Chapter 163

Chapter 163

Hearing Sophia's words, Nicholas immediately turned to Alice: "When Mr. White first asked you to oversee this entire project, he said your words represented the White Group as a whole. So I want to ask — does that still hold true?"

Alice didn't know how to respond, and could only push forward: "Benjamin did say that, but..."

"No buts." Nicholas cut her off directly. "Since this also reflects the White Group's position, I don't think there's any need for us to continue working together."

"I'll have our legal team draw up a contract termination agreement shortly, and Sophia will sign it herself. You'll find out soon enough whether her signature carries legal weight."

Alice hadn't expected Nicholas to stand up for Sophia like this.

She knew perfectly well how much Benjamin valued this partnership. If it really fell apart because of a few words she'd said, Benjamin might not say anything to her face, but he would definitely hold it against her.

With that in mind, Alice quickly softened her tone: "Mr. Jackson, you've misunderstood me. That wasn't what I meant. I just got carried away in the heat of the moment and said things to Ms. Brown that I shouldn't have. I never actually wanted to terminate the partnership."

"I failed to recognize your company's true worth. I underestimated the design drawings you submitted earlier, but looking at them more carefully, they're actually very creative."

"Both Benjamin and I genuinely love your company's design style. I hope we can continue working together long-term and not let this small unpleasantness ruin our future collaboration."

"If Mr. Jackson is still upset, I'd like to treat everyone to dinner — you and Ms. Brown both — as a way of apologizing to your company. Would that work for you?"

Nicholas's expression didn't soften at all: "No, that won't work. Skip the dinner. I'll have someone bring over the termination paperwork shortly."

With that, Nicholas left with Sophia and the others.

They walked out of the White Group in full force. The White Group's employees noticed their grim expressions and assumed something had gone wrong with the design drawings that had been submitted. No one thought much of it.

But Alice, the only one who had witnessed everything, knew — she had gone too far this time, and completely lost control of the situation.

No, she absolutely could not let this reach Benjamin.

Thinking this, Alice immediately called Maddox: "Dad, something's gone wrong."

Alice told Maddox what had just happened, the urgency clear in her voice.

Maddox was quiet for a moment after hearing it, then said:

"Leave this to me. Since Sophia is at the center of this, she's also the key to ending it. I'll go talk to her. Don't worry — I have something she wants. She'll come around."

"Dad, the thing you're talking about — is it..."

"Shut up!" Maddox's tone turned unusually stern. "Haven't I told you? You know nothing about what happened back then. Leave the rest to me. Just sit tight and wait."

With that, Maddox hung up.

Sophia had just gotten back to the office with Nicholas — barely had time to sit down — when she got a call from Maddox. She could pretty much guess why he was calling, but she hung up right away, giving him no chance to threaten her.

She was determined to find out the truth about what had happened back then. But that didn't mean she was going to let Alice trash her design team and just roll over. She wasn't going to give in that easily.

Just then, Nicholas walked over, his expression serious: "Come with me. There are some things I need to ask you."

Sophia nodded and followed him into his office.

The door closed. They sat down across from each other. Nicholas's brow stayed furrowed, his sharp eyes fixed on Sophia, as if trying to see through to what she was really thinking.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You're not someone who gets worked up easily. What Alice did was wrong, but knowing you, you'd normally just let it go rather than make a scene. You wouldn't push to terminate the contract."

Nicholas's voice grew heavier: "So what's really going on?"

Sophia pressed her lips together. After a long pause, she said: "Just think of it as me being stubborn for once."

"Sophia, I'm your oldest ally. We studied together, we broke into the design world together. More than anyone, I want to see you shine in this industry. You shouldn't be keeping things from me."

Nicholas was completely serious, but even after saying all that, Sophia stayed silent.

Nicholas let out a quiet sigh: "You really can't be straight with me on this?"

"I'm sorry," Sophia said. "This involves the Brown family's private matters. Until things are clearer, I can't say much. As for the contract termination, I'll handle it myself. If it causes any losses for the company, I'll take full responsibility."

"Alice was in the wrong here. If anything, they'd owe us compensation — it wouldn't really hurt the company. I just realized you're keeping something from me, and that doesn't sit well with me." Nicholas said it plainly.

Sophia smiled, patted his shoulder: "Once I have more to go on, I'll tell you. Just give me a little more time."

Nicholas could see he wasn't going to get anything out of her, so he gave up and waved his hand.

"Fine. If you won't tell me anything, then just go ahead and do what you need to do. No matter what, both me and the company will have your back."

"About the contract termination — if Alice goes to Benjamin for help, he'll definitely come to you. Think ahead about how you're going to handle that. And don't go soft on him the moment you see him."

"Don't worry, I won't." Sophia answered, then left the office.

Sophia thought the same as Nicholas — Alice would almost certainly turn to Benjamin for help, and Benjamin would call her. She was prepared for it.

But the entire afternoon passed, and aside from a few more calls from Maddox, there was nothing from Benjamin's side.

It wasn't hard to figure out why. Alice was probably hoping Maddox could handle it without having to drag Benjamin into it.

After all, no man wants a woman who keeps causing him problems.

When it was time to leave, Sophia picked up her bag and headed out. She had just stepped out of the building when Maddox stormed up to her, visibly angry.

"Ms. Brown certainly keeps herself busy. I called you all afternoon and you didn't pick up once."

"Is there something you need? If it's about the contract termination, talk to our legal team — talking to me won't do you any good."