After parting ways with Kyle, Sophia returned to her mansion because she was not a fan of staying out in the cold during winter. Nobody would want to move around with this degree of coldness.
Once she got home, she turned on the heater. In her theater room, she was going through online comments while watching a movie.
At three in the afternoon, the news about Bethany stealing someone else’s paintings was exposed. All her famous paintings were drawn by someone else.
Apparently, the White family used a huge sum of money to buy the copyright for the paintings of an unknown painter for ten years. They were rich, so they did it to pave a bright path for Bethany.
If Sophia did not appear back then, Bethany would most likely become Alexander’s wife based on her talents alone.
Unfortunately, Sophia’s appearance disrupted the White family’s plan. Bethany had no choice but to take a step back. She pretended to be furthering her studies abroad and became Alexander’s confidante instead. Patiently, she waited for the chance to replace Sophia.
Of course, only Sophia and Katherine knew about this. Netizens had no idea what went on behind the scenes.
However, they were enraged enough just to find out that Bethany’s paintings were actually from another painter. In recent years, intellectual property rights in the country had been gaining more importance.
At the moment, Bethany was marketing herself as a talented personality. According to Benjamin’s investigation, Expedite was in dire straits. When the White family noticed that there was no hope of getting Bethany and Alexander together, they decided to let Bethany enter the entertainment industry instead to rake up some money.
Katherine was the one who ordered someone to expose the breaking news. After the information was provided by Sophia, together, they decided on which day to expose the news.
The reason why they picked this day was simple. Bethany had been causing trouble for years and was still doing so even after Sophia and Alexander had gotten a divorce.
To finish Bethany off once and for all, Sophia intentionally picked the date that Bethany was going to sign an agreement with a talent manager.
Greater publicity meant greater money.
According to Benjamin, stealing ownership of paintings was not the only terrible thing that Bethany had done.
Sophia wanted to mess with Bethany since she had the time and money to do so.
In less than half an hour, the news about Bethany stealing ownership of paintings became trending news. Around five in the evening, while Sophia was preparing the ingredients for her dinner, she received a call from Katherine.
She wiped her hands and turned on the loudspeaker for the call. “Isn’t it the film festival today?”
By the end of the year, every industry was getting hectic. Katherine was still at Jadeborough on the previous day but had to fly to Salinsburgh the next morning. The following week, she would have to fly over to Baykeep to attend an annual film festival.
“It hasn’t started yet. Oh my gosh, it’s so cold! I really want to put on a jacket,” Katherine replied.
Sophia raised her brows and asked, “Isn’t it negative five degrees in Salinsburgh today?”
“I’m the ice queen! I can die from the cold, but I can’t die from breaking character! Forget it. Let’s not talk about this anymore. Did you see what’s trending this afternoon? I heard from Jonice that Bethany’s manager seems to be taking advantage of this to get more jobs for Bethany!”
Sophia was not surprised. She answered, “Let her be happy for a few days.”
I want Bethany to know how painful it is to fall from a greater height!
Katherine scoffed, “How could Bethany be so shameless?”
“Well… Maybe because she’s poor.”
Katherine felt the blow too and said, “Ahh! I’m poorer than her!”
While cleaning the mushrooms, Sophia smilingly said, “You have Joshua and me.”
“You’re right. I’m so touched!”
Sophia could hear Jonice calling for Katherine, so she hung up after telling Katherine to get back to work.
When night fell, Sophia leisurely ate her dinner alone in her mansion. It felt nice to have a hearty bowl of mushroom soup in winter. Moreover, she was overjoyed by the two events that happened that day.
The next morning, it started snowing in Jadeborough. There was a thick layer of snow in the front yard downstairs.
Sophia suddenly felt playful and decided to build a snowman after changing her clothes.
Halfway through gathering snow, Yvonne called to ask if she would attend the annual year-end dinners for her companies. Sophia rejected it without hesitation.
Before, she did not want to reveal herself. Currently, she did not feel like it either.
It was still snowing after she hung up. The snowman only had a lower body, so Sophia kept her phone back in her pocket and continued to build a head for the snowman.
“Hi,” a man suddenly greeted. Sophia nonchalantly placed the head on the snowman before looking toward the front yard’s entrance.
A man dressed in gray from head to toe was standing amid the falling snow. He had attractive facial features and a tall nose bridge. His eyes contained a hint of delight. While holding a black-colored umbrella, he stood by the entrance, gazing at Sophia.
Sophia raised her brows and shook off the snow on her gloves before walking toward him. “Are you talking to me?”
“Excuse me, miss. I’m your neighbor, Stephen Goodstone. My internet is not working all of a sudden, but I have something urgent to work on. Can I borrow your internet for a while?” he asked courteously.
He spoke very fluently, and his tone of voice was easy on the ears.
Sophia replied with a faint smile, “You can drive to a Starbucks at the plaza five kilometers away.”
Even though the man was good-looking, she still tactfully rejected his request.
Stephen was stunned for a moment. Right after, he smiled and said, “My apologies. Please forgive my abruptness.”
Sophia remained silent. All she did was watch as he turned around and left.
What just happened did not bother Sophia at all, but never did she expect to meet Stephen again after only a few days, and it was during Katherine’s birthday party.
By the time Sophia arrived after taking her sweet time, many people were already there.
That day, Katherine was wearing a silver dress that accentuated her figure. She exuded a cool and alluring feel with her vintage-style makeup.
Upon seeing Sophia, she ran over in high heels. “Soph, you’re finally here!”
Jonice, who was not far away, felt embarrassed. Fortunately, they were close to everyone that was here that day.
Sophia smiled and handed a present to Katherine. “Happy birthday, pretty lady!”
“Thank you, sweetheart!”
Katherine wanted to give Sophia a kiss, but the latter heartlessly avoided it.
She was not angered by that. Instead, she happily led Sophia inside. “Soph, let’s go! There’s a really handsome man here today. I’ll introduce you to him!”
With that, she gave Sophia some kind of look.
Helplessly, Sophia smiled and asked, “What are you planning to do again?”
While saying that, Sophia was already dragged toward Stephen.
“Come here. Let me introduce you guys. This is Joshua’s friend in university, Stephen Goodstone! Stephen, this is my best friend, Sophia Yarrow!” Katherine introduced.
It was a rare sight to see Sophia being surprised. However, she regained her senses in no time. She smilingly said, “What a coincidence, Mr. Goodstone.”
“What a coincidence indeed,” he replied.
His lips curved into a smile, and his dark eyes carried a hint of gentleness.
He seems like an amiable guy.
Katherine clicked her tongue and questioned, “You guys know each other?”
“We’re neighbors.”
Sophia cut Katherine off before the latter’s thoughts spiraled uncontrollably.
After taking a breath, Katherine exclaimed, “So Stephen is your next-door neighbor who doesn’t care about the mansion growing mold because he’s too rich?”
Sophia was rendered speechless.
That foolish child. How can she say that in front of the person himself?
