The Heiress Nobody Saw Coming (Natalie and Marcus)

At the Walker residence, Natalie was comfortably enjoying the treatments arranged by the massage therapist and beautician. With her whole body relaxed, her mind naturally followed. She stopped thinking about anything chaotic or stressful.

Meanwhile, over at Holden Group, Marcus had just returned to the office when Ethan approached him. He highlighted the key points from the past few days of

work.

"Mr. Marcus, there are a few meetings coming up. Several projects have been on hold, waiting for your decisions."

Marcus gave a small nod. "Alright. Set them up and speed things up."

"Yes, sir."

Ethan immediately left to make arrangements. Marcus walked over to his desk, sat down, glanced at the schedule, and began tackling the most important matters first.

Not long after, Ethan had all the meetings lined up. Marcus entered the conference room and handled everything efficiently and decisively. Even though he moved quickly, by the time everything was settled, it was already past midnight.

Sheldon realized he hadn't returned home. He had the kitchen prepare a meal and sent Elijah to deliver it.

When Elijah arrived at the executive office, he saw Marcus sitting in the leather chair with a stack of A4 papers spread out in front of him. Every sheet was covered in intricate sketches.

Elijah stepped forward and set down the food. "Mr. Holden, Sheldon asked me to bring you something to eat."

Marcus didn't even look up. "Just leave it there."

"Yes, Mr. Holden."

Elijah placed the food on the table but couldn't help glancing over at the papers. Marcus, pencil in hand, was focused on refining another design.

"Mr. Holden, are you designing wedding rings and a gown?"

Elijah couldn't resist asking. From the looks of it, the papers were filled with dress and ring sketches.

He found it hard to believe that someone as cold as Marcus was actually doing something so sentimental. Unable to keep it to himself, he just asked outright.

"Yes. Don't say a word. This is a secret." Marcus lifted his gaze briefly.

Elijah nodded at once. "Of course, Mr. Holden. I won't say a word to Mrs. Holden." Marcus' lips curled slightly. "I'll be staying at the office for the next three days. After that, I'll be going with Natalie to take our wedding photos.

"I plan to design her wedding dress myself and then have a team of seamstresses and specialists help complete it. As for the rings, I'm going to make them myself. You'll be coming with me to the workshop later."

"Yes, Mr. Holden," Elijah responded respectfully, his heart beating faster with excitement. He was even more thrilled than Marcus. "Mr. Holden, you should eat something."

"Leave it. I'm not hungry."

Marcus kept working, sketching every small detail with focus and precision. Soon, he completed the final version.

"It's done."

"Beautiful. Mrs. Holden will definitely love it," Elijah said with admiration.

"Elijah, from now on, call me Mr. Marcus."

Marcus had never corrected him before, but something occurred to him, and he decided it was time to change how Elijah addressed him.

Back when Wesley and Laura were away from the Holden Residence, Charles had instructed Elijah and Noah to call Marcus "Mr. Holden" in the interim.

With Wesley and Laura back, Marcus' position as the rightful heir of the Holden family had been fully reinstated, he was no longer the head.

It only made sense for the staff to address him as Mr. Marcus, and to refer to Natalie as Mrs. Holden or Madam Natalie.

"Yes, Mr. Marcus."

Elijah immediately corrected himself. "Mr. Marcus, your drawing is incredible. It's like you started with a line, turns it into a flower, and then somehow made it explode into popcorn. It's genius."

Marcus paused and looked at him. "That was quite... quite a compliment. Don't do it again."noveldrama

Elijah muttered under his breath, "Okay..."

Marcus carefully put away the final design for the rings and sorted the discarded draft into a drawer. Then he called Elijah, and the two of them left the office.

At 1:00 am, Marcus brought Elijah to the largest jewelry store under the Holden brand.

The diamond had been prepared in advance. He had spent a fortune to acquire the enormous pink diamond at a private auction.

Inside the store's workshop, Marcus asked Elijah to guard the entrance and not let anyone in. Then he stayed inside alone and worked through the entire night.

...

At 7:00 am, Marcus stepped out of the workshop holding a small box. He got into the car with Elijah and headed back to Holden Group.

He closed his eyes for a short nap on the ride. As soon as they arrived, he went straight back to work.

Elijah stood by, watching with concern. The intensity of Marcus' schedule made him worry.

Was it really possible to work like this and not drop dead? If he collapsed, wouldn't that make Natalie a widow?

That couldn't happen. He had to say something. Finally, Elijah stepped forward, gathering his courage.

"Mr. Marcus, you didn't sleep at all last night. You only took a short nap in the car. And now you're running on coffee. That's not good for your health.

"When a person is exhausted, it's easy to make mistakes. If you misread a decimal point or write down the wrong figure, the entire corporation could be affected.

"And if you fall ill or, heaven forbid, drop dead, then Mrs. Holden would become a widow. The Walkers

would never let her stay single amet

such @young age. She'd end up inheriting your estate and marrying someone else. She'd start a new life with a new husband.

"And you'd be all alone in a cold urn. No matter how you turn, it's just cold, silent darkness. That's not a good deal, Mr. Marcus."

Elijah spoke with heartfelt concern. The more he talked, the more he felt Marcus was getting the short end of the stick.

"Shut it." Marcus pressed his fingers to his temple, feeling an oncoming headache. He couldn't even look at the numbers on the screen anymore. "Elijah, you are exhausting."

"I'm just looking out for you. I'm telling the truth. Hard truths are unpleasant, but they're necessary. You know that," Elijah said with a pout.

Marcus rubbed his brow. "Go get Ethan. I'm going to sleep. Wake me up in three hours."

"Yes, Mr. Marcus."

Elijah immediately fetched Ethan. Marcus gave a few final instructions, then got up and went to his private lounge.

He had no choice. Just imagining the ridiculous scenarios Elijah described was enough to rattle him.

He wasn't afraid of Natalie living comfortably with his inheritance. What terrified him was the thought of her marrying someone else. He couldn't even stomach the idea of her smiling at another man, let alone sharing a bed with one.

That thought alone was enough to convince him to take care of himself. He had to stay alive and healthy. He had to live long enough to make sure Natalie would never have the chance to marry someone else.

She was his. Only his.

After Marcus went to rest, Elijah hesitated for a moment, then made a decision.

He messaged Natalie.

"Mrs. Holden, Mr. Marcus isn't eating or sleeping properly. I'm really worried he's going to collapse. Please come to Holden Group and check on him. Right now, he only listens to you."