Chapter 14 Stunned

• Stella came out of the bathroom, walked towards the walk-in closet.
• "Stella...!"
• Her bedroom door suddenly opened. Marvin stood there, looking shocked and stunned when he saw Stella’s body covered only by a towel. He swallowed hard at the sight of her, her wet and messy hair stirring his instincts as a man.
• "Couldn't you knock first, Sir?" Stella asked, clutching the towel tightly over her chest, speaking through gritted teeth.
• "Wh—why wasn’t the door locked?" Marvin responded with a question instead of answering.
• Stella narrowed her eyes at Marvin's question.
• "O—okay... sorry," Marvin said, closing Stella’s bedroom door again.
• Stella rolled her eyes, then continued choosing her clothes. "Wow!" Stella looked in awe at the clothes in the closet. "Did Marvin prepare these?"
• Stella tried on various outfits. Although she used to be well-off, her wardrobe mostly consisted of t-shirts and pants, with only a few skirts that she rarely wore.
• Finally, Stella picked a dress and put it on. She walked out of the walk-in closet and stood in front of the vanity mirror. She was now wearing a light blue short-sleeved dress that came slightly above her knees. She applied makeup, even though she rarely did so before.
• When she was done, Stella left her room and walked downstairs. She headed to the dining room and saw Marvin sitting alone, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed.
• "Haven’t you had breakfast yet, Sir?" Stella asked as she approached Marvin.
• Marvin sat up straight, looking Stella up and down. His eyebrows furrowed when he saw how dressed up she was, even wearing 5 cm heels.
• "Are you coming with me to the company?" Marvin asked. "Fanny doesn’t know about our relationship yet. Staying at home would be safer. Why go to the company?"
• Stella frowned. "I’m not going with you to the company."
• "Then where are you going? Why are you all dressed up?" Marvin asked.
• "I’m going to meet Damian, Sir," Stella replied, sitting in the chair to Marvin’s right.
• "What? Why?" Marvin asked, looking shocked.
• "Mia said Damian has a meeting at a restaurant today, then he’ll meet with her. I’ll pretend to run into him coincidentally when he arrives, dressed like this. What do you think? Do I look pretty? Is this dress suitable?" Stella asked with a smile.
• "No! You look... just okay," Marvin replied, finally starting to eat the breakfast that had been on the table untouched, as he had been waiting to eat with Stella.
• "Asking you was a mistake. Obviously, you only think Lily is beautiful. Right?" Stella asked.
• Marvin frowned but didn’t reply to Stella’s comment.
• "I’m really jealous of a dead person," Stella muttered, getting up from her seat.
• "Where are you going? Aren’t you going to have breakfast?" Marvin asked.
• "I’m going for a walk and then to the restaurant where Damian is having his meeting," Stella replied as she walked away.
• Marvin remained seated, no longer eating his breakfast, but leaning back and watching Stella’s back as she left the dining room.
• "I waited for her to have breakfast together because I thought she’d be lonely eating alone. She’s used to being with her family, and now she’s by herself. So, I kindly waited to eat with her, but what does she do on her first day living here? She leaves me! Unbelievable," Marvin muttered.
• Marvin sighed, losing his appetite. He got up and walked out.
• ***
• Stella was still in her car, parked at the restaurant’s parking lot. She was waiting for Damian to arrive.
• Soon, Damian got out of his car, parked not far from hers, and walked toward the restaurant.
• Stella smiled and quickly got out of her car to catch up with Damian.
• Thud!
• Stella deliberately bumped her shoulder into Damian’s from behind, causing him to stumble forward and fall to the ground.
• "Can’t you watch where you’re going? Where did you leave your eyes, huh?" Damian asked sarcastically, trying to get up.
• "Sorry, sorry, I didn’t mean to. Are you okay, Sir?" Stella asked, extending her hand to Damian.
• Damian looked up, eyes wide in surprise when he saw Stella standing in front of him. His eyes widened even more as he took in her transformed appearance.
• Usually, he saw Stella in t-shirts and jeans. Now, she looked elegant and beautiful in a short dress.
• "Huh? Damian? Is that you?" Stella pulled back her hand, reluctant to help him up.
• "Stella?" Damian got up and stood straight. Now standing just a step in front of Stella, he looked her over from head to toe, unable to believe the change. "Is this really you?"
• Stella smiled wryly. "Yes... it’s me, why?"
• Damian remained silent, still in disbelief at Stella's new look.
• "Didn’t expect to see you here," Stella said again.
• "What are you doing here? You didn’t just come to eat, did you? Oh, I remember I told Mia I’d be here and asked her to join me later. Did you find out from Mia and dressed like this to meet me? Are you trying to seduce your sister’s fiancé, darling?" Damian asked.
• "What?" Stella looked at Damian with an expression that was hard to describe. "You’re overthinking! I—"
• "Darling?" Marvin called suddenly.
• Continued...