Chapter 19
From Sophia's Perspective:
Watching James's retreating figure, my heart sank, as if gripped by an invisible hand.
Was he leaving?
At the last moment, did he change his mind?
Or did he think this divorce was letting me off too easily, and came up with some new way to torment me?
Just as I was about to stand up and call out to him, something occurred to me, and I stopped.
Divorce, getting rid of me—wasn't this what he'd been dreaming about day and night, wishing he could make it happen immediately?
From that ridiculous wedding night, from the moment he decided I'd schemed to sleep with him, he'd wanted nothing more than to get rid of me, this manipulative woman.
He had no reason to back out now.
I lowered my head, no longer looking in the direction he'd left, took a deep breath, pulled out my phone, and forced myself to deal with some emails and coding issues from the studio, trying to numb my chaotic thoughts with familiar work.
My fingertips slid rapidly across the cold screen, typing out lines of code.
I didn't know how much time passed—it felt like a century.
A cup of steaming hot drink appeared in my line of sight, blocking the light from my phone screen.
Steam rose from the rim, the dark brown liquid inside giving off a rich, spicy-sweet aroma.
It was ginger tea.
I didn't refuse it. The warmth from the paper cup passed through my fingertips, but couldn't warm my already frozen heart.
Just then, it was our turn to enter the courtroom.
"It's our turn." I stood up, setting the ginger tea aside.
I saw him looking at the untouched ginger tea, his eyes dimming, a flash of disappointment crossing his face, but I acted as if I hadn't noticed.
The staff member asked the routine question.
"What's the reason for your divorce?"
"No feelings left." I answered first, calmly.
My decisiveness seemed to catch the staff member off guard, as if somewhat surprised.
The staff member then turned their gaze to James, who had been silent the whole time, indicating he should answer.
James pressed his lips tightly together, his hand hanging at his side unconsciously clenching into a fist.
He neither agreed with what I said nor contradicted or explained.
The air froze for a few seconds.
Finally, he nodded very slowly.
Seeing this, the staff member spoke, "According to regulations, before the cooling-off period ends, even if both parties agree to divorce, the court cannot make a final divorce ruling, so come back after the cooling-off period is over."
James and I walked out of the courthouse one after the other.
The autumn wind blew past, carrying a chill, lifting the hem of my trench coat and the loose hair on my forehead.
James stood beside me, pulling out his car keys and jingling them. Before he could speak, a low-key but high-performance black Porsche Panamera stopped in front of us.
The driver's door opened, and Andrew stepped out.
Today, he wore a light gray cashmere sweater with a dark casual jacket over it.
His manner was gentle and refined, in stark contrast to James's cold dominance.
Backlit, he smiled and pulled out a latest-model cashmere scarf, naturally draping it over my shoulders. "The wind's strong this morning, be careful not to catch a cold."
The warm touch of the cashmere instantly wrapped around my cool skin, dispelling the autumn wind's chill and bringing with it the reassuring clean scent from Andrew.
I smiled at him slightly, a trace of genuine warmth flickering in my heart, responding softly. "Thank you."
This scene was undoubtedly like a lit fuse, instantly igniting James's anger.
James's eyes filled with ancient ice, his sharp gaze containing terrifying hostility as he looked at Andrew's hand resting on my back.
Just as Andrew was about to guide me toward the passenger seat, James suddenly reached out, grabbed my other hand, and interlaced his fingers with mine.
He'd never done this before.
James's large hand carried a burning temperature and trembled slightly. "Sophia!"
His gaze, cold as a frozen pool, made my hair stand on end.
Before, I really liked it when he called my name in his deep, magnetic voice.
Every time he called my name, my heart would race.
But at some point, I stopped feeling that way.
Seeing this, Andrew stopped in his tracks, turned around, the gentle smile fading from his face, his tone still polite but distant. "Let go."
Two men.
One cold and hard as ice, representing a massive business empire, whose every move could make countless people tremble with fear.
One gentle as jade, holding cutting-edge technology, a rising star in tech.
But now they were like two fully drawn swords, at daggers drawn.
Their sharp auras collided violently, the atmosphere instantly tense to the extreme.
James gripped my hand even tighter, the burning temperature almost branding my skin.
He stared at Andrew, his face extremely dark.
"We're not divorced yet."
This statement reeked of possessiveness, more like a warning asserting his claim.
Hearing this, Andrew not only didn't back down but took half a step forward, his gentle face settling into unquestionable determination, his voice calm but resounding. "Not being divorced doesn't stop me from pursuing Sophia."
"Pursuing?" James acted as if he'd heard the joke of the century, his lips curling into a cold sneer, his sharp gaze looking down on Andrew with a superior, controlling scrutiny. "Do you know who I am?"
"The CEO of the Smith Group, James." Andrew answered calmly, his expression unchanged, lips slightly curved. "I'm Andrew, founder of Shadow Circuit Studio."
He paused, his gaze turning to me, full of tenderness. "Also, Sophia's pursuer."
James's brow immediately furrowed.
He clearly hadn't expected Andrew to be so direct, much less that the other man would have such strong backing.
He turned his gaze to me, complex emotions churning in his deep eyes. "Sophia."
His cold, heavy words came out word by word from those thin lips, carrying his last shred of patience. "You choose."
The choice was suddenly thrown into my hands.
I was stunned for a few seconds.
In that brief moment, Andrew leaned down slightly, close to my ear, speaking in a voice only we could hear. "Shadow Circuit Studio's server just discovered a critical vulnerability. The attack is fierce, the situation's urgent—I need you to come back and handle it immediately."
Those words hit me like lightning.
The instinct of a top hacker was instantly awakened. Romance, divorce disputes—all seemed insignificant in the face of a crisis in the code world.
My eyes sharpened, and without a moment's hesitation, I forcefully shook off James's hand. "You go ahead, I have an emergency."
Dropping that line, I didn't look again at James's frost-covered face and disbelieving expression, quickly pulled open the car door, and got into Andrew's passenger seat.