Natalie was in her second trimester and was finally a little free from Justin’s strict restrictions. The doctor had told Justin that things looked normal with Natalie now, but they still had to be careful and not overdo it with freedom.
That day, her friends finally came to see her—Mia and Cathy.
"So, you two finally remembered you have a friend," Natalie said as she entered the drawing room, where her two friends were lounging comfortably, enjoying the snacks and drinks the servants had brought.
Cathy was busy chewing on snacks, not minding Natalie’s displeasure, while Mia said, "You should blame your husband for this."
"What does it have to do with Justin?" Natalie asked, frowning at the remark.
Mia sighed while Cathy said, "Tell her about the kind of dictator her husband is."
Mia looked at Natalie. "That man didn’t allow us to meet you after you returned from the Eastern country. The guards here asked us to leave from the main gate when we came to see you at that time. We were even warned not to let you know about it."
"What?" Natalie couldn’t believe it. "Don’t make up things."
"See? I told you—this woman is blinded by love and won’t believe us," Cathy commented, stuffing more snacks in her mouth and humming in appreciation at the taste. "Tasty indeed."
"And still, you’re enjoying the snacks served in that man’s home," Natalie retorted.
Cathy offered her a nonchalant look. "See, food is one thing, and that Hitler of a husband of yours is another. It’s no good to take it out on food. Food is meant to be eaten," she said, stuffing some more into her mouth, "especially when it’s so tasty as this."
Mia decided to explain. "Natalie, he said if we saw you at that time, you’d get too excited and wouldn’t rest. And we were allowed to meet you only when you reached your second trimester," Mia explained. "Now that you’re in your second trimester, we’re finally allowed to be here. We literally had to get your husband’s permission before coming here."
As Mia said it that way, Natalie didn’t doubt her. Justin could indeed do something like that, given how strict he had been with her during the first trimester.
"Well, he was just worried about me and our babies," Natalie said, smiling hesitantly.
"See? I told you she’d take her husband’s side," Cathy commented and looked at Natalie. "But you shouldn’t blame us either for not coming to visit you."
"Sure," Natalie said, pulling out a sweet smile to coax them. "I can’t tell you how happy I am to see you two."
Mia shifted next to Natalie. "Let me check what the cute babies are up to," she said, placing her hand over Natalie’s belly, which was just a little chubby but still relatively flat.
"Do you even have babies in there?" Cathy asked. "I see everything flat."
"Shut up!" Natalie said in annoyance. "Don’t say anything like that about my babies. Maybe they’re just a little late to grow. I’m sure it’ll start showing up all round soon."
Mia agreed with her. "Natalie is slim, and it’s normal not to have a visibly round belly yet."
"Yeah, you’re really well informed," Cathy said sarcastically. "Planning to have babies with Mr. Steve Davis?"
"Shut up!" Mia exclaimed, only to find Natalie watching her curiously.
Cathy smirked playfully, while Natalie asked, "Mia, what’s the matter?"
"There’s nothing at all. Don’t listen to this idiot," Mia said quickly and changed the topic. "What does the doctor say about the babies?"
Natalie shook her head, understanding that Mia didn’t want to talk about herself, and answered her question instead.
Just then, the two men arrived—Victor and Vincent.
Mia and Natalie were pleased to see them, while Cathy frowned at the sight of Vincent and picked up the dish of snacks to focus solely on eating.
Cathy thought, ’Why the hell does he have to be here at the same time? Won’t even let me enjoy my time with friends.
"You two were prohibited from meeting me as well to show up after so long?" Natalie asked them.
"Are you hurt that I didn’t come, my love?" Victor asked, winking at her. "You missed me that much?"
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