Chapter 1610

Stella gave a quick apology to the crew. "Sorry for holding up the show, folks." The director waved it off with a casual hand. "No sweat, Stella. Don't mention it." He thought to himself, 'Who'd dare cross Lucas? And Stella, the only one who can send Lucas packing, who'd mess with her?' Stella flashed an awkward smile. "Don't worry. Lucas won't be causing any more trouble on my account." The director reassured her, "It's all good, Stella. Don't sweat the small stuff." Stella then turned to apologize to the lead actor. He verbally accepted her apology, but his performance was off. As the lead actor uttered every word, his eyes darted toward the door, half-expecting Lucas to burst in and knock him off his feet again. That last kick from Lucas had nearly ended his career; another one would definitely do the job. The lead actor's lack of focus caused take after take to flop, dragging Stella's work late into the night. As they wrapped up, Stella's assistant leaned in. "Mr. White has been waiting outside for you all this time." Stella said nothing but sat down in front of the makeup mirror, closing her eyes as the makeup artist began to work. Suddenly, Stella felt something was off with the touch. Her eyes snapped open, and the reflection confirmed her suspicion — it was Lucas standing right behind her. She touched her forehead, trying to stay calm. "Lucas, can you ever stop haunting me?" Lucas replied with a puppy-dog look, "Today's the day we agreed on, Stella. I came here just to follow our arrangement." Even after the whole Stellie fiasco, Stella was still not pregnant and desperately wanted a child. So, she made a deal with Lucas: Every month, during her fertile window, Lucas could come to her, to help her conceive. In return, Lucas wanted a chance to woo her again, a real shot at courting her like any regular guy would, a genuine relationship. One aimed to have a child, the other at a real romance. Their goals were different, but somehow, they met in the middle. It was a deal where neither felt short changed nor defeated. Today was the day Lucas and Stella had agreed upon, and Lucas had shown up as planned. Stella had nothing much to say about it. She closed her eyes again, letting Lucas remove her makeup. Lucas muttered with a hint of self-pity, "I've been waiting for you all day, Stella. I was afraid you'd stand me up for dinner." With his tone and that pitiful look, anyone would think Stella had been mistreating him. But while he complained, his hands were gentle as he wiped her face, careful not to harm her delicate skin. Stella opened her eyes and looked at him. "If you hadn't barged in this afternoon and kicked my co-star, maybe I wouldn't have had to work so late, huh?" "I messed up." "You always say that but never change." "How about I send Robbie to buy some gifts, and I personally apologize to the guy?" Stella shook her head. "Forget it. You showing up again would probably scare him off the set for good." Lucas fell silent, thinking that despite everything, Stella still cared about him.