The Year I Was the Other Woman To Myself novel Chapter 361

Because Natalie was a famous actress, the restaurant she chose offered excellent privacy. In their private room, she boldly ordered three bottles of red wine.

“Are we planning on crawling out of here tonight?” Penelope joked.

Natalie handed a bottle each to Norton and Timothy but poured Penelope a large glass of juice.

“Aren’t you also trying for a baby?” Penelope whispered.

“Someone else is handling that for me,” Natalie replied cryptically, then smiled and shook her head. “Let’s not talk about that. Tonight, you all have to celebrate with me!”

“What’s the good news?”

“After six months of hard work, I finally landed the role I wanted!” Natalie declared, her eyes shining with brilliant light.

Norton immediately let out an exaggerated “Wow!” “Our Natalie is amazing! The most incredible actress in the universe!”

Natalie laughed and patted his head. “Thank you, Norton.”

The gesture seemed to send Norton into a dizzying spell. Timothy had to jab him with an elbow to snap him out of it.

Timothy rolled his eyes, then asked curiously, “But with your status, if you want a role, wouldn’t the producers just hand it to you? Why did you have to fight for it?”

“The best scripts and the best roles are always worth fighting for,” Natalie explained, taking a deep breath. “To get this part, I read the original novel over a dozen times, outlined the plot, and wrote backstories for every single character, especially the lead I was auditioning for. I filled an entire notebook. I love this script and this character so much that I even told the director I’d work for free and put my salary toward the production budget.”

“And it was all worth it. I got it!”

In that moment, Natalie glowed like the brightest star in the sky, radiating a light so powerful it seemed to illuminate everyone around her.

Natalie returned just as the soup arrived, but she quickly poured another glass of wine and prepared to leave again.

“I just saw Mr. Jones, the director of the movie I just got cast in. He’s here with some of the crew. I’m just going to go say hello.”

With a quick explanation, she hurried out, her steps light and cheerful. She was clearly thrilled about this role.

But the woman who returned a few minutes later was a shadow of the one who had left, her face clouded with disappointment.

“What’s wrong?” Penelope asked immediately.

Natalie shook her head, forcing a smile. “It’s nothing. I’m just suddenly very tired. I think I’m going to go home and rest.” She paused, composing herself. “I’m so sorry. I’ll treat you all another time. I… I should go.”