Chapter 321

"Frame you?" Emily raised an eyebrow, her expression somewhere between a smile and a sneer. "Tell me, why would I want to frame you? To prove I was cheated on? I doubt most people would be that bored."

Her voice carried a hint of amusement, but it lacked any warmth, creating an ice-cold sensation that cut to the bone.

Sophie's entire body tensed as she felt Emily's gaze penetrating her, giving her the uncomfortable feeling of being completely exposed.

After a long silence, she finally spoke stiffly: "You just want to deepen Alexander's guilt."

Alexander's brow furrowed slightly, a strange emotion flickering in his eyes.

Emily caught his fleeting expression, storing it away in her mind.

Sophie's theory had some credibility.

The more Alexander felt he had wronged Emily, the deeper his guilt would become, and naturally, the more he would compensate her.

She curled her lips into a deeper smile. "So tell me, with all this guilt I'm supposedly cultivating, what compensation am I after? The Foster Group shares? Cash? Real estate?"

With each word, Sophie's expression shifted subtly.

She quickly glanced at Alexander, and seeing no readable emotion on his face, turned back to Emily. "What are you implying? Alexander's wealth is the result of his hard work and effort. How can you so casually demand so much from him with just a few words?"

Emily frowned, feigning distress over the matter. "If I can't ask him for benefits, then what's the point of making him feel guilty?"

"Sophie." Alexander finally spoke, his voice direct and sharp. "You sent these recordings to Emily. Why?"

His simple, direct question made it clear he believed Emily.

This development completely blindsided Sophie. How had she become the one being cast aside?

Shouldn't Alexander have stood firmly by her side, refusing to believe anything Emily said?

Panic and anxiety spread through her chest as she struggled to suppress her trembling voice. "Alexander, you know my personality. How could I do something like this? As for Emily, if she thought I had ulterior motives, why is she only bringing this up now? Why didn't she say anything before?"

Emily glanced at Sophie's belly and sighed softly.

Yet her expression remained unmistakably mocking.

"I guess I was just too naive, believing someone was actually pregnant."

"Don't be ridiculous," Sophie seized on this point, ignoring everything else. "I never said I was pregnant. An unmarried woman would never claim to be pregnant!"

"That makes sense," Emily nodded, surprisingly agreeing with her. "So, have you and Alexander ever been intimate?"

The question stunned both Alexander and Sophie, leaving them momentarily speechless.

Sophie darted a furtive glance at Alexander, who spoke in a stern voice, "Tell the truth."

Sophie seemed frightened, looking at him timidly before turning to Emily. "N-no..."

Her nervous answer couldn't possibly be convincing.

Instead, it had the flavor of someone who wanted to admit the truth but was too afraid of Alexander's dark expression to do so.

Emily's demeanor remained much calmer, nodding as if she actually believed Sophie's words.

"If nothing ever happened between you two, then you're not the homewrecker, after all. I must have misunderstood everything."

Her face even brightened with a smile, though her eyes remained cold.

"Just maintain your distance in the future. Don't have any inappropriate contact." With that, she stood up, apparently ready to leave, seemingly without any doubts about the matter.

But this outcome was far from what Sophie wanted.

Her eyes flickered uncertainly. "Emily."

Emily paused, turning her head to look at Sophie without speaking.

Sophie asked, "Do you really believe nothing happened between Alexander and me?"

No, she didn't.

Perhaps during their marriage, Sophie had deceived her, and Alexander truly hadn't done anything to betray her.

But what about the three years after she left?

Everyone thought she was gone, so naturally, Alexander had no reason to remain faithful.

And during those three years, Sophie had many more opportunities to get close to Alexander. How could she have passed up such a legitimate chance?

"Sophie!" Alexander's voice suddenly rang out, filled with unmistakable warning.

"What's wrong? We were engaged for three years, openly together. What's wrong with what happened between us? You can't just erase our past because she's back!" By the end, Sophie's voice carried a note of sorrow.

It was understandable in a way.

Setting aside what came before, for the past three years, Sophie had genuinely been by Alexander's side, only to suddenly have their engagement broken off.

Due to the Foster family's influence, this matter hadn't been widely discussed publicly, but it had still become gossip in Bellevue's upper-class circles.

Alexander's voice eventually softened. "Make it clear to Emily that we never did anything to betray her."

"What do you mean by 'betray her'? She was the one who walked away. I was the one by your side. Now that she's back, I understand you feel guilty toward her. But what about me? Why should my dedication be erased, and why should I be called the homewrecker?"

As she spoke, tears fell one after another: "And today's ultrasound to check if I was pregnant—what was the point? Even if I had been pregnant, so what? We were legitimate fiancés—having a child wouldn't have been inappropriate!"

Every word she spoke seemed reasonable.

Emily truly couldn't argue with her logic.

Of course, she had no intention of arguing. Instead, she gave a soft laugh. "You make a good point. I understand your relationship now. Anything else you'd like to add?"

"Emily!" Alexander couldn't listen anymore, his brows tightly knit. "This kind of thing..."

"Is it hard to discuss?" she finished his sentence, her face showing no discomfort. "Was it any more pleasant when she sent these recordings to me? If such matters should be kept private, why was she so eager to send them to me?"

She tilted her head toward Sophie. "If I were to post this content online, I imagine many people would be interested in listening. I wonder how many would believe your relationship was innocent."

Sophie's face darkened, and Alexander's expression turned equally grim.

"Emily, if you want to get back at me, that's one thing, but why involve Alexander? Do you want to destroy him too?" Sophie paused, then suddenly widened her eyes as if realizing something shocking. "Could it be that you never got over Daniel, and you're using this to ruin Alexander so Daniel can take his place? How could you? Do you know how much Alexander has sacrificed for you all these years?"