After Albert left the Raymond residence, he didn't go straight home and decided to stop by a luxurious bar. He invited Maurice to join him for drinks, but his personal assistant declined and simply kept him company while working in the VIP room.
Albert couldn't go home until his emotions settled. He was so angry with Millie and the wasted time agreeing to that meeting.
"Should I call her?" Albert muttered repeatedly, staring at the screen of his phone.
Maurice, hearing this, responded briefly at first but stopped paying attention as his boss seemed to be getting drunk.
"You should go home, Sir. Your wife is probably waiting for you," Maurice finally said.
Albert shook his head, taking another sip of his drink. "My beautiful w
Long, slender fingers with painted red nails tapped the screen of the smartphone, which lit up to reveal a message that made its owner frown.[He’s fine.]It was a short reply that she didn’t expect at all. Millie kept tapping the screen, hoping the nails on her perfect hands would crack the screen. She couldn’t fathom the sender."How can you be so indifferent?" she muttered in disbelief, her irritation apparent. It was as though she couldn’t accept such an answer after the message she had sent earlier.But text messages have no tone. Millie would never know how the sender felt unless she heard her voice.Sophia Abraham was skilled at controlling her emotions and always remained cold, Millie thought.
Dana swung the frying spoon in front of Sophia’s face, snapping her out of her thoughts."Your drool is about to drip," Dana whispered teasingly.Sophia instinctively wiped her mouth, only to realize Dana was joking. The middle-aged woman chuckled in amusement."Sophie? Did you cook something?" Albert’s voice broke the silence, his tone laced with surprise.Sophia shook her head, denying it. Albert’s horrified tone stung her a little, so she made him a cup of warm tea to help ease his hangover from the night before."How are you feeling?" Sophia asked, placing the tea cup in front of him.Albert smiled and muttered a thank you. "I’m fine," he replied.
Albert almost choked on his tea at the woman’s words. He placed the cup back on the table and fixed Sophia with a stern look. The expression on his face had turned serious."I already told you earlier that I wanted to discuss something," Albert said firmly.Sophia tensed up. Is this about him getting drunk last night? Or something about Millie? Or what? Sophia couldn’t figure out what Albert wanted to say that required such seriousness.She cleared her throat softly. "I also have something I want to say to you," she said.One of Albert’s thick eyebrows arched. "What is it?""You first," Sophia replied quickly."No, you go first," Albert said, his gaze demanding.
The sky outside was bright. The rain had stopped, leaving droplets of water clinging to the plants and rooftops, glistening in the sunlight like scattered diamonds. The ground was still damp, but the sun's rays persisted, breaking through the gray clouds and forming a rainbow arching between them.Sophia could only admire the scene from behind the fogged-up window, her breath creating condensation on the glass. Her hand felt cold as she pressed it against the surface, as if trying to reach for the world beyond.It must be wonderful to take a stroll outside after the rain, she thought. The crisp, cool air would welcome her immediately. But even indoors, the petrichor still lingered, filling the space. She inhaled deeply, savoring the scent.“Do you want to do it outside?” came a voice from behind her.
Since that day, Sophia would always go to the third floor whenever Albert called her there. She tried to avoid it, but over time, she realized that what she felt wasn't rejection but rather a pleasant sensation that excited her. However, that joy came with a great risk, so Sophia often looked for excuses not to go.But as Albert had said, he didn’t take no for an answer.Every day, usually in the evening after work, Albert would ask her to get ready. The man seemed tireless, even after working all day and conducting a two-hour painting session with Sophia.Sophia, on the other hand, always felt utterly drained by the time each session ended.Unlike in the beginning, Albert now used a much larger canvas. He truly looked like an artist in his element, exuding experti
“If you’re not planning to answer, then don’t bother. I don’t like waiting for you to think first,” Sophia grumbled, her annoyance clear in her tone.Albert chuckled at her remark. His attention was entirely captivated by the beautiful figure on his canvas, he hadn’t been thinking about anything else. In fact, it took him a moment to recall Sophia’s earlier question.Then Albert replied, “It’s not a matter of ‘who’, but rather ‘what’.”“What do you mean?” Sophia asked, confused.“I use nature as a model for my landscape paintings. The rest… comes from my imagination.”Sophia was stunned, her jaw practically dropp
Sophia gazed blankly at her surroundings. Amid the lively clamor of the extravagant party, she stood alone in a quiet corner, silently wishing no one would notice her presence. The dress she wore tonight irritated her skin, as did the diamonds adorning her neck and wrists. All she wanted was to take them off and get out of this place.I want to go home, she thought repeatedly. She was sick of being at this kind of party. Not a single person was paying attention to her, even if it was what she wanted, Sophia couldn’t deny the sad feeling in her chest.Sophia’s gaze settled on the tall figure of Albert Raymond, her husband, who stood surrounded by beautiful women like supermodels vying for his attention. Sophia snorted, and the moment Albert’s eyes shifted to meet hers, she quickly looked away.That's enough! she thought in disgust. She walked toward the table filled with delectable treats, grabbed a handful of chocolate candies from the bowl and walked away.Even though the news of her
"Mr. Raymond, you have several consecutive calls from Miss Cecilia."Albert dropped the pen in his hand in disgust, then looked at his subordinate coldly. "Maurice, you dare interrupt my work for such an insignificant reason?"Maurice, his secretary, bowed deeply. "I'm sorry, Sir, but as I mentioned, the calls have been coming in rapid succession for a while, so I thought there might be something important Miss Cecilia wanted to discuss.""Get out!" ordered Albert coldly."Yes, Sir." Maurice walked out of Albert's office.Albert took off his glasses, threw them on the table, and massaged the bridge of his nose, enduring the dizziness in his head and tiredness in eyes.He had just broken up with his girlfriend of five days. Five days that had meant absolutely nothing. Albert ended the relationship with the blonde haired woman as soon as she mentioned the seriousness of it.Albert didn't need her, nor did he want her.His relationships with women were never about anything beyond sex. A
