Chapter 269
When Olivia saw the dress, she said, โStefi grew up in a poor area for years. If you make her wear this, sheโll be embarrassed.โ
Later, it seemed that Olivia wore that dress instead, while Stephanieโs dress, chosen from Oliviaโs wardrobe, was a more conservative one from previous years. Over the years, Stephanie had never mentioned anything about her adoptive parents or family.
When Chad saw Tyler not speaking, he immediately realized it had to be something related to Olivia, and his expression turned even more livid. โNow, Mr. Giovanni is furious because Stefi wasnโt properly taken care of in Long Harbor these past two years. All the trouble weโre having with the company right now is because of Mr. Giovanniโs anger,โ Chad said.
In other words, if Stephanie didnโt make a statement, this matter was definitely not going to be easily swept under the rug.
Tyler snapped out of it, and his face turned even darker. โSo, what should we do? Should we beg her? When she first came back, we treated her well. Itโs her fault for being ungrateful and constantly causing trouble with Olivia.โ
Two years ago, the battle between Stephanie and Olivia had been intense. Although they eventually prevented Stephanie from sending Olivia to jail, at that time, Stephanie had nearly beaten Olivia senseless. Stephanie had been like a wild woman at the time.
Chad snapped, โYouโre still talking about this? You are driving me insane. Fine, youโre handling this matter now.โ Chad had nearly frozen to death on Mount Spring today, and seeing Tyler acting this way now only made his anger flare up.
Tylerโs face darkened. โIโm handling it? How am I supposed to handle this? Do you really want me to apologize to Stephanie? Can she even handle that?โ he wondered.
Sebastian brought Stephanie back to Mount Spring, and her temperature seemed stable. When he laid her on the bed, Sebastian gently stroked her forehead. โHow are you feeling? Still in pain?โ
Stephanie nodded with a hint of grievance, looking up at him. โIt hurts so much.โ That place hurt especially badly. She never expected Sebastian, who was usually a gentle gentleman, to be so wild and reckless in bed. Stephanieโs voice had become hoarse from screaming, begging for mercy, but he didnโt let up.
Sebastian chuckled, gently pinching her nose. โThen just stay in bed and lie down quietly, okay?โ
When he noticed Stephanieโs complexion seemed off, he affectionately pinched her cheek. โWhat are you thinking about?โ
Stephanie gazed at him with wide eyes. โIโm wondering whether Mom will be angry if she finds out.โ As soon as she mentioned this, Stephanie felt a deep sense of shame. When she first woke up in the morning, the one person she was most afraid to face was Sebastian. Now that she had gotten through Sebastianโs scrutiny, the one she feared facing the most was Lottie.
Chapter 24
The passage following Chapter 269 is largely unintelligible and requires substantial rewriting to be comprehensible. The original text is included below for reference, but a coherent and corrected version cannot be provided without significant alteration to the narrative and meaning.
Original Unintelligible Text:
spherecondutwinewhenoneโsreactionwouldbeifthefoundoorMaybeLomeoldheangry andsomeherStephaniecexviderehelphavefeetaresaved. extratenedevenmore.โAreyoureallysosested โYoudonโtlooksexed;Stephieend,corionsastowhyhewonโtworriedatall Selvetienkivedhernose.Ifthefurksone,yourpowersayitwasallmydoing.Thatโllbefine,wonโtin Stephanietroveforamoment,notexpectinghimtosaythat. Intheend,thelookedaSelvationwithadmirationandend.Iadmireyou Sebastianrolledherforehead.โWanttodeepforabit?Hesaid,thenstoodupandcoveredherwithablanker Stephane curled up under the covers.โAreyougoingon? Sebastianreplied,โNo,butIneedtoseesomeone,andheโsprobablyalreadyhere! โOh,thengo aheadโStephaniefeltathedizzyandweakfromthefever,soshejustwantedtorest. AfterSebastianlefttheroom,shequicklydriftedofftosleep. Soon,Ellaโscallcamethrough.โSteft,youwonโtbelievethis.Itโssoexciting.Today,eventhoughChristriedtousetheAshfordfamilyโsinfluencetopressurethehospital,Oliviawasstillkickedoutofthehospital Stephanieasked,โShewas reallykickedout? Ellaconfirmed,โOfcourse.Thereweresomanysecurityguards atthehospital,andIsawCatlintearfullyescortingOliviaoutofthe hospital Stephaniewasstunned foramoment. Ellaadded,โOhmy,withhercondition,sheprobablywonโtlastlongafterbeingdischarged Stephanieasked,โWhydoesnโtshegotoanotherhospital?TherearesomanyhospitalsinLongHarbor.โ Ellareplied,โPlease,thinkaboutit.Clearly,someoneistargetingOliviathis time.SinceChriscouldnโtevensuppressit,doyoureallythinkanyhospitalinLongHarborwoulddaretakeherin?โ