Wife by Day, Boss by Night

Natalie was in a bit of a bind. There were no wise, older women to guide her through the intricacies of postpartum recovery, known colloquially as "lying in," something not practiced or acknowledged in her neck of the woods. And it was certainly not a topic she could broach with King. Nor had she ever sought medical treatment for it. After all, the concept of lying-in was pretty foreign in the West.

After some thought, Natalie nodded and responded, "Yeah, I took up kickboxing and stuff after." Sanford shook his head disapprovingly. "That was reckless! Lucky for you. You're still young. If you had come to me in your thirties, there might have been nothing I could do."

Brian fell silent, his gaze fixed on Natalie, contemplation etched on his face.

"Herbal remedies and acupuncture are what you need. If you take herbs, you can't skip doses. You could have the pharmacy prepare an herbal paste for daily consumption. As for acupuncture, once a week. Can you manage that?" Sanford continued.

Natalie nodded. "Sure, I can do that."

"And one more thing..." Sanford started, glancing at Natalie's neck before awkwardly shifting his gaze to Brian.

"You should abstain from intimacy for now. Wait until after a treatment cycle when the symptoms have eased. Otherwise, the damage to this lady's body could be irreversible."

Brian remained silent.

When Sanford handed over the prescription and left the room with Benjamin, Brian, with a complicated expression, took a seat across from Natalie.

It was his fault. None of this would have happened if he hadn't sent Natalie abroad.

She had endured so much for the sake of their child, Nate, and suffered the consequences

alone for years.

Without waiting for her to speak, Brian pulled her into an embrace and, after a long silence, whispered, "It won't happen again."

He wouldn't force intimacy on her anymore. He wouldn't let her endure such pain again.

Just as Natalie had accused him, he felt like a complete jerk.

Brian received a notification for an urgent meeting and had to leave that evening, dropping Natalie back at the film set.

Stepping out of the car, Natalie glanced at the glaring white license plate, pondered for a moment, and then turned back to Brian. She whispered through the car window, "Don't use this

11:21

car to drop me off anymore."

"It's too conspicuous." After a thought, she added.

She didn't want to be bothered with the drama like last time.

Brian understood she wanted to keep a low profile and avoid stirring up trouble on set. He also hoped she would stick to minor roles without kissing or intimate

scenes.

After thinking it over, he agreed, "Okay."

Natalie leaned on the car window. After he spoke, Brian leaned in and pecked her on the lips, coaxing, "Go oh-up. Next time, I'll pick you up in a Mercedes."

Relieved that he had conceded, Natalie turned and walked toward the set's hotel.

Brian watched her until she entered the hotel, reluctantly withdrawing his gaze.

On his phone, a message from Reid popped up. Brian read the message.

[Mr. Howard, I've nearly completed the probe into the James family's shareholder structure. The James family holds shares worth billions, controlled by five shareholders. These individuals operate through a proxy, Michael, with their identities

obscured. Miss Natalie's recent closeness to the James family might suggest she's one of these five.]

[We're still digging for specifics.]

Brian stared at the message for a long time.

After a while, he locked the screen,

lifted his eyes, and gazed toward the lit window Of Natalie's

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