’t even want much in life—just peace and happiness—but some people out there seemed determined to ruin it for her.

"Sure, I can’t wait to meet those people as well," Natalie said, her tone turning firm with determination and revenge. "If you’ve talked it through with my mother, then I’m sure you have a plan."

He smirked. "You sure are smart. Just wait for it."

She hummed, lost in her thoughts, when suddenly a pair of lips sealed hers. Taken aback by the unexpected kiss, she was about to pull away, but a hand rested at the back of her head, pulling her closer.

"Oh my god," a dramatic voice exclaimed with a loud gasp. "Have my eyes gone bad, or am I dreaming?"

Natalie immediately pushed Justin away to break the kiss and turned to see a newcomer standing at a distance.

A tall and handsome young man in his early twenties, light blue eyes, ash blond hair, wearing stylish clothes- a perfectly fitted white T-shirt with a leather jacket over it, a jeans and stylish sneakers, carrying a small backpack in one hand, his eyes still wide in exaggerated shock.

Justin glared at him as if ready to commit murder for disturbing the moment while simultaneously keeping Natalie firmly on his lap, preventing her from moving away.

"What are you doing here, Seb?" Justin asked coldly.

"I just came to visit my brother, who’s back in the country but didn’t even bother to inform me," the young man replied. A playful smile tugged at his lips. "But I didn’t expect to witness my celibate brother breaking his vow of chastity right in front of my eyes."

Natalie wondered if he was another son of James Harper.

The young man casually walked forward and settled on the sofa opposite them. He glanced at Natalie, observing her intently, before asking, "Won’t you introduce your sister-in-law to me?"

Natalie once more tried to get out of Justin’s lap, but he didn’t allow her and said, "He is my cousin, Sebastian Harper. My uncle’s son."

Natalie let out a sigh of relief that he wasn’t some secret son and heard Justin introduce her, "She is my wife, Natalie."

"Wife?" Sebastian gasped again. "You literally didn’t mean—"

"I don’t joke around," Justin said coldly and stood up with Natalie still in his arms. "Do whatever you want, but if you disturb me and my wife now, I’ll throw you out of my home." With that, he turned to leave.

In shock, Sebastian stood up. "That’s breaking news!" he exclaimed, pulling out his cellphone. But before he could make a call, Justin’s icy warning cut through the air again.

"If this news gets out of this house, you’ll find yourself beaten and hung upside down on the tallest tree in the backyard."

Justin walked away without another word.

Sebastian froze in place, staring at his phone. The call he was about to make was cut off before it was even received. He knew Justin was a man of his word, and he’d truly end up dangling from a tree if he crossed him.

"Damn it!" Sebastian muttered under his breath. "Such huge news, and I can’t even share it with anyone. This is gonna give me a stomachache." He clutched his stomach dramatically. "Damn it. I need to find a way to let the family know—without me getting dragged into the middle of it."

Sebastian scrolled through his phone and found one number to call. "Grandma, do you know my brother now has a woman?"

"Brat, where are you?" Julia’s stern voice came through.

"At Justin’s home," he replied, "and you know—"

"Not a word more," Julia interrupted him sharply. "What you see there, keep it to yourself. If anything gets out, I’ll make sure to prepare my cane and give you a nice beating." With that, she hung up the call.

Sebastian stared at his phone in disbelief. "I understand Justin, but why is Grandma ready for bloodshed too? Now who am I supposed to share this tea with? Oh, my stomach..." he groaned, clutching his belly in exaggerated agony.

Inside the bedroom, Justin settled Natalie onto the bed. He was in the middle of showering his dear wife with love, leaving her breathless, when his cell phone rang.

Justin frowned, his expression darkening as if he could destroy the phone with just his glare. He ignored it, but the phone continued to ring relentlessly, accompanied by countless notification sounds from incoming messages.

Annoyed, he snatched the phone and glanced at the screen, only to see a certain group chat buzzing with messages about His expression turned icy cold. Without a word, he got up from the bed and adjusted his shirt.

"Rest here," he said to Natalie in a low, firm voice before leaving the room.

Natalie had seen the messages on his mobile screen as well and wondered who those group members were.

Slowly, Natalie stepped out of bed.

Just as she opened the door to step out, she heard the pained voice of a man echoing through the hallway.

"Ah, can you be a little gentler, Justin?"

"Ouch, not the face..."

"Damn it, you... That hurts..."

Natalie froze at the doorway.

She found it nearly impossible to imagine a grown man beating up his younger brother.

Unable to resist her curiosity any longer, she quietly made her way downstairs to the drawing room.

There, she found Justin sitting leisurely on the sofa, his cold glare fixed on the young man sitting across from him.

Sebastian was clearly beaten by Justin. The corner of his lip was bleeding, bruises were already forming on his face, and he clutched his stomach tightly, suggesting he had taken a solid blow there as well.

The bright, cheeky energy he’d displayed earlier had vanished, leaving him looking like a scolded child who had been caught red-handed.

Natalie stood still for a moment, taking in the scene before her. Was Justin really so childish as to physically discipline his younger brother like this? Or was this some hidden side of him she hadn’t seen before?

She wasn’t sure what to make of it.