My Amnesic Ex Married My Sister, So I Married His Uncle-Chapter 7: I See You’re Very Satisfied with My Body

Chapter 7: Chapter 7: I See You’re Very Satisfied with My Body

"Stella, you can cry."

She froze, the smile instantly stiffening on her lips, but under Owen Rhodes’s gentle gaze, the corners of her eyes began to redden.

Without warning, tears spilled from her eyes. They fell faster and faster, like pearls from a broken string.

’I don’t want to cry.’

’I’d been holding it together all afternoon, even when I saw Ethan Rhodes propose. Why can’t I hold it in now?’

Owen Rhodes hadn’t expected his simple words to have such a powerful effect. After a moment of shock, he pressed his lips together, his brow furrowing in bewilderment.

He raised his arm, but it stopped, hovering in mid-air.

Instead, he grabbed the tissue box from the coffee table and held it out to her.

"I’m sorry, I’m not very good at comforting people. I just think," Owen Rhodes said, looking at her gently, "a forced smile like that doesn’t suit someone so beautiful."

’What was that?’

’He’s actually not bad at this.’

Stella Sterling looked at him with tear-filled eyes, the drops still streaming down her cheeks.

Owen Rhodes simply sat with her in silence, occasionally handing her a few more tissues.

He never overstepped, simply placing the tissues into her hand.

Once she had calmed down a little, Owen Rhodes finally spoke again.

"Stella, you probably think my proposal was sudden, and it was. But this is the first time in my entire life I’ve had this kind of impulse."

"I don’t like to waste time, so I’m used to being direct. I might have startled you."

"There are no other women in my life. If you’re willing, I’ll learn how to be with you. I’m serious about my proposal, and I hope you’ll consider it."

Stella Sterling had calmed down by now. She sniffled and replied.

"What is this? You save my life, so I’m supposed to pledge myself to you in return?"

"Yes. So, do you accept?"

’In a situation like last night’s—two tall, burly men approaching with knives, intent on robbery—even a man on his own might not have dared to step in, let alone a woman like Stella Sterling.’

’She’d been so decisive when she fired that gun, and her imposing presence hadn’t faltered even after she spoke.’

’It was no surprise that someone would be drawn to a girl so brave and decisive.’

’So it wasn’t strange that he would propose to her, either.’

’He’d just skipped a few of the preliminary steps.’

As Stella Sterling’s emotions settled, her mind began to whirl.

"If I agree... it seems like I’d be getting the short end of the stick, no matter how I look at it."

For some reason, Owen Rhodes’s gaze flickered away for a moment.

"Not necessarily. I could tell you were very satisfied with my body."

"..."

’Nope, I’m definitely still not used to how direct he is.’

"After we get married, you can borrow my body anytime."

"..."

’That sounded like it had a double meaning, but she had no proof.’

Stella Sterling cleared her throat. "I thought you weren’t short on money?"

"I can be. But it seems to me you’re the one who needs a model more than I need money. Sorry, I overheard your phone call the other day. You said you were very satisfied with me. I also heard that the men who go to your apartment are different every day. Isn’t that because you’re not satisfied with any of them? Otherwise, for a gig like that, I doubt anyone would turn you down."

’Which means you wouldn’t have to replace them every day.’

’But he was the exception. Stella Sterling had even booked him for the next day.’

’She must have been truly satisfied.’

’His logic was sound.’ 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"Speaking of which," Owen Rhodes asked, "you’ve hired so many models. Why don’t you have a single nude painting?"

Before Stella Sterling could answer, the buzz of a vibrating phone echoed through the living room.

It was Owen Rhodes’s phone.

He put it on speaker, and Silas Jacobs’s voice came through, tinged with seriousness.

"Rhodes, those guys from the hospital are still on The Sunward Coast looking for you. They’re persistent. You need to make a plan, and soon."

’Joel Joyce’s gang.’

Stella Sterling’s hand tightened unconsciously, crumpling the tissue in her fist.

Owen Rhodes noticed.

After hanging up, he asked, "Stella, do you want to go?"

"What?"

He moved a little closer.

Owen Rhodes looked at her. "They’re looking for you. I can get you out of here. Away from Lumina."

’But there’s no such thing as a free lunch.’

"And the condition is that I have to accept your proposal?"

Owen Rhodes’s gaze fell on her tense expression. As if moved by an unseen force, he gently placed his hand on top of her head.

"There are no conditions. The proposal, leaving with me... the choice is entirely yours. Whatever you decide, it’s up to you."

It was strange, but Stella Sterling felt an inexplicable sensation, as if a feather had just brushed against her heart.

...

At night, the detached seaside villa was surrounded by an inky blue darkness, the silhouettes of trees barely visible.

Looking out the window, the headlights of an approaching SUV were starkly conspicuous in the distance.

Clinging to a last shred of hope, Stella Sterling asked, "Owen, is that one of your friends?"

"No. My friends don’t drive SUVs."

His expression darkened. He quickly pulled on a T-shirt, rose to his feet, and extended a hand to Stella Sterling.

"The international flight plan has already been filed. The private jet leaves for home in five hours. Are you coming?"

Owen Rhodes saw a flicker of light, bright and fleeting, pass through Stella Sterling’s otherwise placid eyes.

"Your wound..."

"It’s just a flesh wound. Didn’t you already patch me up?"

Just like his insistent proposal, the hand he now held out to her was equally stubborn and resolute.

The moment Stella Sterling’s hand touched his palm, Owen Rhodes was pulling her out of the villa through the back door.

A Mercedes G-Wagon was parked outside. Owen Rhodes bundled her into the passenger seat.

Before hitting the gas, he tossed a throw pillow into her lap.

"Sleep if you’re tired. I’ll take you to your place to pack first, then we’ll head to the airport."

As soon as he finished speaking, the ink-black SUV shot off into the darkness.

Stella Sterling’s heart was in her throat, only settling back into her chest once the car reached the main road.

She couldn’t tell if Owen Rhodes was genuinely crazy or just incredibly skilled and fearless.

He had driven the entire stretch before the main road in complete darkness.

Dark silhouettes flashed past the windows as her body was jolted from side to side.

Luckily, it was late, and they didn’t run into any trouble.

It was pure madness, yet Stella Sterling felt her heart thumping with a vitality she hadn’t felt in ages.

The thrill of the adrenaline rush made the corners of her lips curve up unconsciously, and for a moment, she even forgot everything that had happened during the day.

The moment he switched on the headlights, Bon Jovi’s "It’s My Life" blasted through the car’s speakers.

Stella Sterling rolled down her window, and the electric guitar chords and deep drumbeat dissolved into the salty sea air.

’It felt like she was finally starting to live again.’

The inexplicable sense of security she felt made even the pounding drums of the rock music sound like a lullaby.

She didn’t know when she fell asleep.

When Owen Rhodes turned to look at her, he saw her head resting lightly against the seatbelt, swaying gently with the motion of the speeding car.

He turned his eyes back to the road, closed the open window, and shut off the rousing rock music. He adjusted the temperature, then used the center console to recline the passenger seat, trying to make her more comfortable.

Stella Sterling had a dream. She dreamt of her twentieth birthday.