Thankfully, the kidnapper remained in a coma and showed no signs of ever waking up. The doctor said that he might possibly remain a vegetable for the rest of his life. In that case, she had nothing to worry about. She just needed to occasionally check in on him. “Ms. Cohen, be assured that we will update you if anything happens to that man.” “Alright. Leave me.” Guinevere felt much better. When she returned to the hall, she saw Wendy walking toward her. Wendy tried to ignore her, but the proud look on Guinevere’s face made her halt. “You’re just going to register your marriage tomorrow. Is there a need to be so haughty?” Guinevere stopped in her tracks, clearly sensing the mockery in Wendy’s tone. What Wendy said reminded her about Weston promising to formally register their wedding, and tomorrow was the deadline. That made her even happier. “You’re right. We’re going to register our marriage tomorrow and I should be resting today or I won’t look good in the photo
Upon hearing Guinevere’s words, rage flashed past the depths of Wendy’s eyes for a split second. “Yes,” she replied with a perfunctory smile. “You might give your all for a man, thinking you would get his whole heart in return, but someday, you might suddenly realize that your love and sacrifice for him were nothing but a joke. “Those filthy things he’s done behind your back will simply make everything you did feel so meaningless. When that day comes around, you will know how pointless and stupid it is to love a man so wholeheartedly.” Guinevere’s heart thumped wildly in her chest, unsure if Wendy had said all of that because she realized that something was wrong or was purely warning her. Guinevere forced a smile. “I believe Weston won’t let me down.” Wendy realized that she had said too much and restored her affable look. “Good that you do.” … Stella was originally preparing to report for filming the next day, but Bradley had suddenly called, telling her to rest at home
They knew that Weston had been busy with work recently. There was an ongoing real estate project in Fern City which involved many stakeholders, and even a few important families. Many people had their eyes on this lucrative project, but the risk of the investment involved was not something that everyone could stomach. Yet, even so, today was the day that both of them were officially registering their marriage. Weston shouldn’t have let Guinevere wait all alone at home. Guinevere heard her parents from far and immediately ran towards them. “You’re here.” She grabbed Weston’s arm and acted intimate. “Dad, Mom, I was the one who asked Weston to run some errands for me, which is why he came back late. Don’t blame him.” She always only had good things to say about Weston in front of Mr. and Mrs. Cohen. Unless she was forced to a corner, she would never rope in her parents. Since Guinevere had given an explanation, Mr. and Mrs. Cohen decided to take it. They weren’t exact
Bradley didn’t care for the goodie bag he received, flinging it aside in disdain. “Another day wasted! We didn’t even have much time, to begin with. Does she want to film this or not?” As much as he could complain, there was nothing he could do to her. Guinevere was invested in the movie, after all, and had announced to the public that she was the female lead. Many scenes had also been filmed with her in them, making it impossible for the actress to be switched out. Bradley would have to tolerate her behavior till he was done filming this movie. He promised himself that from then on, he would never collaborate with Guinevere Cohen, ever again. She did have some acting chops and was also crowned the best actress previously but she wasn’t the only person in the world who could act. Bradley violently kicked the shelf next to him, shaking the equipment and it almost fell off. The crew members who were around immediately held the shelf steady. The assistant director stood
With that, Bradley glanced at Stella, “You do know how to seize the chance when you see it, don’t you?” Stella rubbed her nose, “Better than being a sitting duck.” “Excellent. I admire such proactiveness,” Bradley nodded. “Come over here. I’ll introduce you to some people.” Stella followed behind him, rather taken aback. “Aren’t we supposed to talk about the scenes?” “I saw how smoothly you recited your lines and know you’ve more or less grasped them all. There are a few seniors I’d like you to meet. If you want to improve your standard, they are the best people to talk to. “These are all seniors who were untrained at the beginning but can now act very well. As long as you treat them with courtesy, I’m sure you will get along.” Excitement flashed across Stella’s eyes. “Thank you, Director!” Instead of responding to her, he brought her backstage. “Is everyone ready?” “Director, you came personally to check on our progress… of course, everything is ready.” One of the sl
Bradley was very pleased with her attitude, especially in comparison to that of Guinevere. He patted her shoulder. “I brought you here to get to know everyone here because I want you to learn from them. Everyone here is of high standards, you’ll be able to learn a thing or two by following them.” Stella nodded. Indeed, as Bradley said, these seniors were not stuck up and began chatting with Stella in no time. “Today, Caspian has scenes scheduled with these seniors. You can watch and observe them from the sidelines. Next up will be your scenes with Caspian. You can learn from how these seniors respond to Caspian." With that, Bradley left to return to his work. Stella sat in a corner and observed the chemistry between the actors. She concentrated on observing them and did not notice the assistant rushing to her side, “I forgot about this…” He held a pen in one hand as if he was recording something, as he stuffed a red bag in Stella’s hand with another, “Here, for you.”
At Ford Mansion, Lawyers from both sides began declaring both parties’ respective financial situations. All documents were duplicated multiple times, so everyone could have their own copy. Everyone in the room took it seriously as they read the documents in their hands, and the atmosphere was tense and quiet. As they read on, Mr. and Mrs. Cohen’s brows began furrowing tightly. It was especially so for Mr. Cohen, who suddenly placed one of the files on the table and tapped his fingers on it. “What’s with this? I don’t recall that the risk level of this Fern City project was so high.” Weston simply glanced over him and said, “Things have changed. This is our most optimistic projection after going through the risk analysis.” Mr. Cohen’s face darkened. “Why didn’t you say this earlier?” Both families had high hopes for this project, with the Cohen family ready to participate the moment they got married, going as far as to invest a huge portion of their family fortune. Thi
He could not say it out loud because of his pride. All he could do was glance at Mrs. Cohen for a moment. A woman was more suitable to intervene in such matters.Mrs. Cohen understood this. She looked at Guinevere gently and sighed. “Your father and I certainly wish for the best for you. It’ll be great if you can stay with Weston happily. Your happiness is more important than anything…” Guinevere breathed a sigh of relief. Her eyes were a bit red. “Thank you, Mom.”“But…” Mrs. Cohen dragged her words.Guinevere’s expression changed when she heard that.Mrs. Cohen said, “Marriage is not as simple as dating. This is a big thing. Are you sure you want to marry Weston?”“I am!” Guinevere answered quickly and firmly.She looked at Weston and repeated, “I am.”Weston did not respond. He only looked at her and glanced at Mr. and Mrs. Cohen. “It seems that you two still have many considerations.” Mrs. Cohen nodded and said solemnly, “This is not a matter of mutual interest… We’re mo
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