Hamish did not even know where to begin. He could not think of anything to defend Vanessa with after watching the footage.Did she really say Sophia was a pretentious hillbilly who only knew to ask for money from the Pattons?Both he and Elliot needed Xena’s designs to make money now!Damn it! What kind of a fucked up situation was this?Elliot was waiting for an explanation. The contents of the footage were far more infuriating than he had imagined. The look on Vanessa’s face was much meaner than what Ethel told him. If she had not insulted Sophia the way she did, there was a chance his wife would have called him instead of Xena. Things would not have been as bad as it was now.Everyone in the living room remained quiet for more than a minute before Hamish started shoving Vanessa a little. Now that things had come to this, Vanessa knew she had to say something. She finally learned that Elliot was the real owner of the mall on her way here.She acted the way she did because she t
Sophia said, “Yeah. I met him at Grandpa’s party.”Hamish said flatteringly, “That’s right. You have a good memory, Sophia. I’m sorry we met under these unfavorable circumstances. It was all my fault. Vanessa gave me a call and said that she had her eyes on a dress. “I didn’t give it much thought and asked the manager to keep it for her. It never occurred to me that she was trying to take it away from you. I scolded her and even hit her for that. We’re both here to apologize to you.”He turned to Vanessa and said, “Apologize now, Vanessa.”She could just kill Sophia right there and then. There was no way she would apologize to her. So, she trained her gaze at Sophia wordlessly. On the other hand, Sophia did not even grace her with a glance. She said coldly, “That won’t be necessary. I don’t enjoy the idea of forcing people to do what they don’t want to. I can just strike back at the people who irritate me and I’ve done that. So, it’s all water under the bridge.”Hamish did not
Sophia looked at Hamish, “Elliot said you guys knew each other since you were kids. I had every intention to do you a favor and let it go. After all, I can see where you were coming from. Firstly, you didn’t know about the full situation. “Secondly, even if you did know about the situation, I still wouldn’t have blamed you for siding with your sister. Now that she made a mess, you’re actually resolving the issue proactively. However, as you saw what just happened, I’m not the one who’s being unreasonable here!“I’ve been saying it over and over again that I came downstairs because I’m doing my duty as Elliot’s wife and I needed to greet you, his buddy. Did I say anything about wanting your apologies? When did I force you guys to kneel and apologize to me? “I didn’t intend to make it bigger than it is because you’re my husband’s buddy. As for her, I couldn’t help but think I’ve debased myself by simply talking to her.”Hamish could not say anything. He had lost to her thoroughly a
Sophia walked straight into the ward. Hamish stood up immediately and greeted her sheepishly, “You came, Sophia.”They were both intelligent. So, they could guess what was on each other’s minds. She gave him a sidelong glance, “Did Elliot ask you to be here?” He had to explain his sudden arrival. Otherwise, her grandma would have thought it strange!He knew full well why she asked him this question and he gave her an explanation he just told Dorothy. “Yeah. Elliot told me that your grandma stays in this hospital. I just got to know about it. So I decided to pay Ms.Dorothy a visit and bring her this dress.”She replied, “Alright. Just leave it there.” Then, she looked at Dorothy, “Let’s try it on later, grandma. If it doesn’t fit, I’ll ask them to adjust it again.”Dorothy said, “Sure.”Hamish caught her meaning and said, “Now that Sophia’s here, I’ll take my leave, Ms. Dorothy.” He did not say a word about Xena’s collaboration, but Sophia must have known why he was there.She d
Elliot came to pick her up at night. He also kept her company at Dorothy’s ward for half an hour before they left together. He looked at Sophia and smiled when they were in the car. It was both loving and indulgent. Sophia was pissed off by it and said disdainfully, “Did something good happen today?” He patted her head, “You. You’re the something good.”She was speechless. He loved giving such sweet compliments these days. Smiling, she made an imaginary microphone with her hands. She pretended to interview him, “Please describe what you’re currently experiencing, having had something as good as Ms. Sophia happen to you, Mr. Elliot.”He pondered a little before answering, “It’s like having candy in your pocket as a child. You wanted to show off it to your friends but you’re also worried they’d take it away from you.”That made her speechless again. Withdrawing her hand, she turned around so she would not have to look at him because she could no longer suppress her curling lips.
She was stunned by his return and quickly shut her eyes. She could feel him shutting the door lightly and heard his soft footsteps. Then, she felt him slipping into the bed and grinding at her a little.After that, he did not move anymore. He was probably looking at her. Then, she heard his hushed voice, “You didn’t try to comfort me when you clearly knew I was mad. Do you know how cruel you are?”Stifling laughter, she remained motionless. She could feel him scratching her nose lightly. “I’m a forgiving, generous man. So, I’m going to let it go.” With that, he wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned in closer. “After all, you came here of your own accord. You’re forgiven!”It was not easy having to stifle her strong urge to smile and remain absolutely motionless at the same time. She tried to convince herself that he was nasty. She could not believe that he turned the whole thing around and accused her of sleepwalking. He might just have something to say tomorrow.However,
Sophia was having lunch with Dorothy when Ethel called. “Brandon said he’ll be here in a while. What should I do, Sophy?”She put down her fork and said, “What’s there to be afraid of? Aren’t the bodyguards with you?”“They’re here.”“Don’t worry. Is it because he received your divorce papers?”“Oh. That’s probably it.”Sophia said, “I think he’s trying to win you back. If he tries to appeal to your better nature, then don’t give in to him. Make him feel guilty however you can, but you can never go soft on him, no matter what he says.“You have to maintain a firm stand in your decision to divorce. There’s no need to bring up the evidence. We want the element of surprise in the court.”“Understood.”Sophia said again, “Dress yourself up, but, remember, don’t let him touch you.”“Yeah. Got it.”“If you’re that worried, then you can meet him somewhere that has security cameras.”“My place has them, but I never turn them on.”“Do it.”“Okay.”Ethel hung up the phone. She rose
After returning, Brandon became increasingly angry thinking about how foolish he had been to push his own wife away in favor of that despicable woman.As soon as he saw Amber, he started to hit her. This time, he exercised some restraint, avoiding hitting her abdomen with each blow until she fell to the ground and could not get up. Brandon stopped then, glaring at her viciously, “I must have been blind to have fallen for you.”Amber was in excruciating pain from the beating. She was beginning to regret provoking this man. She contemplated escaping, but Brandon had hired guards to watch her. She thought of calling Baxter for help, but her phone had been confiscated. In essence, she was being held captive. She knew that there was no way she could get out before the baby was born. However, Brandon had not hit her for the past few days. What happened today?She grabbed his hand and pleaded, “Brandon, please stop. My stomach hurts.”Brandon looked at this pitiful woman before him.