Chapter 732: A Debt of Love (2)

Chapter 732: Chapter 732: A Debt of Love (2)

Nathaniel Nathan took a small notebook out of his pocket. Vera Xavier glanced at it curiously, then saw him write down today’s date, followed by the number thirty.

Vera was utterly baffled. ’No way. He’s been keeping a record of all this?’

This time, Nathaniel readily cleared up her confusion. "This notebook is just for you to see. In reality, I’ve committed it all to memory. You can take a good look through it today and see just how many kisses you owe me. If you think it’s too many—that your lips will get swollen—I can offer you a way out."

For some reason, a bad feeling crept over Vera when she heard that. Still, she played along and asked meekly, "What way out?"

"Ten kisses in exchange for one night. Are you ready?" Nathaniel whispered, leaning close to her ear. As he spoke, he lightly nipped her delicate earlobe. His hot breath ghosted across her neck, sending a shiver down her spine.

Vera’s eyes flew wide. ’What the hell! What kind of insane exchange rate is that?’

She couldn’t help but ask, "Can I choose not to make the exchange?"

"You can try," Nathaniel said, his eyes fixed on hers. "Believe it or not, I’d take you right here, right now."

Vera never doubted he would follow through on that kind of threat. But she really wanted to cry. ’Who demands kisses and sex so brazenly?’

She sniffled softly, bit her lip, and flipped through his little notebook under the dim glow of the streetlight. Then, her entire world came crashing down.

His notebook didn’t just record the sweet things she’d said to placate him; it also listed every little gesture she’d made in his presence. He had quantified all of it in terms of kisses!

For example, whenever she said she missed him, that phrase was worth ten kisses. She looked at him in confusion. He simply said, with an air of nonchalance, "I feel that when one person misses another, it takes at least ten kisses to even begin to ease the pain of longing. I’ve always been a conservative man, so my figures are on the conservative side."

Vera had always thought she was quite successful at sweet-talking him. And since their relationship had improved so much, she had become quite natural and comfortable saying such things.

’Wait a minute,’ she thought. ’He just said ten kisses could be traded for a night together. So, according to his conversion system, does that mean every time I say "I miss you," he’s actually thinking about sleeping with me?’

The usually composed Vera could no longer keep her cool. This ridiculous conversion system of Lord Nathan’s was just too much to handle!

She cleared her throat. "That’s your system of calculation. Am I allowed to disagree?"

Nathaniel looked at her and said, "You’re welcome to try. I don’t mind sleeping with you until you’re convinced."

Vera instantly felt a sense of dread. She regretted looking at that notebook more than anything. ’If I hadn’t seen it,’ she thought, ’I could have just played dumb about all this!’

She quickly handed the notebook back to him. "I didn’t see anything!"

"Whether you saw it or not is irrelevant," Nathaniel said nonchalantly. "It’s all committed to memory, and I intend to collect on every single debt."

’I could just cry,’ Vera thought. ’We’re married, but we’ve never actually... done *it*. Yet here he is, thinking about it constantly. The pressure is a little much! If he keeps acting like this, how are we ever supposed to have a normal conversation?’