Chapter 467 Masculine Presence

Nathaniel washed his hand with clean water, then rolled up his sleeves and began peeling the shrimp.

Christina watched as the food on her plate gradually increased. At first, she wasn’t bothered by it, but soon she couldn’t keep up with the speed at which he was peeling, and her plate quickly became filled with shrimp.

Once done peeling the shrimp, Nathaniel reached for the crabs, placing the large, meaty crab legs onto her plate.

Soon, Christina had a pile of food in front of her. She couldn’t help but complain, “I can’t finish all this. You can stop peeling now.”

“It’s fine. My hands are already dirty anyway, so I’ll just peel some more.” Nathaniel didn’t stop. Instead, he continued removing the crab shells and placed all the meat on her plate.

“We can take the leftovers home if we can’t finish everything,” Christina suggested, as wasting food wasn’t her habit.

He snickered. “If you can’t finish it, you’ll have to foot the bill. I don’t take leftovers.”

He’s right. Since when does the high and might Mr. Hadley take home leftovers? His real intention is to make me eat all the food before me.

Christina felt she wouldn’t be able to consume the other dishes after she finished the big plate of crab meat. After taking a few bites, she started tasting the other dishes.

Upon trying out all the food on the table, she noticed that after Nathaniel was done peeling the shrimp and washing his hands, he had been sitting there, watching her eat quietly without moving or talking.

Christina picked up a piece of meat and placed it in her mouth. Her cheeks, bulging on both sides, made her look like an adorable, innocent little bunny.

Nathaniel held a napkin and gently wiped the corner of her mouth. “You’re a grown–up, yet you eat like a child, getting food stains everywhere.”

His doting voice made him sound like an elder caring for someone younger. An unusual hint of warmth filled his eyes as he spoke.

Christina swallowed the delicious food in her mouth before asking him, “Aren’t you going to eat? It’s wasteful to have so much food left.”

“I’m tired from peeling the shrimp, so I don’t feel like moving,” he replied nonchalantly.

The corner of her mouth twitched. “In other words, you want me to feed you.”

“I wouldn’t mind that.” He flashed a faint smirk as if everything was going according to his plan.

Christina gave him a perfunctory smile and snorted. “Do whatever you like. I’m not the one who’s going to get hungry if you don’t eat anyway.”

Seemingly determined to challenge her, he remained unmoving. He knew Christina disliked waste and wouldn’t be able to stand seeing all those food go uneaten. She’ll definitely change her mind and feed me!

Sure enough, a little while later, Christina couldn’t eat anymore. She burped and grumbled, “I feel like my tummy is going to explode.”

“If you’re done eating, shall we ask for the bill?” Nathaniel asked.

Christina agreed with a poker face, “Sure. Let’s hurry up. We can rest for a while if we go back sooner. We’ll strive to finish discussing the remaining details in the afternoon.”

Nathaniel called the waiter over to settle the check.

Without looking at the bill, he charged the amount to his bank card. After the payment, the waiter brought over eight or nine takeaway boxes.

Nathaniel furrowed his brows and rejected, “I didn’t ask for this.”

The waiter smiled and explained, “This miss requested these boxes.”

Christina got to her feet and nodded in agreement. “That’s right. I requested them. Please help me pack up all these dishes and this half plate of shrimp meat.”

“Okay, miss. Please wait.” Then, the waiter neatly packed all the uneaten food.

Christina grinned, smiling from ear to ear. Her innocent and naive appearance was extremely adorable.

Nathaniel knitted his brows. As he watched the food getting packed into the takeaway boxes, his expression turned a few shades darker. She has been planning this all along.

A few moments later, the waiter handed the packed takeaway boxes to Christina. There were eight or nine of them, divided into two bags, which were quite heavy to carry.

As a result, she moved slower than usual. In contrast, Nathaniel walked quickly, leaving her in the dust.

When he was about to get in the car, he turned around and saw Christina lagging behind. He hastily retraced his steps and reached out to grab all the packed boxes from her hands.

With her hands empty, Christina suddenly felt much lighter. A hint of embarrassment surged within her as she looked at Nathaniel placing the takeout boxes into the trunk. He spent so much money to treat me to a meal. I’m full now, but his stomach is still empty.

Christina got into the car. After Nathaniel entered the vehicle too, she said, “Let’s go to my mom’s condominium first.”

Sharon’s condominium was very close to Gibson Corporation, so making a detour there wouldn’t take up much time.

Around ten minutes later, they arrived at the condominium’s entrance.

Hearing the doorbell ringing, Sharon immediately answered the door. She was delightfully surprised to see Nathaniel and Christina. “Why didn’t you tell me in advance that you were coming? I could’ve prepared lunch for you.”

Christina stepped into the house and took the takeout boxes from Nathaniel. “You don’t need to cook, Mom. Just heat these up for him to eat.”

Sharon received the two hefty bags. “You bought takeout? Should I prepare some home–cooked dishes too?”

Christina walked toward her bedroom while replying, “That’s not needed. I’ve already eaten. I’m going to take a nap. Once you’ve heated up the food, you can rest. There’s no need to entertain him.”

With that, she entered the room, removed her outerwear, and lay down on the bed.

Nathaniel stood at the kitchen entrance and told Sharon, whose back was facing him. “Mom, leave it. I’ll reheat the food later. I want to get some rest first.”

“No worries. I’ll heat it up and leave it in the pot. You can eat it when you wake up from your nap,” Sharon chirped and closed the kitchen door so that the smell of food wouldn’t bother him.

Meanwhile, inside the room, Christina was lying on the bed. Perhaps she was too tired in the morning and felt full now that a wave of sleepiness washed over her. Hugging the blanket, she drifted off to sleep in no time.

Amidst her grogginess, she felt a warm sensation wrap around her slim waist. She turned her head and saw Nathaniel’s handsome face. “Why did you come in here?”

“Let’s take a nap. Stop talking,” he drawled like a sleepy lion, his voice powerful yet gentle. D Christina wanted to push him away. Unexpectedly, he held her more tightly. There were differences between their physique in the first place, so after several fruitless attempts to put up a struggle, she decided to give up and yield.

And just like that, the two fell asleep in one another’s embrace.

Christina had rarely slept so peacefully. It wasn’t until a ray of twilight filtered through the curtains and layered the entire bedroom with a red glow that she opened her eyes.

Christina asked lazily, “Nathaniel, what time is it?”

“I don’t know and don’t care.” Nathaniel had not had such quality sleep in a long time, so he didn’t have the slightest desire to wake up.

Christina wanted to get up, but he forbade her. Wrapping his arms around her slim waist, he pulled her into his arms and embraced her, resting his cool lips on her forehead.

The moment was beautiful, but Christina’s rationality was telling her that she shouldn’t sleep anymore.

She sat up abruptly. “Do you know what time it is? Why are you still sleeping?”

She picked up her phone and glanced at the time. It was almost six o’clock. How had I slept so deeply?

Lina had sent her over ten text messages, but she merely replied: Something came up. Let’s discuss the agreement tomorrow.

After putting down her phone, she immediately felt more awake and energized.

Nathaniel also got out of bed, methodically straightening his suit. The orange–yellow light from outside outlined his slender figure, filling the room with his masculine presence.