Stella squinted at the sunlight piercing through the dark with a staccato, so tired that she could hardly manage a sound. She lifted an arm and shaded her eyes.
Weston stood up, buttoning up his white shirt, and walked to the windows to pull the shades down.
Stella turned to her side in a bid to return to sleep. She felt a warm touch at the back of her ear. It was Weston kissing her. âIâm heading to the office. Have a good rest here this afternoon.â
Stella nodded. âGo ahead.â
She was so exhausted that she had to force herself to speak, not to mention that her voice sounded nasal.
Weston chuckled lowly and pinched her nose cheekily, eliciting annoyed grumbles from Stella. âQuit itâ¦
youâre such a botherâ¦â
He stood up leisurely.
Stella slept more soundly than she usually did. By the time she woke up, it was already late in the afternoon.
She pulled open the covers and saw hickeys of various sizes imprinted on her legs. Her knees went weak the moment she stood, and she almost collapsed onto the carpeted floor.
Stella had long gotten used to it; each time after sex, her back and legs would be sore and ache. With some effort, she managed to hold herself up and walk to the living room.
A post-it note was stuck on the fridge, which told her that some food had been prepared for her inside, and all she needed to do was to take it out and enjoy it.
Stella pondered for a moment, wondering when exactly Weston had become so thoughtful. He always had everything prepared meticulously for her, making sure that all her needs were taken care of.
They seemed to have exchanged roles.
In the past, sheâd been the one who cared for him, never giving Weston a chance to worry about her.
She shook her head to chase away those thoughts seeping into her mind.
The man simply felt guilty, and that was all.
Forcing herself to keep that thought in mind, she walked to the couch and settled herself down on it. She sipped a cup of milk in one hand and opened the pills from a bag with another as she began counting them.
Weston had gone overboard these two days.
The medicine that was supposed to last her a while would soon run out.
Stella sighed as anxiety began creeping into her heart at the sight of the almost-empty pill bottle.
There were still around six days left before Zeta was scheduled to return. Had she known this, she should have gotten some medicine from Zeta that day at the celebration.
Zeta had probably returned in a rush, and Stella didnât want to bother her, seeing how she was so occupied with the issue between Xavier and Daisy.
She didnât want Zeta to see her involved with Weston, either.
She didnât expect her considerations and hesitation to cumulate into trouble for her.
Given Westonâs unrelenting energy and demanding sex drive, she wasnât expecting to have a good time during the next few days.
She had been able to play along with him due to the influence of the medicine, but if she were to suddenly turn cold and disinterested with nary a bodily reaction toward his passion or even reject his advances , Weston would probably sense that something was off.
For all she knewâ¦
He might just discover that she was taking the pill.
Hence, the possibility of that happening troubled her deeply.
Bradley suddenly sent her a voice message, telling her to view the social media page of a well-known producer in the industry.
As she scrolled through her phone , Stella immediately activated her work mode and quickly chanced upon Zetaâs recent post: âReturned a few days early from my business trip. Still loving the sunshine here!â
The attached photo was a selfie she took at the airport.
Stella fixed her gaze on Zetaâs post and immediately called her. âDr. Taylor, are you there?â
She heard her exuberant voice on the other end of the call. âI just landed and was about to call you.â
Stellaâs eyes brightened . âCan I come over and look for you now?â
âWhatâs the matter? Is something the matter?â
Stella found it hard to verbalize herself, but she gritted her teeth and said, âIâm almost all out of medicineâ¦â
A long pause ensued on the other end before Zeta sighed and said, âCome over and find me.â