Crushed Affections (Dominic and Bella)

Chapter 320 Just Put Up With It

Ethan stood his ground, his voice firm. "I'm not afraid of gossip. You didn't do anything wrong. Just because you're Dominic's ex-girlfriend doesn't mean people have the right to judge you."

Bella was momentarily speechless. Any gesture of kindness toward her felt like a burden. Her complicated feelings for Dominic were already weighing her down. She had no idea when she could escape from his shadow. After lunch, Bella went back to the hospital, where the afternoon passed in a blur of busyness. When Bella finally found a moment to rest, she collapsed onto her desk, too exhausted to

move.

The sound of footsteps made her lift her head. It was Lana. "Do you need something?" Bella

asked.

Lana's expression was unfriendly. "We need to talk."

Bella stood up and counted the days since she came here. It hadn't been long, but drama was already circling her. "Go on," she said helplessly.

Lana slammed the table and glared down at her. "If you don't have feelings for Ethan, stop stringing him along. Don't keep accepting his favors if you're not interested. I hate attention-seeking bitches like you!" Bella clenched her jaw. "Is this what you call manners? Saying whatever comes to your mind without a filter? Lana, we don't have any beef. Stay out of my business and stop making assumptions about me and Ethan. I know you like him. But don't worry, nothing is going on between us."

Lana scoffed. "Cut the act. He's out walking your dog at night and bringing you breakfast in the morning. Everyone can see he's into you. I'm just saying, if you don't feel the same, stop leading him on."

Bella was starting to lose patience. "Are you done? Because I don't need a lecture on how to handle relationships. If you're so concerned, why don't you ask Ethan yourself what he thinks of you?"

Having already been rejected by Ethan, she took Bella's words as a personal insult. Without warning, she grabbed a stack of papers off the desk and hurled them at Bella. "Who do you think you are? You're just some throwaway toy the rich got bored of.

you really think getting dumped by a rich guy makes you special? You're nothing but trash. If you were worth anything, you wouldn't have slunk away from Horizon Hospital!"

Bella wasn't one to back down. Just as she was about to snap, Ethan stormed in. "Lana, what the hell are you doing?"

Lana's

eyes reddened, her voice trembling with frustration. "Am I wrong? Can't you see she's playing with your feelings?"

Ethan was furious. "This is a workplace. Your actions are disappointing, and you're way out of line. Bella hasn't even been here that long. Think before you speak"

Bella's tone was cool and dismissive. "Exactly. I haven't even been here long enough to toy with anybody's feelings. And for the record, I need this job, so I'm not going anywhere. If you can't stand me, you'll have to put up with it." With Ethan's intervention, the confrontation ended.

Around 8:00 pm, Bella finished her shift and walked out of the hospital alone.

Ethan caught up to her quickly. "I'm really sorry about earlier."

Bella shrugged, her expression indifferent. "It's not your fault."

He felt guilty still. "Let me make it up to you. How about dinner? My treat.

Before Bella could answer him, the sudden blare of a car horn interrupted them. She glanced toward the sound and saw Dominic's flashy dark blue sports car parked at the curb.