Stella remained quiet for a while. She was staring at the maid. The maid had obviously knocked into her on purpose. She remained silent. Rather, she stood for a while before choosing to move on when a few of other maids came over. "Do you honestly believe that you become a noble lady only by marrying into the Conrad family? You are basically less important than a maid because Mr. Conrad dislikes you." “Indeed, have a look at her. I've heard that she passed out last night in the corridor outside of Mr. Conrad’s room. It seems like he drove her away. If I were her, I wouldn't stay here any longer to act foolish; instead, I would hastily pack up and head home." “Is she aware that she's doing foolishly? To them, money is the only thing." Stella could hear them chatting about her when they got far enough away. Her complexion went horribly pale. Giving herself an embrace, she eased her way down the wall toward the door. Why? Why had she to put up with all of that? Was it because she h
"What are you trying to do?" She tried to get away, but they stopped her right away. "Don't—don't come near me. Please release me!" One of them grabbed her off her feet and flung her over his shoulder as he darted away before she could say anything. The others trailed in close behind. What the people in the waiting room witnessed astounded them. They were unable to ascertain what was happening. ••• "Mr. Conrad, there is finally news from the hospital."Joseph hurried into his office to break the news, not giving the other person in the room a second thought. Clarence was first annoyed by Joseph’s interruption as he was conversing with a very significant customer. But his tense eyebrows dropped when he heard what Joseph had to say. "There's finally news?" Joseph gave Clarence a sidelong glance and then gave a solemn nod. Clarence gave the man in front of him an icy look as he spoke. “I apologize, Mr. Webb, but I must attend to some pressing affairs. I'll make plans for som
"Bring her to the hospital now." Clarence said in a frigid tone. “Verify if she is truly expecting a child. Please let me know the result as soon as you can." Joseph gave a quick nod. "Yes, sir!" "No!" Stella struggled against the men in vain. "Clarence, legally we are merely husband and wife. Who are you to give them orders to harm me in that way? Please release me!" "Let you go?" Clarence's eyes glowed in the darkness. With a chilly response, he said, "You should know what would happen to you if I found out you were pregnant. Bring her away, Joseph." How sympathy vanished out of his heart as soon as he realized she wasn't the person he was seeking for. "Bring her to the hospital now." Joseph got to work on his assignment. Stella objected to this, but she was coerced back into the vehicle. She fought valiantly the entire way, but no matter how hard she tried, she was unable to escape their hold. She was taken to the same medical facility and saw the same physician as befor
"Let me give it some thought." Ultimately, Riley told her to return to the Conrad residence. “In the blink of an eye, three days will pass. Make up your choice quickly, Stella, and phone me if you need anything." Stella’s heart was incredibly heavy right now as Riley’s comments continued to reverberate in her ears. "Honey, you will need to abort the kid if you wish to stay with the Conrad family in the future. It is not possible for the Radomil family to have two unsuccessful daughters!" Stella looked in the mirror at herself. How should I proceed? Was getting rid of her child truly the only option available to her? Wheels rolled along the floor into the room, still considering it. Upon witnessing Clarence enter the bathroom, Stella instantly tightened up and threw open the door. When their gazes locked, she looked away right away. She made her way trembling to the furthest corner of the space. He called his voice giving her a shiver, "Stop right there.”Stella came to a
For a brief while, time appeared to stop. She fell onto the laps of his. She was terrified to death. How was he going about it? The room gradually filled with the musky smell of a guy ready to mate. The unfamiliar aroma continuously assailed her senses. She was momentarily stunned before readjusting to reality. She tried to put some distance between them, resting her hand against his chest. "Let, let me go!" He gave her a hard slap on the wrist and spoke in a cold voice. “Did your former spouse not show you how to take out a belt? Or are you just acting stupid so I can have to teach you?" "What?" "Well, if that's the case, as you wish." He took hold of her wrist, directing her motions to apply pressure to the latch on his belt. It snapped back with a loud click. For a few moments, she felt as though her brain had frozen. His penetrating look caused her eyes to grow noticeably bigger and wider. The dull sound of the belt hitting the floor snapped her back to reality. But f
He wanted to scream at her because she was so fired up that her eyes were red from unshed tears and her forehead was covered in sweat. He scowled and refrained from speaking. How did he end up? The dishonest woman in front of him, who wed into the Conrad family after taking the place of her sister, ought to be thrown out. Why did he still allow her to stay? After gathering himself swiftly, he took her by the wrist and pushed her out of the way. Unexpectedly, her thin shoulders crashed against the sturdy wall. With her head up, she met his icy gaze. "Get the hell out!" She looked at him in confusion, rubbing her sore shoulders. "If you don't know what to do, what good is it to stay here? Before I lose my temper, get the heck out!" "You!" She felt he was going too far, so she balled her fists. But after giving it some thought, she saw that she had nothing for the better part of the day. She clutched herself as she left the restroom, her fury having subsided. "Joseph !" His col
