You were late," Nathan remarks. I glance back at their direction and find her sitting comfortably on his lap with her arms coiled around his neck. She leans in, body pressing intimately close to his as her eyes meet mine. Slowly, it dawns on me - she is trying to stake her claim. "I had a lot of shopping to take care of yesterday. The important thing is I'm here now," she chimes in. "Alright, please take your seat. We’re about to take off," he says. "Sure," she says. I watch as she leans down and kisses him squarely on his lips once more before sitting beside him. It’s hard to overlook how she still has her arm wrapped around my Nathan .Damn it, he’s not yours,I try to remind myself. "Mildred, meet Natalia he introduces. An unspoken exchange occurs between them, and then he continues, "Miss Natalia Ford meet Mildred." "His girlfriend," Mildred adds before throwing me a fake smile. I can already tell this trip will be a long one. Who brings a girlfriend along on an important busi

I square my shoulders, determined not to give him the satisfaction of winning this. I walk up to him and stop in front of him. He says nothing, and it makes it harder that I can’t read his expression. All I know is that he is staring at me.“My uncle has explained the situation.”“Good. I hope I won’t have to deal with you running to your uncle every time on this project when we face difficulties,” he says with a deadly calm voice. His subtle insult hits me, and I glare at him in annoyance.“I don’t run to him. I needed clarification only he could provide, and that’s what I asked him for. I didn’t think you would have a problem with that,” I state while folding my arms and watching him.“Good. Tyler said you were capable of handling this. I don’t want to believe otherwise,” he says. I clench my fists as I try hard to hold on to my control. I want to call him out for being unnecessarily insulting, but I restrained myself. Of course, I knew this is all part of his distaste for me. I won

“Please, go in while I go get your food,” Mrs. Brown says, stopping in front of a door. I raise an eyebrow at her. “This is the dining room; that’s the kitchen,” she points to the last door in the hallway. “Oh, I’ll just grab my breakfast and bring it here,” I suggest. “No, you don’t need to do that. As Nathan s guest, it’s my responsibility to take care of you,” she says with a cute Frown “Grabbing my food is nothing. Plus, it’s unreasonable for you to go through the stress when I can easily grab it and bring it here,” I tell her. “Please, let’s just go together,” I suggest, and she smiles. “If you insist,” she replies. “Thank you,” I respond with a smile. I’m taken aback when we enter the kitchen and finds a younger lady in the same uniform as Mrs. Brown. “Good morning,” the lady greets me with a bright smile. I relax and return the gesture. “Matilda, this is Natalia , Nathan ’s guest,” Mrs. Brown introduces. It starts making sense that this is the person Nathan mentioned

NATALIA I can’t believe a week has already passed since I arrived here. By now, I’m used to the routine; every morning, Nathan and I inspect the houses together. That’s as far as our interactions go. He acts as though I’m invisible, and I do my best to pretend that it doesn’t bother me. The only things that brighten my day are my calls to Goerge , Bekah and Aunt Maryann. They are the only ones who help me distract myself from everything.As I head to the living room after breakfast, I hear voice. I roll my eyes, imagining Mildred and Jeffrey arguing once again. Mildred has been using every opportunity to prove to me she has Nathan , even though it’s clear that I have no connection with him. Her insecurities are obvious and it’s annoying. I mentally prepare myself for a show, but I’m surprised to find Nathan alone with his phone pressed to his ears.“You told me you were going to cancel,” he says to whoever is on the other end.“Oh, so now I’m being selfish,” he adds. I glance around,

“Wow,” I whisper involuntarily.“Do you like it?” he asks.“Absolutely. This is stunning,” I whisper as I glance around in awe.“You haven’t seen anything yet,” he says with a smile, leading me through one of the museum’s expansive halls. The scent of paint fills the air, mingling with the soft whispers of patrons, creating an atmosphere that feels both serene and charged with anticipation. My eyes sparkle with curiosity, eager to discover the masterpieces that lie ahead, as Nathan s promises.“Oh, my goodness.” I exclaim in awe as we make our first destination.“This is the contemporary art wing,” Nathan announces, indicating the entrance. Vibrant canvases and avant-garde sculptures. Nathan guides me down the hallway until we come to a halt in front of a mesmerizing painting, its bold strokes and vivid colors stir emotions inside me.“This is so beautiful. It feels like it’s trying to communicate something to me,” I say before glancing at Nathan .He returns my gaze, his voice filled