From Divorce To Dominance

27

Natalie was dragged into a discussion about promoting boxing by Christian. As he spoke passionately, she could barely keep her eyes open. Suddenly, a ringtone startled her awake; it was an unknown number.

Christian pecked over and said, "It's probably a scammer. These days, scams are everywhere. Just block it. Come back and listen to me."

Natalie replied. "I need to answer this. Why don't you have a cup of coffee when you're waiting?"

"You just don't want to listen to me, do you? Come back soon. I need to talk to you about promoting boxing," said Christian. Walking over to a separate room, Natalie lazily answered the call "Hello?"

"I can help you with cash if you need it. Sure, I can't give you love anymore, but remember, you're my ex-wife and you have our son. Do you really have to embarrass me like this? I can't believe you're with that old guy. Don't you ever have standards? Ill give you 30 million dollars right now. Just stop seeing him." Darren was furious, barely giving her a chance to speak.

He sent her the money right away. When she saw the notification pop up on her phone, she couldn't help but laugh to herself. Does he really think I care about such a tiny amount? He didn't want anything to do with my son before, and now he acts like he's a dad. What a joke.

Natalie sent the money back and texted: [Mr. Luther, it looks like you're not thinking straight.]

Inside the Rolls-Royce, Darren slammed his fist on the seat. The rejected 30 million and one dollar-especially that extra dollar-infuriated him. If Natalie were here right now, he might actually strangle her.

Meanwhile, Natalie was in high spirits. She took her time fixing her hair and, upon returning to the dining table, noticed several new faces.

Walter Nelson, a plump old man, was the first to greet her. "Nat, why didn't you call me first when you got back? Have I lost my charm? What's so great about Christian? If you don't give me an explanation, I'm not recognizing you as my disciple"

Tm sorry. Who are you again?" Natalie jested.

Walter quivered with anger, yelling, "You ungrateful kid!" He quickly grabbed his cane, ready to give her a good whack. Christian stepped in, saying "Why are you getting physical right away? Chill out a bit. You might scare her."

"Exactly!" Stuart Owens, another old man in a suit, chimed in. "Come sit with me, Nat. It's been three years since you disappeared. Were you creating your art? Why don't you show us your new works?"

"No works," Natalie replied nonchalantly.

"What? You didn't paint a single piece in three years? What have you been doing?" Stuart's tone shd, his eyes widening. "Just wasted three years of my life," Natalie shrugged, not wanting to share more. "But I do plan to start painting again soon." Stuart's eyes lit up. "Good. What are you going to paint? Any ideas? Shall we-"

"Don't ask, and don't rush me," Natalie cut in, "The more you pressure me, the longer it'll take."

Stuart's smile froze.

Christian chuckled, enjoying the scene. "Well, my dear disciple, we need someone to endorse this boxing thing, and you-

Sep

"Not interested, Natalie-shot him down decisively. "I have a show to record. Find someone else

"I can never get you to do anything." Christian huffed.

Stuart interrupted, "Why make her do such a trivial task? just find someone else and don't disturb my dear disciple's creative process"

Natalie seized the opportunity. "Exactly! I need a lot of time and concentration for my painting

Just excuses! Christian muttered to himself, not really surprised. He kind of expected Natalie to react this way. If she wasn't on board, he'd just go back to his plan and search through media companies to find someone else.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

The private room buzzed with excitement as everyone arrived. Christian waved over a waiter to start bringing out the food.

Meanwhile, upstairs in another room, about ten beautiful young women were gathered, all contestants under Prosperity Entertainment who had just advanced in the Sweet Love program.

With the per-person spending around 5 thousand dollars, a lot of these girls were new to this kind of place. Usually, this restaurant only geared up for the big shots in town, so getting a reservation was no easy task. The girls could definitely brag about this for days. They were busy taking selfies, posing, and chatting it up.

Suddenly, the door swung open, and in walked Vivian. The young women quickly stood up, all saying together, "Ms. Zavala."

Vivian was discovered by a talent scout while she was studying abroad a few years ago. After that, she became a trainee overseas. She debuted early and quickly gained a lot of popularity. So, even though she just joined Prosperity Entertainment this year, the other girls see her as a true veteran in the industry.

Vivian smiled warmly. "Congratulations, everyone, and relax. You don't have to be so formal."

"Thank you. You're so nice. The girls collectively flattered her, showering her with compliments.

Vivian mentioned a few contestants who really stood out during auditions. Then her eyes landed on Tessa. "You danced great! You and Natalie have your own unique styles, and I really love both. But I could see the fans were having a big debate, online about you two last night."

Tessa's face turned a bit red with embarrassment. "Uh, yeah. I didn't expect that

Vivian lowered her voice, offering her some advice. "Fans will argue, but you need to be clever. Since Natalie is here too, let's go say hi."

Tessa met her eyes and immediately got her idea.

So a group of cute girls laughed and chatted as they headed from the fourth floor down to the third. Vivian knocked on the door of a private room and opened it without waiting for an answer, wearing a big, proud smile.

The room is soundproof, which usually means something shady is going on inside. With everyone staring, Natalie is really going to be in hot water this time, Vivian thought.

However, once the door fully opened and she looked inside, her smile froze.

Instead of a couple, there were five spirited old men gathered inside. They dressed differently, but their clothes clearly represented high status

What is this? An old guys' club? While Vivian stood there, dumbfounded, the men turned their attention to her all at once.

"Who are you?" asked Stuart, frowning in confusion. "You can't just barge in without knocking! Don't you have any manners?"

Walter scolded, "Where's the waiter? Why did he let her in? Get the manager here for an explanation!"

Christian's expression hardened. He organized this gathering, an

All the guys in the room were pros from different fields, and the beans, it could lead to a lot of drama. Christian saw Vivian and much before, and now his dislike was getting even stronger.

Just as he was about to say something, Natalie cut in sharply. "Ge

of here in one minute

Christian's expression hardened. He organized this gathering, and he never expected this surprise.

All the guys in the room were pros from different fields, and they usually kept their schedules private. If someone spilled the beans, it could lead to a lot of drama. Christian saw Vivian and Tessa from the Sweet Love live streams. He never liked them much before, and now his dislike was getting even stronger.

Just as he was about to say something, Natalie cut in sharply. "Get out!" she snapped, her voice icy. "Waiter, get them all out of here in one minute."