Chapter 45
When they sat down together, Gregory briefly recounted what had happened between him and Sophia again, his face flushed red, his expression full of regret: "Dad, Mom, I really didn't know this would happen."
Charles glanced at him. Gregory was now Sophia's best option, so he wouldn't be too harsh: "It's too late to say you didn't know. Now that it's happened, what are you two planning to do?"
Grace and William exchanged a knowing look.
With a slight smile, Grace said to Isabella, "Our two families have always been close, and we've watched Sophia grow up since she was little. We all know what kind of person she is. If this were anyone else, we'd quickly get them together and married—that would be normal. The problem now is her situation."
After a pause, Grace sighed: "Everyone knows Emma married Gregory. Even though the wedding didn't finish, all the friends and family who were there that day know about it, right? Now if word gets out about Sophia and Gregory... Sophia is a young woman, and people will definitely talk."
Isabella couldn't help but frown, her tone turning cold: "What are you trying to say? Should we just take this loss?"
Grace quickly said, "Of course not! Emma and Sophia are both your daughters, and I care about them both, so this is difficult for me too. Isabella, we've known each other for a long time—what do you think we should do to make this work for everyone?"
Charles looked at William: "What do you think? You can't expect my daughter to just pretend this never happened, right?"
William smiled apologetically: "Of course not! Don't get upset, we're just discussing this. When it comes to the kids' business, we should ask them how they want to handle it, right?"
Everyone's eyes turned to Gregory and Sophia.
Gregory looked up at them, then turned to look at Sophia beside him, who had barely stopped crying. With red, swollen eyes, he clutched his head with both hands and lowered it, seeming not to know what to say.
Sophia frowned, looking at him curled up like that, his eyes teary, her voice trembling as she tugged at his sleeve: "Gregory, say something."
Gregory didn't look up, answering in a muffled voice: "What should I say? I really don't know what to do anymore."
Watching this scene coldly, I spoke up coolly: "Weren't you two already all over each other? Well, now that there's no turning back, maybe it's time to talk about the wedding plans. Don't wait until next month when Sophia suddenly turns up pregnant, and you all have to sit down and discuss this a second time."
Charles's angry gaze shot toward me—if looks could kill, I'd be dead: "Sophia is a good girl, and you're slandering her reputation like this? Everyone knows they're close. This thing happened, and they didn't want it to. Aren't you just slandering them?"
I glanced at them coolly, a smile playing at the corner of my mouth. My morning headache seemed to have cured itself: "Get this straight—they've already had sex. I'm just stating facts, saving you from discussing this endlessly without reaching a conclusion."
Gregory looked up, his gaze toward me full of resentment, his furrowed brows filled with a sadness I couldn't understand: "Sophia, she... I really see her as a sister."
I covered my mouth to keep from laughing too obviously. His excuse was making me sick: "Sure, whatever you say. But now you've slept with your sister, and if you're a man, you need to take responsibility for her. So what are you going to do about your sister?"
My words were like slaps across his face. He looked at Sophia, his expression still secretive: "Sophia, you... what do you want to do?"
Tears welled up in Sophia's eyes. She bit her lower lip, looking pitifully at Gregory, and her words made people feel even more sorry for her: "I'll do whatever Gregory wants. If you think I'm a burden, I'll never appear in front of you again."
Gregory quickly denied it: "That's not what I mean. Actually, what my mom said makes sense. If we get together now, you'll probably have to carry that... that kind of reputation for the rest of your life. I don't want people saying anything bad about you. Emma and I are already married..."
Sophia looked up and said very seriously, "Gregory, are you and Emma really married?"
Gregory froze for a moment, looking at Sophia with some confusion.
"You two never got a marriage license." Sophia looked down, twisting the corner of her oversized shirt, then slowly looked up again. "Even at the wedding, neither of you showed up on stage in the end. Doesn't that mean you were never meant to be together?"
Before Gregory could speak, Robert, sitting on another sofa, suddenly spoke up: "A wedding requires more than just a ceremony. The Lopez and Brown families sent out invitation after invitation, hosting almost all our business partners in Emerald City. All our friends and family know who Gregory was supposed to marry. This is no joke. Even if Gregory wants to do something else, he should wait until Emma comes back and clears things up properly. Otherwise... the reputation you'll carry won't be pleasant, and you might carry it for the rest of your life."
"Emma can't come back anymore." Sophia blurted out with a frown.
She quickly realized her slip and hurriedly put on a look of contrition. "What I mean is, Emma disappeared three years ago. We reported it to the police trying to find her, but there were no leads. Later, we got word—Gregory knows this, too—someone saw her fooling around with someone else. If she wanted to come back, she would have by now. We're all hoping she'll come back."
Now that's real slander, isn't it?
I couldn't help but look at Sophia: "Who saw your sister with someone else? Did you go look for her, or did she tell you? Gregory, if that's the case, why don't you just issue a statement saying you have nothing to do with her anymore?"
Gregory kept his head down, his voice very low: "I can't do that. It would ruin Emma's reputation."
Hearing this, I felt like laughing even more. He actually still cares about Emma's reputation?
Gregory took a deep breath: "Sophia, you promised me that what we saw that day, neither of us would tell anyone. Emma is your sister."
Sophia's emotions flared: "She can do it, so why can't you say it? She hurt you like that, and you're still covering for her? How can you be so stupid?"
"What happened?" Isabella pressed, her gaze betraying no motherly worry for Emma, just the excitement of spotting an opportunity.
"Sophia, you can't say it." Gregory quickly shook his head.
"Why aren't you talking? Keep this up, and we'll be crucified." Sophia looked determined, as if she'd made a major decision. Her eyes were firm as she looked at everyone. "I'm going to tell you all the truth right now."