31. Eston's Concern

It had been almost twenty minutes since Stellina had been silent in front of Eston's room. As she stood, Stellina was still thinking about what she needed to say during the discussion with Eston. Stellina's mind suddenly went blank, even though she had prepared herself before standing here. "Why does it feel like I can't say anything?" asked Stellina, muttering to herself. "I had imagined the direction of the conversation with Eston, but now..." Stellina immediately grimaced as she scratched her temple briefly. The conversation she had prepared moments ago became abstract in her head. "Calm down, Stellina. You must remember the conversation you prepared earlier," Stellina said once again to herself. There was honestly nothing to worry about. But Stellina's position was that of a fake version of Vellina. There were many things about Vellina that Stellina did not know. If suddenly in the middle of a conversation, Eston said something she did not understand and led to suspicion, it could be dangerous. Stellina had seen enough of Matteo and heard him bring up an affair with the real Vellina. Luckily Matteo did not suspect her. After trying the practice of taking a deep breath, then exhaling softly, Stellina stirred. Her eyes watched the door of Eston's private study with determination. "It's not as scary as you think, Stellina." In her calmness, Stellina gave positive affirmations. Trying to chase away the images of bad possibilities in her mind. Finished gathering her guts and ready in case there were things she did not know as Vellina, Stellina knocked on the door. Stellina waited for a few seconds before finally hearing a voice from inside the room. "Come in!" Stellina opened the door slowly. Her head slightly poked inside when the door was half open. "Oh, Vellina," Eston greeted after realizing who had come in. Stellina curved an awkward smile. She closed the door again, then walked over to Eston. "Why did you come to my room, Vellina?" asked Eston. Now removing the small thin glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. Stellina still stood before Eston with her arms crossed in front of her chest. It was a posture that Diego had taught her because it was Vellina's trademark. "I actually have an idea to enjoy some time with papa," Stellina said, according to the conversation plan that had been laid out in her brain. Upon hearing Stellina's words, Eston showed a surprised reaction. Eston watched Stellina uncertainly as if he had just heard such an invitation. "Didn't you hear wrong now?" Eston's gaze still held a look of disbelief. Then, Eston laughed a little. It was very short. "You never invite papa like this, unless you need something." Stellina raised both eyebrows. She wiggled her body slightly to the right and left, showing the exact same gesture as Vellina's spoiled gesture. "I don't need anything," Stellina replied, shaking her head. "I don't think you have to need anything to invite papa to enjoy time with me, your son." Eston still wore a puzzled expression, especially after hearing Stellina's last words. There was a pause as he digested Stellina's words, and in the end Eston simply chuckled. Once again. Briefly. "Papa and I rarely enjoy time together, don't we? Papa seems very busy at work," Stellina continued, adding to her persuasive sentence. Stellina deliberately put on a spoiled, sad expression. Eston did not seem suspicious. Gradually, the astonishment on his face faded in seconds. There was nothing Eston could say to refute Stellina when she was persuaded like this. "Alright then. What do you have to say about our time together?" Eston shifted the position of his glasses and folded his hands, stacking them on top of each other. "Would papa like to have lunch with me? Today." Stellina deliberately provoked Eston. Although in truth she guessed that Eston had probably already had lunch with Matteo. "Hm? Lunch today?" Eston seemed to think for two seconds, then shook his head firmly. "Papa cannot, Stellina. I am very sorry. I have already eaten with Matteo this afternoon." Instantly, the hopeful smile Stellina had put on faded away. Stellina pretended to have a surprised look on her face as if she did not know Matteo was coming. "Matteo came?" Stellina's voice sounded artificially innocent. "Uh-hum," Eston agreed. "I called him here on purpose." Stellina immediately had an enthusiastic look on her face. This was where the main conversation began. Stellina was eager to know what Eston and Matteo had been doing. "Why did papa call him to the mansion?" she asked. Although curious, she did not make any suspicious gestures. Eston frowned. When he began to look serious, Stellina pulled out a chair and sat across from him. "Papa and Matteo are discussing a business trip to Bolivia. I want to take Matteo with me," Eston explained. Stellina's brows furrowed in confusion. She was a little surprised to hear that Eston was not taking Diego, but Matteo. "Why would you take Matteo?" Stellina asked to the point. "Because he is the only one who can handle this work." Eston showed no hesitation in his answer. It was as if he had been planning this for a long time, and his faith in Matteo was strong. Still, it felt too weird for Stellina. Because she had always thought that if Diego held the ultimate power as the underboss, why not leave it to him? According to