Chapter 323 

.Finley was out of breath. 

Even though he leaned heavily on the bodyguard, the whole experience was anything but pleasant. Especially since Ronald’s men were pretty skilled at what they did. While they were technically holding him up, Finley still had to put in some effort to keep his feet moving. 

As soon as he saw Stella approaching, Finley shouted, “Star, you gotta talk fome sense into him! Your brother’s got a vendetta or something!” 

Stella just shrugged and said, “He says it’s for your own good,” 

Hearing that, Finley was on the verge of panic. 

“I don’t need him deciding what’s good for me!” 

Seriously, if anyone wanted this kind of help, they could have it. He sure didn’t. 

Ronald, with a firm grip, took Stella by the waist. “Why aren’t you wearing something warmer?” 

The weather had been freezing lately. Snow hadn’t stopped falling for days. 

Stella replied, “I’ve been indoors all day. It’s fine.” 

She hadn’t stepped outside, and Ronald wasn’t about to let her, either. 

Meanwhile, Finley was still running and still shouting. 

Stella glanced at Ronald with concern. “Why’s he running, really?” 

“For his own good,” Ronald repeated. 

Stella blinked, unconvinced. She wasn’t buying that explanation. 

At that moment, her phone rang. It was Susanna calling. 

Stella gave Ronald a look. “It’s Susie. I’ll take this call.” 

“Alright,” Ronald replied, releasing his hold on her waist. 

Stella stepped away with her phone. As she did, Finley’s desperate voice grew louder. 

“Star, you can’t just leave me hanging!” 

“Don’t worry, Ronald won’t let you die.” 

Hopefully, after today, Finley would think twice before running his mouth again. 

Stella walked off with the phone. 

Ronald took the cigar Idris handed him and added casually, “Five more laps for him.” 

Finley, panting, shouted back, “Ronald, you’re a real piece of work! I’m doing this for you, you know!” 

Idris raised an eyebrow, silently thinking to himself, that Finley’s mouth was definitely asking for trouble today. 

Stella answered Susanna’s call. 

“Hey, Susie.” 

Susanna’s voice came through, excited and a bit breathless. “Star, there’s a fight going on! You gotta hear this…” 

There was a sharp smack over the line, followed by Sirena’s angry shout. “Who are you calling a homewrecker? I’m gonna tear you apart today!” 

1/2 

13:27 

Chapter 32 

“Yeah, I’m talking about you! Jaxon’s got a kid now. You’re trying to play stepmom?” 

Cloudia’s voice cut in, trying to mediate. “Everyone just stop it. Lola, shut your mouth.” 

“Shut my mouth? No wonder you’ve been blocking my marriage to Jaxon, even ignoring your own grandson. Didn’t know you had someone better in mind!” 

Cloudia was at a loss for words. 

“The Patel family princess, huh? Blind or just into taken men?” 

Sirena yelled back, “That’s it, I’m done with you!” 

Even just listening, Stella could tell things were in complete chaos on the other end of the line. 

Susanna’s gleeful voice chimed back in, full of mischief. “Star, you catching all this? Need me to get closer for a better listen?” 

Stella couldn’t help but smile. “I thought you weren’t going to the hospital today. What changed?” 

Susanna laughed, “I heard there’d be some drama, and I had to see for myself. My back’s killing me from the fall, came to get it checked out, and bam, ran into Sirena! As soon as I saw her, I knew there’d be fireworks, so I dragged myself here despite the pain.” 

Stella sighed. Typical Susanna, always drawn to where the gossip burned hottest. 

Still, thanks to her, Stella could get a glimpse of the unfolding drama without lifting a finger. 

Susanna clicked her tongue dramatically. “Oh boy, it’s getting ugly. I’ll send you a video.” 

“Great.” 

She realized she hadn’t even had the chance to view the earlier clip Susanna had sent. 

After hanging up, she opened the first video. It was filmed in the corridor outside Jaxon’s hospital room. In the clip, Cloudia was blocking Lola from going in. 

Things escalated quickly. 

Lola’s voice rang out, dripping with sarcasm. “The Larkin family really hit the jackpot marrying someone like you, huh? Can’t tell family from strangers, and now you’re favoring the foster daughter?”