Chapter 140
George met everyone's gaze, his face still expressionless.
He didn't even look at Sarah, just stayed silent for two seconds.
Then, under everyone's breathless stare, he let out a very soft sound from his nose, "Okay."
No denial.
No explanation.
That vague "okay," in this context, was basically admitting to the existence of the son Sarah mentioned, and their intimate relationship that went far beyond ordinary friends.
The room instantly filled with suppressed gasps and whispered discussions. Everyone's eyes darted back and forth between Sarah and George, their expressions all over the place.
And I stood a few steps away, watching George's seemingly cold but actually indulgent attitude, watching the undisguised smugness and victor's smile on Sarah's face...
My tightly clenched fists suddenly loosened. The churning anger and coldness in my chest strangely calmed down, turning into a clear, cold sneer at the corner of my lips.
What a great show.
George, Sarah. Keep performing. Perform your fake deep feelings, perform your stolen happy family. And I'll just find it ridiculous and feel incredibly lucky. Lucky that I'm about to completely escape this disgusting mess.
William's face clearly showed rising anger.
He looked at Sarah's misleading act, then at the people around who believed it and even looked envious. Obviously, he couldn't stand it.
He stepped forward, wanting to expose this fake facade, to tell everyone that the handmade item wasn't made by Sarah at all, to tell everyone that I was the one who had been hidden, used, and now had my credit and identity openly stolen—the actual legal wife.
I could feel his anger, that sense of justice that stood up for a friend and couldn't tolerate such humiliation.
But I pulled him back harder and gently shook my head at him, "William, don't."
William looked at me, confused, "Why?"
Why?
Because I knew that as long as George didn't speak up to clarify, this was a dead end.
He was George, the head of the Smith Group.
That vague response he just gave had already defined this situation.
Now, no matter who jumped out to say anything, as long as he stayed silent or continued to go along with it, outsiders would only think they were troublemakers making a scene, or even stirring up trouble out of jealousy.
Going over there would only humiliate me in front of more people and embarrass William too. It would be pointless.
Just as the atmosphere became awkwardly tense, Sarah actually took out her phone, made a call, and deliberately put it on speaker.
"Jack, it's Mommy." Sarah's voice was sickeningly sweet.
A clear, somewhat whiny child's voice came through the phone, "Mommy, when are you coming home? I miss you."
"Mommy will be home soon, sweetie." Sarah's smile became even brighter. She glanced at George, then said into the phone, "Your daddy is here with Mommy too. Jack, say hi to Daddy."
Her intention was obviously to have Jack affectionately call out "Daddy" on the phone, in front of everyone, to confirm their close relationship as a family of three.
However, on the other end of the line, Jack went silent.
A few seconds of quiet, in an atmosphere where everyone was listening intently, seemed particularly awkward and uncomfortable.
Sarah's smile froze for a moment. She quickly asked again, "Jack, what's wrong? Why won't you say hi to Daddy?"
Jack's voice came through the speaker clearly, full of grievance and complaint, with that directness and willfulness unique to children, "I don't want to! Daddy yelled at me again last night because of that annoying Milly and her mom!"
"He served Milly food but not me! I won't call him! I hate him!"
Kids say the darndest things, but it was like a sharp dagger that instantly burst the happy family bubble Sarah had carefully created.
The atmosphere at the scene instantly went from awkward to bizarre. Everyone's eyes once again focused on George's face, whispering among themselves.
George's expression darkened at a visible rate. His already stern face now seemed covered with a layer of frost, and his eyes were cold enough to freeze someone. He didn't speak, but the low pressure emanating from him made several people nearby unconsciously hold their breath.
Sarah's face instantly became extremely embarrassed. She quickly covered the phone and coaxed softly, "Jack, be good. Don't talk to Daddy like that. Daddy loves you the most. Mommy will bring you something yummy when I get back, okay? Let's not talk now, bye."
She hurriedly hung up, then immediately turned around, putting on a gentle, apologetic smile, trying to placate George, "George, don't be angry. Kids don't know any better, they say silly things. I'll definitely talk to him when I get back..."
Someone nearby, probably trying to ease the tension, joked, "Ms. Wilson really works hard, coaxing the little one and the big one. That's the sweet burden, a sign of happiness."
Sarah smiled awkwardly and waved her hand, "No..."
As she spoke, she carefully tried to take George's arm again.
George still had that extremely indifferent expression, as if that little episode hadn't really affected him at all.
He didn't look at Sarah, nor did he respond to others' teasing.
He just raised his hand and grabbed Sarah's wrist. Then, holding her hand, he turned around, looking like he was about to leave this place that displeased him.
And the direction he chose to leave happened to pass by where William and I were standing.
I didn't want to face this man again. Even looking at him one more time felt disgusting, and saying one more word would be a waste.
William immediately sensed my resistance. Without any hesitation, he pulled me and decisively turned around, walking quickly in the opposite direction from George and them.
"It's a bit stuffy in here. Let's go get some fresh air and come back later." William said to me in a low voice, his tone natural.
My heart warmed.
I knew William was helping me out of an awkward situation.
He didn't want me to stand there and be paraded past by George holding Sarah's hand like victors surveying their spoils, subject to everyone's obvious or subtle scrutiny and comparison.
That would completely crush what little dignity I had left, in front of everyone.
He understood George too well, or rather, understood too well what George was capable of doing for Sarah.
George could use me, hurt me, steal my efforts, and even allow Sarah to openly pretend to be Mrs. Smith, all to please Sarah, with no bottom line.
But he stubbornly refused to divorce me and wouldn't give Sarah a real title. What exactly did he want?
Perhaps, as William had occasionally speculated before, George found it interesting to string me along like this, watching me struggle in the mud of this marriage, watching Sarah show off in front of me, while he sat back and controlled everything.
What twisted control issues and sick entertainment.
William brought me back to the car.
He didn't start the engine right away. The car was completely silent.
He was quiet for a long time, hands on the steering wheel, knuckles slightly white from gripping hard.
Finally, as if he'd made up his mind, he turned around and looked at me with serious, intense eyes, "Grace, I don't know what you're still waiting for."
His voice was low, filled with suppressed anger and confusion, "In that situation just now, you could have pulled out your marriage certificate, smashed Sarah's fake face, and told everyone that you're George's legal wife."
"So what if Sarah gave birth to that Jack? You're the one who raised him."
"She's just a shameless homewrecker, through and through."
He got more and more angry, "Sarah's homewrecker behavior has become a habit. The more you tolerate it, the more she pushes. Today she dares to pretend to be Mrs. Smith in front of all these people. Tomorrow she'll just move right in and take over. How long are you going to put up with this?"
I looked at William's eyes, slightly red from anger, and felt complicated emotions rising in my heart.
I knew he really cared about me, really couldn't stand watching me be treated this way.
Actually, didn't I want to?
Didn't I want to throw my marriage certificate in Sarah's face in that situation and watch her smug expression shatter instantly?
Didn't I want to loudly tell everyone that I was the one who had children for the Smith family, managed the household, but was ruthlessly betrayed and trampled on—the actual legal wife?
But I couldn't.