Crushed Affections

After a moment, Dominic finally shifted his gaze away from her chest. He said, "The dinner was pretty boring, so I decided to come home early. I'm tired. I'm going to shower and get some sleep. You should rest early, too."

Bella followed him upstairs. As he headed toward the guest room, she called out, her tone light and teasing, "Do you want to sleep in my room tonight?"

Dominic froze, his body stiffening. His eyes were sharp, his expression a mix of restraint and warning, as if daring her to push him further.

Bella pouted. "I just thought the baby should get to feel some fatherly love every now and then. But if you're not interested, that's fine. You can wait until the baby's born to start bonding."

Dominic suddenly smirked, his lips curling with a hint of mischief. "If it's fatherly love you're after, wouldn't it make more sense for me to go in and 'check on' the baby directly?"

Bella prided herself on her newfound ability to tease him, but his comment turned the tables so effortlessly that it left her speechless. The implications of his words were impossible to ignore. Her face turned scarlet as she stammered, "Y-You're awful," before rushing into her bedroom to hide her embarrassment.Text © 2024 NôvelDrama.Org.

The next morning, Dominic was already gone when Bella woke up.

For the following ten days, it was as though Dominic had disappeared. He didn't respond to her texts or calls. The only contact he made was through Carla, giving her occasional instructions, but even those were few and far between.

At first, Bella assumed he was just busy. But over time, she began to suspect he was avoiding her. Perhaps he'd figured something out. Or maybe, now that the media frenzy had died down, he no longer needed to keep up appearances and felt no reason to visit her anymore.

To confirm her suspicions, she considered asking lan or Leonard. But knowing how close the three of them were, she figured that their answers might not be reliable.

In times like these, Sean was the obvious choice. When she called him, he immediately started laughing. "Instead of trying to figure out what he's up to, why not make him come to you?"

Bella felt a wave of embarrassment. The old saying about pregnancy making you forgetful suddenly felt very real. She hadn't even thought of that.

She arranged to meet Sean and returned to her room to dress up, intentionally choosing an outfit that made it seem like she was meeting someone important.

Knowing Carla would follow her, Bella deliberately acted slightly irritated but didn't say much.

When they arrived at the meeting spot, Sean wasn't there. Just as she was about to call him, he texted her "See the hotel across the street? Come to room 801. Meeting ata hotellike this might work even better."

Bella glanced out the car window. Sure enough, there was a high-end hotel across the street. The idea of meeting Sean there felt

questionable, even if there was a purpose behind it.

After a moment of hesitation, she decided to go.

Carla, however, was less than thrilled. "Ms. Jones, why are we going to a hotel?"

Bella's response was curt. "I'm meeting someone. Wait outside the room. I don't need you to come in." Carla frowned. "Is it a man?"

Bella's tone turned sharp. "Carla,

stick to own business and leave the rest alone. Do you think Dominic has been some paragon of virtue for me? You know he'd rather deceive the media and the public than marry me Why should I stay loyalto

someone like that?"

Carla was momentarily stunned, glancing at Bella's baby bump before offering a quiet, hesitant response. "Even so... you should think of the child."

Her disapproval was almost too obvious, and Bella couldn't help but feel exasperated. "I know. You don't have to remind me..."