Chapter 129
“She’s drunk.”
Stephen handed Stellar over to Mary without another word and turned to leave.
Mary finally understood that Stephan had brought Stellar home out of kindness.
She quickly called after him, gratitude in her voice.
“Thank you, Mr. Ward.”
Stephen walked back to his own villa, but an unshakable frustration lingered in his chest, like a weight pressing down on him.
He stepped onto the terrace, letting the cold night air wash over him, yet it did nothing to settle his mood.
Feeling Irritated, he pulled out his phone and dialed Shane’s number.
The call connected quickly.
“Hey,” Stephen’s voice was low. “Got time? Come have a drink with me.”
A beat of silence, then Shane’s exasperated voice came through.
“Seriously, man? Have you already forgotten? I’m still in Ashfield recovering! How am I supposed to drink with you–through a screen?”
Stephen said nothing.
Shane, sensing something was off, narrowed his eyes.
“Wait a second… Why do you sound so down? Don’t tell me–did you get rejected? Did Stellar turn you down too?”
Stephen’s throat tightened.
He hadn’t even figured out how to respond when Shane burst into laughter, clearly enjoying himself.
“See? That’s karma! You were so smug before, showing off before you even won her over. Now look at you–sulking. This is what they call poetic justice, my friend. Poetic justice!”
Stephen’s expression darkened.
Without hesitation, he ended the call and blocked Shane’s number for good measure.
What the hell was
wrong
This wasn’t like him at all.
with him?
+20 Bonus
Meanwhile, Stellar remained blissfully unaware of the chaos her one sleepy response had caused.
After Mary helped her to bed, she vaguely remembered being given a bowl of hangover tea before drifting off into a deep,
comfortable sleep.
The next morning, she woke up refreshed and well–rested.
As she came downstairs, Mary was already setting the table, breakfast ready and waiting.
“Mary, where’s Uncle Claude? Isn’t he up yet?” Stellar asked curiously.
“Mr. Claude hasn’t come back yet. I heard he’s busy negotiating an important deal.”
Stellar’s heart ached a little.
An entire night had passed, and he was still working.
Holding onto his position as the head of Rivers Corporation clearly wasn’t easy.
“Oh, right, Miss Stellar,” Mary added, her tone carrying a rare hint of curiosity.
“Last night, Mr. Ward from next door was the one who helped you home. You passed out drunk and even leaned against him.
Were you two out together?”
Hearing that, Stellar’s mind flashed through a few hazy memories from the night before, and her face heated
- up.
“I–It was just a coincidence! Don’t overthink it.”
“I’m not overthinking. I just think he was quite thoughtful. You should remember to thank him,” Mary said matter–of–factly.
“Got it.”
That morning, when Stellar arrived at the research institute, she planned to find an opportunity to thank Stephen.
But strangely enough, the entire morning passed without a single sighting of him.
Normally, he’d be around by this time. Had something happened?
A sense of curiosity crept into her mind.
“Stellar, what’s going on with you? You’ve been spacing out for ages! Are you even listening to us?”
A chirping voice snapped her out of her thoughts.
It was none other than Lilian, chattering away like an excitable bird.
Stellar pushed her thoughts about Stephen aside for now.
“What’s up?”
Lilian sighed dramatically, “I said another investor just donated ten million dollars to our research institute today!”
“And guess what? The funding is specifically for our project! Our generous benefactor is too amazing!” She clasped her hands together in delight.
Stellar’s eyelid twitched. A strange feeling settled in her chest.
“Do you know who the investor is?”
“Someone with the last name Moore. Apparently, he’s a young guy and an alumnus of our university. He said he wanted to give
back to his alma mater. That’s all I know.”
