If she was right, Weston had tied himself up again.Stella stood in the doorway, her hand on the wall, not daring to take that step even after a good bout of mental preparation.It was unclear how much time had gone by before she knocked on the door.“Bang!” Something was smashed inside the room. It hit the door and fell to the ground, and broke.“I told you to get lost! Can’t you understand?”Stella took a deep breath and said to the person inside, “It’s me.”In an instant, the voice inside subsided.She did not know how long it took, so long that Stella thought she should knock on the door again when Weston’s raspy voice rang from inside.“What are you doing here?”She let out an unintentional chuckle. “What do you think I’m doing here?”There was no answer.She heard dragging footsteps coming in the direction of the door and the sound of chains scraping on the floor.Her breathing became a little slower as she waited for him to reach the door.The sound of chains clanki
…Stella opened the door of the dimly lit room and walked in.Weston did not move a muscle when he heard the noise. He could tell who was coming in just by the sound of the footsteps.He hid in the corner when she came up behind him, giving him a gentle pat as she put her hand on his shoulder.He immediately turned his head sideways.Seeing him in this state, her hands trembled a little. She whispered behind his ear only after a long time, “It’s me…”Of course, he knew it was her. But he didn’t want her to see him like this.The chains that shackled him rattled noisily as he moved.Her eyelashes fluttered, and her red eyes showed incredulity. “Why must you make yourself like this?”“I didn’t mean to…”He said to her with a hoarse voice. “I didn’t ask you to come over either. It’s you who wanted to. I didn’t want you to see me like this, and I certainly didn’t want you to pity me.”She held his hand tightly at once and put her forehead against his palm. “I did not pity you,
It was what Stella had said herself, but the touch of her hands subconsciously became lighter.Weston looked at her and wished she wasn’t so gentle.Instead, she could’ve been a little rougher, to hurt him, to make him feel the pain. Perhaps, only then would he feel more secure.She was completely unaware of what was going through Weston’s mind.She lowered her head and treated his wounds carefully.He reached his hand out and touched her cheek, then tucked the hair beside her cheek behind her ear.She felt itchy and tilted her head a little, wanting to dodge his touch.The man’s face suddenly turned gloomy, yet he did not say anything.When she finished treating his wounds, he looked away. “You can go.”He said, “I don’t need your pity.”She was startled and looked at him. “How can there be someone who is so ungrateful as you? You were enjoying yourself while I was bandaging you, and now that I’ve calmed you down, you’re chasing me away?” He gritted his teeth. “I didn’t le
It was just moments ago when he held her as if he wouldn’t let her go, yet he was now hiding in the cage.Stella wondered how this man could change his face so quickly.He did not even dare to look up at her, burying his face with his palms. “While I still have some sense left in me, go away…”She took a deep breath. “Have you thought it through? I’m giving you one last chance. Do you really want me to go?”He remained silent, and his head hung low, casting a long shadow.Thus, she gave him one last look and turned to leave.Since he wouldn’t ask her to stay, even if he could not resist opening his mouth just now, he would still backtrack and let her go.Then she would leave. It was not her begging him to stay, so why would she pamper him?Bang!The door of the room was closed.Ben heard the sound and rushed to Stella. “Mrs. Ford, what’s the situation?”She gave him a look. “He and I divorced long ago. You do not need to call me Mrs.”“Okay, Mrs. Ford.”Stella was speechle
Stella froze for a moment, seeming to ponder his words.It was true that she had not thought that she was still treating Weston as a savior.But she could not deny that her tenderness toward Weston was mostly out of pity.Other than that, whether it was a few other feelings, she was not sure and did not want to figure it out.“If you don’t really like, or are willing to be with him, I suggest you stop seeing him for a while. Weston may want to be tied to you, but his heart feels that you will have a better life without him. That’s why he’s so conflicted.”She nodded and closed the car door.After she left, Hayden glanced in the direction she had left and went to see Weston at the nursing home.He was really in a much more unstable state than he had been earlier, especially after Stella had seen him. It was almost impossible for him to stop himself from wanting her.Hayden was a bit upset to see him in such a state.Three years ago, he had some feelings for Stella, but it all d
A loud bang interrupted Hayden’s speech.Even Stella could feel the deafening noise from the call. Weston, however, didn’t say anything.After a long silence, she finally heard him forcing his word through gritted teeth, “Yes.”Weston said, “I’d rather see her be happy.”Stella fell into a long silence.At last, she hung up the call and closed her eyes without saying anything. She thought, ‘That’s what you say, Weston.’…Stella did not see Weston again after that day. There was no point in trying to pity him after his statement.Roger found out about it somehow and talked to Stella. “Did Weston really say that?”“He didn’t tell me in person, but that’s what he said to Hayden.”“He’d even let you be with another man.”Stella nodded. “But I’m not going to be with someone else just because of that. If I’m going to date someone, it’ll be because of love. I’m not going to date someone just to piss someone off.”Stella’s answer made Roger feel a little weak. It was as if she had
