Chapter 7 New Girlfriend?

Henry stood there with a dopey grin on his face.

Diana's patience was wearing thin. "Downstairs. Don't disturb him."

Without another word, Diana headed down the stairs, Henry scrambling to follow.

His eyes stayed fixed on the girl before him—striking in her purity, a beauty so untouched it carried an almost ethereal grace that stole the breath from his lungs.

If there were ever such a thing as the perfect girlfriend, she was standing right here. Honestly, who in their sane mind would choose Diana over her?

He licked his lips and muttered under his breath, "Nicholas, you sneaky bastard. Keeping a beauty like this hidden away and not telling me."

Yesterday, when Henry heard Diana was planning to bolt from her engagement, he'd been hunting for Nicholas all over town.

But Nicholas wasn't picking up his phone and was nowhere to be found at the engagement venue.

After a whole night of searching came up empty, Henry finally called Mike and discovered Nicholas had been home the entire time. He'd stormed over, ready to give him hell and see what fresh drama Diana was cooking up this time.

Just thinking about Nicholas's twisted obsession with his first love made him shudder.

Compared to this little goddess in front of him, Diana was absolutely hideous.

Feeling his stare burning into her back, Diana whipped around impatiently. "How long are you planning to gawk?"

"Miss, how long have you been with Nicholas? I've never seen you around before. You must be his new girlfriend, right?" Henry's voice practically vibrated with excitement as he studied her.

If she wasn't Nicholas's girlfriend, how would she dare waltz in and out of his bedroom? Did she have a death wish?

Countless women had tried to climb into Nicholas's bed, and they'd all met gruesome ends.

For her to emerge from that bedroom unscathed and speak to him so casually—she had to be Nicholas's girlfriend.

The thought of never having to watch Nicholas stare longingly at Diana's hideous photos again made the very air feel fresher.

Diana looked at him like he was a complete moron.

She could still picture the day Henry first saw her back in elementary school—same face, same eyes.

All she'd done since then was grow a little taller and fill out in all the right places. And now he didn't recognize her? What, had the past few years scrambled his brain?

Henry was gearing up to say more when Diana completely ignored him and walked into the kitchen. "Mike, is the food ready?"

Mike and the other kitchen staff stared at Diana like they'd seen a ghost. Most of the servants barely recognized her anymore.

Mike had seen Diana during her high school years and immediately knew who she was.

"Not yet, Miss. What would you like?"

Diana thought carefully about what would be suitable for someone with a brain tumor. "Could you please prepare salmon, chicken, a vegetable salad with nuts, and make a vegetable soup as well?"

She opened the refrigerator, which was packed with all her favorite snacks. "From now on, none of this junk should be in the house. He can't have high-sugar foods. No canned goods either, and lock up all the alcohol."

Diana's grandmother had been well-known for her mastery of traditional medicine, but she gave it up after marrying, choosing instead to help her husband build his empire.

The York family the doctor spoke of was, in truth, her grandmother's own bloodline.

Diana had been raised by her grandmother and had absorbed plenty of medical knowledge through osmosis. At the very least, she could help Nicholas get his health back on track.

Mike's eyes misted over as he looked at her. "Yes, I understand. I'll take care of it right away."

He hesitated, glancing at the snacks in the fridge. "All of this has to go?"

"Yes. No high-sugar foods in this house from now on." Diana nodded firmly. "He needs proper nutritional care now. I'll write up a meal plan for you to follow."

Mike nodded eagerly, feeling a warmth spread through his chest.

Yesterday, when he'd watched Nicholas carry her back, Mike had braced himself for another one of her tantrums.

Instead, Diana wasn't throwing a fit—she was actually taking care of Nicholas.

He glanced up toward Nicholas's room. Maybe Nicholas would finally catch a break.

Diana grabbed a pen and paper, carefully crafting a detailed meal plan for the next three days.

She looked back at Mike. "Mike, I need his recent medical reports. The detailed ones."

"Of course, I'll get them right away."

Mike hurried off to fetch Nicholas's medical files.

When Diana saw the test results, her expression darkened.

All of Nicholas's numbers were hovering at critical thresholds. Yesterday, Mandy had drugged him—God only knew if that had affected his neurological function.

Seeing her grave expression, Henry couldn't help asking, "Is Nicholas really that far gone?"

"You'll croak before he does." Diana shot him a venomous glare, then scribbled down a detox formula and handed it to Mike. "Mike, schedule him for blood work. Have someone you trust pick up these herbs. Make sure it's one of our people."

"Blood work? Mr. Spencer, he—"

"He'll listen to me." Diana set down her pen without a trace of doubt in her voice.

"Miss, you're absolutely incredible! You know about all this medical stuff too?" Henry exclaimed.

He was even more impressed with the girl in front of him.

Someone with Nicholas's temperament needed a caring woman by his side. Sure, this little beauty seemed a bit cold, but capable people always had attitude, right?

Thinking of Diana made him snort with disgust. "You're a million times better than that Diana."

Hearing Henry's comment, Diana tilted her head toward him. "Really?"

"Absolutely! No question about it!" Finally getting her attention, Henry was grinning from ear to ear. "When it comes to marriage, you want someone gentle and domestic like you. The key is that you actually love Nicholas—otherwise, why would you be so thoughtful?"

"Diana isn't thoughtful?" Diana pressed.

"Her? Thoughtful isn't in her vocabulary." Henry curled his lip in disgust. "You have no idea—she's like some greedy, brain-dead parasite, sucking up Nicholas's resources to throw money at that con artist Derek. She's dumb as a rock."

"A woman like that isn't just unfit to be a wife—she's toxic as a friend. Anyone stupid enough to get close to her ends up destroyed." Just thinking about it made Henry's blood boil. "The Windsor Family is basically a bottomless money pit now. Anyone who helps Diana is signing their own death warrant. You should talk Nicholas out of throwing good money after bad."

At the mention of the Windsor Family's troubles, Diana's pulse quickened.

She clearly remembered that before her parents died, Windsor Corporation had been struggling but still maintaining its balance. As long as their projects continued, they'd be fine.

How had it become a "bottomless money pit" according to Henry?

She asked carefully, "You're talking about Windsor Corporation, the real estate company?"

Henry didn't recognize her at all and seemed eager to elaborate. "That's right—Diana's family business, Windsor Corporation. Looks impressive from the outside, but it's completely hollow inside. Their biggest project has hit major problems, and their cash flow is about to dry up. When that happens, bankruptcy is the only option."

"That serious?"

Diana fought to keep her voice steady, not wanting Henry to catch on.

In her previous life, Windsor Corporation had indeed gone bankrupt. She needed to understand the details if she had any hope of saving the company.

Henry might be a bit of a playboy, but the Montague family was neck-and-neck with the Windsors in real estate. He definitely knew more than she did.

Henry shrugged. "Well, it's serious and it's not serious, if you know what I mean."

Diana frowned, finding Henry incredibly irritating with his cryptic non-answers.

But thinking about Windsor Corporation's fate, she swallowed her annoyance and kept her voice sweet, "Nicholas mentioned something about it to me. He said an injection of capital would solve everything. Are you saying he was lying to me?"