"Now that I’m back, do you think there’s still a place for you?" Sophie asked.

Janice sat there, listening to Sophie, feeling uncomfortable all of a sudden.

If only one person raised such a question, she would not care.

However, there had been people who questioned her again and again, so she couldn’t say it didn’t matter.

But even so, she would not show it.

She snorted coldly and said, "Is that so? If you think you have a chance, why do you have to go through all the trouble to say this to me? You could just go straight to Christopher and snatch him back."

"Do you think I wouldn’t try to?" Sophie gritted her teeth.

Neither woman was prepared to back down. Their gazes were fierce and intense.

"Let’s wait and see."

Finally, Sophie stood up and left in a huff.

Janice waited until her figure was far away before falling limply back into her chair.

When Lucy returned to her seat, she only saw Janice sitting there alone. She frowned and asked, "Where is Doctor Valen?"

"She left." Janice replied coolly.

Lucy nodded. "Oh, then let’s go back. I just received a call from the station that there will be a big news tomorrow morning."

Janice nodded when she heard this, and then she stood up and walked out. "Can I get a free ride in your luxurious car?"

The two of them walked out of the restaurant and Lucy asked with some embarrassment.

Janice looked at Lucy. Although she wasn’t in a good mood, she still smiled and said, "What do you mean ’free ride’? I’ll send you home."

Lucy raised her eyebrows. "Thank you, Janice."

After Christopher received Janice’s call, he drove back to the Batemans house in a hurry.

"Sir."

When Uncle Charlie saw him, he hurried to greet him happily.

As soon as Christopher entered the room, he asked, "Where is Sophie?"

Uncle Charlie was stunned, then said, "Miss Sophie has gone out."

"Out?"

Christopher frowned, turned around, and was about to leave.

"Halt!" A dominant voice suddenly sounded.

Christopher stopped in his tracks.

Nathan took a step forward and snorted. "What do you take this place for? You come and go as you please."

Nathan sat on the sofa in the living room with a cold face.

Only then did Christopher turn around. "Or else what?"

His face was also cold.

Both father and son stared at each other for a few seconds.

Nathan looked away first.

"Move back here. Your room is still kept for you."

As Nathan spoke, he picked up his cup and took a sip of water.

Christopher snorted. "You must be joking. I’m married. Of course I have to stay with my wife."

Hearing that, Nathan put the cup back on the table heavily.

"Are you still going to be stubborn about this?"

"You are the one being stubborn," Christopher retorted.

"You..." There was a flash of anger in Nathan’s eyes, but he suppressed it. He raised his eyebrows slightly and changed the topic. "Have you thought about how to celebrate your grandfather’s birthday next week?"

Christopher raised his eyebrows. "Grandpa said that he doesn’t want to celebrate."

Nathan didn’t say anything further, and he just stared at the cup on the table as his eyes narrowed gloomily.

Christopher did not stay any longer. He turned around and walked toward the door.

He had just arrived at the main door when he ran into Sophie, who had just returned from outside.

"Brother?"

When Sophie saw him, her eyes immediately lit up.

...

When Christopher saw Sophie, a trace of coldness flashed in his eyes. "I was just looking for you."

Sophie was delighted. It was rare for her to be back for so long without Christopher looking for her even once.

She said with a smile, "Then let’s go out for a walk and talk."

As she spoke, she turned around in high spirits.

"No need. Let’s talk right here." Christopher said.

Hearing this, Sophie stopped walking and looked back in embarrassment. "As you wish."

She lowered her head and crossed her hands nervously, her heart beating wildly.

Christopher stared at her, Janice’s question still in his mind.

"Hubby, do you... really hate Sophie?"

Yes, he hated her, or rather, he used to.

Now he just felt indifferent about her.

"Stay away from Janice."

He said coldly.

Sophie, who was originally joyful at seeing him, heard his words, and got a dose of reality.

She raised her head to look at Christopher in disbelief. He had come looking for her just to warn her to stay away from Janice.

How could he do this?

"Chris, how can you treat me like this?" Sophie bit her lip and her eyes turned red, feeling wronged.

Christopher didn’t even look at her.

Sophie’s heart was filled with determination.

She sobbed and said, "Chris, I know. What happened three years ago made you hate me, but it wasn’t my fault. At that time, we..."

