The Year She Stopped Being Crazy for Him novel Chapter 27

Cecily grabbed her hand. "Natalie, look! Isn't this child just precious? He's Mia's classmate, Adrian. I don't know who his parents are, but with a face as perfect as a porcelain doll, they must be gorgeous."

She gently pushed Natalie forward. "Go on, go hold him. Maybe you'll catch some baby fever and give us a little darling of our own."

Natalie froze on the spot. She forced a stiff smile, making no move to step forward, and quickly changed the subject. "I'm going to head upstairs and change my clothes first."

"Alright, go ahead." Cecily was too completely enchanted by the child to notice Natalie's distress.

Relieved, she quickly slipped away and hurried upstairs.

The master bedroom was hollow and empty. She and Hassan rarely stayed at the estate, especially in the early days of their marriage when Cecily had mostly left them to their own devices.

But as time dragged on and there was still no sign of a pregnancy, Cecily grew anxious. She began summoning them back more frequently and even had the kitchen prepare special holistic fertility soups.

Whenever they drank that soup, Hassan's appetite for her in bed would skyrocket.

But regardless of how intense things got, he never, ever skipped using protection.

She had brought up wanting a baby countless times, but he had never cared about what she wanted.

Looking back on it now, it was for the best. A child would only make divorcing him a nightmare.

She walked past the massive bed and stepped into the walk-in closet to change.

Halfway out of her top, she heard the rustling of fabric. Looking back, she saw a man carelessly shrugging off his suit jacket. His dress shirt was somewhat unbuttoned, and he was loosening his tie as he strolled into the closet. Seeing her, his movements abruptly halted, his dark eyes instantly settling on her with an unreadable depth.

With her shirt completely off, Natalie frantically spun around, turning her back to him.

A cold, heavy voice sounded behind her. "You invested in Quinn Harper."

"You're investigating me?" she snapped back coldly. "We're getting a divorce anyway. I don't need to report my life to you."

There was only silence behind her.

She glanced over her shoulder—he was already gone. His discarded tie lay carelessly on the floor.

She grabbed a loose knit sweater and pulled it on.

"Of course I do."

Cecily nodded, visibly relieved. "Good. I was worried that maybe you didn't want one either. I know Hassan is incredibly stubborn, and he keeps his cards close to his chest—half the time, I have no idea what that boy is thinking. But men... once they have a child, they settle down. Don't overthink things."

Natalie nodded along, faking a smile. "I know."

*Right,* she thought bitterly. *Once they have a child, they settle down.* He was keeping Adrian by his side every second of the day. He had certainly settled down—for Gardenia.

When they walked back out, Cecily was insisting Adrian stay for dinner. "Call your mom and tell her you're eating at your friend's house."

"Okay." Adrian used his smartwatch to call his mother.

The woman on the other end agreed. "Alright, Mommy will come pick you up later."

Adrian fell silent.

The voice on the phone asked gently, "What's wrong? Do you want to keep playing with your friends? Do you not want Mommy to come get you?"