“If you’re not planning to answer, then don’t bother. I don’t like waiting for you to think first,” Sophia grumbled, her annoyance clear in her tone.Albert chuckled at her remark. His attention was entirely captivated by the beautiful figure on his canvas, he hadn’t been thinking about anything else. In fact, it took him a moment to recall Sophia’s earlier question.Then Albert replied, “It’s not a matter of ‘who’, but rather ‘what’.”“What do you mean?” Sophia asked, confused.“I use nature as a model for my landscape paintings. The rest… comes from my imagination.”Sophia was stunned, her jaw practically dropp
Since that day, Sophia would always go to the third floor whenever Albert called her there. She tried to avoid it, but over time, she realized that what she felt wasn't rejection but rather a pleasant sensation that excited her. However, that joy came with a great risk, so Sophia often looked for excuses not to go.But as Albert had said, he didn’t take no for an answer.Every day, usually in the evening after work, Albert would ask her to get ready. The man seemed tireless, even after working all day and conducting a two-hour painting session with Sophia.Sophia, on the other hand, always felt utterly drained by the time each session ended.Unlike in the beginning, Albert now used a much larger canvas. He truly looked like an artist in his element, exuding experti
The sky outside was bright. The rain had stopped, leaving droplets of water clinging to the plants and rooftops, glistening in the sunlight like scattered diamonds. The ground was still damp, but the sun's rays persisted, breaking through the gray clouds and forming a rainbow arching between them.Sophia could only admire the scene from behind the fogged-up window, her breath creating condensation on the glass. Her hand felt cold as she pressed it against the surface, as if trying to reach for the world beyond.It must be wonderful to take a stroll outside after the rain, she thought. The crisp, cool air would welcome her immediately. But even indoors, the petrichor still lingered, filling the space. She inhaled deeply, savoring the scent.“Do you want to do it outside?” came a voice from behind her.
Albert almost choked on his tea at the woman’s words. He placed the cup back on the table and fixed Sophia with a stern look. The expression on his face had turned serious."I already told you earlier that I wanted to discuss something," Albert said firmly.Sophia tensed up. Is this about him getting drunk last night? Or something about Millie? Or what? Sophia couldn’t figure out what Albert wanted to say that required such seriousness.She cleared her throat softly. "I also have something I want to say to you," she said.One of Albert’s thick eyebrows arched. "What is it?""You first," Sophia replied quickly."No, you go first," Albert said, his gaze demanding.
Dana swung the frying spoon in front of Sophia’s face, snapping her out of her thoughts."Your drool is about to drip," Dana whispered teasingly.Sophia instinctively wiped her mouth, only to realize Dana was joking. The middle-aged woman chuckled in amusement."Sophie? Did you cook something?" Albert’s voice broke the silence, his tone laced with surprise.Sophia shook her head, denying it. Albert’s horrified tone stung her a little, so she made him a cup of warm tea to help ease his hangover from the night before."How are you feeling?" Sophia asked, placing the tea cup in front of him.Albert smiled and muttered a thank you. "I’m fine," he replied.
Long, slender fingers with painted red nails tapped the screen of the smartphone, which lit up to reveal a message that made its owner frown.[He’s fine.]It was a short reply that she didn’t expect at all. Millie kept tapping the screen, hoping the nails on her perfect hands would crack the screen. She couldn’t fathom the sender."How can you be so indifferent?" she muttered in disbelief, her irritation apparent. It was as though she couldn’t accept such an answer after the message she had sent earlier.But text messages have no tone. Millie would never know how the sender felt unless she heard her voice.Sophia Abraham was skilled at controlling her emotions and always remained cold, Millie thought.
After Albert left the Raymond residence, he didn't go straight home and decided to stop by a luxurious bar. He invited Maurice to join him for drinks, but his personal assistant declined and simply kept him company while working in the VIP room.Albert couldn't go home until his emotions settled. He was so angry with Millie and the wasted time agreeing to that meeting."Should I call her?" Albert muttered repeatedly, staring at the screen of his phone.Maurice, hearing this, responded briefly at first but stopped paying attention as his boss seemed to be getting drunk."You should go home, Sir. Your wife is probably waiting for you," Maurice finally said.Albert shook his head, taking another sip of his drink. "My beautiful w
Albert stared at the grand, palace-like building before him and let out a sigh. It had been a long time since he last visited the Raymond residence—or more accurately, his father’s residence. Every visit to this place inevitably ended poorly. He only came when absolutely necessary, just like now.Millie Matthew, or Millie Raymond, his stepmother—whatever one chose to call her—had refused to attend the business meeting scheduled for today. Adrian Raymond, Albert’s father, had entrusted his young wife with starting her own business under the Raymond Group’s umbrella.Normally, everything was handled by Millie’s secretary. However, when it came to meetings, Millie always made it a point to attend in person. Today, she was supposed to attend the meeting at the office, but instead, she whined like a child to have the meeting
"Oh Dear, there’s no need to be embarrassed. What you did yesterday is something normal for couples to do. Why feel ashamed? You’re married, aren’t you? Believe me, I was young once, and I’ve been in love just like you two."Sophia choked on the tomato she had just bitten into. "I-in love?!" she exclaimed in a muffled voice. "Dana, please don’t misunderstand. We’re not like that."Well, at least not for Albert.Dana’s comparison was far too exaggerated for Sophia.Dana shook her head, unable to comprehend her employer’s reaction. "Then what would you call your relationship if not that?" Dana asked as she washed the dishes.Sophia slowly spun her glass of water. She wasn’t