Rather than kissing her, Keegan acted more like he was just taking his anger out on her.Stella stopped fighting after a while.There was just no way she could push Keegan away, and struggling would only make him angrier.Aldor drove quietly while looking straight ahead. He ignored whatever was happening in the backseat and tried to drive as fast as possible.The car stopped after some time. It was then Keegan finally stopped taking his anger out on Stella.He got off the car and wanted to drag Stella out too.However, Stella grabbed the handle tightly.Keegan did not say a word and directly put her on his shoulder."Keegan Kane, let me go!"Stella almost vomited after how Keegan's shoulder pressed against her stomach. She fought hard to get down while hammering Keegan's shoulder.However, Keegan walked directly into the house without saying a single thing as if he could not feel Stella hitting him at all.Maria was on the phone when she heard some noise coming in from outsi
Keegan clenched his hands tightly, and his face soon darkened. "I can't believe you just hit me because of him," he uttered.Stella pushed him away and sat up. She wiped her lips with the back of her hand and said with red eyes, "If you ever try to push yourself against me like that again, I'm going to make you regret it!"What happened during the night of her marriage still haunted her. Stella could not stand being restrained and forced to make out. It made her feel disgusted. It reminded her of how powerless she was when Jackson was on top of her."Why don't you ever listen?" Keegan's face was extremely cold. "Didn't I tell you to stay away from Marshall? Why didn't you obey my words?"Stella gritted her teeth and replied, "What's wrong with meeting up with him when we're just working together?""Just working together?" Keegan asked angrily. "Who helped you when you changed the data in the flash drive and walked away yesterday? Why didn't you tell me? You never tell me about wha
Keegan's face could not only be described as gloomy; it looked like it was shrouded in darkness. His true feelings were hard to unravel, but his expression did not go unnoticed."Alright, Stella. You're the one who asked for the divorce, so don't regret it when the time comes." Keegan then grabbed his coat and said, "We'll proceed with it after I return from my business trip."After he said that, he stopped looking at her, turned away, and went upstairs.Stella sat on the couch with her back tensed. She did not slump her shoulders until she heard the door slam. She knew she had pissed off Keegan this time because no matter how mad he was, he still sounded as if he could be coaxed. But, once he spoke calmly when he was angered, it was too late.'Are we finally going through with this divorce?' Stella sat on the couch and thought, 'Why aren't I as happy as I thought I'd be?' She then hugged her knees and buried her face in them.On a table not far away, a landline phone had been pic
"I wasn't talking about Mrs. Kane," Aldor said with an innocent face. "I just have mixed feelings about what happened to Ms. Spade and her daughter. I mean, who could bear that kind of news? If I were Ms. Spade's daughter, I would have peeled the other party's skin off."Keegan was speechless. "How much ecstasy did Stella give you for you to stand up for her?" he asked. Aldor laughed, "Oh, Mrs. Kane never talked to me about her personal life. She usually comes to ask me about your likes and dislikes."Keegan then thought about what the woman had said yesterday and snorted coldly, "Well, she is a plaything, after all. I guess the only way to please her master is to learn more about him.""No owner would buy expensive accessories for his doll or let his plaything play him," Aldor replied. Keegan did not know what to say but refused to admit it, "Is there anything wrong with me wanting my doll to dress up a little?""No, no. That's completely fine," Aldor could not help but chuckle. K
Stella's face changed. "Stall them, Zayla. Don't let them touch my mother. I'll go over right away.""I have to go, Mr. Wood," she said after hanging up the phone. Daniel had already heard what was going on through the phone call. He more or less knew about the situation in Stella's family. He knew she had a mother who was in a coma in the hospital and needed long-term medication.Although Stella's life was rather messy, she was never late for shoots. She was the best at taking criticism and the sharpest actor. Daniel liked her a lot. So when he heard that, he said, "Go ahead. We've done a lot of filming today. We need to change the background for our next scene; we can continue the shoot next time."Stella said goodbye and changed her costume. Then, without taking her makeup off, she rushed to Rotona Pinnacle Hospital.Several people in very different attires stood at the door of Rainee's ward. The leader of the group held a black leather bag under his armpit. He was dressed relat
Stella had just removed her wig, so her hair was tied up behind her head. Her makeup from the shoot was not heavy but added a chilling aura to her look."Who are you, and who sent you here to cause trouble?" she asked.The man withdrew his scrutiny, raised his eyes, and asked, "Who are YOU?""Rainee Spade is my mother," Stella said in a deep voice.The man glanced at Stella's attire and the designer bag she was carrying. He smirked. "Then we found the right person," the man said while he opened the leather bag under his arm and took out a stack of IOUs, "This is the amount of money your mother borrowed from us. Since you are her daughter, you must repay this debt."Stella frowned and took the IOUs from the man. There were at least a dozen in the stack, with different amounts of money on each sheet, ranging from tens of thousands to millions. Each of them had Rainee's signature and fingerprint that Dahlia forged. The earliest was more than ten years ago, and the latest was eight ye