"Shut up." Before she could finish her words, Christopher interrupted her coldly.

Sophie could only swallow her words.

Christopher said coldly, "Nothing happened three years ago. You know better than anyone else."

"But Chris, it did happen. Why are you unwilling to admit it?" Sophie met Christopher’s gaze. Her voice became softer and softer.

"Admit what?" Christopher narrowed his eyes. "Do you think that I’m Joey, who you can easily manipulate?"

"I didn’t..."

"You know exactly what you did. You don’t have to explain it. I’m warning you one last time today. Don’t mention what happened three years ago to me again."

Christopher gave her one last cold glare and strode out of the gate.

Sophie just stood there, staring at Christopher’s departing figure, her sad eyes full of humiliation and remorse.

"Sophie."

There was a sudden call behind her.

Sophie knew that it was Nathan. She quickly pretended to wipe away the tears on her face, turned her head, and acted wronged. "Dad... why did you come out?"

Obviously, this move worked for Nathan.

His eyes were instantly filled with pain.

"Sophie, don’t worry. I will let Christopher bear the responsibility for you."

"Dad, don’t make things difficult for him. I don’t want him to hate me in the future."

As Sophie spoke, she rubbed her eyes.

Nathan’s heart ached when he saw this, and he became even more resolute.

"You don’t have to worry about that. I’ll arrange everything for you."

Hearing Nathan say this, the corners of Sophie’s mouth curled into a faint smile of satisfaction.

However, when she looked at Nathan, she still looked upset.

"Dad, let’s not talk about this anymore. It’s too cold outside. Why didn’t you put on a coat before you came out? You’ll catch a cold. Let’s go inside."

"Okay", Nathan nodded.

The two of them walked into the house.

By the time Christopher arrived home, Janice had not yet returned.

...

He checked the time and found that it was already past eight o’clock.

Although it was not too late, he was still worried about Janice after she asked that question.

So, he called her.

However, she did not pick up.

He tried a few times with the same results, and he started feeling anxious about her.

Why didn’t she answer the phone?

At this time, Janice was also in a dilemma. As soon as she drove Lucy home, she received Christopher’s call.

She looked at his number on the screen. She wanted to pick it up, but she also didn’t want to.

She had not figured out how to face him yet.

Even though Sophie’s account of things was obviously biased, she still felt uncomfortable about it.

She didn’t know anything about Christopher’s childhood, so she didn’t know the kind of relationship they had. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

However, she could sense that Sophie was different from Denise.

At least in the case of Denise, Christopher was frank about everything.

But when facing Sophie, he was always evasive.

In the beginning, he did not take the initiative to introduce them. Later on, he refused to let her meet Sophie.

It seemed as if all of this proved that it wasn’t such a simple relationship between him and Sophie.

He even seemed a little guilty.

She didn’t know if she should pursue the matter.

She loved Christopher and didn’t care about his past, but she couldn’t stand his past being brought up all the time.

This was human nature. Even if logic told her that some things could be ignored or even turned a blind eye to, there was always a trace of uneasiness in the depths of her heart.

It was like planting a seed unknowingly. No one knew when it would sprout from the bottom of their hearts.

This uneasiness was definitely a time bomb.

She didn’t want to spend the future in uncertainty.

The phone kept ringing. She was a little distracted, so she parked the car by the side of the road, leaned against the steering wheel, and thought for a while before deciding to answer.

No matter what, she had to face it, right?

"Hello," she said in a low voice.

Christopher’s anxious voice quickly came from the other end of the line.

"Where are you?"

"I’m outside." Janice knitted her brows.

"I’ll go find you."

Christopher took the car keys and was about to reach the door when Janice said, "No need, I’m coming home now."

Hearing this, Christopher stopped and said, "Okay, I’ll wait for you at home." Janice didn’t start her car immediately after hanging up.

Although she had promised Christopher that she would return immediately, she hadn’t sorted out her thoughts.

However, she knew in her heart that she shouldn’t suspect her husband just because a woman said a few words.

She should not make a conclusion before she knew the whole picture.

Thinking of this, she started the car, and soon she arrived at their villa.

Janice parked the car in the garage. The moment she walked out, she saw Christopher walking towards her.

She paused and walked forward. "Why did you come out?"

Christopher merely stepped forward quickly and reached out to hold her tightly in his arms.