“Sophia, that’s enough! Chloe did wrong, yes—but she has already paid the price. Why must you keep hounding her?”
I tilted my chin upward, my gaze cold and sharp.
“Paid the price? With your family’s protection, she’s standing here, shedding tears like some delicate flower—this is what you call a price?
Ethan, let me remind you: I am your fiancée. Not her.”
The atmosphere grew tense.
Ethan’s eyes flicked between me and Chloe, irritation spreading across his brow.
“Sophia, this sharpness of yours only makes the world think you’re petty.
You’re a world-renowned architect. Shouldn’t you be gracious, above such trivial matters?”
I smiled faintly, though the chill in it was unmistakable.
“Trivial matters?
My hard-earned work being stolen—trivial?
My team being infiltrated by an outsider at your whim—trivial?
Ethan, when you urge me to be ‘gracious,’ do you mean you want me to be soft-hearted—or to submit?”
His face darkened, jaw tight.
“Sophia, don’t push me.”
I met his fierce gaze, each word deliberate.
“It’s not me pushing you. It’s you pushing me.”
As the standoff sharpened, Chloe suddenly collapsed to her knees with a thud.
Her shoulders shook as she sobbed, voice broken.
“Sophia, it’s me who wronged you. But I truly have nowhere else to go…
Years ago, my parents gave up everything to save Mr. Miller. On their deathbeds, their only wish was that I wouldn’t starve.”
“If you hate someone, hate me. Don’t take it out on Ethan…”
Her tears spattered against the cold marble floor, a portrait of helplessness.
Ethan’s eyes softened with pity as he bent quickly to lift her up.
“Sophia Carter!”
He snapped his head up, fury flashing in his voice, laced with accusation.
“How can you be so cold-blooded to a girl with nowhere to go? Her parents once saved my father’s life. That debt, the Miller Family will never forget!”
I stood unmoved, looking down on the scene like an outsider, my face expressionless.
“Ethan, if your family wants to remember that debt forever, so be it. But tell me—what does that have to do with me?”
His lips parted, but no sound came. His face burned red with shame and frustration.
Finally, he spat out the words, his voice raw:
“Sophia, someone as cruel as you is unworthy to ever set foot in the Miller Family!”
I couldn’t help but let out a mocking laugh as I looked at him.