Weston whipped out his own phone and swiped through it, but Guinevere's post was not visible from his account. He chuckled coolly as a horrible glare appeared in his eyes. Beside him, Ben was sweating bullets—he had almost never seen such a reaction from Weston before. "Mr. Ford…""Postpone all appointments for the day. We're paying the film crew a visit.""But…" Ben could not help trying to dissuade Weston. "You might upset Miss Cohen…""Can't you tell that she's doing this on purpose?" Weston's expression turned darker. Ben promptly lowered his head. "I mean… You're going to draw a lot of attention if you suddenly show up for Ella Steele's sake, and she wouldn't want that to happen…"And that was the truth.Weston closed his eyes, remembering that dignity and reputation mattered more than anything else to Stella. The fact that he had forced her to stay with him was no different from taking away her wings, and if everyone realized that she was his, he could imagine how emb
Feeling utterly grumpy, Guinevere flung her phone off to a corner. Her assistant was nearby, and when he heard the racket, he quickly sprang to his feet in panic, worried that Guinevere was upset about his work performance. "What's the matter, Miss Cohen?"If it had been any other day, Guinevere would have thought nothing of her assistant's overreaction. However, it was a complete eyesore for her right now. What was with that look? Was he worried that she was going to kill him? Was she really that intimidating?Guinevere never thought highly of her assistant before, but now, she was upset, especially with Ella's assistant serving as a stark contrast nearby.Had she been unfair to these people? Why were they all acting so afraid of her?!"It's nothing. Mind your own business!" Even as those frustrating thoughts clouded her mind, she sprang to her feet and stormed off without looking back.Her assistant was left behind, turning pale and unsure as to how he had angered her this
"At the backstage lounge, Mr Lane," one of the assistants replied.Bradley nodded quietly and headed to the backstage to look for Guinevere."Miss Cohen… I heard you're refusing to shoot?" he asked the instant he stepped inside Guinvere's private room, opening the door without flinching unlike Guinevere's wimpy assistants. "Or perhaps you have another opinion to offer?"Guinevere was caught by surprise and looked up to see that it was Bradley. Her gaze changing right then, she said, "Why would you say that? Wasn't my body double doing just fine?""She is, but I heard from others that you don't actually agree.""… Who, me?" Guinevere rose to her feet. "How so? And who said that?"Bradley certainly could not point fingers, and simply fixed his gaze upon her. "I hope you'll be forthright if you have any opinions. You know that my film schedule has been packed recently, and I won't be aware of your mood swings 24/7."His words were sharp, but actually tolerant—Guinevere could tell t
Bradley said nothing, but merely kept his eyes fixed on Guinevere, as if he had seen through her in an instant. She made a face, but simply walked away to sit in front of her dressing table, staring at her own reflection as she said, "Don't worry. This won't happen again."Bradley left once he had her assurance, but as soon as he was gone, Guinevere swept every cosmetic product off the table, sending them crashing to the floor. Though she appeared in control just a moment ago, there was every sign of her losing control once again. She worked hard to calm her heartbeat, and took the bottle of pills from the pouch she carried everywhere, and took one. Still, it took her a long while to calm down. Suddenly, her phone started ringing, and her eyes lit up the instant she saw who was calling. "Weston?" she exclaimed his name in delight. "What's up?"After all, she did not expect a call from him at this hour—he should be at work right now, and they usually called each other in their
Stella did a double take. "Hold on… Why are you calling me?""Why not?" Weston replied, while gesturing for his chauffeur to drive straight ahead, and he soon spotted Stella hovering near a junction. She looked ever so adorable and docile as she waited obediently for the lights to turn green. "No, I just thought that you'd be busy with work…"Stella was going to say that she thought Weston would spend the day with Guinevere, but quickly stopped herself although she was on the verge of saying it. "Didn't I tell you that I would be spending the next few days at home with you?"Stella did not answer at first, and said after a while, "I'm heading home, then. The lights have just turned green—I need to cross now. Talk to you later.""Yeah," Weston replied, and watched as Stella hung up before telling the chauffeur to follow. She usually preferred shortcuts, and even though Weston had told her many times not to take quiet paths, she would agree to it, only to fall back to her old h
No matter how Stella tried to pretend, she could not hide the repulsiveness she was feeling.That was when Weston stopped, and started to offer her reassurance—he had become much more patient than ever before. Whatever he was doing, he would stop once Stella appeared upset, and pat her back reassuringly as if she were a child.Moreover, he would not continue if she insisted that she was uncomfortable, and it was the same this time. Holding his own forehead against hers and watching her flush and pant from his kisses, Weston asked, “How many times have I told you not to take quiet routes when you’re alone? Did I scare you just now?”“You did that on purpose?!” It was only then that Stella realized, since what had happened just now was clearly unusual. After all, Weston lingered inside his car and kept quiet, while his car followed Stella at a neutral pace. Anyone who saw that would be under the impression that he meant harm.Weston chuckled hoarsely then. “Well, you’re the one
"Not serious? It's turned blue!" Weston growled even as he stared at the large patch of bruise over Stella's back. The blood in the middle had clotted into blackness with only small tinges of red visible in between. However, the red somehow made her injury appear even more gruesome. "Doing this to yourself… Are you an idiot?"Unable to look anymore, Weston lowered her blouse. Nonetheless, Stella appeared upset at his accusation. "It's my job—and like I said, it's not serious."Weston grabbed her by the arm and spun her around right then. However, he did not know that she was injured over the arm as well, and he promptly let go when he heard her gasp in pain, even as he withheld all the harsh words he was about to throw at her while watching her reaction."Did that hurt?"Stella nodded. Weston had to restrain his flaring rage right then, and gently moved Stella so that she was seated in a comfortable position. Then, he helped her take off her jacket and carefully rolled up h
Stella said nothing, but simply looked Weston straight in the eye.After a while, she muttered, "You probably know everything already, then…""You wouldn't have said a word if I didn't, would you?" Weston asked."So what if I told you? Are you going to straighten out Guinevere? She's your wife and the mother of your child, while I'm just a toy to you—"Even before she could finish, however, Weston had seized her by the chin and kissed her. Before he knew it, he had grown to resent hearing such words from Stella—he refused to hear any words that were demeaning to her, be it from herself or anyone else. And yet, he would never change Stella's mindset even if he could stop everyone else from talking. To her, the world was black and white, and if she could not clear the obstacles in her own head, she would simply loiter on the other end. It was also why as long as she had no legitimate reason to be at his side, she would never be happy, and would always belittle herself. Knowin
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