Chapter 136 Julian Sterling, Don’t Touch Me!

Chapter 136: Chapter 136: Julian Sterling, Don’t Touch Me!

In the quiet suite, Julian Sterling’s voice was laced with a tormenting undertone, grinding inch by inch across Sophie Winslow’s nerves. Her heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason.

She turned to look at him, but a shadow had already enveloped her vision. As the man strode over, he casually braced a hand against the wall, seemingly accidentally switching off the room’s main lighting controls. Only a ring of floor lamps beneath the large bed remained, keeping the space from plunging into total darkness.

Sophie subconsciously took two steps back. Her heels struck the step by the bed, and she nearly lost her balance before Julian raised a hand to catch her by the waist. Sophie looked up, meeting his dark pupils. His usually imperceptible emotions seemed to be quietly overflowing at this moment. He grabbed her wrist. "Don’t fall."

The burning heat of his palm made her spine stiffen. Startled, she asked, "Julian? Are you..."

Her gaze darted sharply toward the liquor that was still giving off a sweet, crisp aroma. She realized there was something wrong with that drink!

Julian’s brows were tightly knit. His sharp Adam’s apple bobbed, but he did not let go of Sophie. She hurriedly pushed at his chest. "How much did you drink? Was there something in that liquor?"

Many people had toasted Julian tonight. Although no one dared to force him to drink, there were enough people that even a single round had left him slightly tipsy. If he were to be stimulated by something else now, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Go take a shower first to sober up," Sophie said, her expression grave as she immediately offered a solution.

Julian didn’t speak. His tall figure was extremely imposing, and his breaths were searing hot. His slightly unfocused eyes stared at Sophie, his gaze tracing from her eyes down to her lips as he closed in inch by inch.

"Julian! Look closely at who I am!"

His long fingers gently stroked her hair, his voice very low. "Baby?"

He clearly didn’t recognize who she was anymore.

Furious, Sophie raised her free hand and hammered it against him. However, her meager strength was nothing more than a tickle to him. He effortlessly pushed her onto the bed. In the split second her body bounced against the mattress, he was already hovering over her, naturally seeking her lips.

Sophie turned her head to dodge. His burning, thin lips landed on her jawline instead. Meanwhile, his large hand easily found the hidden zipper at the small of her back.

This gesture sent a jolt of terror through her. As they struggled, the butterfly wing brooches pinned to their chests brushed and collided against each other, seamlessly piecing together to form a complete pair of wings.

Sophie’s face paled. Unable to break free with her own strength, she struck him fiercely. When her struggles proved futile, her eyes rimmed red from intense emotion, and tears slipped down her cheeks without warning. She raised her hand and slapped him. "Julian! I don’t want this! Don’t touch me!"

Since she was pinned to the bed, she couldn’t exert much force. That slap held little to no deterrence. In the eyes of an onlooker, it would have looked more like a playful, flirtatious pat. Yet, Julian’s movements slowed to a halt.

A sliver of clarity returned to his hazy eyes. What he saw was Sophie’s uncontrollably weeping eyes—they did not hold sorrow, grief, or shame, but pure anger and disgust. He looked at her, silent and unmoving.

With an expressionless face, he raised a hand and gently wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.

Just as he stopped, his phone began to ring.

Julian closed his eyes and fished out his phone, answering it blindly. Lying right beneath him, Sophie could clearly hear Stella Sutton’s tearful voice coming through the receiver. "Julian, come find me, please. Charles is out of prison. He got a two-day furlough, and he’s coming to find me..."

Almost at that exact moment, the weight pressing down on Sophie vanished. Julian had already gotten up. Because the effects of the drugged liquor hadn’t dissipated, his footsteps were unsteady, yet he left without looking back. He didn’t spare Sophie a single glance.

The entire process happened incredibly fast, as if everything had merely been a hallucination. Sophie’s heartbeat had yet to calm down. The air still lingered with the ambiguous rose scent of the aromatherapy candles, mingling with the scent of fir and ebony wood Julian had left behind.

Julian’s instinctual drive toward Stella had reached such an extreme level. Even when he was delirious, even when he could barely walk straight, and even when he was completely aroused and past the point of no return—he could still immediately pull away and force himself to sober up.

Sophie wiped her tears away haphazardly, a mocking smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She could no longer stay in this room. Ignoring whether it was pouring rain outside, she straightened her clothes, grabbed her bag, and left.

The roads were difficult to navigate in the rain. It took Sophie over two hours to drive back to her marital home. She had nowhere else to go. She only returned here because she knew Julian wouldn’t be coming back. He was going to be busy.

Charles Sterling had gotten a furlough and was out. He must have found out about Stella’s betrayal, and the ensuing conflict would not be minor. Things were bound to get chaotic. Even after being drugged, Julian had forcefully pulled himself together and left to protect her. How deeply affectionate. Sophie had finally witnessed just how reckless Julian could be when he loved someone.

As for that bottle of liquor... she could roughly guess what had happened. After all, it had been Master Lockwood’s birthday banquet over there. Even if certain things occurred, they couldn’t be blown out of proportion; they would just have to be swallowed silently.

Sophie hadn’t been back for long when Old Madam Sterling’s call came in.

"Sophie, what is wrong with you? Even under those circumstances, you couldn’t keep Julian around, letting someone else reap the benefits?" The old madam was clearly angry, her tone full of accusation.

Sophie wasn’t surprised. "His legs belong to him. If all your painstaking efforts were useless, what use am I?" she replied in a flat tone.

"You foolish child. A man is most easily blinded by lust at a time like that. If you had just used a few tricks, would he not have surrendered?" the old madam scolded unhappily.

Sophie wanted to laugh when she heard this. What a pity. The old madam had underestimated Julian. His self-control had always been ironclad. Moreover, Stella’s call had come through—how could he possibly continue?

Her phone call with the old madam ended on a sour note. Sophie could roughly guess the old madam’s motives. She must have known in advance that Charles had gotten a furlough. She had deliberately tried to tie Julian down here so that Charles and Stella could confront each other, or perhaps even rekindle their old flame.

Sophie couldn’t be bothered to think about it anymore. Either way, she was just the pawn caught in the middle.

She didn’t know what the situation was like within the Sterling family. As expected, Julian didn’t return to their marital home for the next two days. He had left that day fueled by the drug and his desires, so if he met with Stella... Sophie knew exactly what would have happened. She couldn’t say how it made her feel, but apart from disgust, she no longer cared about such matters.

***

Helios’s team-building trip was scheduled for Veridia. The large group set off and arrived at their destination. Peter Preston had booked a restaurant where the entire team would gather in the evening.

Sophie took her room card and headed straight to her room. Standing by the window, she suddenly realized something. Adrian Hawthorne seemed to be on a business trip in Veridia as well.