Chapter 270

Chapter 270

"You—don't you believe what I just told you? I'm telling you, I really..."

Victoria was ready to emphasize once more that the lie she'd just spun was totally reasonable and completely true.

In fact, Victoria genuinely believed Sophia couldn't have more children. After all, the woman was already in her thirties and had already given birth to twins—the odds of her being able to conceive again had to be pretty low!

Based on that reasoning, Victoria felt zero guilt when she opened her mouth again. She sold the lie like it was gospel truth.

But Zephyr had no interest in hearing more of Victoria's nonsense.

He thought: if Melda really was Sophia, and if those two kids with her really were Robert's flesh and blood, then choosing Sophia would absolutely be worth more than choosing Victoria.

As for the infertility issue—Zephyr didn't see that as a problem at all. A wealthy man could easily find women willing to bear his children.

The real question was: how could he get the information he needed?

Sophia was so sharp now. Zephyr figured it would be nearly impossible to trick anything out of her.

Should he count on this one instead?

Zephyr glanced at Victoria.

Victoria immediately insisted, "I didn't lie to you!"

Zephyr squeezed his eyes shut hard. Right now, he desperately wanted to ask Victoria if she thought he was some kind of idiot.

"I get what you're saying. Don't worry—like I told you, I've only ever thought of Sophia as a tool. You don't need to worry about me falling for her. The reason she was at the hospital last night was because the person who beat me up like this was her older brother. She was there cleaning up his mess."

The cost of turning on Victoria wasn't small, so in the end Zephyr chose to keep playing along.

Victoria let out a breath of relief, then asked cautiously, "Are you okay? Does it still hurt?"

After all this drama, Victoria had finally gotten around to showing him some concern. But instead of feeling happy, Zephyr just felt disgusted.

He shook his head. "I'm fine. A few days of rest and I'll be good. I heard Amelia's coming back to the country today. You should head home so she doesn't notice anything's off."

Zephyr was politely kicking her out. Victoria obediently turned to leave, but when she reached the door, something occurred to her. She hurried back to his side in a panic, stammering, "Sophia—Sophia, she..."

Seeing Victoria still obsessing over Sophia, Zephyr's head began to throb.

It took considerable effort to suppress the urge to curse at her. He asked softly, "What now?"

Victoria recalled the things she'd said to Sophia and asked uneasily, "Do you think she's figured out our relationship?"

Zephyr opened his eyes again.

From his perspective, Sophia had already clashed with Victoria over jealousy more than once—yet Victoria still thought their relationship was well hidden? How stupid could this woman be?

Once again, Zephyr swallowed the insult rising in his throat. He tried to reassure her gently. "Don't worry. She doesn't have proof."

You need to catch someone in the act. He hadn't slept with Victoria in a long time—even if someone wanted to nail them, it would be hard to find evidence.

But that answer didn't ease Victoria's mind. After all, they hadn't just had a simple affair—they'd made a child together! Wasn't Orion living proof?

That's what she thought, and that's what she asked.

A vein pulsed at Zephyr's temple. Through gritted teeth, he said, "Then keep a close eye on Ori and don't let any strangers take him away!"

Victoria could hear the impatience creeping into Zephyr's voice now. But there were certain things she absolutely had to make clear—otherwise, how would Zephyr know to watch out for Sophia?

But the moment "Sophia's" name left her lips, Zephyr's anger ignited completely.

"Didn't I already promise you? I won't fall in love with Sophia! Why do you keep bringing her up? Did I not explain my reasons clearly enough? Victoria, can you please think about the bigger picture and stop acting like some jealous little woman?"

Zephyr roared, his normally handsome, charming face twisting into something frightening.

Victoria was so startled she forgot to breathe. She could only stare at him blankly.

After venting, Zephyr's mood gradually settled, and he started worrying about how to smooth things over with Victoria again.

"I'm sorry, Victoria. I'm just in a bad mood—I'm not targeting you. Go on home. If Amelia gets back and doesn't see you there, I'm worried you won't be able to explain it to her."

This time, Victoria finally listened to Zephyr. More accurately, she was scared into obedience. She didn't even say goodbye—just grabbed her bag and hurried out.

After Victoria left, Zephyr unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

He didn't know when exactly it had started, but spending time with Victoria had become unbearably painful. Zephyr had never been one to make himself suffer, and he thought: even without Sophia as a better option, Victoria's volatile, shrewish behavior alone meant they'd never last.

With that thought, Zephyr shook his head, trying to clear Victoria from his mind. The movement pulled at his facial injuries. The pain reminded him of the person who'd started all this, and he slammed his fist down on the bed in frustration.

In that moment, he even wondered if he'd been blind for the past decade.

Calming down took energy. Zephyr sat motionless in the hospital room for over twenty minutes before finally regaining his composure.

He called his sister-in-law.

Despite his considerable ambition, Zephyr had hidden it well from his older brother and sister-in-law. Right now, they just saw him as an idle playboy. Even though Zephyr owned a prominent entertainment company, they assumed he'd taken it over to make it easier to keep beautiful actresses as mistresses.

Zephyr knew what they thought of him, so when he made his request to his sister-in-law, his tone was bold and unapologetic. His sister-in-law readily agreed. "Enrolling two kids? That's nothing! You didn't need to call me specially for that, Zhixing! You should've just gone straight to your brother. If he doesn't agree, tell me—I'll set him straight!"

After playing out this theatrical display of generous family affection with his sister-in-law, Zephyr got what he wanted.

He didn't waste time. He immediately called Sophia to share the good news.

Sophia, for her part, played the pragmatic woman to perfection. She thanked Zephyr repeatedly, and then forcibly dragged Sawyer over to apologize to him.

Zephyr found Sophia's behavior quite satisfying. After all, no one wanted to give without getting something in return. Sure, an apology didn't have much concrete value, but at least it provided some emotional satisfaction!

Sawyer wasn't happy about it. He'd hit the guy to defend Sophia! Given last night's situation, if he hadn't shown up in time, what if that scumbag had taken advantage of his sister?