Chapter 160: Louis Gets Sick

Louis came home early on a Thursday.

That alone was suspicious.

Freya found him sitting on the couch with his tie loosened and his eyes closed.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

She touched his forehead.

He was burning.

"Nothing has a fever."

"It's probably minor."

Freya stared at him.

The mighty Louis Stone, who had survived corporate sabotage, family conspiracy, bankruptcy theater, and Adrian's behavioral models, had apparently decided illness could be defeated through denial.

She took his temperature.

It was high enough that she called their doctor.

Louis protested.

Freya ignored him.

The doctor diagnosed a viral infection, prescribed rest, fluids, and medication, and warned them to call again if symptoms worsened.

For the next two days, Louis became an extremely bad patient.

He attempted to answer emails from bed.

Freya confiscated his laptop.

He tried using his phone.

She took that too.

"You cannot seize my property."

"We're married. Apparently everything you have belongs to me."

Louis stared at her.

Freya smiled sweetly.

Derek supported her completely.

Northstar survived without Louis for forty-eight hours.

This seemed to offend him personally.

Freya made soup.

Unlike the simple breakfasts from their first days, she no longer worried whether the food was refined enough for him.

Louis ate two bowls.

"Good?"

"Very."

"You've become easier to feed since bankruptcy."

"I was never bankrupt."

"Then you've become easier to feed since lying about bankruptcy."

He was too tired to argue.

That night his fever rose again.

Freya stayed awake longer than necessary, checking his temperature and listening to his breathing.

At some point Louis opened his eyes.

"You know I'm not dying."

"I know."

"You look worried."

"I'm allowed."

He reached for her hand.

Freya realized how deeply ordinary fear could hurt.

Adrian had once tried to destroy Louis through business failure. Freya had faced kidnappings, investigations, and conspiracies with surprising calm because there was always something practical to do.

A fever should have been smaller.

Yet seeing Louis weak frightened her more.

Perhaps because love made ordinary things dangerous too.

By the third day, his temperature dropped.

Freya finally relaxed.

Louis immediately asked for his laptop.

"No."

"I'm better."

"No."

"Freya."

"Doctor said rest."

He looked betrayed.

She gave him soup.

A week later, Louis returned to work.

Derek privately thanked Freya for discovering the only method capable of keeping Louis away from email: physical confiscation.

Freya considered adding the skill to her résumé.

Possessive billionaire husband management.

Highly specialized.

Excellent results.

After recovering, Louis discovered Freya had answered exactly none of his work emails for him. She had simply told Derek that Northstar possessed other executives. Louis claimed this was unsupportive. Freya replied that preventing him from becoming professionally useless was an act of love.

Freya made a note of the development and returned to the practical work in front of her. She had learned that a complicated life became manageable only when she separated what she knew, what she suspected, and what she could actually do next. Louis respected that habit, even when his instinct was to solve everything immediately. For now, they chose the next useful step and left the unanswered part where it belonged.

Freya made a note of the development and returned to the practical work in front of her. She had learned that a complicated life became manageable only when she separated what she knew, what she suspected, and what she could actually do next. Louis respected that habit, even when his instinct was to solve everything immediately. For now, they chose the next useful step and left the unanswered part where it belonged.

Freya made a note of the development and returned to the practical work in front of her. She had learned that a complicated life became manageable only when she separated what she knew, what she suspected, and what she could actually do next. Louis respected that habit, even when his instinct was to solve everything immediately. For now, they chose the next useful step and left the unanswered part where it belonged.