She wished that Judy was around so she could talk to her \u2026 she wanted to know what else Judy knew because Irene wasnt stupid ; she knew that Judy knew more than what she let on .<\/p>\n
But she also felt bad for taking her anger and frustrations out on Judy .<\/p>\n
The things she had done \u2026.<\/p>\n
Her father would never forgive her if he knew .<\/p>\n
Stella was waiting at the coffee shop when Irene arrived .<\/p>\n
The first thing she noticed was how pale her face was, the second thing was the dark circles under her eyes .<\/p>\n
It was clear Stella had barely slept since the last time they spoke .<\/p>\n
Irene hadnt really slept either .<\/p>\n
Ethan had tried to have sex with her only once this past week and Ierne shut him down , claiming she wasnt in the mood .<\/p>\n
She didnt even want him sleeping in her bed , so he went home to sleep and barely spoke to her these last few days .<\/p>\n
Typically , she would have spent time on wedding planning , but she couldnt bring herself to do so .<\/p>\n
She stared down at the ring on her finger \u2026 she knew she would have to take it off soon , but something in her heart refused to let go of the one man she loved with all her heart .<\/p>\n
It was going to be a difficult pill to swallow , but she knew there wouldnt be a wedding .<\/p>\n
Thank you for meeting with me again , Irene said , taking a seat in front of Stella in the same booth they sat in last time .<\/p>\n
This time , neither of them ordered anything .<\/p>\n
Irene assumed that Stella also couldnt stomach anything as well .<\/p>\n
Stella nodded , her eyes clouded and fixed on the table in front of her .<\/p>\n
Chapter 0337 Chapter 0337 Something told me I didnt have a choice , she said softly .<\/p>\n
You managed to find my apartment .<\/p>\n
It scared me .<\/p>\n
Stella didnt give Irene her phone number the last time the met ; actually , Irene had one of her men track and find Stella on their own time .<\/p>\n
It didnt take them long to find the rundown apartment that she lived in within the Redmoon pack .<\/p>\n
Irene was disgusted when she saw the pictures her men sent her of the apartment .<\/p>\n
That was no place to raise a baby .<\/p>\n
She had her men give Stella a note , requesting that she met with her at the same coffee shop with a date and a time .<\/p>\n
A part of her didnt think that Stella would show up , but she was pleased that she did .<\/p>\n
Im sorry I had to track you down like that , Irene told her She shrugged one shoulder .<\/p>\n
I thought it was Ethan who hired them to find me at first .<\/p>\n
After I told you everything that happened , I assumed you went to him and now hes after me , she whispered , tears filling her eyes .<\/p>\n
Her bottom lip trembled .<\/p>\n
Irene could see that she was afraid .<\/p>\n
It made her stomach clench ; Ethan must have threatened her , which made Stella even more afraid of him .<\/p>\n
Im not going to hurt you , she told Stella , her voice calmer than she felt .<\/p>\n
Im sorry that my fianc\u00e9 had hurt you and scared you .<\/p>\n
I hadnt told him about our talks yet .<\/p>\n
He doesnt know that I know anything .<\/p>\n
Stella sniffled and nodded .<\/p>\n
She reached into her purse and pulled out a piece of paper .<\/p>\n
She unfolded it and slid it across the table .<\/p>\n
Irenes breath got caught in her throat .<\/p>\n
This is my baby , she whispered softly .<\/p>\n
It was Stellas first ultrasound .<\/p>\n
She hadnt got the abortion like Ethan wanted and , in a way , Irene was relieved by that .<\/p>\n
She didnt want this innocent baby to lose its life because of Ethans carelessness .<\/p>\n
But at the same time , what kind of life could that baby have ? Living in hiding within the Redmoon pack in that rundown apartment building ? It wasnt safe for either of them , which made this meeting necessary .<\/p>\n
How far along are you ? Irene asked , staring at the picture .<\/p>\n
A month , she whispered .<\/p>\n
I hadnt been with anyone else in almost a year .<\/p>\n
Its definitely his , but once Im further along , I can take a paternity test to know for sure .<\/p>\n
Irene shook her head .<\/p>\n
I believe you .<\/p>\n
Its not necessary , she said softly .<\/p>\n
Stella blinked away the tears and looked up at her .<\/p>\n
Really ? She asked .<\/p>\n
Chapter 0337 Irene nodded and reached her hand out to hold onto Stellas Im sorry this is happening to you .<\/p>\n
I wish there was something I could say to make things better .<\/p>\n
Ethan was wrong for this , and he shouldnt have threatened you .<\/p>\n
More tears spilled out of Stellas eyes ; Irene wanted to cry too , but she kept a strong composure .<\/p>\n
It isnt your fault .<\/p>\n
You were kind .<\/p>\n
Far kinder than I would have been .<\/p>\n
Im sorry I ran from you at first , she whispered .<\/p>\n
Irene shook her head , not wanting her to feel bad .<\/p>\n
None of this was her fault and she wouldnt allow her to blame herself .<\/p>\n
It was Ethans fault .<\/p>\n
She was determined to make things right , for this girl , for Judy , and for herself .<\/p>\n
They were all victims of Ethan , and it ended with Irene .<\/p>\n
Irene pulled her hands away and reached into her purse .<\/p>\n
She pulled out a thick envelope and slid it across the table towards Stella .<\/p>\n
Stellas brows knitted together .<\/p>\n
What is this ? She asked , grabbing the envelope .<\/p>\n
Open it , Irene said simply .<\/p>\n
Stella carefully opened the envelope , and her breath hitched .noveldrama<\/p>\n
It was a huge wad of cash ; there had to be thousands of dollars in cash if not a million .<\/p>\n
W \u2026 what is this ? she asked , glancing up at Irenes serious face .<\/p>\n
Its money , Irene answered , raising her right brow .<\/p>\n
Its for you .<\/p>\n
But \u2026 why ? Stella asked , releasing the money as if it had burned her .<\/p>\n
It fell to the table .<\/p>\n
Im not getting an abortion .<\/p>\n
I made up my mind already .<\/p>\n
She put her hands on her belly protectively .<\/p>\n
I want to keep him or her .<\/p>\n
They are my baby and- Its not for an abortion , Irene told her , cutting her off .<\/p>\n
She held up her hand to keep her from saying anything more .<\/p>\n
Its so you can raise your baby without worry .<\/p>\n
Its enough money to get you out of here .<\/p>\n
You can leave this pack and go to another .<\/p>\n
You can find a decent place to live and raise your baby without worry .<\/p>\n
Ethan will never find you .<\/p>\n
Stellas eyes grew wide.<\/p>\n
What ? Stella whispered after a beat of silence .<\/p>\n
Irene reached over and grabbed her hands again , looking deep into her eyes as she spoke her next words slowly and carefully .<\/p>\n
Leave Redmoon \u2026 get as far away from here as possible and raise your baby , Stella .<\/p>\n
Im giving you an out .<\/p>\n
Take it .<\/p>\n
And with those words left in the air , Irene shouldered her purse , stood to her feet , and walked away without looking back .<\/p>\n
Sara is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland\u2019s breathtaking cold.<\/p>\n
Built a Kingdom From Ashes That Still Remembered Love by Aila Frost 337 She wished that Judy was around so […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[38],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-shadow-slave-by-author-novelnozi-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21406"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21406\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}