Stella was taken aback. "What?"The man noticed her expression and said, "You don't know yet, do you?""Know what?" Stella asked as she had a bad feeling in her heart."Albert Jewell and Rainee Spade divorced a long time ago. We only came to the hospital because Albert did not want to pay us anymore. We're earning a living, girl. We wouldn't intentionally cause you trouble if we had a choice."Stella's expression changed suddenly. "What did you say?""I said your parents divorced long ago, and your father has no reason to pay your mother's debts." The man frowned and said impatiently, "Why am I telling you all this nonsense? Quickly give me the money. Otherwise, no one is going to leave this ward!"Stella was confused. 'They didn't go through with the divorce procedures when Mom's incident happened. So why is this person saying they divorced? If they did get divorced, when did it happen, and how did they agree to the property settlement?'Stella's mind was all over the place. Sh
Marshall remained silent for a long time."Are you coming or not?" Vermont asked."Where are we going exactly?""I'll pick you up at your office." "Okay. See you later," Marshall responded.Seeing that Stella was still holding the phone to her ear, the man with the scar got impatient. "Are you done?" he asked."Yeah."Stella lowered her arms and said, "Wait here. My friend will come over soon, and we'll discuss the IOU when he's here. Also, ask your men to get out of the way so the nurse can plug in the ventilator."The man hesitated, but he didn't budge. "We will get out of the way when we get our money," he said. Stella's face turned ugly. "I assure you I won't run from the debt. But don't think you can escape if anything happens to my mom!"The man with the scar sneered, stepped forward, and grabbed her chin, "Are you threatening me, little girl?" Stella suddenly felt a dense layer of goosebumps on her skin and hit the man in reflex. Slap! The sound was loud and clear.Th
Keegan moved from initial resistance to reluctantly listening, and eventually to questioning."Why do these novels portray men as so stupid and brainless, yelling at the female lead as if they have intermittent explosive disorder?""Is the male lead sick? Forcing the female lead to donate a kidney, is he out of his mind?""How many years would they get for calling the police in their world?""Why is he so dumb? The supporting actress claims the female lead pushed her into the water and he believes it? Is checking surveillance footage illegal?""Stella, are you making fun of me?""I can't learn this. It all feels so neurotic. What does the female lead see in him?"Stella retorted, "Who cares if it's neurotic? Just mimic that stupidity, that's how these innocent women like men who protect them like that."Keegan was very reluctant, but his brain was more compliant than his body. Without needing to study deliberately, everything he heard stuck in his mind.So when Keegan mentione
Keegan's expression darkened with anger. "You're being completely unreasonable!"Stella crossed her arms, wearing an expression that seemed challenging. "You let her take it. Let's see if I dare."Jaylene hadn't actually wanted those junk items in the first place; she was deliberately trying to stir up discord between them. Now that her goal was achieved, she put on a sympathetic look."Keegan, I don't want it anymore. Don't be angry. Your health is more important. Didn't the doctor say to keep your emotions stable?"Turning her head, she reproached Stella. "Stella, are you here to help Keegan recover his memory or just to provoke him?""Shut up, you brat! Do you even have a say here?"Acting under the guise of a drama, playing the role of someone lacking in manners, was incredibly satisfying.She’d wanted to curse this brat for a long time!Jaylene's lips twitched, but she held back, tearfully saying, "Stella, if you don't like me, I'll leave. There's no need to humiliate me l
Jaylene understood the situation perfectly. Even though she didn't particularly like these cold, mechanical devices, she put on a pretense of surprise, saying, "Really, Keegan?"Keegan nodded. "Choose one you like.""Keegan!" Before Stella could finish her sentence, she couldn't hold back her sharp voice, "With your pile of junk that I can't even touch normally, she takes a look and now you want to give it to her? What's the meaning of this?!"Keegan frowned, apparently not comprehending her current anger at all. "Jaylene gave me a gift, and I'm giving her one in return. What's the problem?""What problem?" Stella's eyes started to redden. "I can't touch them, so why should she be able to? Have you forgotten, or do you have inappropriate feelings for her?"Keegan's expression darkened. "This makes no sense!"Jaylene secretly delighted in this, hypocritically trying to calm things down, "Forget it, Keegan. Since Stella minds so much, I don't want it anymore. You've strained your r