"Mr. Greg , there's no need to worry; this is only a typical cold.” She spun him down, "I'll just pick up some over-the-counter medicine later this afternoon and I'll be fine." She felt uncomfortable beneath Mr. Greg's stern gaze as his perceptive eyes locked on her. She messed with the hem of her shirt and nibbled her bottom lip. "You already have a blocked nose. How do you just take medication?" With a quiet sigh, Mr. Greg motioned for her to come closer. She approached him for a few steps, then halted a few feet away with caution. "Remember to buy the medicine and once you get better, go to the office to see Clarence." She gave a nod. "Yes, Mr. Greg." "Okay." Mr. Greg gave a satisfied nod. "Go ahead." Thanking Mr. Greg, she hurried back upstairs to gather her belongings and make haste to get out of the house. She called her friend as soon as she left the Conrad home, and Riley raced over in less than twenty minutes. Riley turned to her as soon as she was in the car. “H
Joseph’s remarks felt like a stomach punch. She could only cast a sorrowful glance downward. "I know..." It was only after Joseph noticed her change in attitude that he realized his tone was overly serious. "Ms. Radomil, I realize what I'm saying is terrible, but you should comprehend what I'm saying. In any case, you are not allowed to bring this up again. If not, there is nothing I can do to relieve your problems." Joseph finished up, turned around, and walked away. If Stella was a rational person, she would decide to keep what she heard to herself. After five more minutes of standing still against the wall, she knocked on the door. "Come in." There was rage tinged with a sense of coldness and indifference in Clarence’s voice. When she came in, she saw that he was gazing out the French window, enjoying the city views, rather than sat as he typically did behind his desk. A depressive stillness hung over the room as she crept forward, the coldness in his voice lingering in
185 By the time Stella opened her eyes, she felt so weak that she was unable to stand up. Glancing up, she saw everyone looking at her and it then it dawned on her what took place before. “It’s alright Stella, the police has taken Kelvin and his accomplice away.” Clarence said as Stella froze in fear. “Clarence I..” Stella wanted to talk but she wept instead. She had been so scared thinking Kelvin succeeded in taking advantage of her before dozing off, but now that Clarence had told her that Kelvin got caught, she heaved a sign of relived. Clarence then held her arms and said, “in the past I used to believe that you had only become a substitute bride and got married to me because of my money, and I hated you for that. But now I know the reason why you got married to me in the first place. I also accused you of seducing men, and did other things to test you and see if you’ll truly pass my test and you did,” “So But today, I want to reveal the secret that I had kept a long t
184 "You can't get away." Kelvin put his hand on hers and held her slender wrist. It was vulgar because he dropped his with deliberateness. "Everyone is at the banquet, and there will be more fantastic events following the swimming competition. Nobody is going to come save you, not even if you flee. Accepting me will ensure that I treat you gently." "Let me go!" Stella gave him a firm handshake and took a few backward steps. What had gone wrong with her? Why did her hands and legs lack strength? Her beautiful cheeks were growing redder and redder as she stared at her shaking fingers. She felt as though a constant stream of hot air was emerging from her stomach. It was recognizable. Just like the time Flynn took her away and locked her in the room! Was she drugged once more? The instant this thought crossed her mind, she became desperate. “I tried to convince you to be with me, Stella, but you refused, so I had to do this, you know. I really enjoy you. I promise that no
With a blush on his face, Zach candidly explained to Stella. “Zach Filler is my name, and I am FIL Group's only son. Playing baseball and racing are my pastimes. I'd like to become friends with you." Stella, "........ John, "..." Riley pouted and uttered a sardonic, "FIL Group? Who believe you to be? Do you want to become our friends? Examine your deservingness." Everyone's face changed at the words. Zach looked at Riley , his face going pale and him frozen in place. Even though Stella didn't want to listen to him, she glanced at Riley in shock because she found Riley’s remarks to be too harsh and unbelievable. Riley believed she had a lot of respect since she came into the Red family. She was always haughty and in charge. People dared not touch her because she was true to herself. She always pretended to be a refined lady in front of Stella, but when she saw Zach, she forgot. Riley gave a gentle grin as she considered this. "Lala, I apologize for what I said. I simply p
