Love’s Second Act by Alvis Midden

Chapter 36

An hour later, Natalie was on the hospital bed. She was in so much pain that cold sweat could not stop trickling down her forehead. Her face was all scrunched up, and that part where Calvin had previously hit her seemed to have dislocated again.

“You have to take a good rest. Without proper care, it can easily dislocate again, the doctor reminded her as he applied the bandages.

Because of the pain, Natalie was unable to speak.

At that moment, Calvin, who stood next to her, was not doing any better. His breath was not much better than before. The gaze he threw at Natalie had lost its warmth.

The doctor finished his job and led the nurse out of the room.

Only Natalie and Calvin were left in the ward. Natalie turned her head to one side, refusing to look at him.

Calvin said in a domineering tone. “You’re not allowed to drive after today

Fortunately, it had only been a minor crash that day. If she had bumped into a big truck, she would probably have died on the spot.

Natalie did not answer.

The man probably still had not come to terms with whatever was going on between them. What right did he have to tell her what to do with her life?

Noticing her silence, Calvin got furious. “Do you hear me?”

Natalie finally turned to him.

“What does it have to do with you?”

“You…”

Calvin got riled up again.

This downright ungrateful woman was getting on his nerves.

Calvin suppressed his anger. Just as he was about to speak, the phone rang. It was from Ian.

Calvin took the call. “Hello.”

“Mr. Jeffords, it’s impossible to make a living donation. Quadfield customs dictate that the b*dy be buried whole. They do not even accept donations of those who died from illness.”

They were talking about Yvette’s retina.

Natalie’s breath hitched at that.

Natalie looked at Calvin without making a sound, just as Calvin instinctively turned to glance at her when he listened to lan’s explanation on the phone.

He had a complicated look. Only Natalie could tell what was really on his mind.

Calvin hung up the phone.

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Chapter 36

He looked at Natalie in silence, just as she did him.

They held their glances for some time. They had never looked at each other so sternly. Brianna had certainly taken good care of Natalie.

On the contrary, Calvin’s handsome face had gotten thinner. It was obvious that those people had made much trouble since

her return.

Natalie had a good idea what Calvin’s internal struggles right then were, yet she merely looked on quietly.

She was waiting for Calvin to speak.

In her previous life, she had almost forgotten the first time Calvin told her to give her retina to Yvette. This time, she wanted to take a good look at him for herself.

She did not want to miss a single change.

More time passed.

They had been staring at each other in confrontation for a long while. Then, after a period of silence, the man finally got up and said, “Take a good rest here. The doctor says you’ll have to be hospitalized for several days.”

With that, he turned around and left, not waiting for Natalie’s response. He looked like he was running away from a ferocious beast.

In the end, he did not say what Natalie had been waiting for.

Natalie closed her eyes.

She recalled her previous life thoroughly. Back then, she did not have Xavier, so naturally she did not get hurt. That day, he smoked a lot at Autumnhall Residence.

Finally, he said to her, with a tinge of coldness that she had never experienced before, the words that made her hysterical and desperate.

He said, “Natalie, you have sinned. You owe her this much, so you ought to repay the debt yourself.”

Natalie finally remembered.

At that time, every word Calvin had spoken was so cold that she felt as if he had stabbed her in the chest with a knife. She explained countless times.

She pleaded to him desperately, over and over again, that it was not her doing, but he never believed her. He gave her the devastating ultimatum instead.

He believed that Natalie had destroyed Yvette on her own, so he believed it was only proper that Natalie repay Yvette. This was her retribution.

Buzz! A phone call interrupted her thoughts.

Natalie instantly crawled out of the cold and desperate memory

It was Queenie.

Natalie picked up the call. “Sorry, I’m in the hospital now.”

“It’s okay. I know.”

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Natalie was stunned by Queenie’s words. She did not expect that Queenie would know about her situation.

She worked for Xavier after all. His people were trained to be meticulous and sharp,

Before Natalie could say anything, the woman on the other end of the phone continued, “Is it serious? Do you want me to

Come over?”

“No, I can come to you right away”

“There’s no need. You need to rest. I’ll take care of things over here.”

“I’m not in pain anymore,” Natalie said stubbornly.

Since Xavier had recognized her shortcomings over the years, she needed to

get back on her feet as soon as possible.

Otherwise, having Queenie as an assistant would have been a total waste.

Queenie had come all the way to Quadfield and was now under Natalie’s employment. Furthermore, Queenie’s time did not come cheap.

Natalie got up and got dressed.

As soon as she stepped out the door, she bumped into Calvin who had turned back. “What are you doing? the man said coldly.

The doctor had just left. Did she intend to follow him?

“I have something to tell you. Before Natalie could speak, Calvin forcefully pushed her back into the ward.

Having been herded back. Natalie glared at the man in front of her. “Well, say it!”

She sat on the edge of the hospital bed.

Calvin pulled over a stool and sat opposite her. Looking at Natalie, he tried to say something but hesitated, seeming to be struggling.

Natalie hardened her resolve when she noticed the man’s peculiar behavior.

She had a rough idea of what Calvin was going to say.

She got up from the bed and said, “If you have nothing to say, I’m leaving.

“There’s an operation…” Calvin quickly blurted behind her.

Natalie trembled, which betrayed her feelings.

She looked back at him with hatred in her glistening eyes. She knew this was coming.

He had actually gone and said it.

This was different from what happened in her previous life. This time, at least she could see that he was struggling, but unfortunately, luck was still on Yvette’s side.

Natalie took a deep breath. “What kind of operation?”

Calvin stood up and came to her side.

He looked at the woman in front of him condescendingly. Ever since they met, she had been living under his wings

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Chapter 36

He used to protect her, and at the moment he was still doing exactly that.

“Yvette has to undergo an operation to fix her eyes. Nat, you owe her this. You have to pay her back!” He was using a different tone to deliver the same message.

For Natalie, the conclusion was just the same.

She looked up at the man in front of her. A smile appeared on her face. The situation was utterly ridiculous.

“I don’t owe her!”

“Nat!” Calvin’s face turned grim right after she spoke.

Seeing him like this, Natalie continued in an even colder tone, What? If I don’t agree, do you intend to strap me to the operating table once more?”

In her previous life, wasn’t that what happened?

He forced her to sign the surgery consent form and forcefully strapped her to the operating table.

Back then, Calvin’s doing had led her to experience utter despair. She could never forget the darkness that greeted her after she woke up

She would also never forget the fire that she could not escape from because of her blindness.

In the last moments of her consciousness, all she could hear was the sound of the fire tearing her apart.

As Natalie looked at the man in front of her, the hatred in her eyes grew increasingly intense.

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