Chapter 370
Chapter 370:
He turned toward Stella, his gaze softening. “Syl, shall we get going?”
Unable to bear William’s burning stare a moment longer, Stella hurried after Shaun, her steps quick and restless as they disappeared from the busy first floor.
William’s eyes stayed fixed on her retreating figure until the elevator doors slid shut between them.
“William? Should we go?” Willow’s voice broke through his trance, her keen eyes catching the way his mood had shifted the instant they ran into Shaun and Stella.
Whether he was angry at the man or the woman, Willow couldn’t say—but she refused to let him long for someone else in her presence, not even for a second. So she broke the silence.
Throughout dinner, William hardly touched his food. His thoughts kept looping back to Stella—how she stood beside Shaun, so fragile and sheltered, as if she couldn’t stand on her own without him. Why was it that Stella only ever showed her strength when she was by his side?
After finishing her meal, Willow dabbed her lips with a napkin and softly called his name a few times before he finally snapped out of his daze. He blinked, as if surfacing from deep thought. “Are you finished?”
She gave a gentle nod. “Do you need to head back to the office?”
He mirrored her calmness. “Yeah, there’s a contract waiting for me.”
Willow smiled, perfectly unfazed. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll have my driver pick me up, so you can go take care of your work.”
“My apologies, Ms. Lawson. This came up last minute,” he replied, tone polite but distracted.
Waving off his concern, Willow grinned. “William, there’s no need to be so formal. Really. You’ve already spent the entire day with me.” Within a few minutes, her driver pulled up to the curb.
Willow leaned out the window, offering William a bright, parting wave. “I’m heading out. See you soon, William—don’t forget to message me once you’re back at the office.”
He returned her wave, watching her car slip into the stream of traffic before turning away from the curb. Only when Willow had disappeared from sight did William retrace his steps to the mall.
He scanned the bustling shopping center, knowing there was only one cheese fondue spot in the entire complex. It didn’t take long to spot Stella and Shaun, sitting at a table near the window, laughter and easy conversation radiating between them.
𝓵𝖆𝓉𝓔𝓢𝓣 ςհ𝓪ρ𝓽𝖊𝗋𝓈
William lingered for a moment, his gaze shifting, before he finally turned away.
After dinner, Stella didn’t stick around—she headed straight home to rest.
The next morning, she drove to the research institute. Just as she was about to head in, she spotted William standing nearby. He wasn’t doing anything, just standing there like he was waiting for someone. She paused, thought for a second, then decided to be polite. “Mr. Briggs, aren’t you going in?”
William barely looked at her. He scoffed under his breath, then turned and walked straight into the building, not even sparing her a second glance. Stella stood there for a beat, genuinely confused. What had crawled under his skin? She hadn’t done anything to offend him recently… right?
As she walked in after him, she wondered if maybe he’d had a fight with his girlfriend or was just having a really bad morning. Either way, he was clearly in a mood.
.
.
.