CHAPTER 10

Elijah’s POV

I sat at the dining table, absentmindedly picking at the food on my plate. Thoughts of Sophia consumed me.

Is Sophia with that man at the moment, enjoying a delicious lunch together in a romantic cafe? Or is she lovingly preparing a meal for him in their very own kitchen? 

It killed me to picture it in my mind. I remembered all the times she had cooked for me here at home, her dishes always made with such care and attention to detail. Yet, I had never truly appreciated her efforts. 

The guilt weighed heavily on me as I realized how much I had taken her for granted. The silence in the house only amplified my turbulent emotions, leaving me lost in a whirlwind of jealousy, regret, and longing.

It’s been weeks now since I last heard from her. Each passing day only added to my anxiety. 

She must have changed her contact number, I thought in alarm. Was it because of me?

It was hard to swallow and accept. How could she just cut off all ties with me like that?

The next day, I was still thinking about Sophia when I saw a familiar woman running across the lobby of our office, holding some huge envelopes. Kayla Davis, Sophia’s best friend. 

“Maybe I should talk to her, ask how Sophia’s doing…” I whispered to myself as I went to approach her. I knew that if anyone had information about Sophia's whereabouts, it would be her.

“He’s really mean!” I heard her say furiously. That’s when I noticed that my assistant Connor was walking beside her, trying to catch up with her fast pace. “He shouldn’t have treated her that way, so it’s only right that she left.”

“But you should both hear his side of the story first,” I heard Connor answer. 

Kayla was so angry and focused on her rant that she would have crashed into me if Connor had not stopped her in time. 

“Whoa! Be careful, Kayla,” Connor said as I also stopped in my tracks. “Take it easy.”

Was she talking about me and Sophia just now? I wondered silently. Maybe she’d been arguing with Connor who was most likely defending my honor. 

“Kayla, hey,” I greeted casually. “Are those the designs you’re turning in today?” I just remembered Serena mentioning that she’d asked Kayla for another revision. 

When Kayla realized it was me in front of her, she straightened her shoulders and confidently said, “Yes. So I wanted to show them to you first and explain that —”

“I’m sorry, but I believe it’s Serena you’re specifically working with on that project.”

She frowned at me and looked pissed off again. “Yeah, and she’s been really impossible!” she complained. Then she added, “Well, this is exactly what Sophia had told me about you… So thanks, anyway.”

She began to move away, but I caught up with her hastily. “What did Sophia say?” I asked, my heart skipping a beat. 

At first, she was hesitant to speak. Then eventually, she answered, “That if I approached you out of the blue about this, you’d say no because you don’t like people going over someone’s head… blah, blah, blah…”

I narrowed my eyes at her, trying to determine if she was playing with me or if Sophia had said a lot more. But I didn’t want to appear too eager to find out more about my wife. 

“It’s because of what she said that I’m here talking to Connor,” she then pointed out, looking at my dependable assistant. 

“Did Sophia say that too?”

“She advised me to set an appointment through Connor. So I’m just about to do that.”

“So you’ve been talking to her recently?” I wondered. 

“Of course, we always update each other with our lives. Ever since she moved to Paris, she’s been…” Then she trailed off, her eyes widening and realizing that she’d just committed a slip of the tongue. 

“Paris,” I repeated slowly. “So she really went there to study, huh?”

Kayla didn’t answer, but the truth was written all over her face. 

I reached for the envelopes, surprised at myself for feeling a tiny spark growing in my chest. Sophie knows me well. It seems she really cared about me… Perhaps there’s still a chance in the future…

“Give it to me,” I suddenly told Kayla. 

“What?” Kayla asked in bewilderment. 

“Give me your design proposal. I’ll go through them and get back to you.”

Kayla looked surprised but delighted. “Thank you!”

I simply nodded, then turned to leave, my mind forming the conviction that I needed to see Sophia as soon as possible. 

Connor followed me into the elevator. “Sir, you have an appointment this afternoon with our contractors, then afterwards, there’s a meeting with the board…” 

I wasn’t even listening as he rattled off with my appointments for the day. When we reached the top floor, I stepped out at once. “Book me a flight to Paris, Connor,” I blurted out without bothering to look at him. “I need to go there on a business trip.”

“Paris?” I could hear the doubt and astonishment in his tone. 

“Yes,” I said with irritation, stopping to face him. “We have a partner there and an ongoing project, right? I need to go to Paris.”

Just then, from the corner of my eye, I saw Serena coming into the office. She gazed at me with curiosity. 

“You’re going to Paris? Let me come with you, Elijah.”