Chapter 218 I Only Want Her
Until this weekend, Bella felt she couldn't delay any longer. She pushed open the study door and saw Sterling sitting by the floor-to-ceiling window, flipping through a book.
The winter sunlight cast a warm glow on his profile. The study, with its year-round temperature control system, was always warm.
For a moment, Bella felt a sense of tranquility.
Sterling saw her and smiled, his voice unconsciously softening, "Come here."
Bella nervously clutched the hem of her clothes, trying to maintain a calm exterior. She didn't walk over but stood in the center of the study and said, "Sterling, let's get a divorce."
As soon as the words left her mouth, Bella felt that the room, which had been warm and cozy just moments ago, suddenly became a bit cold. Was it an illusion?
Sterling's fingers tightened around the book he was holding when he heard Bella's words.
But since she had already started, Bella had to continue, no matter how painful or nervous she felt. She mustered the courage to go on, "I've said it before, and I won't repeat it. Now I can't have children anymore. You should be the first to know because the doctor would tell the family first."
"So, Sterling, the Windsor family can't be without an heir. Divorce is good for both of us. I want the freedom to live a peaceful life, and I can only feel that by leaving the Windsor Villa."
Sterling put down the book and looked at Bella, his heart full of sorrow. For the first time, they talked about this topic.
He said, "Bella, I don't care about having children. Whether the Windsor family has an heir is not my concern. So what if you can't have children? We can adopt one from relatives or an orphanage. As for the freedom you want, I can let you live outside for a year or six months, but divorce is impossible. Don't even think about it for the rest of your life."
Sterling's words made Bella feel even more guilty and sorrowful, but she still firmly said, "Sterling, I want a divorce. You don't know how much determination it took for me to get pregnant this time, convincing myself to live well with you. We could live a peaceful and warm life like a normal couple, but all of this was based on having a child."
"Now I have no chance, no chance to have my own child. I had hoped that everything would get better with the birth of a child, but fate played such a cruel joke on me. Thank you for saying you love me and protecting me as I grew up without experiencing hardships. But Sterling, do you think the Windsor family can accept an heir without Windsor family genes?"
"Do you think the Windsor family elders will let you go? Over the years, they've been openly and secretly targeting you, trying to take power from you. If they know your wife can no longer have children and can't give the Windsor family an heir, it will be a huge danger and hidden threat."
"So, Sterling, let me go. It's unrealistic to have no children, and I can't convince myself to stay with you without being able to give you a child."
Sterling felt every word Bella said was like a knife stabbing into his heart, making it bleed. His eyes reddened, and he clenched his fists. He thought of a thousand reasons but couldn't let Bella go.
Sterling stepped forward and hugged her tightly.
"Bella, don't you believe in me? What about Windsor family relatives? If they want to take power, let them try. Am I afraid of them? Bella, all these things you said hurt me more than you wanting a divorce."
"The Windsor family business isn't inherited by those with Windsor family genes but by those with ability. What does it matter if there's an heir? How can you guarantee an heir can support the Windsor Group? The Windsor family has never been supported by heirs but by capable people."
"Bella, don't say such things again. I don't agree to a divorce. You can do whatever you want, okay? Just don't talk about divorce."
Sterling let go of Bella, his voice trembling, "I have something to do and need to go out. If you need anything, find Zoey."
Bella watched Sterling's departing figure, knowing the negotiation had failed again. She wasn't surprised, except that Sterling hadn't said anything hurtful.
But Bella didn't know that after Sterling left, he loosened his tie as he walked, feeling frustrated and on the verge of madness. He wanted to smash things.
He had tried to stay calm to avoid scaring Bella, but the thought of divorce drove him crazy. He could agree to anything Bella wanted, except this.
Moreover, Caleb was still out there, eyeing them. How could he let Bella go?
Bella knew the negotiation with Sterling would fail. She didn't expect him to agree immediately, but she had to get a divorce. The Windsor family couldn't be without an heir, and she couldn't become a stain on Sterling's life.
If she continued to hold the position of the Windsor family matriarch, one could imagine how the Windsor family relatives would make things difficult for Sterling.
They were already trying to take power from him. If they knew Sterling's wife couldn't have children and couldn't give the Windsor family an heir, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Sterling just couldn't accept it yet. Bella knew Sterling's talk about adopting a child was self-deception.
But Sterling didn't know that when Bella mentioned divorce, she felt terrible too.
The child she had always hoped for was not meant to be, and she would never have her own child again. The pain in Bella's heart was something no one could understand.
Sterling didn't go to the office but to Whitewater Bay, Colin's villa, where he kept his liquor.
Colin wasn't surprised by Sterling's arrival, thinking he was just frustrated with Caleb's issues.
But Sterling said, "Bella wants a divorce."
Colin was startled, pausing as he poured the drink, frowning, "Divorce? Why bring that up again? Didn't you two just go through life and death together? How did it come to this? This situation is quite confusing."
Sterling slumped on the sofa, looking exhausted from days of fatigue, "Bella can never have children again. I'll never have a child of my own blood."
Colin placed the drink in front of him. As a friend, he didn't know how to comfort him, but he still said, "Do you care about having children?"
Without thinking, Sterling replied, "Of course I care, but compared to Bella, what do children matter?"
Colin took a sip of his drink and said, "Sterling, you need to understand that the Windsor family can't be without an heir. This is something you can't avoid. You need to think it through."
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