Con

CHAPTER 35

Sophia’s POV

Before returning to the United States, I had prepared myself for another encounter with Elijah, but I hadn’t expected it to happen so soon. As I walked out of the restroom, my mind was racing. I had thought about this moment for so long, rehearsing what I would say and how I would act, but now that it was actually happening, all of that preparation seemed to have vanished from my mind.

I’m just glad I’m not panicking.

I remembered how I had prepared for this before coming over here. I had arranged for Reese’s nanny and the nanny’s sister to come and help look after my daughter..

Now, I was grateful for that foresight, as it gave me some peace of mind knowing that Reese was in good hands and I could continue to pretend that she wasn’t my own child while Elijah was around.

“It’s going to be okay,” Daniel assured me, reaching over the table to gently rub my hand.

“I want to get out of here now, but it might seem too obvious,” I told him nervously.

“Relax, Sophia. Everything will be okay.” He ordered drinks for us, then leaned forward to whisper. “Do you think he noticed anything?”

“I’m not sure, but I’m just not comfortable having him and Reese here together,” I hissed, keeping my

voice down.

Our drinks arrived fast, thank God. We tried to act normal, though I was feeling very much on edge.

Suddenly, Daniel was staring hard at me. From the corner of my eye, I could see Elijah approaching our table quickly. My body tensed, but on the surface, I pretended not to be affected.

“Yes, Daniel, I think you should do that for your business,” I said aloud, thinking fast and changing the subject.

He was able to catch on at once. “Of course, Sophia,” he answered casually, leaning back on his chair with a smile. “I’m definitely going to hire that consultant.”

I knew that Elijah was now within earshot. He could probably hear what we were saying. Then to my horror, he actually sat down and began chatting us up. Daniel acted naturally and just kept responding for

both of us.

“Sophia, you’re here too!” I suddenly heard a cheerful voice greeting me. When I looked up, I was surprised to see Julia.

She explained to me that she’d been looking for me and wanted to surprise me. “You helped me do that revision, so I only had to finalize a few things more,” Julia told me gratefully. “Then I was allowed to fly here and be with the team.”

That was when I noticed how Elijah was looking at her with immense intrigue and great interest. I felt a blaze of irritation igniting within me. Now he’s fascinated with another woman again. So what’s new?

I was shocked when without warning, he grabbed her wrist and asked for her name. When Julia turned toward him, I noticed how her eyes lit up after the initial surprise. Her gaze lingered on him for a long time before she answered his question.

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CHAPTER 35

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“I have a meeting in a few minutes,” I suddenly announced, standing up and surprising everyone. “I need

to go.”

I began walking away even before the others could respond. I didn’t want to sit there and just watch my ex -husband flirt with another woman in front of me.

“Sophia, wait,” Daniel called after me. He caught up with me outside the restaurant. “Let me go with you. I can drive you back to your office.”

“No, it’s okay, Daniel,” I told him. “I can go by myself. It’s just near here.”

“Where’s your office located?”

I hesitated before answering him. “The Sinclair Realty Group building.“.

“What?!” he asked, bewildered. “Are you kidding?”

Sighing, I shook my head. “I wish I was. But nope, it’s actually there. Apparently, Urban Next is using a space there because one of the investors in this branch is Sinclair Realty.”

“But you wanted to avoid Elijah at all costs,” Daniel pointed out.

“Yes, that’s right. But what can I do? The big case that Trevis assigned me to turned out to be a project for Elijah’s company! I only found out when I arrived here.”

“Oh, wow.” Daniel was shaking his head in disbelief.

“And here’s the other catch…” I continued, my heart pounding as the hard truth came back to me. “Guess who the program director is for that project? It’s Serena!”

“Whoa, that’s really something else. What do you plan to do?”

I shrugged. “You know, at first, I wanted to tell Trevis that I couldn’t take on this project anymore. But he’d spent a lot already on bringing me here, setting up an apartment for me and even a temporary car, giving me a signing bonus, and all that. Of course I considered just returning everything when I got the chance…” I trailed off, suddenly feeling weary and worried again as I was reminded of this fact.

Rubbing my temples, I continued, “I even considered resigning from Urban Next and just going back to Paris to work somewhere else.”

“But?” Daniel asked. He knew there was a but somewhere,

“But I’m supposed to be over Elijah, you know? He can’t be the reason that I’m going to stop my life again

or

have my new career disrupted. I can’t give up the project just because it involves him and Serena! I want to be professional about this, so I thought it shouldn’t matter. I can go through with this, and I can prove to them and to myself that I’ll excel no matter what.”

I was filled with determination as I said it, but my heart was still thumping hard. I was trying to be strong and courageous, but there were doubts inside of me.

“Are you sure about this?” Daniel looked really concerned.

Y nodded. “I’ve already confirmed it with Trevis. Besides, I’ve built up a great idea for the project already, and he absolutely loves it.”

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“I see. Well, if you’re sure, then I’m supporting your decision. Just know that I’m always here for you, Sophia.”

Before I got into the car I was using, Daniel told me he’d be the one to wait for Elijah to leave. Then he’d see to it that Reese and her nanny got back to our apartment safely.

“You’re the best,” I told him with much appreciation. “Thank you!”

After several minutes, I found myself glancing around before walking into the elevator at the Sinclair Realty Group building. I wondered if Elijah had gone back here too.

Just then, to my astonishment, a blonde–haired woman in a stylish suit came in. It was Serena herself! She sneered at me, saying, “I didn’t know you were such a stalker.”