2133

22. Mood

The mood was pressed already, and then I saw Mr. James waiting for us in the garage. He looked quite mad.

"Where were you?" he asked spitefully us as we exited the car.

"Stella and I took a little city trip," Stephen responded right away. "Why? What is your problem?"

"You did not inform me. I searched the entire house. What has gotten into you?" Mr. James was resentful. "She is pregnant. You can't just take her out like that."

"It is perfectly fine for me to take a car trip," I reassured them both. Mr. James just shook his head.

"Say it, father," Stephen urged him.

"Say what?"

Stephen mimicked his father's tone, "She is an order! We payed too much money to let her out like that! What if she loses the baby while being out there?"

"I would never say that!" Mr. James exclaimed.

"Why are you trying to control me then, Mr. James?" I asked him, feeling hurt.

"That is right. Stella is her own f.ucking person, father," Stephen said spitefully.

"I care about you! You are new to this." He looked at Stephen. "In case you have forgotten, she needs to be protected and there has to be certain structure in her life. Stella has never been out here before."

"I am not just an order," I muttered under my breath.

"No, you are not, Stella." That brought me right back to my birthday when he kissed me. "You are far more than that. If people knew you, they would hate on you. That is why it is important to plan everything ahead."

Stephen was not convinced, however I knew Mr. James' tone. He was as sincere as ever.

"We can't risk losing you," Mr. James said.

"I have had too much of the agency's crap today. I think I will go pop some pills, and get high," Stephen uttered.

"That is your only solution. When will you find a wife? You have five months left," Mr. James said. Not again. I hated their fights.

Stephen had tried to find a woman. He showed me pictures of all the girls he had been with, but Stephen never felt like one of them was the ultimate one. He had said something inappropriate like this, "Out of all the people in this world that had had my s.emen inside of them, you are the most remarkable one."

Stephen did not have romantic feelings for one person in particular. He seemed to give a little love to everyone, except his father and his rich friends. It would be hard for him to marry a woman. Stephen himself had confessed to me that he would not make a great husband.

"You are lucky that I do not want to upset her today," Stephen took the high road and left.

"What did you do with him?" Mr. James asked me curiously, with a tendency to sound jealous.

"He drove. Nothing special. I read an agency flyer," I told him. I never told Mr. James the entire truth about what went down between Stephen and me. We had a connection. It was nothing like Mr. James and me, but it was still powerful. Stephen was like a brother to me and I cared for him just like he cared for me. "It was disgusting."

"Do not ever do that to me again," Mr. James said. He moved closer to me and drew my lips to his. He whispered against my mouth, "For a moment I thought I lost you."

"I would never willingly leave you, Mr. James," I told him. His expression softened. "Just please be aware of one thing. I have the agency to control my entire life. Every now and then I need some freedom."

-A/N quick announcement: This is Stella's book. In the end I will give one 'crucial' (dramatic, isn't it?) information that Stella and Stephen never find out. But I won't write a chapter from the men's POVs. Stella owns this.-