Chapter 51
Natalie paused mid-search, her fingers hovering over the cluttered surface of her desk. She was pretending to
look for something, but the hesitation hadn't gone unnoticed.
Brian narrowed his eyes as he watched her. Without saying a word, he picked up his laptop and cup behind
her, sliding it into her suitcase.
Natalie clenched her teeth and stood up to face him, her voice barely above a whisper. “I'm broke, Brian. Dead
broke. But | love gadgets, okay? | couldn't bring myself to part with it. That's all.”
“That's your explanation?” Brian stared at her intently, almost unblinking.
“I gave you enough to cover four years of college, Natalie. Ten million dollars would buy you a new laptop.”
“Ten million?” Natalie blinked in surprise.
Brian locked eyes with her unreadable expression, then fell silent. It was clear from her reaction that she had no
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtidea about the ten million dollars he had given to send her abroad. Even as the Howard family faced financial
ruin, he had managed to scrape together the sum for her.
Only Samuel knew the real reason behind it.
After a few seconds of silence, Brian said nonchalantly. “It’s nothing.”
His gaze, however, returned to the laptop. It was the sone he had given Natalie years ago, which she had
adorned with stickers of her favorite things and had clung to as if it were a treasure.
Despite her apparent resentment towards him, she had cherished a mere trinket he had given her for five whole
years.
When she had burst into the room earlier, the first thing she had checked was that laptop.
“Daddy... why are you guys fighting?” The standoff was broken by the small and sleepy voice of Nate, who sat
up in bed, rubbing his eyes and looking bewildered.
“We're not fighting,” Brian said quickly, moving to pick up his son and speaking in a soothing tone. “We're just
talking about sstuff.”
Nate looked back and forth between them a couple of times. Natalie managed a small smile at him. “We're not
fighting.”
Relieved, Nate yawned and patted his little belly. “I'm hungry.”
“Let's go hfor dinner,” Brian said. Then, turning slightly, he glanced at Natalie and added, “You should join
us too.”
Leaving Natalie alone here posed too much of a risk trouble had a way of finding her.
Chapter 51
Going back to the Howard family? Instinctively. Natalie tried to deflect. “No need, take Nate home. I'll just grab
his clothes from the balcony.”
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm
She had barely taken a few steps away when Brian’s hand clamped down on her arm.
“Natalie! Remember, you owe me. Your life is mine!” he said fiercely.
After a brief silence, Natalie turned back with a smile, meeting his angry gaze with a gentle reply. “All that talk
about settling debts was just a joke, Mr. Howard. Don’t take it seriously. In a few days, I'll find a way to cup
with a hundred million for you.”
She wouldn't even splurge on a car for herself, yet she talked about repaying a hundred million? Brian fixed her
with a steely gaze and asked softly, “How do you plan to make that money?”
Natalie thought about the incident with Madelyn in Brian's office earlier that afternoon and let out a light laugh.
“Mr. Howard, no need to look down on me. It’s just a financial transaction, that’s all. And who's to say other men
can’t outdo you? Maybe they can offermore.”
Brian’s hold on her intensified, nearing a bone-crushing strength, as he wrestled to contain his rising fury. “You
are aware that Gavin is in a relationship, aren't you?” he questioned.
Natalie grew even more disdainful. “Aren’t you also in one?”