MIDNIGHT Bride The CEO's TEMPTATION

As Nathan and Crystal sat down to eat - Clark was still in his room crying - she asked him if he had heard anything from Nancy yet. He said that there was no news, except that her phone had been found in the underground parking lot of a downtown high-rise, along with several articles of clothing.

After that, there was not a lot to say, so they ate in silence. They were just about done with their meal when Vic appeared. He had a big bag in his hand.

"What's in the bag?" Crystal asked curiously.

"Nancy's clothes and her mobile phone," he replied. "I just picked them up from the parking lot."

Crystal took the bag and poured its contents on the floor. There was a coat, a sweater, and a pair of shoes. She recognized the garments right away. "These belong to Nancy," she said, "Did you check her cell for any recent calls?"

"I did," Vic replied. "But, sadly, the call history was deleted before it was abandoned. There are a few threads from WhatsApp, but nothing of interest..."

Crystal thought about it for a moment, and then she said, "Nancy may not be here, but we should still be thinking about Noah." She turned to Nathan. "I think that he was poisoned, and I think that you've known about it all along. Do you deny it?" 

"I cannot," Nathan replied. "I just didn't want you to be worried. Anyways, I am working on it."

"Sure, you are," Crystal scoffed. "Don't lie to me. I can only imagine what you would have said to me if I had never figured out what was going on. You would have said that he had an incurable disease, and after he died, we would have moved on with our lives as if nothing insidious had occurred."

For a moment, Nathan was speechless. That is exactly what he had planned.

"There is something that you are keeping from me," Crystal continued, "and I want to know what it is and why you have kept it from me. Is it because you fear that I will encounter Eric, and we will have a love affair?" 

Nathan's eyebrows furrowed. It is as if she is reading my mind - he worries.

When Nathan did not reply right away, Crystal turned around to leave. Before she could take a single step, though, he grabbed her and embraced her. "This is all my fault," he cried. "But I only do what I do because I am afraid of losing you..." Tears began to well up in his eyes. "Maybe you were right... Maybe I am mentally ill..."

When Crystal heard that, her anger dissipated, she knew that it must have been hard for him to say those words. She smiled sadly and said, "I appreciate you saying that, but you cannot go around acting like this. It is not right, and I think that deep down, you know that. It would be best if you tried to do better. Can you do that? For me?"

"I can and I will," Nathan replied. "And I promise to do everything that I can to find the antidote."

Crystal kissed him on the cheek. "You must also promise not to do silly things. You will never have a true friend or a family of your own if you insist on misbehaving. What can you say about this? Will you promise?"

Nathan smiled. "With you by my side," he replied, "I know that I will be able to behave. But you have to promise me something in return..."

Crystal gave him a sideways glance but said nothing.

Nathan kissed her forehead and said, "Promise me that no matter what happens, you won't leave me, okay?"

Crystal smiled and said, "I promise."

****

There was a squeak on the stairs, and everyone turned to see what had caused the noise.

Clark was standing on the third step. He was fully dressed, and not only had he stopped crying, but he was smiling. "I'll be a good boy," he said. "I'm sorry that I was bad. I am worried about my Mommy...".

"That's alright. We forgive you." Crystal went to Clark and gave him a big hug.

When Nathan saw that he laughed and said, "Look at you, Crystal. You will be such a great mother!"

Crystal frowned. "What about you?" 

"What about me?" What Crystal had said hurt him. "Why can't I be a good father?".

"I don't know." Crystal thought about it for a minute, and then she asked Clark what he thought.

The boy was happy to be included in the conversation, and he said, "Would a good mother and a bad father give birth to a baby like me?" He was thinking about how his mother was good, but his father was bad.

"We would," Nathan replied. "But our baby would be a girl."

Nathan winked and blew Crystal a kiss, but she just rolled her eyes and said, "Anyway, it's almost time for lunch. We're going to have spaghetti, and Clark must be starving."

"Starving!" Clark agreed. "I'm starving!"

****

They were just about done eating when Clark suddenly started to cry. After a minute, he pushed away his plate and said, "Not hungry!"

Crystal frowned. She had thought that they had moved past this. "What's wrong," she asked.

Clark rubbed his eyes with his hands. "Mommy's not here," he whined. "She must be starving too!"

"You little fool!" Nathan hissed. "Wherever your Mommy is, I am sure that she has eaten. It would be best if you ate so that you would have the strength to protect her when she returns. If you do not start behaving, you are going in the dark closet for the rest of the day!"

Suddenly, Clark began to punch himself in the face. "I'm not listening to you!" he shouted. "You're a bad, bad daddy. And I don't love you!"

Crystal glared at Nathan. "You promised to stop doing silly things!" she growled. "I will deal with you later, though. For now, I need you to get out of here. Go figure out how to save Noah and how to find Nancy."

Once Nathan was gone, Crystal knelt in front of Clark, took hold of his hands, and held them to his sides. Once he was subdued, she embraced him and comforted him. This was not like earlier when he had been playing games. He was deeply upset about his mother's disappearance.

****

Despite everything that Crystal had done, she was unable to get Clark to stop crying. He did settle down significantly, though. His wails turned to sniffles, and the torrent of tears that had run down his face had been turned down to a trickle. And eventually, she was able to leave him in front of the television.

When Nathan returned, he cornered Crystal, pinned her to the wall, and said, "You're babying that brat. He needs to be taught who the boss around here is."

"You are not his boss!" Crystal argued. "That job belongs to his mother. You are a bully, and not only is your behavior inexcusable, but you are breaking your promise to be!"

Nathan's face turned red. He knew that she was right, but he did not want to admit it. "F**k you!" he growled. He pushed her to the ground and stormed away.

"Where are you going?" she shouted antagonistically. "Are you going to go and cry in your beer?"

"I have a business to attend to," he snorted. "Now piss off. I'm sick of your face!" 

"As if!" Crystal smirked. "You would die without me.. You said so yourself."