Crossroads

Dominick and the others had to rush back to the country, and Hayley, along with some senior executives from the Serenburg branch, came to see them off. She smiled at Stephanie in front of her and spoke with a gentle and clear voice. "As Dominick is still recovering from his injuries, please take care of him for me."

Yet, when others heard Hayley ask Stephanie to take care of Dominick, it sounded rather odd.

"Got it," Stephanie said with a little expression on her face while nodding.

"Hayley, you shouldn't have said that." Vincent, who was also leaving on the same flight, spoke up. As soon as he said that, Hayley's smile immediately stiffened.

He remarked, "Dominick's wife is a real jinx, always bringing bad luck wherever she goes. I don't think we should count on her to take care of Dominick. Last time, she even tied up a nurse."

"Damn you, Vincent! How dare you call me that?!" Stephanie glared at him angrily. If Dominick wasn't there, she would have definitely rushed over and kicked Vincent for his loose tongue.

At that, the senior executives, who were there to see them off, chuckled while Hayley's tense expression relaxed.

Vincent was a very skilled socialite. By saying that, he acknowledged Stephanie's status and replaced "please take care" with "we shouldn't count on".

It was impossible for those in the business world not to have some scheming and cunning.

Although they were all smiling, certain things became clear in their minds instantly. If someone like her was accepted by Dominick's inner circle, it meant they all had to acknowledge her as well Dominick's left hand tightened around Stephanie's waist slightly as he reminded, "Time to board."

The others then offered wishes like "Have a safe trip, take care" and didn't dare delay him, standing in place to watch them leave.

"Actually, no matter how capable a woman is in her career, it's not as good as An older man in his fifties standing next to Hayley looked thoughtfully at the two figures leaning on each other and smiled ambiguously, "It's not as good as finding a man who loves her and lives a simple life, not like us, always so tired."

She wore a sophisticated light gray skirt suit paired with a bright rose-red blouse, looking smart and elegant. As Hayley stood in the windy airport, the breeze tousled her perfectly styled hair slightly.

Hayley maintained her professional smile and replied, "Don't get the wrong idea, Norman. I misspoke earlier. You know how things are between Dominick and me. It's not what you think... Besides, Ms. Reed is very well-suited to Dominick." As she spoke, her voice trailed off at the end.

Stephanie had just boarded the private jet and wanted to ask Dominick about Hayley. However, he seemed very busy and asked the flight attendant to take care of her before heading to the upper cabin with Vincent to discuss business.

Stephanie didn't understand much about company matters, and Dominick didn't let her in on much, either. Feeling inexplicably down, she sat by the window and stared at the drifting white clouds outside.

She muttered to herself, "Why didn't Dominick's mother and Yvonne show up just now...

Stephanie propped her chin on her right hand and let her mind wander. Although Dominick didn't talk much with his mother, it seemed their relationship wasn't good As she was expecting twins, she was quite tired and soon fell asleep after closing her eyes.

"Ms. Reed, wake up. The plane has landed." After some time, a gentle voice woke Stephanie up. She then realized she had slept through the flight.

She opened her eyes to find herself still on the plane, but the door was already open, and a beautiful flight attendant was standing before her. Stephanie asked, "Where are Dominick and Vincent?"

The flight attendant replied, "They seemed to have something urgent and left in a hurry."

Stephanie looked a bit disappointed upon hearing that.

She thought irritably, "Seriously? How could they just leave me there without saying anything?"

"Mr. Wellington asked us not to disturb you earlier. But the air inside the cabin is a bit stuffy, and there's already someone downstairs to pick you up...the flight attendant smiled awkwardly. Actually, the plane had already landed half an hour ago.

As soon as Stephanie disembarked, she spotted Brad right away.

"Mr. Wellington asked me to pick you up," Brad explained briefly and then opened the car door for her.

Stephanie felt that he had become distant toward her since Dominick's car accident, which made her movements a bit awkward.

"Thank you," she murmured and then quietly sat in the back seat.

Afterward, the driver drove steadily toward Wellington Villa with Brad sitting in the front passenger seat. Stephanie could vaguely see his furrowed brows in the rearview mirror as if he was deep in thought.

She hesitated and then spoke softly. "Dominick had a check-up before we came back. Other than the unhealed fracture in his right scapula, everything else was fine."

Stephanie assumed that Brad was probably worried about Dominick's condition.

Actually, Brad was preoccupied with his own thoughts that had little to do with her. He turned to look at Stephanie and said in a somewhat somber tone, "The fracture will heal over time, but Mr. Wellington's head..."

When he saw that Stephanie's eyes widened in surprise as she looked at him, he stopped-talking because George didn't want anyone to bring it up.

The more she thought about it, the more anxious she became, and she said, "I know I can't help him with anything. But could you please not keep me in the dark? What's going on with Dominick... He left with Vincent earlier. Did something happen to him..."

Brad looked at the worry in Stephanie's eyes, realizing her feelings were genuine.

He said, "Mr. Wellington just suddenly had some urgent matters to attend to..."

Ever since the car accident, Stephanie had been consumed by guilt, always thinking that Kevin's drunken crash had dragged Dominick into it. She couldn't forget that day when Dominick's breath was weak and blood was pouring from his forehead. Suddenly, she was terrified of losing him.

With her heart pounding, Stephanie gripped her phone tightly and repeatedly dialed the same number.

She then remembered that Dominick had also called her a dozen times before. Looking back at it now, she figured that he might have been feeling the same anxious and uncertain emotions she was experiencing now.

When they arrived at Wellington Villa, om Stephanie's fifth call finally went through. Immediately after, the familiar deep voice came through the phone. "Are you home yet?" Dominick asked with a casual tone.

She hurried out of the car and anxiously asked, "Dominick, where are you?"

Dominick held his phone, puzzled by Stephanie's sudden urgency, and remained silent as he pondered.

She then got really anxious. "Dominick, what exactly are you busy with? Don't lie to me."Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

Dominick could vaguely hear a hint of sobbing from the other end of the phone, which startled him a bit. He replied calmly, "Vincent and I ar looking for a friend.

I'll be back by eight tonight..."

Stephanie questioned, "But aren't you still recovering from a fracture? Why are you out and about?"

Dominick finally hung up the phone and held it with a somewhat complex expression.

Vincent, who was sitting in front of the computer nearby and watching the surveillance footage, looked up at him curiously and asked, "What's wrong?" Dominick suddenly replied, "She was being all cute, asking me to come back.