After His Sweetheart Moved In, He Came Home Every Night-Chapter 4: Standing Up for Her

It was done.

She’d left in such a hurry yesterday that she just forgot to put the pregnancy test away. She hadn’t even had a chance to see the result herself.

Alice hesitated, as she tried to figure out how to explain to Zoe properly. Even though they were close friends, her involvement with Wyatt Sterling was something she couldn’t tell anyone. Zoe had always assumed she was single.

"Zoe, that pregnancy test..."

Before Alice could finish her sentence, Zoe dropped a bombshell from the other end of the line—

"Alice, there are two lines."

What? Two lines?!!

Alice was completely stunned. Her mind went blank, and a buzzing sound pounded against her eardrums.

’Am I really pregnant...?’ She thought.

’No, it’s not for sure. Maybe Zoe saw it wrong.’

Alice was panicking inside, but she clung to a final sliver of hope. She gripped her phone as if it were a lifeline, and she said,"Zoe, are you sure you saw it clearly? Are they two red lines?"

Zoe sounded sheepish on the other end. "Um, I’m... not entirely sure."

"Not sure?" Alice’s heart sank. "Is the other red line not so strong?"

Zoe explained, "I didn’t notice the pregnancy test on the counter when I came into the bathroom, and I accidentally knocked it into the sink. You hadn’t drained the water, so it... it got soaked."

Hearing it had been soaked in water, Alice’s thoughts grew even more jumbled.

The water in the sink had hand soap mixed in. Now there was no way to know if the two lines meant she was actually pregnant.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK—

A knock came from outside the room.

Alice snapped out of the conversation and quickly said to the phone, "Zoe, I’ll explain about the pregnancy test later. Someone’s at the door. It’s probably Old Master Sterling asking to see me."

"Oh, okay." Zoe also knew they couldn’t keep Old Master Sterling waiting, so she said,"Call me when you’re leaving the Sterlings’ residence. I can come to pick you up."

"Okay."

After hanging up, Alice slipped on her slippers, threw on a coat, and went to open the door.

She expected to see the butler, but to her surprise, it was Mindy.

"Mom," Alice said.

Mindy didn’t look pleased, but she didn’t scold Alice. Her tone was surprisingly understanding when she spoke. "I didn’t find out until late last night that Old Master Sterling had called Owen away, leaving you to wait for nothing."

Alice paused. So Owen Sterling wasn’t in his room last night.

Alice stepped aside to let Mindy in, and played along. "Owen was away in three years. Grandpa must have missed him terribly. They surely have endless things to talk about."

As Mindy stepped inside, her expression seemed to soften. "Old Master Sterling knew you were here and specifically had the butler prepare a room for you. See? Even without any blood relation, Old Master Sterling still treasures you like a granddaughter."

Alice thought to herself, ’If Mom knew the real reason Old Master Sterling kept me here, she’d probably blow up and give me an earful!’

"Oh, right!"

Mindy suddenly turned her head and asked, "Owen wasn’t on the third floor last night. Why were you up there for so long?"

Alice’s heart leaped, and a flicker of panic crossed her eyes.

Seeing her reaction, Mindy scoffed. "You thought I didn’t know Old Master Sterling called Owen away? Did you plan on just brushing me off today?"

A strained smile, the kind one made when being caught, touched Alice’s lips. "No."

"That’s for the best." Mindy had no intention of staying long. "Old Master Sterling is already awake and will likely want to see you soon. Hurry up and get yourself ready. Make sure you don’t look sleepy and tired."

"Mom," Alice asked from behind her, "Is Uncle stable recently?"

The "Uncle" Alice mentioned was her current stepfather, the second master of the Sterling Family, Silas Sterling, who suffered from a mental illness.

Mindy paused her steps slightly. "He has been quite stable."

Alice immediately asked again, "What about Nathan?"

Nathan Sterling was the son of Mindy Vaughn and Silas Sterling. So he was Alice York’s younger half-brother who was related through their mother.

Mindy replied with some impatience, "You’ll see Nathan in a little while." 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Alice pursed her lips.

At half-past eight, the butler came to call Alice to the front hall.

Before they left, the butler glanced back, and gave Alice a complicated look. Alice knew perfectly well what he meant, but she didn’t ask any questions and obediently followed him to the main hall to see Old Master Sterling.

When they reached the doorway, just as Alice was about to enter, a basketball suddenly came flying straight at her face—

The ball came so suddenly that Alice didn’t have time to dodge. She instinctively closed her eyes and raised her hands to block it.

At that moment, she had only one thought—’Please don’t let it hurt too much!’

THUD!

However, the expected pain of the impact never came.

Instead, a young, panicked voice came from inside the room:

"Un-uncle."

Alice, who still had her eyes closed, snapped them open upon hearing "Uncle." When she saw the tall figure standing beside her, her heart skipped a beat.

It was Wyatt Sterling.

He had appeared out of nowhere and blocked the ball for her.

"Third Master, is your hand all right?" the butler asked, with face full of alarm.

Wyatt glanced sideways at the butler. The look made the butler break out in a cold sweat, and he immediately looked toward Alice.

Alice reacted instantly. "Thank you, Uncle. I’m very grateful for what you did for me."

Wyatt’s lips curved into a slight sneer. His gaze swept across the hall, and finally landed on Nathan Sterling, who was hiding behind a grand armchair with a timid look on his face.

At this moment, Nathan’s little face was pale with fright, and his small hands were gripping the armrest of the grand armchair tightly.

The Old Master, who was drinking tea, noticed that. He glanced down at the hands on the armrest and looked clearly displeased. "He’s your third uncle, not some man-eating beast. What’s there to be afraid of?"

"Who says only beasts eat people?"

Wyatt strode in and sat down in the grand armchair next to the Old Master.

The Old Master took a sip of tea and lifted his eyelids. "Nathan isn’t a brave man, and you are his senior. What are you scaring him for?"

Wyatt said flatly. "A junior needs to learn his place."

The Old Master set down his teacup and said in a heavy voice, "Nathan, come here and apologize."

In the entire Sterling Family, apart from the Old Master who was the head of the household, everyone else was somewhat scared of Wyatt Sterling.

The Sterlings’ business interests were vast, and their corporate empire held a near-monopoly over the entire city of Silvanus. Publicly, Old Master Sterling held the absolute power, but the person who truly controlled their key was Wyatt Sterling. He was respected by all, and feared by all.

Though young and naive about the ways of the world, whenever Nathan Sterling saw Wyatt Sterling, he was like a mouse that had seen a cat—utterly terrified.

Only after the Old Master spoke did Nathan slowly shuffle over. He stood in front of Wyatt with his head hanging low and called out timidly, "Uncle, I’m sorry."

Wyatt’s eyes were cold. "Who were you trying to hit with that ball just now?"

Nathan’s small frame trembled. "I didn’t do it on purpose."

Wyatt leaned back in a laid-back way. "Is that so?"

Nathan looked like he was about to burst into tears from fear.

Old Master Sterling who was watching from the side had enough. He said suddenly to Wyatt, "You’re a grown man, who’s the point of picking a fight with a child Don’t tell me you’re doing this to defend that girl at the door?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Alice, who had been waiting quietly at the door, suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.