Chapter 980
[ 623 words ]
Melissa was easygoing and had a good heart-never one for scheming. Ronald had always treated Stella as his family, and in turn, Melissa regarded Stella as just that:
Ronald’s family.
“Anyway, I’m over it,” Melissa said, arms folded stubbornly. “That disgusting business? Wasn’t me. I want nothing to do with it.”
Stella nodded. “I know.”
Melissa hesitated. “So…?”
“I’ll call your mother,” Stella replied, her tone steady.
“Please—put in a good word for me, would you? I can’t stand another lecture.” Melissa had been on the receiving end of her mother’s and grandmother’s cutting comments so much lately, she was close to doubting her very existence. She sincerely never wanted to go through that again. She’d never been scolded this much in her entire life.
After Melissa left, Stella summoned the butler.
“I’d like you to call Mrs. Norton,” she instructed quietly. “Please ask her to stop blaming Melissa.”
The butler bowed his head. “Right away.”
“And another thing…” Stella’s voice dropped as she continued. When she looked up, her eyes were frosted over-cold and sharp.
Berry.
Berry was Mona’s daughter.
The evidence Melissa brought was solid, but Stella wasn’t someone to trust so easily. She handed the matter to the butler, asking him to quietly arrange for an in- depth investigation.
The butler was visibly shaken. “You mean… Mona? You’re saying-?” He was too stunned to finish the question.
“Some families,” Stella said coolly, “are rotten to the core.”
The butler could only nod, still shocked.
“Dig into it,” Stella told him. “Find out if Berry and Mona really are mother and daughter and see just how far their game has gone.”
Melissa was right: this had to be part of some larger plot.
“Above all-keep this quiet,” Stella added in a low voice.
“Understood,” the butler said solemnly.
Stella took a sip of water, her expression composed. For now, Mona and Berry couldn’t be allowed to catch wind of any of this.
When Ronald returned home, he saw Stella quietly giving instructions to the butler.
He handed over his coat, then strode over and wrapped Stella up in his arms, pulling her into his lap as he sat down.
“What are you doing?” she
murmured with a playful scowl,
though she was more than used to
Ronald’s habit of pulling her close
whenever be
eased. She wasn
the least bit afraid, she knew he’d
never let her fall.
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Ronald’s hands settled at her waist, his gaze dropping to her slightly rounded belly.
A warm, adoring smile tugged at his lips.
“So what’s all this hush-hush business about?” he teased. “I barely stepped inside and I heard you whispering secrets.”
Stella shot a look at the butler, who immediately caught on. He nodded, gathered Ronald’s coat, and slipped quietly out of the room.
Left alone with Ronald, Stella wrapped her arms around his neck and tucked her face against his shoulder.
“Star?” Ronald prompted gently, when she stayed silent, rubbing soothing circles along her back.
Stella hesitated, then murmured, “Berry—did anything ever happen between you and her?”
“Hmm?” Ronald’s easy smile vanished. The mention of Berry’s name made him pause; he gently set her back a little, tipping her chin so their eyes met.
“Did someone tell you something?” His usually playful look turned intense. Stella blinked in surprise.
“Was there anything between me and Berry?” Ronald said, his tone serious. “Don’t you already know the answer to that? Besides, Berry was your classmate. We barely spoke.”
He was right. Even though Stella and
Berry had been close enough in college Berry never even had the chance to interact with Ronald one-on-one. The most she’d ever got was catching a glimpse whenever Ronald came to pick Stella up after class.
And yet, here was Berry-someone who had hardly ever exchanged a word with Ronald-now going so far. as to get plastic surgery, just to look” like Stella. She was copying her style, her tastes, her every move.
The lengths this woman would go to…
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