Chapter 7

Natalie gripped her phone tightly. "Got it. I'll make sure to come by the hospital before the end of this week." "Okay. Please hurry." After hanging up, Natalie looked down and rummaged through her bag to locate the surgery consent form. Carefully, she tucked it among the sheets of the divorce agreement, making sure everything was perfectly aligned and smooth. From every angle, everything seemed flawless and not a corner out of place. Satisfied, she put the papers back into her bag. Tomorrow. Tomorrow, she would take these to Jeffrey and get him to sign. Given how much he despised her, she was sure he'd just skim through the papers, sign where he needed to, and not even bother to read the contents. … Nightfall arrived. Following the location Samuel had given her, Natalie walked into a high-end club. A waiter led her to the door of a private room. "Here we are." "Thank you." Caspia City, the nation's financial hub, was known for its glitz and glamour. Natalie had heard of this club. The minimum spending for one night was at least a million dollars. One could only imagine the kind of people who frequented it and were sitting inside at this moment. Even Samuel had to kiss up to them. But for the Bennett family, and to stand on her own feet, there was no turning back for Natalie. She knocked and entered. Inside, there were a few men about Samuel's age. When they saw Natalie, their eyes lit up. "Hey, when did we get a new one?" "She looks so pure and innocent." "The manager sure is smart. He's bringing us someone classy for once." Natalie stood tall, smiling politely. "I apologize if there's a misunderstanding, but I'm here for a business discussion." "You've got such a pretty face, but you're not using it for your job?" "Yeah, just name us your price." Natalie felt her smile fading. Samuel had no choice but to chuckle awkwardly. "Well, I brought her here. She'll pour you guys a drink first." He gave her a look, but Natalie didn't move. Samuel narrowed his eyes. "Are you refusing to drink? You want to do business, but you can't follow the rules. If you care about your reputation, you shouldn't have even come." It wasn't about her reputation—it was because she couldn't drink. She was pregnant. Otherwise, she'd have happily downed a few drinks to please them. She was good at serving people, anyway. The only difference was that she used to serve Jeffrey alone. Now, she was here, serving these important clients. But if Natalie compared both situations, she preferred battling it out in the workplace. She didn't want to go back to being a full-time housewife anymore. Natalie bent over, avoiding the alcoholic bottles, then picked up a glass of sparkling water. "I'm on my period, so please forgive me. I'll drink water in place of wine." Samuel's face immediately darkened. He pointed at the door and said, "Get out. How dare you come here when you're on your period?" These people were superstitious. Blood was considered unclean, and they believed it brought bad luck and financial loss. The other men also gave disapproving looks. Natalie bit her lip in frustration. She'd come up with an excuse to avoid drinking, but had completely forgotten about this superstition. Now what? She wondered if she could leave her proposal behind before walking out. Maybe one of the clients would take a liking to it. But before she could grab the file, Samuel stood up and shoved her toward the door. "Why are you still standing here?" Natalie lost her balance and stumbled backward, unexpectedly colliding into a firm chest. The man caught her shoulder, steadying her. "Are you okay?" Natalie turned to look at the man in surprise. "Johnson?" She hadn't expected to see him here. Johnson nodded. "Hey. What are you doing here?" "I'm here to handle some business for my brother." Johnson immediately understood. Stephen couldn't handle business, so he left it to Natalie to deal with. Johnson glanced at Samuel. "Let's be civil. There's no need to get physical." Samuel smiled at once. "Ah, Mr. Payton! Yes, yes, you're right. Come and sit here. We've been waiting for you." Johnson's arrival made the other men quickly stand up and greet him. But Johnson stayed next to Natalie. "I'm collaborating with her, so she's my partner from now on. If you see her around, please be nice to her. Thanks in advance." What? Was Johnson taking Natalie under his wing? Did that mean he was interested in her? The other men exchanged looks. At that moment, the door to the room opened again. A casual voice rang out, dripping with arrogance. "Who do we have here that Mr. Payton is going out of his way for? Let me have a look." Natalie turned. When she met the other person's eyes met, both of them froze. Chandler Foster took the cigarette out of his mouth and blinked a few times to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Wasn't that his cousin-in-law? What was she doing here, serving these big shots? Then again, he knew Jeffrey didn't care for her. He was all about Abigail. Chandler cleared his throat. "Well, um, she's indeed quite pretty and youthful. Of course, everyone's gonna be charmed by her." With that, he casually went to sit on the couch, as if he didn't recognize Natalie. Natalie knew better and didn't bother trying to associate herself with Chandler. After all, she and Jeffrey were divorced now. She wasn't a part of the Foster family anymore. Samuel hurriedly smiled at Chandler. "Mr. Foster, you've arrived, too! It's getting lively in here. I must treat all of you to drinks." "I'm just here to join the fun and mainly to accompany Johnson," Chandler said, popping a few peanuts into his mouth. He and Johnson had a good relationship. They hung out often. Samuel pointed at Natalie. "Mr. Payton just said he's going to work with her. Mr. Foster, shouldn't you talk him out of it?" Stephen had a terrible reputation in Caspia City. Anyone associated with him was cursed with failures, so nobody wanted to do business with him. Even sending a beautiful woman to pitch business wouldn't change that. Chandler continued eating peanuts. Natalie hadn't been out in public much after marrying Jeffrey. She had been focused on being the perfect wife for him. Over time, everyone knew Jeffrey was married, but nobody knew much about his wife. Now that she was out and about, no one even recognized her. After a moment, Chandler replied, "Talk him out of it? Why should I? I'm also working with her on the project." Everyone was shocked. Chandler and Johnson had both shown interest in Natalie! With these two backing her, she would certainly have a bright future ahead. For Natalie, it felt like a surreal moment. Chandler had just pretended not to know her, and now, he was willing to collaborate? But there was no time to dwell on it. She needed to take her shot. Natalie immediately said, "Sure. But talk is cheap. Mr. Payton and Mr. Foster, let's sign the contract right away." Nothing was official until they signed her contract. She laid it out, along with the ink pad and pen. Just as she was about to proceed, a deep voice came from the door. "Let's see who dares to sign her contract."