Heather was visibly taken aback. She turned to Stella, her voice shrill with forced cheerfulness: "Stella, you and Ethan have known each other for so long, and even though you broke up, you’re still friends. You must come to the wedding."

With that, Heather hooked her arm around Ethan’s and turned away.

Ethan glanced back at Stella and then left with Heather.

“Thank you for helping me out back there,” Stella said, a wave of relief washing over her as she looked at Damian. “You were so quick-witted. How did you manage to brush my hair back so perfectly?”

If it hadn’t been for Damian’s quick thinking, she was sure that both she and Damian would have been humiliated by Heather.

“It was just a feeling,” Damian replied nonchalantly.

He noticed the hint of sadness in Stella’s eyes. “Are you upset?”

Stella forced a smile. “Ethan and I dated for two years in college, then two more years after we graduated. He didn’t even bother to break up with me—he just sent me the wedding invitation. When I think about it, it’s laughable… and pitiful.”

She paused before continuing. “Since we’re on the subject, I might as well be honest. I haven’t completely gotten over losing him. Four years is a long time. You don’t just forget that overnight.”

Damian found himself affected by Stella’s beautiful, serious eyes, tinged with sorrow.

“I know we’re married now. Your family practically went bankrupt to pay me—I should be fulfilling my duties as a wife. I should…”

Stella blushed. “I should be thinking about getting pregnant and having a child with you. But right now, I just can’t. We don’t have any emotional connection, and the idea of… that… feels strange. Could you give me some time?”

“So, what you’re saying is, you need to fall in love with me before you can… sleep with me?”

“Yes.”

“Okay.”

Stella sighed in relief. At least now she wouldn’t have to worry about sharing a bed with Damian, at least not for a while.

They spent the rest of the afternoon shopping before heading home with their purchases.

Meanwhile, Heather was still discussing the mysterious man’s identity with Ethan. When she turned around, she spotted Stella helping the man into a car.

Watching him fumble about, Heather’s eyes lit up with glee when she realized he was blind.

“So, it was all a lie!”

Heather smirked. She wasn’t in any rush to expose them. She’d wait until the wedding, where everyone could witness Stella’s downfall.

Three days later, Damian officially started working at the company.

He no longer wore sunglasses—his eyes had fully recovered.

There was an almost palpable tension throughout the entire company as he made his way into the office.

The department manager, Ava Johnson, entered Damian’s office, respectfully handing over a stack of files. “Mr. Clark, here are the profiles of the administrative assistants in the department. You can choose one.”

Damian took the files and began to flip through them. When he reached one particular page, he froze.

He thought, “Stella. My wife, Stella. She is an admin assistant at this company?”

For a moment, Damian felt like someone was playing a cruel joke on him.

During the past few days, he had actually started to think Stella wasn’t so bad. She had even gone to the trouble of placing corner protectors on all the sharp edges around the house. She hadn’t mentioned it, but he had noticed everything, even behind his dark glasses.

But now he discovered she was an admin assistant at his company?