Chapter 156

Third Person POV

“You need to stop showing up at my house, Stella,” Ethan said as he stepped off his front porch and headed towards his car. Stella Airborne, a stripper that Ethan had courted and had sex with on multiple occasions, followed him, tears clear in her eyes.

“You haven’t returned any of my calls, Ethan,” she said, her hands tugging at one another, her body visibly trembling.

“There’s nothing we need to talk about,” he told her. “It’s over between us.”

“Is it because of that rich woman?” Stella asked.

“I’m not sure what you are talking about.”

“I’m not stupid,” she said, grabbing his door handle before he could open the car door. He paused and turned towards her, his eyes blazing with anger. Ethan was not one to be messed with, especially by a whore.

“Watch yourself. You are forgetting your place,” Ethan said through his teeth.

“I saw her here you know,” she said, tears spilling out of her eyes.

Ethan narrowed his eyes.

“What?”

“That girl… the one you want. That’s Irene Landry, right?” She asked, her tone trembling but her eyes showing a hint of darkness that Ethan had never seen before. “I saw her with you before. I’m assuming she’s another one of your pieces of ass.”

“She’s my fiancé,” he growled. “Leave her out of this. You shouldn’t have come here in the first place. She should have never seen you.”

“What if I told her the truth about us—”

She couldn’t even get the words out because Ethan’s hand was around her throat in a second. He slammed her against his car door, and she choked out as she struggled to breathe. She desperately tried to get him to loosen his grip, but he wouldn’t. Tears spilled out of her eyes as she pleaded with him.

“Don’t you ever threaten me again,” he said in a low and threatening tone. Whispering coldly in her ear, he added, “You won’t like what’ll happen if you do.”

Without another word, he threw her to the ground. She let out a sob as she rubbed her aching throat.

“You’re a monster, Ethan,” she croaked, tears soaking her cheeks.

“Never claimed to be otherwise,” he murmured, throwing open his car door and sliding into the front seat.

The only reason why Stella appealed to him in the first place was because she looked like Judy. She was also easy, and it didn’t take much to get her into bed.

Just before he threw his car into reverse and pulled out of his driveway, she grabbed his car door handle and pulled herself to her feet. He thought about just driving off anyway, regardless of whether she was hanging onto his car. But he really didn’t want to get blood splatters all over the paint.

He sighed and turned to look at her, narrowing his eyes he hissed, “Let go.”

“I’m pregnant,” she blurted, making Ethan’s heart still. A slow-rising panic nearly consumed him, making it difficult to breathe as the world closed in around him.

Despite her words and the effect, it had on him, Ethan maintained a stoic expression.

“I found out last week, and I’ve been trying to reach you so I can tell you,” she said, wrapping her arms around her body and staring at the ground, a hint of pink coating her cheeks and nose.

“Okay?” Ethan said after a long pause; he had to remind him that she was a whore so the likelihood of the baby behind his was slim. She was just trying to get him to feel bad and stick around. But it wasn’t going to work.

“I’m pregnant with your baby, Ethan,” she said, her voice cracking slightly as tears ran down her flushed cheeks.

“How do you know it’s mine?”

His words were like a slap in the face, and she flinched from the force.

“Because you are the only one, I’ve been with…” she whispered.

“You weren’t a virgin when we fucked, Stella,” Ethan growled. “You’re a stripper for crying out loud!”

“I hadn’t been with anyone else in almost a year,” she told him. “It was only one other guy before that…”

She sniffled and wiped her eyes.

“Y…You’re the only one…” she stammered as a sob escaped her lips.

She was too hysterical for Ethan’s liking, and he stared at her with disgust.

He pulled out his wallet and grabbed a few hundred dollars. He threw it at her face, making her flinch as she watched the bills fall lazily to the ground around her.

His cold words left her speechless.

“Get rid of it.”

He drove off, leaving Stella speechless and brokenhearted.

Ethan drove to the Landry residence, his mind clouded as he thought about what Stella had said.

Was she really pregnant with his baby?

Well, she wouldn’t be for long. Having a baby with a stripper would ruin his plans. He had to make sure she got rid of that baby before it jeopardized everything, he worked so hard for.

“Mr. Cash,” Adam the butler, greeted as Ethan walked through the front doors of the villa.

“Adam,” Ethan greeted, taking off his coat and handing it to the butler.

Ethan swore Adam deepened his frown, but he recovered it quickly enough that Ethan thought maybe it was his imagination.

“Miss Irene isn’t here right now. But she’ll be home shortly,” Adam said.

Ethan nodded; he didn’t care if Irene was there or not. In fact, it was better that she wasn’t. He was there for one reason and one reason only.

“I’ll just wait in her room,” Ethan said, excusing himself.

Instead of going to Irene’s room, Ethan went straight to Gavin Landry’s office door. He had been here the day before and he spent time picking the lock to the office. And then he got the computer information his inside man needed to hack Gavin’s computer and unlock it for Ethan. He went through it a little bit, and when he heard Irene nearing, he had to get out of there fast. But not before he wrote down the password to get back into Gavin’s computer for next time.

