Chapter 104 Caught in the Act?

Chapter 104: Chapter 104: Caught in the Act?

Sophie Winslow hadn’t anticipated this situation at all.

Her original plan had been to finish the online meeting with Helios alongside Peter Preston, which would leave her just enough time to get ready for her appointment. Who could have known she’d be knocked into a swimming pool by a kid? That incident had triggered a high fever, followed by her taking cold medicine that knocked her out like a strong sedative.

"..." Sophie gathered her thoughts, checked the time, and threw off the covers. "Can I borrow your phone?"

She needed to at least give Lucas Langley a heads-up. She could still go meet him now. This was about a three-hundred-million investment; it was no joke.

"That’s not convenient," Julian Sterling replied, glancing at her quietly. His refusal was completely merciless.

It took Sophie less than a second to understand why. Even back when they were married, she never had the right to check Julian’s phone. Let alone now, when his relationship with Stella Sutton was so deeply entwined. His phone was undoubtedly filled with private messages exchanged with Stella. Why would he ever hand it over to her?

Sophie looked toward the landline on the bedside table, taking his refusal in stride. "Fine. You should have Lucas’s number, though. Please read it out to me."

This time, Julian didn’t refuse. He pulled out his phone, but before he could even unlock the screen, it began to ring. He looked at the caller ID, then shifted his gaze to Sophie before answering it right in front of her.

"Julian? You’re with Sophie, right?" Old Mrs. Sterling’s voice came through the speaker.

Julian had put it on speakerphone. "Yes, I am."

His dark, bottomless eyes remained fixed on Sophie. It was a silent reminder not to forget their act—they were supposed to be pretending they hadn’t divorced.

Left with no other choice, Sophie chimed in, "Grandma."

Old Mrs. Sterling’s mood instantly brightened. "You see, I knew you two would be together! Today is a special day, after all—it’s your birthday. It’s good that Julian has the heart to put his work aside and spend time with you. Are you at home? Or eating out?"

Only then did Sophie remember. Today was her birthday. But the old lady was reading too much into it. Julian hadn’t remembered her birthday; they were only together because of an accident.

"Um... we’re out. Don’t worry, Grandma," she said, just wanting to get through the conversation as quickly as possible.

"It’s so rare for you two to celebrate a birthday together. How about this—video call me in a bit. Couples fight at the head of the bed but make up at the foot of it. Seeing you two will put my mind at ease."

Sophie immediately looked at Julian, signaling him to find an excuse.

The room was lit only by a dim, yellowish wall lamp. Julian, dressed in casual black, leaned against the wall, making his tall, slender frame look even more imposing. Meeting Sophie’s gaze, he played along, "Grandma, there’s no need to go to all that trouble."

Sensing something amiss, Old Mrs. Sterling scoffed instantly. "Are you trying to fool me again? Don’t I know you by now? Where are you two?"

Julian looked out the window at the famous TV tower standing tall amidst the city’s glittering decadence. "Seabourne."

"You traveled that far for a date? Fine, just spend proper time with Sophie today. No more of your nonsense." Old Mrs. Sterling issued her command, leaving absolutely no room for argument.

Sophie finally realized that the stipulation in their divorce agreement—to pretend they were still married—was far from easy.

The call ended.

Sophie thought for a moment. "Just record a few random videos of the room and send them to Grandma."

"Fine," Julian agreed without objection. It was clear he also wanted to get this over with quickly.

He pointed the camera at Sophie on the bed for two seconds to prove they were indeed together, then panned to the view of the Bund outside the window before sending it to Old Mrs. Sterling.

She replied almost instantly: "You’re at our own hotel? That makes things easy."

Once Sophie was sure he had placated the old lady, she grabbed her clothes and went back into the bathroom to wash up. She still had to go see Lucas.

She got herself ready in record time. But when she came out, she found the suite’s door open. Hotel staff were pushing carts in a line toward the sky garden outside. She followed them out to take a look.

A dining table had been set up in the sky garden, surrounded by clusters of blue tulips that formed a breathtaking centerpiece. It was so beautiful she couldn’t tear her eyes away.

Julian was sitting at the table, his fingers moving nimbly as he replied to messages on his phone. Hearing her footsteps, he glanced over. "See if there’s anything else you want to eat. You can order more."

