Crossroads

Chapter 269

Stephanie rushed inside, quickly sliding the glass door shut behind her.

The wind and rain battered against the glass. Soaked to the bone. Stephanie opened her right hand and looked at loose

at the small screw that had fallen

It was early evening, and the st

storm was raging outside with flashes of lighting and booming thunder.

The bright lights inside the room offered a small comfort. She tried to convince herself the screw had simply loosened on its own.

Stephanie cast one last glance at the gloomy balcony, shook off her unease, and headed to the bedroom to change her outht

But her heart was still filled with anxiety and insecurity

She double–locked her bedroom door and turned on every light. The storm outside was a stark contrast to the silence in her room. Even the

sound of her own ragged breathing seemed loud and clear.

Stephanie peeled off her damp clothes and towel–dried her face and hair. She reached for fresh clothes on the bed, her eyes f

falling on the faint scar on her abdomen, a remnant of the C–section.

She stared at it, her cool fingers tracing the nearly invisible line. Oscar had given her some kind of cream, and even the stretch marks had vanished.

It was as if her pregnancy and brief marriage to the Wellington family had been nothing but a dream. All traces were gone, and Dominick had disappeared from her life…

Suddenly, her phone buzzed, shattering the silence.

Her nerves were on edge. She glanced at the phone on her vanity table and hurried over. It was Oscar calling

“Babe, I’m outside,” he said.

Stephanie fraze for a moment before responding “Oh, hold on a sec. She hung up, quickly dressed, and checked her appearance in the vanity mirror.

Suddenly, something caught her eye, and she stared at her reflection.

Stephanie gathered her hair into a bun and lifted her chin, tilting her head to the side. On the smooth skin of her neck, just below her left earlobe. was a faint reddish mark.

Her fingertips brushed against the strange mark. It looked like a hickey.

“A hickey?”

let her hair down, dismissing the thought. It must have been from sleeping

are you doing here?” she asked as she opened the door for Oscar. He stood straight, and his expensive black coat was drenched through, water

closing the door behind

at him and quickly grabbed a dry towel. “Take off your coat. Are you soaked through? Why would you come all

his curly hair. Then, be locked eyes

her with his clear blue eyes and paused before murmuring.

“There’s a thunderstorm”

to stare at her. After a few more

I’m not scared!” Stephanie snapped back, irritated by his suggestion.

Then, he laughed

handsome face and deep blue eyes that were almost mesmerizing. When he smiled, his eyes crinkled at the

smiled, and the sight of it now was bewitching.

Stephanie yelled, and her cheeks flushed with

could spar with him like this. It was an

yet she claimed not to be afraid. But he

Chapter 269

He loved

wrong?” he asked

perceptive. He had picked up on her discomfort within minutes

with

kept glancing towards the

herm

she said stiffly, clearly brushing

of it. And with that strange

as she opened the fridge and pulled out the

decent portion, and actually pretty

Oscar just grabbed a can of

cramped kitchen. She couldn’t help but say again. “You don’t have to go

he always moved efficiently. Watching him cook was surprisingly captivating. His serious

was as a woman, feeling guilty as she glanced at the pile of three or five plates at the

got the better of her, and she stepped

some clams from the fridge. cleaning them, and adding them to the chowder. When he turned his head,

stop playing around,” he said, looking at her with a

She glanced down at her hands, covered in soap bubbles. It seemed like she was indeed playing around.

retorted stubbornly, but she just rinsed the dishes and put

that when they were together, Stephanie was often the one causing problems, leaving Oscar to clean up her messes without a word of complaint. And now she couldn’t even handle a

small living room, each with a bowl of clam chowder. Oscar had added some kind of seasoning. and the warm aroma filled

awful” Stephanie took a bite of the microwaved pasta and immediately grimaced, switching to her bowl