Justin returned to his suite, fuming internally. ’She still loves that bastard Ivan? Her brain works fine in every other situation, but when it cos to him, it’s like she’s an idiot. What does she even see in that loser?’
Noah, standing by as always, noticed the shift in Justin’s deanour. Ever since Natalie had entered Justin’s life, Noah had seen changes in his boss that he’d never witnessed before. ’Having a sister really seems to be affecting him.’
Justin sat at his desk, looking every bit the polished CEO in his expensive suit, but his mind was still elsewhere.
Just then, Julia arrived. "Where were you this morning?" she asked, her expressions disappointnt. "I wanted to have breakfast with you, but you weren’t here."
he replied coldly, as he thought, ’Hurrying to take care of your cherished granddaughter, is certainly an important matter, Julia, when that granddaughter of yours is an idiot who fell for another idiot.’
Julia pouted dramatically. "I see. You don’t care about anymore, huh? Didn’t even bother having breakfast with this old woman. Never mind, if you don’t care, there are others who do. I’m leaving."
Justin, realizing he had been too curt with her, softened slightly. "Where are you going, Julia?"
"To my brother," she huffed, turning on her heel. "You and your bratty father are just the sa. I don’t need either of you."
"Julia—"
"Don’t call . I won’t listen. I miss my brother anyway," she said before walking out.
Sighing in frustration, Justin turned to Noah. "Make sure soone is with Julia and that she’s taken care of."
Noah nodded, as always, and left to carry out the order.
Just as Noah exited, Justin’s phone rang. Seeing it was his father, Jas, he picked up quickly. "Yes, Father?"
"Your grandmother left the house and isn’t answering my calls," Jas’s deep, dignified voice ca through, though Justin could hear the underlying worry masked beneath his usual calm.
"She’s with , don’t worry."
Justin heard Jas letting out a sigh of relief. Though Jas was not the kind to show his affection openly, Justin knew how important Julia was to him.
"Take care of her and keep an eye on her," Jas instructed firmly. "You know how wilful she can be, even at her age."
Justin nodded. "I will."
"How’s the work going on?" Jas asked.
"All the important projects are in the line, as we have planned."
"Soon I will co to Imperial city and we will announce you as the global CEO of Harper group. I think it’s ti for you to reveal yourself to the world."
"Yes, father."
The call was hung up after a brief conversation.
Justin then leaned back in his chair. Till date he was fine with going according Jas’ wishes as he always felt indebted to him for adopting him and giving him such a good life.
But now, Ja’s daughter was there who was his true heir, he felt conflicted over whether it would be a good idea to be revealed to the world and accept the position that should belong to Natalie.
’I shall think it over and maybe bring Natalie ho soon, so she can take what rightfully belongs to her. I wonder how she would react to knowing it and if we would be the sa as we are now?’
-----
Julia arrived to et her brother Andrew, who had offered to bring her to Natalie’s ho. With Justin away, Andrew didn’t see any harm in introducing her to Albert. If Natalie happened to be ho, Julia would be pleased to see her as well—Natalie was a good-hearted child, and even Andrew was fond of her.
"Finally, you’re here. I’ve been waiting for a while now," Albert greeted warmly as he opened the door.
Andrew and Julia stepped inside, smiling at the welco.
"This is my sister, Julia," Andrew introduced her.
"A pleasure to et you, Julia. I will consider you as my sister as well," Albert said with a broad smile.
"Of course," Julia offered him a warm smile. "Then I have another brother I can trouble till he asks off."
"Haha, I won’t." Albert guided them to the sofa in the drawing room. "In fact I expect soone to trouble , as long as that person is not my wife. Because the kind of troubles my wife creates are simply unbearable for ."
Julia chuckled playfully. "She must be one hell of a strong woman if her husband is that wary of her."
"Oh, you bet," Albert replied with a knowing grin.
They settled into the cozy drawing room as Albert brought out so water and sat with them.
"Andrew ntioned that you were thinking about your grandson marrying my granddaughter," Albert said, turning to Julia. "Judging by you, he must be an exceptional young man."
"He is, but he’s a handful whenever I try to set him up with a lovely young woman," Julia sighed. "I just hope he settles down soon before I leave this world."
"I understand completely," Albert said, his voice filled with empathy. "I used to feel the sa. Now that my granddaughter is married, I can finally relax. All that’s left is waiting for those great-grandkids." He chuckled, then added cheerfully, "I’m sure my grandson-in-law will—"
Cough! Cough!