Stella thought having a meal with a stranger was fine. After all, Roger was right about her being too shut off in her own world. It was as if Weston was the only man in her world. It would be good for her to get to know more people.Besides, Stella needed to figure out her real feelings for Weston. Was it just pity and sympathy and no other emotions? Or maybe she still had a little love left for him?Anyway, Stella would soon find out her real feelings for Weston. Weston was the only man she was close to in the past few years. She was not close to any other man other than someone like Roger.Well, there was Justin, but she only reached out to him out of desperation. Due to Weston’s intervention, her brief relationship with Justin ended before she could even get along with him.Stella could sense Justin’s feelings at that time. He was probably just trying to save her at that time or disliked Weston’s control over her.When she thought about it, it appeared Weston was the only one w
The man was very attentive and enthusiastic. “Don’t worry. I know the boss here. He’s a friend of mine. Just tell me if you have any car you like.”Stella hurriedly shook her head and rejected him. “No, it’s too expensive for me to accept.”The man’s smile became derisive. “So you don’t find the cars here any better than Mr. Ford’s Maybach and Rolls-Royce?”Stella was stunned for a moment. She did not think if her words had expressed anything like this, but she simply found it inappropriate to accept such an extravagant gift from someone she had just met.She wondered if it was just an imagination, but she found the man’s speech strange.“A small business owner like me is certainly no match for a powerful man like Mr. Ford… But I’m not too bad. I can’t provide you with a luxurious life, but you’ll live better than most women.”Stella finally knew what was wrong. Stella only had the intention of making friends. Although this was their first meeting, the man was already treating he
Stella had rarely ever woken up before him.He had always been terrifyingly strong, but their lovemaking last night must have consumed a lot of his energy, leaving him so tired that he was still sound asleep.She stared at him and suddenly felt like doing something naughty. She pinched his nose and held her fingers there, trying to suffocate him. Unsurprisingly, he soon knitted his handsome brows and quickly woke up.He was surprised to see her mesmerizing eyes as soon as he woke up, which made him pause. He then took her hand into his and kissed it again and again.“Are you okay?” he asked with concern, remembering how wildly he ravaged her last night.She had only been willing to be intimate with him because she was under the influence of a drug, yet he had taken advantage of her and had his way with her over and over again last night.Stella did not speak. Seeing her like that made his expressions turn a little colder. He fell silent for a long time before he got up and sl
The moment Stella saw him, she flew into his arms and clambered onto his body. She kissed him again and again, trying to search for his breath so she could explore his body even deeper. All she wanted was to let him extinguish the fire burning inside her.Half an hour had passed, and the effect of the drug on her body was its strongest now.Weston swallowed his saliva. Without any hesitation, he pinned her against the bathroom mirror and kissed her vehemently on her face, her shoulders, then her neck.Stella could not stop herself from letting out loud moans. The sounds she produced only drove Weston wilder. Even the corners of his eyes began to turn red now.Luckily, there was still a thread of reason in his mind. He pushed her away and, while panting heavily, asked her, “Who am I, Stella?”But Stella’s mind was occupied with her primal urges. She ignored his question and grabbed his shirt collar, saying, “Let’s do it…” The sight of her filled Weston with a desire to just give
Weston paused, then simply replied, “Okay.”When he saw her changing into a pair of high heels, he followed her around and asked, “Where are you going?”“Oh, to a private concert.”Then she added, “If you’re going to spend the night here tonight, then please take care of Elias and Emma. But if you have to leave, I’ll ask Roger to come over instead.”“Don’t worry,” he said. “Just go out and enjoy yourself. I’ll be at home and take good care of the kids.”Stella paused suddenly, feeling inexplicably weird about what Weston had just said. It sounded like she was forcing him to stay at home and take care of the kids while she went out to have fun without a care in the world. She turned around to look at Weston, feeling like he was acting like a poor neglected housewife.She shook her head and tried to shake this terrifying thought out of her mind.When they arrived at the concert, Hayden offered his arm to her like a gentleman. They then walked into the private concert together, w
