Chapter 108
Sophie's face felt a bit hot.
Matthew turned around and saw her standing there, staring motionless at what he was holding.
He stood up and handed it to her.
Sophie's throat felt a bit itchy. She cleared it. "You..."
She wanted to scold him, but couldn't get the words out.
"Want it or not?" Matthew asked.
Of course, Sophie wanted it. She snatched what Matthew was holding and clutched it together.
"Give me mine."
"What?"
"Underwear." Matthew pointed at her clenched hand. "Mine is in there, too."
Sophie felt her face turn completely red.
How could he mix theirs together?
Even though they were married, even though they had kissed before, they really hadn't gone that far.
Having their most intimate clothing bundled together was even more embarrassing than if they'd actually done it.
Matthew reached out to pull at the edge of his black underwear. Sophie's hand loosened slightly, and the three small items fell to the floor.
Sophie had never been this embarrassed before.
Matthew bent down, picked out his own piece, and handed the rest back to Sophie.
Sophie felt he did it on purpose.
Why didn't he take his own out when he first handed them to her? Why make her hold everything?
"You change, I'm going to shower." Matthew didn't think there was anything wrong with what he did. With a calm expression, he took his clothes and walked into the bathroom.
Sophie looked at the black underwear in her hand. She took several deep breaths, feeling like it still carried his warmth.
She quickly went to rummage through the suitcase, where her clothes were.
Everything was folded together with his, including their intimate clothing all placed together.
Sophie bit her lip. Looking at all this, her mind filled with suggestive thoughts.
She quickly picked out her clothes and put them in a pile on the bed, then faced another problem.
There was no extra suitcase. She couldn't just leave everything out here, could she?
She silently put them back, wondering if she should buy another suitcase.
She placed Matthew's and her clothes on opposite sides of the case, clearly separated.
When Matthew came out, Sophie was still sorting clothes.
"I packed your clothes." It was a bit late to be doing this now.
Sophie was startled by him. When she stood up, she didn't notice that the towel wrapped around her chest had loosened. Suddenly her upper body felt cool. She quickly crouched down, wrapping her arms around her chest.
This was even worse than when she had taken off her pants and fallen in his bathroom.
Even Matthew felt embarrassed for her.
He lightly scratched his forehead with his finger, bent down to take his own clothes from the suitcase, and walked to the other side to get dressed.
"Hurry up and change. I won't look."
Sophie had lost face in front of him more times than in all her twenty-some years combined.
She quietly lifted her head to glance at Matthew. He had already put on his T-shirt.
The T-shirts he brought for her could all match with his, looking exactly like couple outfits.
Matthew put on his pants. Sophie just wrapped the towel around herself again, grabbed her clothes, and went to the bathroom.
She stayed in the bathroom until all the redness had faded from her face before coming out.
Matthew was dressed casually, looking somewhat softer overall.
Only those eyes remained deep as ink, impossible to read.
It wouldn't have mattered if she'd embarrassed herself in front of him before, but right before their divorce, having this happen made her feel quite awkward.
"I ordered food. We'll eat then come back to sleep." Matthew waved his phone at her. "I have your phone. See if you need to bring anything else."
Sophie stood still.
"What haven't I seen of you?" Matthew could tell what was bothering her. "You're not ugly either."
That last sentence made Sophie's face heat up again.
Matthew walked over and took her hand.
This time, he wasn't just grabbing her wrist.
His fingers slipped one by one between hers, interlocking their fingers, palms pressed together.
Even though it was just their hands being this intimate, Sophie's heart tingled with a light tremor that made her swallow.
"You were so bold before, why are you being shy today?" In the elevator, Matthew couldn't help teasing.
Sophie took a breath. "We're getting divorced."
"Going to divorce, but haven't yet." Matthew watched the floor numbers. The building wasn't tall, so they arrived quickly.
As soon as they exited the elevator, the hotel manager greeted Matthew very politely and led them to the restaurant.
The restaurant was in a garden. Each dining area was separated by flower walls, with blooming flowers giving off a pleasant fragrance.
As the gentle breeze passed by, the floral scent became even stronger, wonderfully pleasant.
Sophie really liked this kind of environment.
After they sat down, the server brought local specialty dishes.
"Like it?" Matthew asked.
She did like it.
Sophie didn't answer him. She was hungry, and the food was more attractive than he was.
Seeing this, Matthew didn't ask again.
Halfway through the meal, Sophie picked up her phone to photograph the flower wall. It was really beautiful.
When she put down her phone, she noticed Matthew was photographing her.
"What are you doing?"
"Taking your picture." Matthew admitted it. After tapping the screen a few times, he put down his phone.
Sophie frowned. "Why are you taking my picture?"
"Aren't we getting divorced? Consider it a keepsake." Matthew continued eating.
Sophie thought there was something wrong with him.
Sophie couldn't be bothered with him. Let him do whatever.
She was about to post the flower wall photo to Facebook when she clicked in and saw Matthew had posted a new update.
[.]
Just a period, with a picture of Sophie's profile.
The lighting was adjusted, not too bright but very soft. The proportion of person to flowers was just right, and the captured expression was very natural.
Henry: [?]
Joshua liked it.
Sophie stared at Matthew. He was calmly eating his food.
"Matthew." Sophie put down her phone. "What exactly do you mean by this?"
Taking her on this trip was one thing, but now posting her photo on his Facebook.
Matthew looked up at her. "What?"
"Why did you post my photo on your Facebook?" Sophie frowned, questioning him. That question mark from Henry showed he had the same confusion as her.
"I like it."
Those three words left Sophie breathless.
"What do you like?" Sophie was speechless.
"I like you."
Sophie's eyes widened. She thought she'd heard wrong.
"What did you say?"
Matthew pulled out a napkin, wiped his mouth, picked up his water glass, took a sip, and asked her, "Still eating?"
His expression was natural, as if he hadn't just said those words.
Sophie should have pressed him, but at this moment, she didn't want to ask anymore.
But those three words kept echoing in her mind. She hadn't heard wrong—he had said "I like you."
Leaving the restaurant, it still wasn't dark.
The days here were particularly long, with many people out enjoying themselves.
From time to time, they'd see couples sitting on the beach kissing. They were passionate and uninhibited, expressing their nature, never caring about others' eyes.
Sophie followed behind Matthew. "I like you"—those three words were like a stone skipping across water, stirring up layers of long, rippling waves in her heart.