Chapter 409

The corners of her mouth curved into a half-smile, looking like she was toying with a pet. Like teasing a dog. Natalie: “…” Her flawless face stiffened for a second. A few people nearly burst out laughing. Eleanor didn’t hold back—she chuckled outright. Natalie had rattled off a whole dramatic monologue just now, but Claire lazily tossed out a half-asleep “didn’t catch that,” as if it didn’t matter at all. And then she even had the nerve to ask her to repeat it. Talk about savage. But Claire’s innocent expression left Natalie with no room to get mad. That was the killer move. Most people would’ve tried to wriggle out of the trap with some quick thinking, but not her. Claire had flipped the script. Why should she obediently fall into someone else's setup? Still, refusing wasn’t enough—you had to reply in a way that made sense. But if you overreacted, you’d just seem uncouth, plus you’d give Natalie another shot at playing the pity card, which she excelled at. To make Natalie choke like