Shadows Between Us (Stella and Sebastian) novel Chapter 139

Chapter 139

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“Here’s the new quote. Take a look,” the other side’s representative said, sounding utterly defeated. This war had been completely one-sided, and they had lost everything, to the point where there was nothing left to lose.

The fax machine buzzed to life.

Levi, finally finding something useful to do, hurried over and handed the freshly faxed documents to Stella with both hands, his eyes practically sparkling.

Stella was speechless.

She took the documents with a blank expression and went through them line by line.

“No issues on my end,” Stella said. “See if there’s anything else you want to hash out with them.”

After a moment, Stella passed the agreement to Levi.

Levi gave it a quick once-over, his eyes widening in disbelief.

The other side was clearly rattled by the warning. Not only had they dropped the price by 20 percent as agreed, but they had also upgraded the outdated equipment to the latest model, free of charge.

They’d just hit the jackpot!

Levi stammered, “N-no, that’s all.” Pushing for more would only tempt fate.

Stella clapped her hands lazily. “Anyone else got questions?” She glanced at the camera, her tone cool as she addressed the representatives on the other end.

They would not dare ask a single thing.

Stella stood up, poured herself a glass of water, and let Levi take over the rest of the negotiation. Leaning against the wall, she sipped her drink slowly, staying well within the camera’s view.

She radiated authority without even trying.

The representatives of the other companies were completely speechless.

What was supposed to be an entire afternoon of haggling over the online procurement meeting, or possibly an all-night standoff, was wrapped up in a record-breaking half hour. Once the connection was cut, Levi’s entire team sat there in stunned silence.

Both Levi and his team were speechless.

Everyone looked shell-shocked.

‘Wait, who am I again?’

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Chapter 139

‘Where am I?’

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‘What the hell just happened?’

“Levi, let Stella take you back to the hotel. Who knows, maybe something miraculous will happen.” Victor’s voice echoed in their mind, and everyone was lost in thought.

Thinking about what Victor had said earlier, Levi looked at Stella with a complicated expression.

‘A miracle really did happen!’

Levi stammered, “S-Stella…” As he saw her completely unfazed, cool as ice from start to finish, something fierce and proud stirred deep in his chest.

They had been forced to swallow their pride by foreign companies for far too long. Even when they were the ones paying, they still had to act humble and accommodating.

It had been forever since they’d tasted victory like this.

Stella set her glass down with a click. “Looks like you’ll be keeping your seat as dean for a while longer.” She reached up and pulled the pencil from her hair, letting her long, silky hair spill down her back. She looked absolutely stunning.

Levi was so moved he nearly tore up. “Stella…”

He stepped toward her instinctively, arms opening for a hug.

But the very next second, smack! A leaf flew out of nowhere and slapped Levi square in the face.

Levi was speechless.

He stared blankly at the plain plant that had suddenly shot up between him and Stella.

The plant sprang up to nearly several feet tall, standing there stiffly, almost as if it had its hands on its hips. When Levi looked at it, the plant began shaking its leaves at him, like it was chewing him out.

Levi blurted out, “Is it cursing me out?”

Stella was speechless.

“Trust me, you really don’t want to know, Stella thought.

Sebastian scooped up the plain plant and placed it back on his lap. His face was perfectly blank as he reached out and covered Stella’s hand with his cold one, saying, “Let’s go home.”

His eyes were dark and intense.

Levi blurted out, “Stella, stay for dinner before you go!”

“Let’s go home,” Sebastian repeated, veins standing out on the back of his hand. He kept his grip gentle this time, but inside, he was clearly irritated that Stella wasn’t focused on him.

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Chapter 139

Levi, stubborn as ever, shot back, “Stay for dinner!”

Stella was speechless.

‘Naive, you two acted like kids barely more than three years old,’ Stella thought.

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Sebastian’s expression darkened, his presence turning so cold that it felt like the temperature in the presidential suite dropped several degrees. His gaze locked onto Levi, sharp and intimidating.

He said nothing, but the pressure was overwhelming.

Levi was speechless.

Levi’s knees went weak, but there was no way he was backing down and bruising his pride.

‘Can someone please bail me out here?’ Levi thought desperately.

“Alright,” Stella said, as if she had read his mind. She stepped between them and used her free hand to ruffle the back of Levi’s neck. “Easy. Don’t get worked up.”

Both Levi and his team were speechless.

They stared in disbelief as Stella spoke to the icy Sebastian in the tone one might use to calm a child.

