Carrying her bag, Sophia went to buy another bottle of cologne. She left the mall with her haul at six o’clock in the evening.
Katherine had been busy after the New Year holidays. Sophia had not tried to buy so many things by herself for a long time.
On top of that, Sophia splurged more than three hundred thousand on one trip. Truth be told, she felt satisfied after her shopping spree.
She had to thank Bethany for that. If the latter had not insisted on competing with her for the bag, Sophia would not be so persistent in purchasing a bag for herself.
Her phone rang just as she put her things down.
Seeing that it was an unknown number, Sophia got into her car and locked it before answering the call, ”Hello?”
“Hi, Ms. Yarrow. I’m the salesperson from Arterius. Well, Ms. White decided not to purchase the bag you were interested in just now. Do you still want the bag?”
Sophia raised her eyebrows, finding the situation amusing. “I have no interest in buying things that other people don’t want.”
Moreover, especially when that person was Bethany.
The salesperson immediately apologized, “I’m sorry, Ms. Yarrow. I didn’t mean to be rude. I thought you were interested in that bag earlier. Since you don’t want it anymore, I won’t bother you again. I hope you have a great day.”
After hanging up, Sophia could not help but let out a snort.
If I knew that Bethany couldn’t afford to pay for the bag, I wouldn’t have left so quickly. Wouldn’t it be nice to stay and witness her getting embarrassed? That was a miscalculation on my part. What a shame!
Sophia looked at the time. It was quarter past six. Collecting her thoughts, she put her phone away and drove to Mirage.
After getting caught in traffic, Sophia reached Mirage at half-past six.
It was impolite for her to be late for the first meeting.
Yvonne had already arrived. Upon seeing Sophia, she greeted, “Over here, Ms. Yarrow.”
Nodding, Sophia looked at the other two men at the table.
It was not hard to recognize Lukas as Sophia had seen his picture before. Besides, she also saw him at Darrell’s birthday banquet a few days ago.
Sophia put down her bag and took her seat. “I’m sorry for being late, Mr. Dawson. I was caught in traffic just now.”
“It’s fine.”
The man exuded a cold aura. Even though he was smiling, he still looked unapproachable.
Sophia glanced at him before asking, “Mr. Dawson, are you familiar with the food in Jadeborough?”
“Yes,” he answered.
Despite the curt reply, Lukas fixed his gaze on Sophia.
For some reason, Sophia was not offended by his keen gaze. If anything, it was affectionate and pitiful.
Sophia sniggered at her thoughts. I must be overthinking.
After all, Lukas was a politician who came from a prestigious family. He was not a playboy like Horatius, who could easily develop an interest in a woman.
Sophia ordered a few signature dishes. She spoke up first before the dinner began. “Mr. Dawson, you seem to be interested in my mother.”
Lukas’ cold expression changed drastically when he heard her question.
“Yes, I am,” he answered frankly.
Taking a sip of coffee, Sophia probed, “Mr. Dawson, is this our first time meeting?”
Sophia had a good memory. She would undoubtedly remember Lukas if she had crossed paths with him in the past.
Lukas had a clear goal for this meeting. Besides, Sophia was trying to sound him out. Therefore, he decided not to beat around the bush. ”Did your mother tell you that she wasn’t your grandparents’ biological daughter?”
For once, Sophia was stunned by the revelation. The smile on her face faded considerably.
Rachel had never told her about these matters. “I’m sorry. She didn’t,” Sophia admitted.
Lukas was spot on with his guess. Taking out a photo from the inner pocket of his clothes, he placed it in front of Sophia. “They are my dad and grandpa. And that’s—”
“My mother,” Sophia interjected.
It was a black and white photo of a family of four. Sophia recognized her mother, Rachel, at first glance.
At that moment, the door of the private room was pushed open. The waiter pushed the serving cart and began to serve the dishes.
Two minutes later, Lukas spoke again when the door was closed. “Your mother is my aunt. Our family lost her when she was ten years old. We never gave up looking for her all these years. However, we failed to find her.”
Upon hearing his explanation, Sophia finally understood why Delilah called her an ungrateful brat when she was a child. Furthermore, she also knew why Delilah always asked Rachel for money first whenever her mother took her back.
When Sophia was young, she could not fathom Delilah’s actions. She always felt that the latter was biased. Despite having a son and a daughter, Delilah’s attitudes toward her children could not have been more different.
At last, she finally discovered that Rachel was not Delilah’s biological daughter.
“I have no news of Aunt Rachel until I saw you at Old Mr. Swain’s birthday banquet a few days ago. You resembled her as well as your granny when she was younger. That night, I sent someone to Coldbridge to investigate you and your mother. She went by the name Zoey Sharp in the past. Later, she changed her name to Rachel after she got married. Her birth name was Rachel Sharp. She was nicknamed Ray because she was a ray of sunshine for our family,” Lukas explained.
He continued, “After Aunt Rachel was abducted from Doveston that year, she was sold to Old Mrs. Sharp’s family. They renamed her Zoey. They were hoping for a son. Three years later, Old Mrs. Sharp finally gave birth to a boy. Since then, she no longer cared about Aunt Rachel. However, your mother wanted to repay them for raising her. She waited until you turned four before cutting ties with the Sharp family.”
Sophia clearly remembered what happened next without further explanations from Lukas.
Delilah lied about having a serious illness and asked Rachel for a lot of money. Delilah’s true purpose was to buy a house for her son. After finding out that Delilah had a terminal illness, Rachel decided to return to the countryside to see her for one last time during that New Year. Much to Rachel’s surprise, Delilah was alive and kicking. The latter lied about her illness to squeeze Rachel for money.
On that fateful day, Sophia’s parents drove back to Coldbridge. They were crushed underneath the wheels of a large truck driven by a fatigued driver. That accident took place on the road across their house.
Sophia learned the truth after she ordered someone to investigate the Sharp family. Hence, Sophia did not show any kindness to both Delilah and Rupert when they reached out to her last month.
She could not have cared less about the harsh comments from the netizens. In her opinion, if it were not for Delilah’s lies, her parents would not have driven back in such a hurry that day after their argument with Delilah. Therefore, they would not have died so tragically.
Nevertheless, Sophia finally realized that there was a hidden story behind this.
