Chapter 353


    In no time at all, William arrived at the quaint cabin Natalia was renting.


    At that moment, Natalia was seated before her easel, a half-empty ss of juice beside her.


    Content bel0ngs to N?vel(D)r/a/ma.Org.


    Seated in the sunroom, Natalia watched the gentle rain drizzling from the sky, feeling as though her


    troubles were as endless as the rain, utterly miserable.


    "Honk—honk—"


    The sound of a car horn echoed through the rain. Following the noise, Natalia saw it was William''s car.


    She found it odd. What could bring him here in the rain?


    William quickly entered the yard under the protection of his umbre, spotting Natalia seated under the


    sunroom window. He called out cheerfully, "Good to find you at home, Natalia!"


    Natalia gave an easy smile and a nod, standing to wee William inside.


    "It''s raining outside. What brings you here?"


    William closed his umbre, looking a bit sheepish. "Well, you know how ourpany is coborating


    with Andersen Corporation, right? They called today, urgently needing a design draft. They seem pretty


    insistent, and I didn''t want to put too much pressure on you, so I thought I''d swing by and ask if you


    could handle it."


    Natalia paused, startled. An urgent design draft? What could be so urgent? Was this something


    Magnus requested?


    A flurry of thoughts cascaded through Natalia''s mind, but she couldn''t bring herself to voice them in


    front of William. Instead, she forced a smile. "I''ll do my best. Any specific requests from their end?"


    "All the specifications are here. It''s for this season''s primary product. Then, you just need to prepare


    another simr design as a backup." William handed over the documents to Natalia. "I know it''s a bit


    rushed. Any issues on your end? If it''s too much, I can try to buy you a few more days."


    "No, I''ll manage," Natalia, sensing William''s difort, knew he wouldn''t havee in person for


    something that could have been handled over the phone. "I have a few iplete pieces from a


    previous series. I''ll workte tonight to finish them up."


    William nodded, though he still felt guilty for imposing on her. "Are you sure? If there''s any trouble,


    please let me know."


    "Don''t worry, I can handle it," reassured Natalia, turning to pour William a ss of water. "I''ve been so


    busy, I forgot to offer you something to drink."


    "No need, really," William quickly dismissed the offer. "I just came to discuss this matter. Now that


    you''ve reassured me, I''ll take my leave." Picking up his umbre, he headed for the door.


    At that moment, Hector emerged with a ss of water. He recognized the one visiting Natalia as her


    boss from their previous encounter and courteously offered, "It''s pouring outside. Would you like to stay


    for a bit?"


    William turned back, acknowledging Hector with a polite smile. "No need, I''ll be on my way. I won''t


    impose any longer."


    With that, William opened his umbre and stepped back into the rain.


    Once William had left, Hector ced his untouched ss of water on the table, turning to Natalia.


    "What''s so urgent that he''de all the way here in this rain?"


    Natalia slowly returned to her seat, her expression unreadable. "Nothing much, just some design


    drafts. Apparently, Melfort is pressing for them."


    Hector picked up on the mention of Melfort. He knew that Magnus had negotiated a contract with the


    everywhere.


    Watching Natalia focus on her work, hemented, "Can you handle the workload? If it''s too much,


    don''t hesitate to push some aside. Don''t overwork yourself."


    Picking up her paintbrush, Natalia began to sketch. "I''ll manage. I''ll just workte tonight."


    "Just don''t push yourself too hard." Seeing Natalia engrossed in her work, Hector decided not to disturb


    her and headed into the kitchen to prepare dinner.


    Once Hector had left, Natalia couldn''t hold back her tears any longer. Her heart ached for Magnus,


    even assuming that he hade to Rome because he had seen something in her designs. However, it


    seemed that these thoughts were all wishful thinking. Magnus hadn''t connected the designs to her and


    was even pressing Stitches Fashion for the next set.


    Natalia knew she shouldn''t think like this, but she wished so dearly that Magnus could see her love for


    him in those designs. Not for fame or profit, but a simple wish for him to recognize her longing for him


    and her love as pure and noble as magnolia.


    In the end, her hopes were in vain. He believed the designs were Diana''s and was even nning to


    propose.


    Regardless of her feelings, she couldn''t change the fact that she couldn''t go back. “Magnus, if this is


    what you want, I wish you well.”


    But why did her heart feel so devastated...


    Natalia silently voiced her despair, her gaze falling onto the nk canvas.


    Instead of her usual signature, she used magnolia.


    Teardrops stained the page.


    Her eyes glued to her sketch pad, Natalia replied, "I''m not hungry, really. You go ahead and eat. I just


    need to finish this part; I can''t lose my train of thought now."


    "Alright then." Hector rubbed his hands together helplessly, not daring to disturb Natalia. He left her to


    immerse herself in her art.