The standoff lasted for over twenty minutes before Keegan grabbed a book and knocked the beetle off Jaylene's neck. The beetle fluttered twice and suddenly flew up, landing on Jaylene's face.Jaylene screamed, rolled her eyes, and fainted.As she collapsed, the bug flew off again."Jaylene?"Keegan called out to her.He looked up at Stella and said, "You go start the car, I'll carry her to the hospital."As he spoke, he signaled to Stella.She understood and coldly grunted, "So troublesome."Walking over to Jaylene, she squatted down beside her and slapped her face twice.Jaylene immediately opened her eyes and reached out to push her away. "What are you doing!"Stella was prepared and had already moved back before she could be pushed.She shook her tingling hand and innocently said, "Jaylene, you fainted because of the bug. I was just saving you. Don't believe me? Ask Keegan."Jaylene nearly ground her teeth. Did she think she hadn't heard? She was intentionally exposing h
Her fingertips trembled with a mix of horror and excitement. Just as the teapot was about to slip from her grasp, Keegan suddenly said, "Jaylene, don't move."Jaylene froze, instinctively thinking Keegan had regained his memory. She had barely twitched when Keegan loudly stopped her again, "Don't move, absolutely don't move."Jaylene wanted to say something, but then felt an itching sensation on her neck, as if something was crawling slowly. Goosebumps erupted all over her body.By now, Stella had turned around and saw Jaylene standing stiffly with the teapot in hand. Her eyes quickly assessed the situation and then she noticed the beetle crawling on Jaylene's neck.It was an unknown species, not overly tentacled but as long as a little finger, its mouthparts slightly twitching, genuinely alarming in appearance.Stella murmured, "It's so big."Jaylene couldn't see what was on her neck, unsure if it would bite or if it was venomous. She stood frozen in place, her voice trembling,
Seeing him, Stella even lowered her eyes and softly praised, "Mr. Kane, you acted very well."Keegan glared at her, his voice low and intense. "If you keep watching like this, Coco will cut ties with me tomorrow."Stella replied confidently, "No, she won't. After accepting the red envelope, she can tolerate you a little longer."Keegan asked sharply, "Did you teach her to ask for red envelopes like this?""Don't falsely accuse me; I didn't teach her.""You may not have taught her directly, but you set an example. Have you forgotten how you always make me buy things for you?"Stella was speechless. Whenever she wanted Keegan to buy her something, she would often say, "Gifts are only surprises when given voluntarily. If reminded, it shows they don’t like me that much."It had to be said, Coco had learned the essence of it.Stella also felt a bit awkward, thinking that in the future, she needed to avoid such flirtatious conversations between spouses in front of the children. They
Could she figure all this out?Keegan frowned, casting a disappointed look at Coco. "Are you not listening to me now?"Coco raised her gaze defiantly and stated, "Aunt Stella taught me that if I don't want something someone gives me, I can say no. I don't want this hairpin.""Didn't she teach you that even if you don't like something, you should still say thank you?"Coco fell silent for a moment, then reluctantly said to Jaylene, "Thank you, Aunt Jaylene, but I don't want it."Jaylene hesitated with her hand extended, unsure whether to retract it or leave it there, managing a strained smile. "Then what do you like? Next time, I will get you something you do like."Coco asked, "Do you want me to do something for you?"Jaylene was taken aback. "What?"Coco replied seriously, "Aunt Stella says offering help without reason is either deceitful or thieving. Since you don't like me, why else would you give me something? You want me to do something for you, right?"Jaylene forced a s
Leighton's incident did indeed revive their suspicions.Jaylene was gullible, but Darcie might see through this scheme. "Keegan, why didn't you go to work today?" Jaylene chose to ask directly at first.Keegan remained composed. "I've been busy with the press conference lately and haven't had much rest. Now that things have slowed down, I thought I'd take a break and relax."Jaylene spoke gently, "You should rest well. Since you came back, you've been busy, and you've been postponing Dr. Stone's follow-up appointments. Keegan, I'm really worried about your health. Since you're resting these days, I'll arrange for Dr. Stone to give you another check-up. Stella has been living here to assist your recovery for so long. We need the doctor to give a clear assessment of whether there's been any improvement. Otherwise, it's not good for Stella's reputation to stay here so long, unmarried and under one roof."Keegan nodded. "Okay, please arrange it. Thank you."His response was decisive,
Stella had just descended the stairs when she heard that remark, causing her eyelids to twitch as she thought to herself, “Damn it! He really knows how to come up with excuses!”Upon hearing this, Jaylene's eyes briefly flashed with disdain, but she ultimately accepted the shoe covers Keegan handed her. As Keegan led Jaylene into the house, her eyes continued to scrutinize every corner.There were a couple of pillows on the sofa, couple mugs on the table, wedding photos of Keegan and Stella on the walls, and even headbands and hair ties scattered on the table. The house exuded an unmistakable feminine touch.Jaylene's expression darkened, but when Keegan turned to ask if she preferred tea or coffee, she adopted a gentle, harmless demeanor. "Tea would be perfect."Keegan invited her to take a seat and called for Maria to prepare tea. Jaylene spoke softly, "Keegan, I heard from Stella that you brew Dragon Well tea better than anyone else. Is there a special technique?"Stella paused