16

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 the back of her mind.

Clarence frowned and swung his wheelchair around, realizing his guest had no intention of striking up a discussion.

Her pale, sickly face was all was seen.

He  questioned, his expression frowning, "What are you doing here?"

She looked up into his intense eyes. "I'm, I'm your assistant after all."

Had he forgotten anything his granddad had said before? Clarence  heard that, and he couldn't help but lift a corner of his mouth and laugh bitterly. "Do you think I have any use for an assistant who doesn't even know how to make coffee?"

Her fists clenched as she bit her lip. "I'll give it my all the next time. Telling me how you like your coffee might be helpful."

"Even if I do tell you, do you really think you can make one that is exactly to my liking?"

She gave a nod.

His mouth curved into a sardonic smile. "You really think you can do that?" He was determined to give her another chance. He placed the cup of coffee he'd been holding on his desk. "I'll provide you one opportunity. Create one with the exact same flavor as this one."

She glanced at the cup of coffee momentarily before scooping it up and turning around to leave the room. He  wheeled his wheelchair to the rear of his desk and picked one of the documents on the top of a stack to read it.

After five minutes had gone, he peered up at the door. There was no indication that it was going to open. That woman hadn't come back yet. Was she so intimidated by such a huge task? Why was it taking her almost 10 minutes to brew a cup of coffee?

After 10 more minutes, she was not to be found at the door. He  furrowed his brows, perplexed by the woman's actions. Was she trying to test his patience? How could she casually grab his coffee cup and be gone from sight?

He  slammed the table hard as he put his documents back on the desk. He heard footsteps coming down the hallway just as he was ready to check on her personally.

She  entered the room carrying a cup of coffee, her expression cautious. It was evident that she was attempting to avoid his intense stare.

"You've wasted twenty minutes of my time." He spoke in a scathing tone, and she felt as though a huge force had struck her.

With hesitation, she  bit her lip and answered. "But you didn't mention any time limit just now."

"You!" He  experienced difficulty speaking. He laughed suddenly, too furious to contain himself.

"Are you trying to reason with me?" She  realized she was no match for him in a yelling fight. She quickly set down the just made coffee and gestured at it.

"Try it..." The room filled with the gradually rising aroma of delicious coffee.

Clarence got a breath of that perfume and an undetectable shift of emotions unfolded on his face. His eyes narrowed into a straight line. "I know this cup of coffee won't be able to compare with the one you had before, but I promise you l've tried my best."

Seeing that he remained motionless, she  pushed the coffee toward him. He first wanted to finish the farce as quickly as he could, but when he saw her miserable demeanor and the expectant look in her eyes, he hesitated.

She appeared to be a stray pet. He  leaned out and grabbed the coffee cup for no apparent reason. As he took a sip, a menacing look crossed his eyes. The abrupt change in his demeanor caught her off guard, and she instinctively stepped back, staring at him fearfully.

"Why are you backing off?" His  furrowed his brows and gave her a sad look. "Are you scared of me splashing this coffee all over you?"

She  was limited to nibbling on her lip. In an instant, it seemed as though he had read her thoughts.

He  eventually gave her back the cup after taking one more sip. She  took it slowly and gave him a cautious look. "H-how was it?"

He looked off to a point in space, and he gave a chilly response. "You were selected. Seldom."

Survive was filled with an unexplainable sense of excitement upon hearing that. A quiet smile spread across her face. "Are you serious? Does that imply that I can now remain here?"

She had a bright voice. He took in her beauty and remembered the day she had come to the Conrad home. She always had a worried look on her face, and it was evident she was spending her life in a perpetual state of fear. But then a smile appeared on her face, brightening her beautiful face significantly.

His eyes softened with time, too, at what he saw. He  felt as though an invisible force was gradually gaining access to the darkest recesses of his heart. It somehow irritated him. He gave a grunt and pulled at the necktie. "Who gave you the go-ahead to remain here? How are you going to handle that youngster?"

He brought up this subject out of the blue, and she  immediately blanched and balled her fists.

"Are you keeping quiet? It appears that you will carry on having that child."

She  gave him a rebellious glance. “How could you be so mean? The youngster is not guilty!"

He gave her a hostile look and couldn't help but laugh. "It's innocent, and in a way, are you also innocent? The child would regret being born if they discovered their mother was, in reality, a cunning and calculating person who also enjoyed maintaining appearances." His harsh remarks tore at her  heart like a knife's blades.

All color had disappeared from her face. "You..."

He had overreached himself!

"You've been dead set on labeling me as a scheming and hypocritical person ever since I was married into the Conrad family, isn't that so?"

“You're not quite right. One more item has to be mentioned."

"What are you talking about?" Her eyes grew wide.

"You are also a shameless and worthless woman."

She  bit her lip so hard it bled because she was so furious. "The youngster is truly innocent. Please give me an opportunity, please."

She  felt her head instantly solidify into a lead ball. She was unable to lift it to see the man standing in front of her, to meet his eyes and give him the straight talk. Only her knees would do for a beg.

She was limited to doing everything within her ability to ensure that the unborn kid in her womb survived.

He was staring at her as if she were dead. Right then, he didn't want to move a muscle in his body. "After two days, if that baby is still alive, I'm going to deal with it myself."

*****

The two-day restriction was up in the blink of an eye. Riley had came looking for Stella and told her to do all in her power to persuade Clarence  not to abort the kid, so Stella  hadn't gone to the hospital to get an abortion.

She would seek out a physician in the interim so that Stella might receive treatment that would not directly damage her body, even after the abortion.

But Stella  secretly hoped she would never have to part with the child. She desired to carry the pregnancy to term and deliver them.

Riley immediately declared her to be a madwoman after finding out about her plans.

With remarkable composure, Stella  responded and attempted to articulate her emotions. "I'm not insane. I want to become their mother. They represent a fresh start that is developing within me."

“However, after the child is born, they will not have a father. Have you truly gone insane? In addition, would the Conrad family consent to you bearing their child? After all, the Conrad family is a prominent one." Riley was accurate. She was dealing with some challenging feelings.

Stella’s eyes hardened as she caressed her stomach. "I will come up with something."