Stella Grace felt uncomfortable upon hearing Frederick’s unfriendly tone. She then smiled, “My presence here doesn’t have anything to do with you, does it?”
Frederick Addington suddenly realized that he might have come off as rude. “I was just curious. After all, you don’t seem like a person who likes to be in this kind of occasion, Miss Wheeler.”
“You don’t know me well enough. How would you know whether I like it or not?” Stella retorted.
The atmosphere between the two of them was filled with hostility.
“Master Addington, do you know each other?” someone asked.
Frederick shrugged his shoulders. “Sort of.”
He looked at Jasper Milton and said, “When I heard that you were here, I came here to propose a toast. Director Milton, you must have had a lot of trouble recently, right?”
“It has nothing to do with you,” Jasper said coldly.
“Of course it has something to do with me. We’ve known each other for such a long time, and I hope that you would continue to have a good life. Without your company, my life would be boring.” Frederick suddenly touched Jasper’s wine glass.
“You must have thought too much. I’m sure that I could live longer than you do. Busybodies usually don’t live long.” Jasper said meaningfully.
Frederick suddenly smiled with malicious joy. He finished the wine in his cup and squinted at Natalie Wheeler. “Did you come here with Jasper?”
Stella’s heart trembled. She stared at Frederick and pursed her lips without saying a word.
“She’s my assistant now,” Jasper said, helping Stella out of the predicament.
“Assistant?” Frederick’s face turned a little livid. He looked at Stella unpleasantly and said, “When I asked you to be my assistant, you said that you would only be an educator. What are you doing now then?! Doesn’t that make you hypocrite then, Miss Wheeler? Are there still any truths in your words?”
“Life is always unpredictable. The only constant in life is change. If you want a reason, I suppose it’s because you are not as charming as Director Milton. Are you satisfied with this reply, Mr. Addington?” Stella retorted coldly.
Frederick looked visibly upset. He threw the wine glass into the trash can and looked at Stella. “You will regret this decision soon.”
Stella’s face fell as she watched Frederick leave the room.
There was a saying, “One would rather offend a gentleman than a villain”. Frederick looked like a gentleman but he was, in fact, a villain.
She was really afraid of Frederick. She knew that he was the kind of person who would do anything to achieve his goals.
The event carried on, and the other people in the room did not seem to be affected by Frederick’s sudden appearance. However, Stella felt uneasy ever since.
“Natalie, could you please get the lighter from the car?” Jasper said softly.
Stella was stunned.
She didn’t like Jasper smoking, but there were so many people here, so she couldn’t possibly embarrass him. She got up and left the room. Before she could reach the elevator, Jasper grabbed her hand and took her to the balcony on the second floor.
“Hey, don’t worry about what Frederick said earlier,” Jasper said in a low voice.
Stella understood. His intention was to talk to her outside, and not to get the lighter.
He probably realized that she was in a bad mood, that was why he came to comfort her.
Stella was moved. “After all that has happened, I know him too well. I would be lying if I said that I’m not worried at all. I was thinking about the moment when he said that I would regret my decision soon. Does Frederick know something?”
“Even if he knows something, it has nothing to do with me. Firstly, he wouldn’t tell me about it. Secondly, he would find the opportunity to strike me when I’m down. Thirdly…” Jasper paused. “The only reason I did not go after him all this while is that I wanted him to feel the pain of your death like I did. Since you’re still alive, I will definitely not let him go.”
Stella was nervous and she held Jasper’s hand. “Don’t let me regret the decision to stay by your side. My only hope is for you to be safe. As long as you’re safe, I could put all my hatred aside.”
Jasper held her hand instead, “After getting to know the secret from Hale, I realized that you were not the one who was dragging me down. In fact, it was the other way around instead. Some of those things would have happened with or without you. Don’t blame yourself no matter what happens, okay? Frederick is insignificant in my eyes.”
Stella knew that Jasper was comforting her.
After all, she clearly knew whether she had or had not dragged him down.
“Anyway, I’m sure that we will be fine in the future.” Stella said softly.
“Yes, we will be fine. Don’t worry. You didn’t eat much earlier, did you? Let’ go back inside and eat something. I’ll take you home later.” Jasper said softly. He held her hand and walked back into the room with her.
Stella withdrew her hand subconsciously.
Jasper looked back at her.
“Jasper, I love you. I love you more than you could imagine. We still have a lot of matters to deal with. Let’s try not to create more problems. You’re only human after all.” Stella said with worry.
“Okay, I understand,” Jasper did not make things difficult for her. He walked into the room first.
Stella went to the washroom to freshen up. When she looked up and saw Frederick in the mirror, she was shocked and her face turned pale instantly.
Frederick leaned against the door with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He looked at her coldly. “Does Allen know that you are Jasper’s assistant now?”
“I don’t need to report to him about my work. Furthermore, Allen will be coming over here on the 15th. He will naturally know without me telling him.” Stella forced herself to calm down and deliberately told Frederick the date of Allen’s arrival to mislead him.
“You have no background in finance, business, or doing secretarial work. However, Jasper specifically arranged you to be his assistant. Don’t you think that it’s strange?” Frederick suddenly asked.
“He has his reasons just like I have mine. I only need to consider my own circumstances. Why should I care about anything else?” Stella walked outside.
Frederick took a big step to the right and stood in front of her. He lowered his head, looked at her, and said, “I really want to know your reason.”
Stella smiled and said, “I want to know why you care so much about me. Don’t tell me that you have fallen in love with me?”
“I think, the reason I care for you is the same as the reason Jasper cares for you. You look just like the woman whom we both loved.” Frederick scrutinized Stella’s face.
Stella raised her chin and looked at Frederick. “Are you done? Can I go now?”
Instead of letting her go, Frederick held her arm. “Be my woman. Tell me what you want. I will accept all of your requests.”
“I’m not short of money and I have no relatives. Even my only friend has left me. In other words, I don’t have anything I want now. If there is any…” Stella paused. “Mr. Addington, you are a powerful and handsome man. Even Aneira Mallon took a fancy to you. You definitely do not lack women. In the future, please stay away from me.”
“There will be no one else after I have you. I swear, if I have someone else apart from you, I will let you do whatever you want,” Frederick said while glancing at her.