Chapter 96: The First Woman (Part 2)

"I..." Asher looked up, his expression lost, meeting Stella's gaze which held no trace of anger. With a flicker of sanity returning, a tinge of shame crossed his face.

But internally, he was wracked with conflict. He was just a man who had never touched a woman before, naturally curious in this moment...

Asher looked up vacantly. There she was, her face flushed, looking at him coyly, the brash confidence gone, replaced by timid innocence...

"Um," Asher managed to nod, his mind screaming to leave, but his body refused to cooperate.

Stella reached out, gently touching his face. Her eyes showed a flash of uncertainty before she leaned in to kiss him.

With an overwhelming silence in his mind, all of Asher's willpower evaporated...

Time seemed to blur when a soft cry from Stella broke the silence, followed by a few minutes filled with muffled, suspenseful sounds…

After five or six minutes, the room quieted down, silent except for the occasional heavy breath.

"Stella, I..." Looking at the still figure of Stella in his arms, Asher, now fully collected, realized the gravity of his actions.

No doubt, Asher was a traditional thinker.

But he crossed the line with Stella Turner!

A tumult of emotions surged within him—fear, anxiety, and an ineffable sense of guilt. His gaze towards Stella wavered with uncertainty.

Asher was consumed by a single, overbearing thought: he had betrayed Avery and wronged Stella Turner. Beyond the crushing weight of guilt, fear and unease gnawed at his conscience. Even though Stella had not resisted, the truth remained—he had crossed a line. His scarred conscience wondered if Stella would ever forgive him, as regret and disquiet swarmed his heart…

"You're not to blame, Asher. I don't hold it against you. In fact, I was willing…" Stella, enduring the ache in her body, cradled his face with a tender smile—though the complexity of emotions behind that smile might be too tangled even for her to decipher.

But she had no doubts now that this fool of a man before her was truly inexperienced.

"Stella…" Asher was pierced by her sympathetic gaze, his remorse intensifying.

Grabbing his pants from the foot of the bed, he hastily retrieved a pack of cigarettes and lit one, inhaling deeply. He wasn't a smoker, nor addicted, but he always carried a pack for social convenience. Now, as his mind reeled, he needed something to stabilize his emotions.

Stella was a good woman—a fact Asher hadn't initially believed, especially during their first interactions. Stella had put forth a daring proposition, which Asher, holding traditional beliefs, found off-putting, relegating their interactions strictly to professional exchanges. Yet, working in the same company as deputy CEO to her CEO, and with his own naivety, interaction was inevitable.

Over time, he realized Stella's forwardness was just a facet of her extroverted personality. Her initial proposition might have been a test of his character, or maybe an attempt to secure a deal for Evelyn Turner with Fly Pictures. Stella's reputation at the company was stellar, her cheerful nature winning hearts, and her personal life was above reproach.

It was just days ago that an emotional Stella shared her past, stirring in Asher an unfamiliar compassion.

Stella was a good woman, and he had claimed her body.

With sudden resolve, he looked squarely into Stella's eyes and declared, "Stella, let me make this right. Will you marry me?"

Stella Turner visibly flinched at Asher's words, a slight tremor passing through her body.

She was truly affected!

But the struggle in her eyes quickly gave way to calm. After a moment, she lifted her gaze. Instead of answering Asher's question, she asked, "Asher, do you think I'm a loose woman?"

"Of course not," Asher answered earnestly, his eyes locked on hers.

Stella's self-deprecating laugh seemed to mask something deeper. She grabbed Asher's pack of cigarettes, fumbled for one, and lit up—her clumsy motions and hesitance revealing her usual aversion to smoking. Still, she persisted and used the lighter to ignite the tip.

Asher didn't try to stop her. He understood that, in this moment, Stella needed something to steady her nerves, as did he.

She coughed violently, but as soon as she inhaled, Stella broke into a severe cough, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face—whether from the smoke or something more, it was hard to tell.

"If you can't handle it, don't smoke," Asher said as he reached over, took the barely touched cigarette from her fingers, and extinguished it with a decisive flick.

Without protest, Stella lay dazed, resting against Asher, her tears flowing freely. Her emotions were tangled, and she felt a profound contempt for herself.

Once, she had thought of herself as a traditional woman, unfazed by the multitude of men, no matter how many or how commendable, who pursued her. But these last few days, her mind had been a mystery to her. Even knowing Asher was married, she couldn't help but want to be close to him, even going so far as to ask him to spend her birthday with her, to stay in this room, leading to the most intimate of encounters.

Was she not the definition of wanton? Stella mocked herself. If not, even she wouldn't believe it.

"Why are you crying? Look, I... I know I might not be the type you like, but what's done is done. I can take responsibility, and I swear, I'll treat you right from now on," Asher blurted out, panicked as he watched Stella's tears pour down. His guilt demanded a choice.

Even if it meant betraying Avery, as a man, he felt obliged to act.

Stella stared at the flustered and tongue-tied Asher, who was so earnest despite it all, and suddenly, she burst into laughter through her tears.

"..." Asher just stared at her, bewildered.

"Silly, I'm not blaming you. I'm not crying over that... I told you I never wanted to get married again in this life, and it wasn't a joke," Stella sniffled, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "Besides, you're already married. How could you possibly marry me?"

Asher looked at Stella's weary but smiling face, and despite the bitterness in his eyes, his resolve deepened. "You must have seen it. My marriage to Avery... it's been a sham for a while. I'm going to divorce her, talk to her about it. I promise I'll take care of you."

Stella huffed in disbelief. "Seriously, what were they thinking calling you a deadbeat? Avery can't be blind. You’re her husband, for crying out loud. What kind of wife keeps her husband at arm’s length? And here I was, initially thinking she was a catch."

Avery isn't to blame, Asher thought, his voice tinged with sadness. "We just come from different worlds. She's always been a pampered heiress—beautiful and talented. I've known I'm not on her level."

But even now, Avery didn't know about his real identity as the President of Fly Pictures.

"Who says you're not on her level? If anything, she doesn’t deserve you. So what if she's an heiress? She needs us for business deals, right? It's absurd—denying her own husband." Stella was visibly upset.

Avery is suffering too, I can feel it, Asher mused, torn by Stella's frustration and uncertain how to explain things. He had been considering divorce for a long time, and the Parker family's recent invitation only added urgency.

His identity was too sensitive, and the fear of endangering Avery weighed heavily on him, driving his decision despite his reluctance.

Deep down, Asher didn't want to let go. Although Avery had kept him at a distance, he had truly fallen for her. But he wouldn't rush into marrying Stella after the divorce—it was a way to protect her.

Stella, unaware of all this, gave Asher an odd look, a fleeting complexity in her eyes. "Avery must be special to you. It's a pity she doesn't appreciate you."

Resigned, Asher exhaled, "Maybe it's love born out of time spent together. Over these three years, I've realized Avery truly is remarkable. She's just set her sights too high and had grand expectations for a husband I couldn't meet. I see that she cares, she's just not good at showing it."

Stella only nodded in response.

After speaking, Asher sensed something was off. Why had the conversation drifted so far? Stella Turner, having listened to him, merely nodded slightly and fell silent, her head bowed, lost in thought.

"Enough about her. I'll be getting a divorce for sure."