He was pleased to see that the office door was still unlocked from his last visit. That means nobody found out he broke in. Not having to pick the lock again saves him time.

Ethan logged into the computer and smiled as the screen lit to life.

“Let’s see what inside information you have on this computer Alpha Landry.”

Meanwhile, Irene had driven to Ethan’s house and was staring at the woman seated on the front porch.

Her face was buried in her hands as she sobbed.

Irene got out of the car and went to her.

The girl quickly stood to her feet and looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

“Please, don’t go…” Irene pleaded, reaching her hand out. “I need to speak with you.”

The woman, now Irene recognized as Stella Airborne, nibbled on her lower lip, her eyes looking anywhere but Irene’s face.

“I… I shouldn’t be here…” Stella whispered hoarsely.

“This isn’t the first time you’ve been here,” Irene said softly. It wasn’t a question. “Are you saying you’ve come here twice by mistake?”

Stella’s face reddened.

“I…” Stella’s voice trailed off.

After a long pause, Irene sighed.

“Would you like to get some coffee or something?” Irene asked. “There’s a coffee place nearby, and I think we should talk.”

Stella was about to decline, but something about Irene’s face and the look in her eyes made her submit right away, so after a long pause, she finally conceded and nodded.

She stood and went with Irene to her car, leaving her own car behind.

The drive to the local coffee shop was quiet. It took about 10 awkward minutes. Both Irene and Stella wanted it to be over quickly, and they counted down each minute as the drive continued.

At the coffee shop, they ordered their drinks, and Irene was adamant about paying.

Stella only got water though because she didn’t think caffeine would be good for her unborn baby, though she kept her reasonings behind the water a secret.

Irene ordered a Chai tea.

Once they had their drinks in hand, they went to sit in one of the booths in the back of the shop.

Stella still refused to look at Irene despite them sitting across from one another.

“Why do you keep visiting my fiancé?” Irene boldly asked.

Stella was amazed that she asked so openly, and she found herself looking Irene over briefly. She was beautiful and looked nothing like Stella; it made her wonder what Ethan’s type was.

Perhaps he would go for any pretty face.

“As I said… it was a mistake,” Stella murmured, staring down at her water bottle.

“Going to the wrong house once is a mistake,” Stella said, raising her brows. “But twice? Please don’t play me for a fool. I know something is up and I’d like to know what it is, Stella.”

Stella’s eyes widened as she looked up.

“H…how do you know my name?” Stella asked; she didn’t remember introducing herself to Irene.

Stella knew Irene’s name because she was the most known she-wolf around the world, being a Landry and all. But barely anyone knew Stella’s name unless they were regulars at the strip club.

“I know things,” Irene said taking a sip of her tea before setting the mug down. “Now, let’s cut the small talk. I would like the truth about your relationship with Ethan Cash.”

Stella continued to nervously nibble on her bottom lip, her eyes darting around the room like she feared Ethan would appear at any moment.

She feared what he might do if he were to find Stella speaking with Irene like this. Would he make good on his promise and kill Stella? What about their baby?

Instinctively she put her hand on her belly.

“Are you not feeling well?” Irene asked, narrowing her eyes at Stella’s hand.

Stella dropped her hand to her side and clenched her fist.

“I’m fine,” she murmured. “But I really should be going. Thank you for the water.”

She started to slide out of the booth, but Irene put a hand on her arm, stopping her.

“I highly advise that you tell me the truth, Stella,” Irene said coldly, her eyes turning icy. “Because you won’t like me if I have to take it from you by force. As you probably already know, I am a Landry, and we have our ways…”

Stella shivered as she stared into Irene’s deadly eyes.

She was right; Ethan might have power, but it didn’t compare to Irene’s power. She could use her Lycan father and pull the information out of her by force and then discard her body without anyone even noticing she was missing.

She settled back into her seat afraid to move any further.

“We met at the strip club,” Stella began, her eyes focused on the table. “He pursued me. I didn’t know about you until I saw you together the other day.”

“Did you sleep together?” Irene asked, her tone indifferent, like she was trying to keep the emotions out of her voice but failing slightly.

“Yes.”

“Are you in a relationship with him?” Irene asked.

“No,” Stella whispered.

Irene nodded, taking another sip of her tea, trying to keep her composure.

“Did he end his little arrangement with you? Or is it still active?”

“Not officially,” Stella answered, her eyes squeezing shut as she thought of the words to say. “He stopped returning my calls. I’ve been trying to reach out to him but…”

“Why?” Irene asked sharply. “Why are you trying to reach him? You clearly already know that he’s committed. You said you saw us together.”

“Because I needed to tell him something,” she whispered, her tone wavering.

Irene narrowed her eyes.

“And what could be so important?” She asked.

“I’m pregnant… with Ethan’s baby.”