Chapter 120

"...Not too early. I investigated her immediately after waking up. The findings were quite remarkable."

Stella Valentine caught the key detail: "Waking up?"

Silence lingered on the other end of the line.

"Yes. I woke up."

Mr. Alistair stopped the car outside her apartment, his voice gentle. "Stella, go rest upstairs. Martha should have dinner ready. I'll come by tonight."

Stella adjusted the silk blindfold over her eyes and nodded obediently. "Alright."

The scent of his cologne suddenly grew closer. Warm hands cradled her face, followed by a fleeting kiss on her lips. "Wait for me."

"...Mm."

His kiss was restrained, yet Stella could feel the storm of emotions beneath the surface.

After a long moment, he finally opened the car door for her, pulling her into one last embrace. "Sometimes I wish night would never end, so we wouldn't have to keep saying goodbye."

Stella returned the hug lightly. "You promised to tell me everything when this is over."

"Yes."

"So we won't be apart forever."

"...Mm."

"But Mr. Alistair...can we hurry? I'm afraid..."

Afraid the cancer would return.

More afraid she might leave this world before learning the truth.

His arms tightened around her. "I'll make it quick."

Stella stood motionless after exiting the car, only removing the blindfold once the engine faded into the distance.

True to his word, Martha had prepared dinner—four dishes and a steaming soup.

"Miss Stella, Mr. Alistair only told me to cook at the last minute, so it's a bit rushed..."

Stella smiled apologetically. "Thank you for your hard work."

"Not at all! He pays me ten times the market rate, and you and the children are so kind..."

"Where are the kids?"

"Ethan is such a good big brother. This afternoon he fed Luna and played with her. You don't see many boys his age being so attentive—must take after Mr. Alistair."

Stella forced a smile and headed to the nursery.

Ethan was crouched beside the crib, dangling a plush toy to amuse his baby sister. The tenderness in his eyes was heartbreaking.

The sight made Stella's nose sting.

Ethan's profile was the spitting image of Adrian Roland's.

Genetics were strange. Despite their identical looks, their personalities couldn't be more different.

"Mommy!"

Ethan threw himself into her arms. "I missed you."

"Did Hugo teach you to say that?"

Ethan shook his head. "I really did miss you."

Stella hugged him tightly. "I missed you too."

"Luna was extra good today." He tugged her toward the crib. "She looks more like you now."

Martha brought over a bottle. "Little Luna has quite the appetite. She'll be a foodie when she grows up."

Stella couldn't help but laugh.

She'd been a glutton as a child too.

Because of her low blood sugar, her father had special star-shaped glucose candies made for her.

But she hated carrying them, so Adrian always kept them in his pocket.

He'd appear like clockwork between classes, leaning against the classroom door, his white dress shirt billowing slightly in the breeze, spinning the candies between his fingers.

Once, when the teacher ran overtime, she kept glancing anxiously out the window.

The class monitor teased, "Hurry up, Professor Winston! Someone's waiting to see her Adrian!"

Amid the class's laughter, Adrian strode right in, crouched beside her desk, and dropped the candies. "What, don't recognize me?"

Flustered, she shoved him. "Get out!"

He ruffled her hair. "I'll deal with you when we get home."

Before leaving, he even told the teacher, "Go on, Professor Winston!"

The teacher scolded jokingly, "How can I continue with you hovering like that?"

The monitor egged them on. "Plenty of guys have crushes on Stella!"

The teacher feigned sternness. "She's already been accepted to Harvard. Any of you dare to date early, just try me!"

Groans filled the classroom.

"Mommy?" Ethan tugged her hand. "Are you thinking about Daddy? You're smiling."

Stella startled, realizing her lips had curled upward.

"Yes. Just some old memories."

Ethan propped his chin in his hands. "Martha says babies turn out pretty when their parents love each other. Since Luna and I are so cute, Daddy must've loved you a lot when we were born, right?"