Chapter 49 A Different Bella
Bella had no clue Sterling had been creeping on her from the shadows; her eyes were always glued to the models strutting their stuff on the platform. But what really got her hyped was her own work.
As the clock ticked down and the show was about to wrap up, Bella started feeling all kinds of confused. Why hadn't her piece shown up yet? Was Sterling saving it for the big finale? Nah, Bella would rather think Sterling was messing with her than believe her work was that big of a deal.
Out of nowhere, the music switched from a beat to something more chill, and a tall model in a wedding dress strolled onto the runway. Bella's jaw dropped; it turned out the final piece was hers.
The wedding dress was long, just brushing the ankles. No dragging train, and the skirt wasn't all puffed up.
Bella's style was pretty low-key, so she couldn't make the dress too flashy. Since Sterling liked things simple, Bella didn't go crazy with the bling, just added some precious stones where it counted in the embroidery.
She thought she was being too subtle with the design, but it hit Sterling's sweet spot perfectly.
As the show wrapped up, folks started heading out, and a bunch of them were raving about the final wedding dress. Bella heard it all, and it made her feel pretty damn proud.
When Bella got up, she was gonna call Sterling to leave together, but seeing him all chummy with Debra, she decided to bounce alone.
When she was standing at the intersection waiting for a ride, Sterling's car suddenly pulled up in front of her.
"Get in," Sterling said.
Bella peeked through the window to make sure Debra wasn't inside before hopping in.
On the way, Ryan asked, "Mr. Windsor, where to?"
Sterling didn't answer right away, like he was thinking it over.
Bella winced, touching her stomach. She was feeling a bit of a stomachache. It was already past eight, and she hadn't eaten, so her stomach was throwing a fit.
Sterling glanced at her and said, "White Bay Restaurant."
Ryan nodded and stepped on it a bit.
White Bay Restaurant was where the rich folks hung out, with food that matched the high prices.
Sterling liked to eat in peace, so when they got to White Bay Restaurant, they headed straight to the best private room.
"Darling, you order," Sterling said smoothly, handing the menu to Bella.
Bella sighed to herself. Sterling was all about keeping up appearances.
Even though they didn't eat out much, every time they did, he played the part of the perfect gentleman, even though Bella knew it was all for show.
The young waitress shot Bella a jealous look.
Knowing Sterling was just putting on a show, Bella didn't feel like ordering and just picked a few dishes that looked decent.
After the waitress left, Sterling dropped the nice guy act and went back to his usual cold self, like the sweet gentleman from a minute ago was a whole different person.
Soon enough, the food showed up. Bella wasn't into playing along with Sterling's charade. But sitting there, she had to do something. Not in the mood to fake a smile, she kept her head down, messing around on her phone, acting all indifferent.
Sterling frowned, watching Bella glued to her phone. He peeked at her screen and saw she was chatting with Anna.
Feeling a bit awkward sitting there alone, Sterling scolded, "If your stomach hurts, why aren't you eating right? Put down your phone!"
Bella, like a kid getting scolded by a parent, pouted and shrugged, shoving her phone back in her pocket and starting to eat.
Seeing Bella like that, Sterling suddenly remembered how she was when they first met over a decade ago. She was all innocent and carefree back then.
Feeling Sterling's eyes on her, she put down her fork and asked, "What's up?"
Sterling looked away and poured her a glass of wine.
Bella was taken aback. They never drank.
Hesitating for a second, she still picked up the glass and clinked it with his.
As she took a sip, Sterling suddenly asked, "Do you know what day it is today?"
Bella racked her brain and quickly found the answer. "Our wedding anniversary?"
Since Bella had once forgotten Sterling's birthday and said some selfish stuff that really ticked him off, she had made sure to remember all of Sterling's important dates ever since.
But Bella didn't get why Sterling suddenly wanted to talk about this.
Sterling seemed pleased with Bella's answer and poured her more wine.
Bella knew she couldn't handle her liquor well, but she noticed Sterling seemed a bit happy today. So she didn't want to upset him. She drank whatever amount of wine Sterling poured for her.
By the end of the meal, Bella hadn't eaten much but had drunk a lot. She felt dizzy, and Sterling appeared to have double vision in her eyes.
Sterling raised an eyebrow at Bella's drunken state.
He often drank with clients and had a high tolerance, so this amount of alcohol was nothing to him.
Seeing Bella drunk, Sterling called the waitress to settle the bill.
The waitress politely said, "Knowing you were coming today, our boss said it's on the house."
White Bay Restaurant was a place Colin ran. Sterling had grown accustomed to the flavors here over the years and was a regular.
"Please thank Colin for me," Sterling said with a smile to the waitress, then walked over to Bella and picked her up.
To Sterling's surprise, the drunken Bella patted his face. "Hold me properly! If I fall, you'll pay!"
A complex expression crossed Sterling's stern face. 'Is this the real Bella?'
Sterling wordlessly helped Bella into the car, but the drunken Bella was very stubborn.
In the middle of winter, Bella insisted on keeping the car window open to feel the wind. Sterling tried several times but couldn't close the window.
"Close the window, it's cold," Sterling said, frowning at Bella.
But this time, Bella dared to retort, "Do you know I get carsick? I've put up with you for a long time, and this time I don't want to!"
Sterling was stunned. All these years, he really didn't know she got carsick.
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