Stellina, Diego also had the ability to hold that responsibility. Stellina immediately showed a disapproving look. "Why Matteo, Papa? Why not give the responsibility to Diego?" Eston stopped moving as soon as Stellina said that. There was silence for a few moments, before Eston sighed softly. "Why do you ask that?" Eston asked back. "There's no way I'm giving the responsibility to Diego." "Why, isn't Diego's position of power already quite high?" Stellina still did not want to give up on pressing Eston. Unfortunately, Eston still shook his head. As if Stellina's question was not something that could affect him. "No, Vellina. Your current condition... don't you realize? You definitely need your husband by your side," Eston replied again. Stellina was honestly a bit surprised that Eston would say such a thing. But in Stellina's mind, she thought more about how Diego would need this job. Diego would definitely not want to lose out to Matteo. "Ah, Papa, you don't understand at all..." "About what, Vellina?" "Yes, I know I'm still not fully recovered. But what would it hurt if Diego left?" Stellina pretended to complain, deliberately trying to persuade Eston. Eston shook his head even more. Now his gaze shifted from Stellina to his paperwork. "It's a lot of work, Vellina, and it will take days," Eston explained, still firm in his stance. "If Diego has to be away for that long, who will look after you? Who will be with you if something happens?" Stellina was silent for a few seconds, thinking about Eston's words. I didn't know why Eston was so hard to persuade. Was he really this stubborn? "Papa, I'm so tired of having Diego around all the time. There are many servants in this house, and I can also play with Arianna. So it won't feel so lonely." Eston's movements instantly stopped. In that instant, Eston turned his gaze once more to Stellina and let out a harsh breath. "Vellina, papa has given you the opportunity to enjoy more time with Diego," Eston said, emphasizing his manner. "Why are you so stubborn about wanting Diego to leave? You shouldn't be that way with your own husband. You're husband and wife, but you've never spent any time together," Eston continued in a grumbling tone. Stellina was taken aback by Eston's words. She had known about Vellina and Diego's inability to spend time together due to their busy schedules. Had Eston been secretly watching their relationship drift apart? "If you constantly stay away from your husband, how can you two have a strong relationship?" Eston asked, deliberately trying to provoke Stellina to think. Stellina just sighed harshly as she looked away. She really didn't want to act like this, but since she was acting as Vellina, she was forced to give a rude gesture. "Papa, I have no problem at all if he has to go away for that long. As long as it's for business and earning a lot of profit..." "Aishh, you keep contradicting what I said a long time ago," Eston retorted, cutting off Stellina's words. The look in his eyes was one of exasperation and disbelief. "Papa has already made the absolute decision to make Matteo his choice. You cannot tell papa to change that choice." Eston's words were like a crushing blow to Stellina. Stellina could not answer for a few moments. It was a bit of a shock too after Eston pushed her back like that. Stellina let out a small chuckle. "My intention was to help papa make work easier. Diego is painstaking..." As Stellina's words hung in the air, Eston leaned his back against the back of the chair. Eston deliberately watched Stellina intensely as if he wanted to know how her words would continue. Eston's reaction made Stellina instantly feel awkward. Stellina felt like she was being challenged, and she was worried that Eston would say something that would leave her helpless. "That's fine if it's papa's decision." Stellina finally chose to end the conversation with Eston. Eston arched a sardonic smile. "You must learn to respect your father's choices, including Diego. Why don't you want to enjoy your time with Diego? Don't you know you shouldn't waste time with your family?" Eston and his lecture. Stellina deliberately folded her arms across her chest and put on an exasperated face. Just like Vellina did whenever Eston gave her any advice. "Don't keep Diego too busy at work. You'll regret not having enough time to spend with your family. Arianna needs her mom and dad, complete." Without answering anything, Stellina just nodded reluctantly with an exasperated face. Then her body turned around and walked away from Eston's presence. Leaving Eston who was dumbfounded that Stellina had just left. "Hey, why are you leaving? Vellina!" Eston called out to Stellina quite loudly. Stellina immediately stopped her steps as she opened the door. Before it closed completely, Stellina said something. "Yes, Papa. I understand," Stellina replied reluctantly. After that, Stellina closed the door to Eston's study without caring about his next answer. In front of the room, Stellina immediately breathed a sigh of relief. She could instantly breathe in as much of the surrounding oxygen as possible. Stellina's heart had not stopped racing since then. It was fortunate that Eston hadn't said anything she didn't know. "At least I can tell Diego the gist of Eston's information," Stellina muttered as she patted her chest lightly. Trying to calm herself down.