The Double Life of My Billionaire Husband – Episode 29
The aroma of roasted chicken greeted Sebastian before Natalie reached the foyer. She had transformed the immaculate dining area with two candles, mismatched napkins, and flowers purchased from a sidewalk vendor. A handwritten place card marked his seat, a playful flourish that made the formal table feel intimate. None of it belonged to the penthouse’s severe design, which was why the room looked more like home than it ever had under his ownership.
“You’re back just in time,” she said, taking his coat. “And before you ask, the chicken is supposed to be that color.” Her happiness was too bright to conceal, and he found himself smiling before he knew the reason.
Sebastian looked toward the covered dishes. “What are we celebrating?”
“You have to wait.” Natalie poured inexpensive sparkling wine into glasses worth more than her old monthly rent. She had spent the afternoon planning an announcement that would make him proud, never imagining he had authorized it before she received the email.
They sat, and she made him taste everything before allowing questions. Sebastian praised the meal honestly, though he barely noticed the food. Natalie’s excitement softened her face and quickened her speech, revealing a version of her not braced for the next crisis. She spoke about decorating the apartment with inexpensive plants until his fictional friend returned, already imagining weeks rather than days beside him. This was the peace he had wanted to purchase for her, even if he lacked the courage to admit the cost.
“I got a job at B.M. Enterprises,” she announced. “The actual position. Human resources reversed Serena’s rejection.”
Sebastian let surprise appear gradually. “That’s wonderful.” The performance felt shameful because her achievement was real, even if he had corrected the gatekeeping that kept her from demonstrating it.
“It’s crazy, isn’t it? I thought Serena had ended any chance I had.” Natalie raised her glass, then added the second miracle. “And my father paid Mom’s hospital bills. It feels like my entire life has turned around at once.”
Sebastian’s hand tightened around the stem. “Are you certain George paid?”
She told him about the confrontation and George’s denial, minimizing the doubt it had created. “He’s terrified of Lauren. I think he lied to keep peace at home.” It was easier to accept cowardice from George than imagine a stranger secretly controlling her mother’s treatment.
Sebastian could have corrected her with one sentence. Instead, he said the only part that required no deception: “Your mother is safe, and you earned the chance to work. Those are reasons to celebrate.”
Natalie reached across the table. “I think you bring me luck.” Her fingers rested over his, warm and trusting. “Nothing went right before I married you. Now I have a place in the city, a real job, and room to breathe.”
Guilt moved through him with unexpected force. The apartment belonged to him, the hospital payment came from him, and the job offer carried his approval. Her life had changed because he possessed power she did not know existed. Each intervention had begun as protection, but together they formed an invisible cage whose boundaries only he could see. If she learned all three gifts were concealed interventions, luck might look like control.
“You would have found your way without me,” he said. Natalie shook her head. “Maybe. But I’m glad I don’t have to prove that anymore.”
The admission erased the distance between them. Sebastian turned his hand beneath hers and laced their fingers together. Their marriage had begun as a contract between strangers, yet the silence now held awareness neither arrangement nor obligation could explain.
Natalie looked at his mouth, then lowered her eyes. The candlelight made retreat possible, but neither of them moved away. “We should eat before everything gets cold.” Her voice had lost its easy confidence.
Sebastian stood to collect the plates, but she rose at the same time. They met at the corner of the table, close enough that her perfume replaced the scent of dinner. He touched one loose strand of hair near her cheek, giving her time to step away. She remained still.
Their kiss began cautiously, nothing like the ceremonial contact at the altar. Natalie gripped the front of his shirt when restraint gave way to longing. Sebastian drew her closer, aware that accepting her trust while hiding his identity was selfish and unable to make himself stop. The contract, the promised divorce, and every rule they had established seemed to belong to two strangers who no longer existed. When they parted, Natalie’s eyes held wonder rather than regret.
His phone rang from the counter. Daniel’s name illuminated the screen, followed by a coded notification about the Quinn acquisition. Natalie drew back, breathless, while Sebastian silenced the call without reading it. The timing felt like a warning from the life waiting beyond the penthouse doors. “Business?” she asked.
“Nothing more important than this.” He kissed her forehead, but the phone vibrated again with an urgent message: Serena had discovered Natalie’s hiring order came directly from the CEO’s office. Sebastian considered warning Natalie, then stopped. Revealing how he knew would expose the authority behind her offer before he was ready to explain it. On Monday, Natalie would walk into B.M. believing talent had reopened the door, while the woman who hated her waited with proof that someone powerful had intervened.
