Chapter 18
As soon as they got back to the manor, Stella let go of Anthony’s hand. Without a word, she was about to head to her room.
Anthony hurriedly threw his arms around her from behind, yet Stella pushed his hands away instantly.
She cut him off just as he was about to say something. Stella stared expressionlessly at Anthony, whose face closely resembled Ethan’s, and steeled her
resolve.
“Anthony, I’m pretty much your sister–in–law. Even if your brother and I weren’t officially married, you shouldn’t…”
Stella did not finish her sentence. However, both of them knew very well what she was trying to say. She just did not want to be so blunt about it.
“Anthony, I should probably leave. I’ll leave tomorrow morning.”
“No! No, Stella!” Anthony cried woefully. Still, Stella did not allow him the chance to persuade her otherwise.
Bang!
Stella slammed the door shut behind her. It was as if she could cut Anthony off by doing that.
It was silent in her room. Stella clutched her chest, where her heart was beating wildly. She was panting and gasping for air.
She did it. Stella did not succumb to Anthony’s kindness. She managed to stick to her beliefs and principles.
Yet, Stella wondered why her heart was aching. If only Ethan could offer her an answer…
Stella lay on the bed and tried to calm herself down. However, the jumbled thoughts in her head made it impossible for her to fall asleep.
Sometimes, she would be thinking about Ethan or Julian. Yet, the person who came to her mind the most was Anthony.
His cheerfulness and optimism were like a ray of light that illuminated the dark world she was in.
However, Stella could not allow it. The two of them could not possibly become a couple.
Stella was not sure how much time had passed when an alarm next to her bed started vibrating all of a sudden.
Stella was alarmed. Roxanne had installed an alarm in every room of the house so that they could help and provide emergency assistance to Anthony at any moment. That meant Anthony was probably having an attack!
Stella only had a thin nightdress on as she rushed to Anthony’s room.
She could not afford to let anything bad happen to him. She had watched with her own eyes the moment Ethan met his demise. Stella would not allow the same thing to happen to Anthony too.
When she opened the door, Stella could see Anthony had curled up on the bed and was clutching his chest.
She quickly checked his condition. Just then, Anthony pointed to the floor with a shaky hand.
Stella finally noticed a broken glass and Anthony’s medicine, which were scattered on the floor. She figured Anthony had probably made the mess when he suddenly suffered an attack and did not make it to take the medicine.
Stella picked up the medicine and filled a new glass of water. Then, she supported the back of Anthony’s head and tried to feed him some water.
However, Anthony kept his mouth shut tightly. It was as if he had lost consciousness and could not hear her. Anthony just would not open his mouth, even though Stella had tried various approaches.
As she observed Anthony’s body shaking more and more furiously, Stella made up her mind. She took a tablet in her mouth, lowered her head, and pressed her lips against Anthony’s hard.
Anthony, who had remained unresponsive, finally opened his mouth and allowed Stella to transfer the tablet into his mouth.
Without any hint of hesitation, Stella took a mouthful of water in her mouth and pressed her lips on Anthony’s lips again so she could transfer the water into his mouth.
The soft and warm sensation seemed to have stimulated his impulses. When Stella tried to straighten up, Anthony, who was suffering a lot of pain earlier, suddenly placed his hand on the back of Stella’s head and prevented her from pulling away. He began kissing her passionately.
“No, he’s Ethan’s brother! How can he and I do something like this?” Stella mumbled inwardly.
Stella wanted to resist, but she was afraid of accidentally hurting Anthony, who had just had a heart attack. Despite her reluctance, they kissed for quite a while.
e corners of Stella’s eyes were a bit red when their lips finally parted. She rose to her feet and was about to storm out.
However, Anthony swiftly caught hold of her wrist and said pitifully, “Stella, can you please not leave?
1
“In the past, you and Ethan would come back together after school. I fell for you ever since you started helping me with my homework. You’ve always been so kind and pretty. Every day, I hoped you would drop by our house.
“I would fill in the wrong answers on purpose just so I could see you pout while you try to show me the correct answers. Those were the happiest days of my life. It was a shame that Ethan confessed his feelings to you first. He even got the permission to marry you!
“I was extremely envious of him. Even though I followed my mom and ended up getting a rich stepdad, I’d rather give up on the huge inheritance. I only
want you.”
Anthony paused briefly. He slowly propped himself up and moved closer toward Stella. Like an innocent kitten, he was trying to get Stella to caress him and fall in love with him.
“However, I didn’t expect Ethan would be diagnosed with a terminal disease while I got into a car accident. The brother whom I was envious of donated his heart to me. From that moment onward, I stopped blaming him for taking you away from me.
“Yet, it felt like Ethan’s feelings for you had been passed on to me. I like you more and more with every passing day. I missed you so much, and I even thought about stealing you away from Julian Chapman. However, my stepdad wouldn’t allow me to do that.”
Those eyes that were eerily similar to Ethan’s eyes lit up just then. Anthony gazed intently at Stella, who was slowly backing away. His voice was deep and husky.
“Stella, I’m so glad I’ve managed to convince you to come here. I know how you’re concerned about Ethan’s heart. However, this heart belongs to me now. My love for you will only be stronger than how Ethan felt about you.
“I don’t want to call you my sister–in–law. I just want a chance. A chance to be with you. Won’t you say yes?”
