Free Web NovelChapter 117: Chapter 117: Inherent Viciousness
"We won’t be back for lunch, Anne. Just make your own," Nina Halloway told Anne, then excitedly linked arms with Sophie Shaw to head out.
Ethan Austin had his hands in his pockets, silently following the two women.
Once inside the elevator, he saw Nina Halloway holding tightly to Sophie Shaw’s arm as they chatted and laughed together. He couldn’t get a word in, nor could he get any closer to Sophie. He started to feel irritated, and his gaze toward Nina grew increasingly disdainful.
’What was I thinking, taking this bodyguard job?’
"You drive."
Nina Halloway tossed the car keys to Ethan Austin and, with her arm linked through Sophie’s, climbed into her own luxury sports car.
"Should we call Alaric?"
Nina Halloway asked.
Sophie Shaw quickly waved her hand. "Let’s not bother him."
"How is that bothering him? You should call him whenever you need something, big or small. You should order him around whenever you get the chance. Your husband is supposed to be at your beck and call. Use him without a second thought! Otherwise, what’s the point of having one?"
Nina Halloway started to call Alaric Blackwood as she spoke, but Sophie Shaw stopped her.
She pointed a finger toward Ethan Austin, who was driving. "We already have the brawn."
She really didn’t want to bother Alaric Blackwood with something like moving old sofas and cabinets. Besides, she couldn’t even picture a refined man like him doing that kind of manual labor.
Since Sophie Shaw insisted on not contacting Alaric Blackwood, Nina Halloway had to let it go.
The three of them arrived at a furniture mall and began to browse.
Sophie Shaw was on a tight budget, so she planned to stick to the affordable stores instead of looking at high-end brands.
However, Nina Halloway dragged her into a high-end brand store and pointed at a dark green, straight-backed sofa. "I think this one looks good."
When Sophie Shaw saw the price, she almost fainted.
"It’s just for the office lounge. We don’t need to buy something this expensive."
Just as she was trying to drag Nina Halloway out of the store, a figure entered her vision.
It was Damian Morgan.
The man was dressed in designer clothes and a black overcoat, exuding a powerful aura. Following beside him was an older woman—his mother, Yvonne Quinn.
"Isn’t this place a bit too expensive?" Yvonne Quinn asked Damian Morgan quietly, a worried look on her face.
He smiled and patted her shoulder. "I’ve already gotten you and Dad a bigger house. Of course the furniture has to be high-end, too."
"But how much will all this cost?"
"No matter how much it costs, Mom, you don’t need to worry."
Yvonne Quinn sighed. "But at the end of the day, isn’t it that young lady’s money you’re spending? I mean, really, you let a steady, down-to-earth girl like Sophie go, and for what? To marry some pampered young heiress. The first time we met her, she acted so high and mighty, looking down on your father and me. We both dislike her."
"Mom, don’t bring up Sophie again. She’s already married to some rich guy. Besides, it wasn’t me who left her—she’s the one who left me."
Damian Morgan twisted the truth without batting an eye, which made Yvonne Quinn’s expression change drastically.
"She dumped you?"
"She dumped me because she thought our family was too poor." freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
The moment the words left his mouth, Damian Morgan looked up and happened to see Sophie Shaw standing not far away.
She was glaring at him with contempt. His heart dropped, and he panicked for a second, but he quickly composed himself and offered Sophie Shaw a polite smile.
Sophie Shaw was disgusted. ’I can’t believe how shameless Damian Morgan is.’ He’d been caught red-handed bad-mouthing her and twisting the truth, yet he could still smile at her?
"Sophie, long time no see."
Damian Morgan even took the initiative to greet her.
She strode up to him and, without a second thought, slapped him across the face.
The resounding slap instantly drew the attention of everyone nearby. Pairs of eyes, hungry for drama, turned to look at them.
Sophie Shaw was seething. "Damian Morgan, you’re even more despicable than I thought."
"Don’t be so impulsive, Sophie. We’re in public. We should at least save some face for each other."
’After all, we’re both people of some standing now.’
"Someone like you even knows the meaning of shame? How dare you say that I dumped you because you were poor and married some rich guy?"
She repeated the words Damian had just said. Overcome with fury, she raised her hand to slap him again, but this time her wrist was caught by Yvonne Quinn, who was protectively shielding her son.
The older woman’s eyes were red with fury as she glared at Sophie. "What gives you the right to hit my son?"
"He deserved it."
’He spews slander so easily, flinging mud at me without a shred of guilt. I wish I could just rip that mouth of his apart.’
"Mom, that’s enough. Let’s go."
Damian Morgan tried to pull Yvonne Quinn away and leave.
Yvonne Quinn shook off his hand and glared relentlessly at Sophie Shaw. "You’re a gold digger who looks down on the poor! You dumped my son to marry a rich man, and then you have the nerve to hit him in public! You venomous snake! Apologize to my son right now, or I swear I won’t let you off the hook today!"
"Are you out of your mind?"
Ethan Austin stepped forward, pulling Sophie Shaw behind him. He pointed at Yvonne Quinn. "Your son is clearly the gold digger here, and you have the nerve to blame her? Are you even human?"
Yvonne Quinn refused to believe Ethan Austin. She only trusted her son. "I raised my son with my own two hands. I know exactly what kind of person he is. He would never lie! It’s that woman’s fault. She abandoned my son to marry a rich man. That’s a fact!"
Initially, Yvonne Quinn had thought it was a shame that Damian and Sophie had broken up. But now, hearing that Sophie had supposedly dumped her son for being poor, she was consumed with rage. Her pride wounded, she lost all reason and lunged at Sophie, ready to fight.
Ethan Austin held her back while Nina Halloway also rushed forward, blocking Yvonne Quinn and keeping her away from Sophie Shaw.
In the scuffle, Yvonne Quinn fell flat on her rear. She yelped in pain, then pointed at Ethan Austin and started screaming, "Who do you think you are, protecting her like that?"
"Are you her little boy toy or something?"
"Is there no justice in this world?! Bullying an old woman in broad daylight..."
Yvonne Quinn sat on the floor, wailing and making a scene like a common shrew.
As the crowd of onlookers grew, Damian Morgan grew more and more exasperated. He quickly tried to help his wailing mother up from the floor, whispering, "Mom, people are watching. Stop making a scene."
"I want them to watch! That little bitch is the one who wronged you!"
"Mom, Vianne and I are already legally married, and the wedding is being planned. A scene like this will embarrass the Kane family."
Damian Morgan couldn’t believe it. He’d just brought his mother to look at some furniture, and not only had he run into Sophie Shaw, but she’d also managed to overhear every single word he’d said.
This conflict was unavoidable. He could only persuade his mother to calm down and not blow things out of proportion.
"You’re so spineless! You let that bitch play you, and then she has the audacity to hit you! Would it kill you to hit her back?"
Tears streamed down Yvonne Quinn’s face as she sobbed uncontrollably.
Left with no other choice, Damian Morgan had to forcibly drag her out of the store.
Watching the mother and son flee in disarray, Sophie Shaw couldn’t resist shouting after Damian Morgan, "You can marry up and wrap yourself in the prettiest package, but you’ll never be able to hide the rotten person you are deep down!"
The piercing words made Damian Morgan freeze in his tracks.
He turned back, his gaze meeting Sophie Shaw’s cold, sharp glare. Though his eyes churned with a towering rage, the corner of his mouth curved into a polite smile for the benefit of the crowd. "I’m sorry," he said, his voice carrying. "I’m sorry that when we were together, you had to ride on the back of my bicycle while you watched other girls ride in BMWs. It’s my fault for being too useless to make you happy."