A cake had already been placed on the table. It was decorated with blue tulip petals, its candles yet unlit.

Sophie walked over hesitantly. "Do we really need to put on such a thorough act?"

"It won’t delay you for too long. We just need to send Grandma a message later, eat, and blow out the birthday candles," Julian said, sparing her a brief glance before lowering his eyes back to his screen.

Sophie had always known Old Mrs. Sterling was a woman of action. Without a doubt, all of this—even the fully prepared candlelight dinner—was her doing. What surprised Sophie was that Grandma actually knew she liked blue tulips. It was her absolute favorite flower. She didn’t care for the rich, passionate intensity of roses; she much preferred this subtle, quiet elegance.

Yet, this crafted romance hadn’t come from the heart of the man sitting in front of her. And a so-called romance orchestrated by someone else’s hands was something she didn’t care for anyway.

She looked at Julian. He seemed deeply engrossed in a conversation with someone on his phone, as if he were giving them a play-by-play update of his every moment. So loving, so sweet, so inseparable. She felt like she was practically shipping the two of them herself.

"Just take a picture and send it to her," she said, her expression normal as she walked over. She picked up the most beautifully wrapped, meticulously arranged bouquet of blue tulips from her chair, placed it on the table, and sat down without giving the flowers another glance.

She checked the time. It was past nine o’clock; she was already terribly late. Especially since her phone was missing. Lucas couldn’t contact her and probably thought she was doing it on purpose. She was being completely wronged.

"Are you in a rush?" Julian finally set his phone down, his gaze sweeping over the "dismissed" bouquet. His tone was unhurried.

"Personal matters." Sophie’s reply was crisp. She had no intention of explaining what those matters were. She made it clear that this was her private business, drawing a sharp and distinct boundary.

Julian didn’t press the issue. "At 9:13, there will be a fireworks display. The view from here is the best. If you’re not in a hurry, you can leave after watching it." He turned his head to gaze at the bustling nightscape below.

Sophie was surprised. She knew fireworks were generally banned in this area. To get permission required jumping through countless bureaucratic hoops—costing both exorbitant amounts of money and effort. It was no easy feat.

But for some reason, Sophie’s thoughts suddenly drifted back to New Year’s Eve. Julian had tricked her into spending the holiday with the Sterling Family, but that very night, he had gone out of his way to arrange fireworks specifically for Stella Sutton. And now? He was using a fireworks show meticulously prepared by someone else to brush her off.

The candlelight dinner, the tulips—all prepared by Grandma. Even the fireworks show was just something for her to piggyback on. His complete lack of effort was practically overflowing.

While she acknowledged that catching such a show from this vantage point was incredibly good luck, enjoying such a romantic scene with her ex-husband inevitably left a bad taste in her mouth. Besides, she saw no reason to settle for his half-hearted placation.

She checked her watch repeatedly and returned an insincere smile. "No thanks. Mr. Sterling, you’re a busy man with a million things to handle. It’s best we don’t waste each other’s time."

Julian’s gaze slowly drifted back to her face. Having just recovered from a fever, her cheeks were still flushed with a faint pink. When she smiled, her dimples were clear, but the expression itself was noticeably fake. It was as if sitting here with him felt like sitting on pins and needles.

Pressing his index and middle fingers against the base of his wine glass, he gave it a gentle swirl. Only then did he take out an exquisite carved lacquer box from his pocket.

"A gift."

Looking at the box, Sophie almost wanted to laugh. Over the past few years, Julian had never once cared about her birthday. Every year, his gift had been arranged by the secretarial office and handed off to her. This was the first time he had actually brought one to her in person.

She didn’t think much of it, nor did she expect it to be anything she’d actually like.

She opened it casually, only for her expression to freeze. She turned to the man beside her in utter astonishment.

It was...

Her grandmother’s dowry—the Small Leaf Red Sandalwood Heart-shaped Lock that Stella Sutton had snatched away from her at Lucas’s antique exhibition.

"You..."

She wanted to ask why he was suddenly giving this to her.

But before the words could leave her mouth, a frantic ringing echoed from the direction of the suite’s front door.

Accompanying the doorbell was Lucas’s furious voice: "Sophie? Open the door!"