In less than a second, the man in the wheelchair who had been terrifying moments earlier muttered a reluctant “okay”, and the chill around him vanished completely.

Just as Stella tried to pull her hand away, Sebastian grabbed it and placed it right back on the nape of his neck. “Still mad here,” he muttered.

‘Guess you’ll have to keep soothing me if you want me to forgive you,’ he thought.

His gaze lingered on her, heavy with emotion.

Anyone with eyes could see the longing in them.

Both Levi and his team were speechless.

‘Th-this… what is even happening…

Levi pointed a trembling finger at Sebastian and thought, ‘Isn’t this peak shamelessness?’

Sebastian shot Levi a cold, lifeless glare, nothing like the obedient, puppy-like look he had given Stella moments earlier. Everyone was completely stunned.

Sebastian was speechless too.

His icy gaze softened, eyes half-closed, looking so content it was almost like he might start purring any

second.

Levi stared at Stella in disbelief. She was actually petting him.

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Chapter 139

Levi was speechless. ‘Fine, just keep indulging him.

‘Go ahead, keep babying him.

‘Sooner or later, he’ll be spoiled rotten, like a pampered puppy!’

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“We’re heading back,” Stella said coolly once she was certain Sebastian had calmed down. Sebastian glanced up at her. He said nothing, but his mood was clearly lifted.

Then Sebastian turned to Levi and let out a cold, dismissive huff.

Levi was speechless.

He thought, ‘Is he showing off?

‘Is he trying to provoke me?

“This damned man!’

Levi took a deep breath, finally managing to calm down and say to Stella, “Thank you.”

Stella gave a casual wave goodbye, and then wheeled Sebastian out of the presidential suite.

She handled everything and disappeared, no fanfare, no credit, leaving behind nothing but legend.

Only then did Levi’s assistant snap back to reality. “Levi, who… who is she, anyway?”

‘She just did us a massive favor, and we don’t even know her name. Isn’t that kind of messed up?’ the assistant thought.

Levi was speechless.

After thinking it over, Levi let out a sigh. “Don’t worry about who she is. Just remember this: from today on, she’s my little beloved.”

Levi’s team was speechless.

On the way back, Eggie was chirping. It had finished digesting and now poked its head out of Sebastian’s chest pocket, looking all fuzzy and adorable.

Sebastian promptly shoved him right back into the pocket.

Eggie kept chirping.

Stella was speechless.

Sebastian had not taken his eyes off Stella since they got into the car, not even for a second.

“Are you done staring yet?” Stella sighed, lazily turning her head to meet his gaze.

“Not yet,” Sebastian said.

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Chapter 139

Stella responded with a lazy, “Yeah.”

:

“Don’t you dare go to the Lane family’s party tomorrow night!” Blake blurted out.

Stella was speechless.

She had nearly forgotten about it.

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Blake practically yelled into the phone. “That party is a total trap! The Lane family’s heir is a complete sleazebag!” As the top Chad in Haliville, Blake always had solid intel.

Under Lucas’s hopeful gaze, Stella took a bite of watermelon. “So, did you get the invitation?”

“Stella! Are you even listening?” Blake snapped. “That party tomorrow night is basically a bride selection for the Lane family’s heir! Bride selection, do you even understand what that means?” Blake was on the verge of losing it.

He could not bring himself to spill all the disgusting details. He was genuinely worried about polluting Stella’s

ears.

“So, did you get the invitation or not?” Stella asked again, sounding utterly uninterested.

Blake was spiraling while Stella remained completely indifferent.

“Yeah, yeah, I got it,” Blake said. Getting an invite was child’s play for him.

“Dress properly tomorrow,” Stella said, rubbing her forehead. She suddenly remembered Blake’s wine-red floral shirt paired with shorts from their first meeting. “Do not show up in any of your usual clown outfits.”

Blake felt deeply insulted. He pouted into the phone. “Then you’d better dress ugly tomorrow, Stella. Like, as ugly as humanly possible, got it?” He was practically begging, his nerves wound tight.

‘Stella’s so gorgeous. What if the Lane family tries to go after her?’ Blake thought, anxiety gnawing at him.

‘No, wait. There’s no way they wouldn’t pick her!’ Panic surged.

Stella was speechless.

‘Just hang up already, Stella thought, thoroughly done with the conversation.

Staring at his phone as the dial tone echoed, Blake immediately began calling his Chad buddies. No matter what, he was determined to keep Stella’s reputation spotless at the party tomorrow night.

‘Protecting Stella is every Chad’s sacred duty!’ Blake thought, fired up.

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