Chapter 136 Chapter 136
Sophia’s POV
The standoff with Hailey was intense, my hand gripping the sickle so tightly my knuckles had gone white. But even as I threatened her, even as I raised the weapon and imagined what it would feel like to strike, I knew my threats weren’t going to work on Hailey.
She stood there with that infuriating calm, that confidence that made me want to scream.
I looked down at the sickle in my hand, the one I’d just found in the garden storage room when I’d been wandering around looking for anything to distract myself from my misery. I’d picked it up on impulse, drawn to it for some reason. Maybe because it felt dangerous. Maybe because it gave me a sense of power I desperately needed.
But what was the point of holding it if I couldn’t actually use it?
I dropped the sickle onto the ground with a dull thud, letting it fall among the dirt and destroyed tulip stems.
“I don’t know what you did to my mother’s jewel,” I said, my voice low and bitter as I turned to walk away. “But when I die, you’re going to hate yourself. You’re going to realize what you’ve done to me.”
I didn’t wait for her response. I just stormed away, my vision blurred with tears, heading back toward the house.
My new room. The one at the end of the east hall. Far away from everyone.
Isolated. Alone. Just like I felt.
As I walked through the corridors, wiping angry tears from my face, I turned a corner and stopped short.
Louis was there, leaning against the wall, talking to Benita.
My heart clenched painfully at the sight.
Louis. My first love. My first everything. The boy I’d given my heart to.
And there he was, trying to charm Benita. Trying to win over my enemy’s best friend.
“I just want a chance,” Louis was saying, his voice gentle in that way that used to make my heart melt. “Just coffee. Or a walk. Anything to spend some time with you.”
“Louis, I’ve already told you no,” Benita said, her voice firm but not unkind. “I’m not interested. I’m sorry, but I’m just not.”
“But why?” Louis pressed, and I could hear the hurt in his voice. “Is it because of Marco? Because I understand you need time to grieve, but….”
“It’s not just about Marco,” Benita interrupted. “It’s about everything. This life. This world. I don’t want any part of it anymore.”
She walked away, leaving Louis standing there looking dejected.
Jealousy burned through me like acid, hot and corrosive.
How dare Benita turn him down? How dare she reject someone as good as Louis? Someone who was kind and loyal and everything any woman should want?
And how dare Louis waste his time chasing after her when I was right here?
I walked up to him quickly, my footsteps sharp on the floor.
“Stop whatever you’re doing to Benita,” I said, my voice coming out harsher than I intended.
Louis looked at me, surprise crossing his face. “Sophia….”
“I see what you’re doing,” I continued, anger and hurt mixing together. “Constantly pursuing her. Following her around. Making a fool of yourself. You should be more official. More professional.”
Louis’s expression hardened slightly. “With all due respect, I am official enough. And this is none of your business, Sophia. What I do on my personal time is my own concern.”
“You work for my father,” I said. “That makes it my business.”
“No, it doesn’t,” Louis said firmly. “You’re not my employer. Your father is. You should mind your business.”
The dismissal stung. The way he looked at me like I was just an annoyance, just another problem he had to deal with.
Like I meant nothing to him.
But I had meant something once. Years ago. When we’d dated, when he’d held me and kissed me and told me I was beautiful.
He’d felt something for me then. And I refused to believe it was completely gone.
Hurt and desperate, I made a decision.
I stepped forward and grabbed Louis’s face with both hands, pulling him down to kiss me.
He was shocked, I felt him stiffen, felt his surprise, b he didn’t immediately pull away.
I deepened the kiss, pouring all my longing and desperation into it, trying to remind him of what we’d once had. My hands moved to his chest, feeling his heartbeat quicken under my palms.
When I finally pulled back just slightly, I looked up at him through my lashes, keeping my face close to his.
“You’re wasting your time with her,” I whispered, my voice taking on a sultry quality I’d practiced in mirrors when I was younger, dreaming of moments like this. “Benita doesn’t want you. She’ll never want you.”
My hands slid down his chest slowly. . “But I do,” I continued, my voice dropping lower. “I’ve always wanted you, Louis. You know that.”
I leaned in closer, my lips brushing against his ear as I whispered, “My room is at the end of the east hall now.”I let my breath tickle his ear, felt him shiver slightly.
“No one would know if you came to visit me,” I murmured. “Tonight. After everyone’s asleep. We could pick up where we left off. Remember how good we were together?”
My hands traced patterns on his shirt, moving lower, more suggestive.
“I remember everything,” I whispered. “Every touch. Every kiss. Every moment we shared. Don’t you miss it? Don’t you miss us?”
I pulled back just enough to look into his eyes, making sure my expression was seductive, inviting, promising.
“Come to my room tonight,” I said softly, my fingers playing with the buttons of his shirt. “Let me show you what you’ve been missing. What Benita will never give you.”
I kissed him again, this time slower, deeper, trying to ignite the spark that had once been between us.