Chapter 47
"Where have you been?" James's voice was laced with suppressed anger. Sophia's heart jumped, but her face quickly returned to its usual calm.
She hung her bag on the coat rack in the entryway, her tone indifferent.
"I went to a bar with some friends. What? You piss me off, and now I don't even have the freedom to have a drink?" She turned the tables, taking the offensive first, trying to shift the focus of the conversation.
James suddenly stood up and strode over to Sophia.
He was a head taller than Sophia, and now looking down at her from above, the oppressive aura he gave off was almost suffocating.
"Just drinking?" He let out a cold laugh and suddenly reached out to grab Sophia's chin, forcing her to look up. "Then explain to me what those marks on your neck are all about."
Sophia's pupils shrank suddenly, panic rising in her heart.
She had left the private room in such a hurry this morning that she hadn't noticed Liam had left obvious hickeys on her neck.
"I was drunk, I don't know." She forcefully turned her face away, breaking free from James's hand, pretending to be calm as she explained.
"Maybe I accidentally bumped into something somewhere."
"Accidentally?" James's expression grew even darker, his voice suddenly rising.
"Sophia, do you think I'm a child? Those are fucking hickeys!"
Hearing his angry voice, Sophia took a deep breath, suddenly turned to face him, her eyes also burning with rage.
"So what? James, what right do you have to question me? You weren't drunk, but you still wanted to sleep with someone else, didn't you? And what happened? You didn't get what you wanted and ended up in jail instead!"
These words were like a sharp knife, precisely hitting James's sore spot.
His face instantly turned ashen, his tone carrying a heavy warning. "Sophia, watch your mouth."
"Why?" Sophia raised her voice, the anger and grievance that had built up all night suddenly exploding at this moment.
"You were the one who went to Emily first, you were the one who betrayed our relationship first! And now you have the nerve to question me?" The more she spoke, the more agitated she became, hot tears spinning in her eyes, making her look pitiful.
A trace of guilt flashed through James's heart, and he quickly tried to explain. "I just wanted to talk to her."
"Talk about what? About your past romance?" Sophia let out an extremely mocking laugh, and a teardrop finally slid down her cheek.
"James, do you really think I don't know what you're thinking? You're not satisfied, you regret it, you see how beautiful and successful Emily has become now, and you're starting to waver, aren't you?"
James was caught off guard by her hitting the nail on the head, and for a moment, he was speechless, unable to say a word.
Looking at his embarrassed appearance, the bit of guilt Sophia had felt from last night's indulgence completely dissipated, replaced by a cold determination.
"Before you sort out things between you and Emily, let's keep some distance."
She had always been gentle, considerate, and compliant in front of James. Now that she had suddenly torn off her disguise, James's heart was instantly filled with a strange and panicked feeling.
But Sophia didn't give him a chance to react. After speaking, she turned and walked straight toward the stairs.
"Stop!" James shouted sternly, calling her back.
Sophia stopped but didn't turn around.
"I will get to the bottom of what happened last night." James's voice came from behind her, carrying an unquestionable warning. "If I find out you really betrayed me, Sophia, you'll regret it."
With her back to him, Sophia's lips curved into an extremely sarcastic smile. "Go ahead and investigate. But before that, you'd better think about how to handle the mess at the police station. My dad helped you smooth things over, but if this gets to the media, I'm afraid it won't be so easy to salvage your reputation."
With that, she didn't linger, clicking up the stairs in her high heels.
Only James was left in the living room. He irritably ran his hand through his hair and lit another cigarette.
Sophia's attitude today made him feel intensely uneasy. If it were any other time, being caught with such evidence, she would definitely have explained in a panic, even groveling to please him.
But today, although she was a bit flustered at first, she quickly regained her confidence and even turned around to threaten him.
This was definitely not normal.
James's instinct told him that Sophia must be hiding something.
But he didn't have the energy to dig deeper right now. As Sophia said, the police station matter wasn't completely resolved yet.
Although he had been lucky enough to be released on bail, the two subordinates who were arrested were still inside and could spill things they shouldn't say at any moment. He had to clean this up quickly.
Stubbing out his cigarette, James grabbed his coat and hurriedly left the Johnson Villa.
Upstairs, Sophia stood by the bedroom window, watching James's car speed out of the Johnson Villa, her eyes cold as frost.
She raised her hand to gently touch the hickeys on her neck, her lips curving into a cold smile.
Since she had already done it, she had naturally prepared everything thoroughly and set up backup plans.
How could James possibly find any clues?
Meanwhile, in the small courtyard of Emily's house, William was staring blankly at his phone, the screen showing an encrypted call from overseas.
An anxious and serious report came from the other end.
"Mr. Brown, while you've been away, some people in the organization have started breaking the rules. They took on unauthorized jobs privately and almost caused a death."
Listening to the methodical words on the phone, William's brow furrowed tightly.
"You need to come back."
His subordinate's voice grew even more grave. "If this continues, the organization will fall into complete chaos."
"I understand." William didn't give a specific return date, just responded briefly and hung up.
He leaned against the wall, his brow still furrowed, the pressure around him dropping to an extreme low.
He slowly walked to the bedroom door, his gaze falling on Nina and Aiden playing and laughing in the garden.
Not far away, Emily was gently watching over the two children.
During this time, he had spent day and night with Emily and the two children, and had long grown accustomed to this warm and peaceful daily life, even becoming somewhat attached to it.
But reality wouldn't allow him to stay long.
People in the organization had already started openly defying the rules. If he didn't go back, the deputy handling affairs in his place simply couldn't keep things under control.
Once those with ulterior motives took desperate risks and started internal conflicts, the entire organization would fall into irreversible disaster.
Thinking about these things, William began seriously considering leaving.