Andrew suddenly choked on his water, his face reddening as he tried to compose himself.
"Are you alright, old man?" Albert asked, his brow furrowed with concern.
Andrew nodded, worry painted his face. He didn’t want Albert to talk more about Justin. He had promised Justin that Julia won’t know anything. He wished Albert wouldn’t insist on Julia eting his grandson-in-law.
Even the heavens might not be able to stop the chaos that would unfold if the strange truth ca out.
"So, where’s Natalie?" Andrew quickly steered the conversation away from Justin.
"Oh, she’s at work," Albert said with a tired sigh. "You know the kind of trouble her grandmother gives her. Always sothing to manage."
"Wait a minute," Julia chid in, "Your granddaughter’s na is Natalie too?"
"What do you an by ’too’?" Andrew’s eyes narrowed slightly as he turned to her. "Do you know soone else nad Natalie?"
Julia froze for a second, realizing she had almost let sothing slip she wasn’t ready to share. Whenever it ca to Natalie, she always found herself getting overly excited, her usual composure slipping away.
"Ah, just soone I t yesterday," she replied quickly, flashing a smile to cover her montary lapse. "A good soul, she was."
"If that girl’s na was Natalie, then she must be a good soul," Albert chuckled. "My granddaughter is an angel."
Albert continued chatting, completely unaware that his phone had been ringing for quite so ti. Natalie had been trying to reach him, but the old man was too absorbed in conversation with his guests to notice.
Monts later, the front door opened, and an anxious woman rushed inside, calling out before even looking around. "Grandpa?"
"Natalie?" Albert’s face lit up in surprise at her sudden appearance. But it wasn’t just him—Julia, sitting nearby, felt her heart skip a beat. "Natalie?" she mumbled under her breath, her mind racing. What is she doing here? Is she Albert’s granddaughter? Albert Ford? How did I miss this?
Natalie’s eyes swept the room before settling on her grandfather, her expression softening with relief. "Grandpa, why haven’t you been answering your phone?" She had rushed ho, fearing the worst.
"My phone?" Albert looked around, confused. "Ah, seems like I left it in the bedroom."
Natalie shook her head helplessly, the tension easing from her shoulders. "Grandpa, you really scared . I thought sothing had happened."
"I’m sorry, dear," Albert said, offering an apologetic smile. "I was busy chatting with my friends here and didn’t hear it."
It was then that Natalie’s gaze shifted, landing on Andrew first, then moving to the woman beside him. She recognized her, and the longing in the woman’s eyes caught her off guard.
"We et again," Julia said softly, her voice filled with warmth.
Natalie recognised her as well, "Good to see you again, Old Miss."
"Do you two know each other?" Albert and Andrew asked together.
’Of course, I know my own granddaughter,’ Julia thought but kept it to herself, "She is that good soul I t yesterday, I just ntioned a while ago. She happened to help deal with a witch."
Natalie smiled at Briena being called as a witch. "You should see her mother and grandmother then," Natalie comnted.
"Must be ugly witches as well," Julia comnted with a chuckle while she thought ’So I can et my grand-daughter if I co to et Albert often?’ a light smile painted on Julia’s lips, ’I shall truly make him my brother then. Oh he ntioned his grandson-in-law is great. I will get to see what kind of a man my grand-daughter is married to.’
"Natalie, now you are ho, stay here. It’s already late noon anyways," Albert offered. "Why don’t we all have dinner together? make sure to call Aiden ho early if he can co."
Cough!
Andrew felt what he feared the most was going to happen and said quickly, "Albert, really, there’s no need to trouble Natalie. Look at her—she’s exhausted from work and already had to worry about you all day. Julia and I should take our leave."
Natalie noticed Andrew’s sudden discomfort, and sothing clicked in her mind. Andrew’s sister... Julia... Justin’s grandmother? Her eyes widened in realization. She couldn’t let Justin co ho.
"What do you an, tired? Aiden’s a great cook. He’ll help her out," Albert said cheerfully, turning to Natalie. "Why don’t you call him? See if he’s available."
Natalie’s heart skipped a beat. "G-Grandpa, there’s no need to call Aiden. I can manage dinner on my own," and thought, ’I need to tell Justin not to return ho.’
Albert grinned, clearly proud. "See how much she cares for her husband? Doesn’t want to trouble him." Then, with a mischievous glint, he added, "But I’ll call him myself. I’m sure he wouldn’t say no to ."
Natalie and Andrew shared anxious gazes, as if to wonder what to do.
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