Stella got up and put on her clothes. She turned to the man standing beside her and asked softly, “Can
I go out and talk to her for a little while?”
Diana was her aunt, after all. When Stella was still living in her old home, it was Diana who had truly
cared for her. After the death of her parents, Diana had been the only source of warmth and support
she had apart from Roger.
Even if she loathed to see Michael, she still wished to give Diana an explanation about everything that
had transpired. It even occurred to her yesterday, when her true identity was revealed, that Diana
would come to see her.
“Are you sure?” Weston asked, wrapping his arms around her from behind. “Michael is here with her
too, you know.”
“I know,” she replied. “But I still want to see my aunt.”
He said while pinching her earlobe playfully, “You still haven’t told me why you don’t get along with your
uncle, yet you seem to love your aunt very much.”
“Didn’t you say you’ve looked into it before?”
Stella sat down at the dressing table. Weston’s warm breath brushed against her skin as he spoke. It
tickled her, making her want to move away from him, but Weston wouldn’t let her get away. He nuzzled
up closer against her ear and whispered in a seductive voice, “I can look into anything in this world, but
I can’t look into your heart and find out what your preferences are.”
Stella couldn’t help but giggle.
“Did you really think that my behavior toward my aunt and uncle is all due to my preferences?”
“No.” Weston planted little kisses from her ear all the way down to her neck. “But it doesn’t surprise me
that you wouldn’t like any other man apart from me.”
Those words made Stella pause, then she caught the meaning he implied between the lines.
“What nonsense are you thinking about? He’s my uncle!”
Weston breathed heavily by her ear and said, “What would you say if I told you that I’m even jealous of
how close you are with your aunt?”
“I would say that you’re completely out of your mind!”
Stella was different now. She would never have dared to joke around and say such things to him in the
past. But that did not bother Weston one bit; in fact, he indulged her and played along with her.
“So what if I really am out of my mind?” He teased her. “You’d still belong only to me anyway…”
Eventually, Stella did end up meeting Diana that day, albeit under Weston’s watchful eye. Nevertheless,
Stella didn’t mind that at all because she had no desire to see Michael. With Weston there with her, she
knew that Michael wouldn’t dare to be so bold with her. –
Especially when she saw the way Michael was glaring at her vehemently when she turned up, as if he
was ready to tear her apart and get rid of her…
But knowing that Weston was right there beside her, he had no choice but to conceal his feelings and
appear civil.
“Mr. Ford,” he said, “since it turns out that Ella is in fact my niece, Stella, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind
letting us talk to her for a while, would you?”
“Of course,” replied Weston. “There’s no problem at all. But my fiancée would like to have a private
chat with her aunt. Why don’t we give the ladies some space to catch up?”
Since Weston was so forward about it, Michael had no choice but to relent.
“Sure,” he replied with a slight sneer before glancing at the two women in front of him. “I’ll wait for them
right here, then.”
Weston knew that Stella was at odds with her uncle, but he didn’t know the reason why. They had been
in a rush just now, so he didn’t have the time to ask her about it.
But looking at Diana, who was on the verge of tears the moment she saw Stella, Weston was fairly
sure that she would not cause Stella any harm, so he had no qualms in letting her speak to Stella
alone.
Meanwhile, Stella and Diana settled down in a quiet private lounge.
“I knew you were Stella!” cried Diana. “I knew it the first time I saw you! I was sure that I couldn’t be
mistaken!”
“I’m so sorry,” Stella muttered. “I had no choice but to keep my identity a secret, Aunt Diana.”
Stella seemed better able to keep her composure than her aunt, because she knew that after such a
ruckus that had occurred during the engagement party, there was a high chance that her aunt would
come to see her, so she had braced herself for this meeting since then.
But Diana had completely misunderstood Stella’s reserved attitude toward herself.
“Tell me, Stella-have I done anything wrong to make you unhappy? Or did your uncle do anything to
offend you?”
At the time, Diana was still blissfully oblivious to her husband’s infidelity. She even regarded Michael as
a sweet, doting husband who was always there for her.
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