Page 156 of Now Their Starlet

Stuart stands in the driveway, offering all of us a firm nod.

“Hello,” he says.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Eli bites out, radiating menace and strength.

“This is private property,” Everett adds, shifting his body to hide me from sight.

“I mean no harm. I just wanted to carry a message.”

“We’re not interested,” Beck chimes in, his voice hard and bitter.

“It’s okay,” I say, swallowing hard and steeling my spine. “You said the paperwork went through, right? There’s nothing he or Gina can do.”

“It did go through, but you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to, Honey,” Everett murmurs.

I’d be lying if I said curiosity wasn’t eating me alive. Why in the world would Stuart put in the effort to come here? He had no idea when we’d leave, so was he just planning on waiting until one of us did?

Whatever message he wants to share has to be important enough for him to do that, right?

“What do you want, Stuart?” I ask, stepping aside slightly so Eli and Everett aren’t blocking my view of him.

“I was hoping to speak to you earlier,” Stuart says, his expression blank. “Congratulations on your freedom, Andromeda.”

“Like you ever cared about her freedom,” Cameron growls, an uncharacteristic bite to his words.

“I truly didn’t care one way or the other, to be frank,” Stuart shrugs.

“Then why did you do all the shit you did?” I bite out.

“For her.” There’s something hard about the way he says those two words. He’s obviously talking about Gina. It betrays a deep-rooted, almost fanatic obsession that I’ve only ever seen hints of. “Which is why I’m here. I have news.”

Cameron’s phone chimes from his pocket.

It’s a chime I recognize. Probably because my body is strangely attuned to anything that has to do with Gina. Cameron has different alerts set up for various keywords in media headlines, and this particular chime is the one he uses for updates that have to do with Gina.

He immediately whips his phone out and lets out an audible gasp.

“I wanted to tell you before the headlines were released, but I guess this is a good alternative,” Stuart comments.

Cameron’s breath punches out of him as he passes the phone to Everett, whose eyes widen in shock.

Leo and Beck lean over Everett’s shoulders and manage to catch sight of the headline before I do.

“Let me see,” I huff, tugging Everett’s arm down so I can read the headline.

“Holy shit,” I breathe out.

“Care to share with the class?” Eli growls, never taking his eyes off Stuart.

“Gina Sterling, Hospitalized on 51-50 Hold, Court Grants Emergency Conservatorship.” The words leave my lips robotically. The shock is so numbing I can barely feel my tongue.

“You were the one granted conservatorship over her, weren’t you,” Cameron says, his voice tight. “Because technically, you guys are married now.”

“Yes, indeed,” Stuart says, his lips quirking up into a chilling smirk. “I wanted to let you know that she won’t bother you anymore, Andromeda.”

“Wh—why?” I stutter, my jaw clenching. “Just like that?”

“Yes. You draw her attention away from—more important things—namely, me, and I think this is a rather fair arrangement. You get your freedom. Freedom it seems, you’re enjoying thoroughly.” His gaze drops down to my bond marks, exposed by the spaghetti strap tank top I’m wearing. “And I get the thing I’ve always wanted. Gina.”