Stella’s words rendered Weston speechless. She was right. He had been the one to agree to let Stella date other people, so he must seem like a fool saying all those things to her.He withdrew his hands and forced himself to calm down a little. “I have no intention to stand in your way,” he told Stella. “I was only worried about Elias and Emma. Since they’re also here, I think you need to take their feelings into consideration.”The children could sense the strained atmosphere between the adults, so they just waited patiently on the couch with Roger, occasionally poking their heads out to look at their parents.Seeing his kids like that, Weston slowly added, “I’m only here to see the kids, so both of you can go ahead with your date.”Stella said nothing and just took Hayden’s hand and left.When they got downstairs, Hayden glanced at her and asked, “Are you sure you want to just leave him like that?”“I don’t know,” Stella massaged the point between her brows. “I’m not sure wh
Hayden Quirk arrived half an hour earlier than Stella did on their first date.“You’re much earlier than I expected,” he joked as Stella walked in.Stella was actually on time, but she still felt a little guilty when she saw him already waiting for her when she arrived.“The traffic is terrible today,” she said.“Don’t worry about it,” Hayden said, handing her the menu. “Mr. Ford expected me to wait for you for at least an hour.”“I seriously don’t know what you guys are up to,” she grumbled, exasperated, “but I hope it will at least be over soon. Just don’t drag it out and cause me any trouble.”She ordered a few dishes, then handed the menu back to him. Hayden took it from her, ordered a few more signature dishes that the restaurant was popular for, then looked at Stella with a faint smile.“Did you think this is all just a joke?” he asked.“What else could it be?”“I am serious about this,” he told her, his voice suddenly turning grave. “Since even Mr. Ford agreed that we s
Weston raised his eyebrows at Ben’s words. “But he’s divorced. He has an ex-wife.”“What’s wrong with having an ex-wife?”Ben found Weston’s comment strange. “This man has good qualities. Upon investigation, he has a very good personality too. He was an active member during college. He also has an amazingly beautiful resume. It’s normal that a man like him has been married before… Besides, hasn’t Ms. Sealey been married before herself? She even has two children.”Weston’s expression turned cold at once. “Are you discriminating against her?”“I’m not.”Weston said, “Or do you think she can only find a divorced man for her second marriage?”Ben panicked. “I wouldn’t dare!”With Weston’s ridiculous amount of nitpicking, they could find no one that would match Stella.Hayden sat beside and quietly reviewed Weston’s latest psychological health report. As he turned the page, he suddenly said, “I’m actually a little interested in Ms. Sealey.”Hayden laughed a little and turned to Wes
Stella opened her eyes and shot Weston a cold look. Then, she turned her head the other way.Weston did not touch her again. He knew she was probably angry with him, so he stayed silent.A few moments later, he reminded her, “Don’t be angry. That man is unreliable.”Stella propped her chin in her palm. “And what does that have to do with you?”Weston pursed his lips, setting his jaw in a tight line. He said, “I’ve promised to stop pestering you. It’ll be a promise. I’m fine with seeing you with another man, but at least find someone who makes me feel at ease.”“Why do I need your approval when I’m just looking for a date?” Stella found his words funny. “You’re just my ex-husband. Don’t you think you care too much?”Weston rubbed his brow, and his voice suddenly went cold. “If you don’t want me to keep pestering you like I just did, maybe you should listen to me.”Stella questioned, “Are you threatening me?”“No. I’m suggesting.”Stella was lost for words. Then, she suddenly
Stella froze for a moment when she heard the voice. When she turned around, she saw that Weston had appeared behind her at some point.Weston stared at the man behind Stella with a cold gaze and an icy aura around him. Weston had always emitted a strong aura around him. Anyone who saw him would immediately be terrified because of his intimidating aura.The man froze for a moment at Weston’s sudden appearance. He took a step back and quickly steadied himself before greeting Weston, “Mr. Ford.”He still had the same calm and gentle look. “I’m sending Miss Cicily back.”“I know. Don’t ever show up in front of her again,” Weston told him. “You don’t have to send her back. Stay away from her.”It would be a little inappropriate for the man to act a fool at Weston’s straightforwardness, so he tugged at his collar and asked Weston with a polite smile, “Mr. Ford, you should give me a reason, shouldn’t you? I’m having a good time with Miss Cicily.”“You’re the one who thinks she’s having
Stella smiled. It seemed like he had come prepared.Stella enjoyed chatting with the man. He was sincere and introduced himself properly as soon as they started chatting.The man was also a pianist and came from a scholarly family. Although not super wealthy, he was doing considerably well in the middle class. Stella would not need to worry about the quality of life with him, but that was about it. She certainly could not live a luxurious life.Stella had a good impression of him. She also talked to him a little more about piano music.Stella twirled her hair and smiled. She told him with a nice voice, “I’m sure Roger has already told you about my situation.”“I know.”The man looked at her gently and set the coffee in front of her. He said to her, “I’m very interested in you. I think we’re very suitable for each other. Our living standards nowadays have improved quite a bit. Not many look for a partner purely because of material qualities. People with emotional needs will search