The game started shortly after the minutes passed. Many girls applied for the girl competition after learning that the winner would receive surprise awards. Nara and Lily both applied for it. They returned and noticed Stella sitting there, so they had to come over and say a few snarky things. “This guy is new to our department, right? Why remain in a daze here?" “Yes, how about entering the competition? People such as yourself shouldn't be the most forceful, right?” With a fixed gaze, John asked, "What do you want?" "Nothing, just to see her." "Are you sure you won't apply for it?" Staring at Stella, Lily questioned. Stella gave her a quick glance. "Is there a rule that I must attend?" "You!" Lily felt enraged. At first, she believed there was a chance to hurt her, but she decided not to take part. “How much does it concern you if she chooses not to participate? You are welcome to participate. With all the others, why even bother?" John furiously stared at the two w
With this thought in mind, Stella closed her eyes and gazed silently at the glistening water. "Sorry, I didn't think that much..." Riley gave a mortifying little smile. With a snort and a mumble about having a lousy idea, John turned to face Stella and behaving like an antipath. "Charge up your phone so we can take pictures later when they are in competition." Riley asked as she had an epiphany, "Will everyone be present when the competition is on?" "Yes, everyone will come, and there will be judges," John said with a nod. "Are only men allowed to compete?" John turned to face Riley and asked, "What do you mean?" "I mean, men can compete, so can we girls." With a brilliant light in her eyes, Joh said, "Yes, but... They didn't make such arrangements and girls couldn't attend." "Isn't that easy?" Riley grinned, reached across to take Stella’s arm, and waved to him nearby, "Mr. Jude!" Riley’s cry caught other people's attention, and Jude turned to face her. His eyes were
Clarence gave her a feral look as he stared. She bit her lip and squinted, saying, "No!" "Do you want to walk around dressed like that?" Her neck was long and fair; she straightened her waist and lifted her chin slightly. "This is how everyone dresses. Why isn't one able to? Since you consider me to be a wantonly woman and you dislike whatever I wear. So why should it matter to me what you think?" Clarence scowled. After saying these things, she turned around and walked away, carefully lowering the shawl to reveal her lovely shoulders. Joseph says, "....." She had a tiger on her back! Clarence’s hands were clinched into fists, and his breath turned chilly. He cast a sardonic glance at that mysterious figure. "Mr. Conrad..... Shall we... bring Mrs. Conrad back?" stammered Joseph , standing behind him. "Who gave you permission to call her that?" "Did I make a mistake?" Joseph asked, swallowing a mouthful of spittle anxiously. When he addressed her as Mrs. Conrad in fron
"Zach Filler, enough. Do you think she is an ordinary woman? She stands together with Miss Red," Zavi remarked. “We can't afford to provoke her, even though she might be a group member's kid." They were a bunch of mostly womanizing individuals. They only played with ladies who lacked wealth and influence since those things could always be resolved with money. They followed regulations. They did not play with wealthy ladies, in contrast to Flynn Andrew, who, as you may recall, "got destroyed by playing with rich women." Although the Andrew Group held significant power in B City, it was eventually eliminated. “ How come we haven't seen her previously if she was a group member's daughter? It was an unknown group, even though she is." "Simple, investigate her." Stella located a seat and wrapped the shawl snugly around her. Riley could not resist making fun of her. What makes you so timid? The purpose of the clothing was to be worn and displayed to others. What is the cover art fo
That final comment seemed almost like a question. Stella had never seen Riley so dominant that she wasn't sure if her feelings were justified. After some while, Stella gave her a look. "Ri, what's wrong with you?" After hearing that, Riley abruptly regained consciousness and realized she was overexcited. She scoffed, dropped her eyes, and shook her head. "What's the matter with me? I have revealed the truth to you. Why? I'm hoping you can leave this situation as quickly as possible. But even though he was directly in front of you, you were too afraid to acknowledge or even speak about it. I wonder if you like Clarence, but I'm not sure what's on your mind." "Actually... I don't know." Stella’s cast her gaze down, gloomy. "I don't think I should like him, but..." Riley worried when she saw her entangled. Was her admiration for Clarence genuine? "However, what? Do you not see that? He's not at all fond of you." Riley realized she had said something unguarded and regretted
Holding a box, Stella stood at the company's door, waiting for Riley. Riley unlocked Clarence’s car and shoved him down as it came to a halt. With a smile, she asked, "Lala, what is your hand?" Stella experienced a vision similar to a sharp knife striking her body as she spoke. Clarence’s sight was as horrifying as a deadly serpent, causing her to shrink backward and clutch the box firmly in her breast. Clarence saw this as a subliminal action, yet she still treated the box as a prize. She had nothing when she got in the car, but when she got out, she had a box. What was meant by that? What a considerate woman, oh. "Nothing." Riley smiled, moved closer to Stella, and shoved Clarence forward as Stella clutched the bag tightly and said. Stella could feel Clarence’s icy breath all over her. She retreated a step, attempting to pull herself from the embrace of his icy breath. “Is that a gift from Jude, Stella? You entered the automobile without bringing this box?" Stella’s fac