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Chapter 6 Caution in the Night

Bella shoved the door open; the room was pitch black, no lights on or anything.

"Sterling, you in here?" Bella whispered. Honestly, she was crossing her fingers that he wasn't so she could bail.

No answer, but she thought she saw a shape on the bed in the dim light.

Mustering up some guts, Bella tiptoed over to the bed. Her steps were soft, but the figure suddenly flipped over and grabbed her by the neck. "It's me," Bella choked out.

Sterling finally let go.

Bella, gasping for air, coughed hard, but Sterling's icy voice cut through the darkness.

"Don't you think it's a bit late to be here? Get out and don't mess with my sleep." Sterling's words were harsh, but to Bella, they were music to her ears.

"Sorry to bother you." Bella spun around and bolted out of Sterling's room. As the door clicked shut, she took a deep breath.

'Man, it feels so good not having to be in the same room with that grumpy dude Sterling,' Bella thought, feeling relieved as she dashed back to her little storage room.

What Bella didn't know was that after she left, Sterling's voice echoed in the dark room.

"Still can't make up my mind. Whatever, I'll wait till her birthday." Sterling pulled the covers up and rolled over, this time actually closing his eyes.

The next day, Bella was all smiles heading to school. She was surprised to see the snow on the road had been cleared. Just then, Ryan drove by and spotted Bella.

"Morning, Ms. Grey. Mr. Windsor really cares about you. He had the snow cleared so you wouldn't have trouble biking," Ryan teased.

Bella couldn't believe Sterling would be that nice. He only had it out for her. Clearing the snow was probably just so his car wouldn't skid.

Bella gave Ryan a polite nod, didn't say much, and pedaled off to school.

Bella was in a great mood today and didn't want anything about Sterling to ruin it.

Today was Bella's birthday, and she couldn't wait to see what her bestie Anna had for her. Plus, Zoey had some even better news.

Sterling was heading abroad again. Whenever Sterling wasn't around, Bella felt like she could actually breathe.

As soon as Bella got to the classroom, Anna handed her a birthday gift, which was a necklace, and it was gorgeous. To Bella's surprise, Anna pulled out another gift.

"This one's from James. I don't get that guy. Why'd he suddenly decide to go abroad?" Anna grumbled.

Bella knew exactly why James had left but she couldn't tell Anna.

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