Don't Be a Tease, Mr. Blackwood

Chapter 66: Chapter 66: The Agreement Is Canceled, I’ll Take Responsibility

"Instead of worrying about other people’s affairs, how about we have a little chat about our breach of contract?"

Sophie Shaw struggled, but it was no use.

Alaric Blackwood’s body was like a fortress of steel. The arm wrapped around her waist was like an iron clamp, and she couldn’t move an inch.

She looked at him, completely exasperated. "Fine, we can talk. But can you let me go first?"

"We’ll talk just like this."

"Alright, let’s talk."

Sophie Shaw felt utterly powerless. "And what brilliant idea might you have, Mr. Blackwood?"

"Those two agreements are now void."

Sophie Shaw was speechless.

The agreement had been drafted in a hurry. There was only one clause regarding a breach: if either party violated the terms, the marriage would be terminated immediately and without delay.

The penalty for breach of contract was a five-million-dollar payout.

Alaric Blackwood clearly wasn’t hurting for that kind of money. Besides, they had breached the contract together...

No wonder Alaric Blackwood had signed the agreement so readily back then.

For him, the agreement was no deterrent at all.

"Why don’t we just pretend the agreement never existed? What do you think, Mrs. Blackwood?"

As he spoke, the arm around her waist tightened abruptly.

Pain shot through her waist, and she furrowed her brow. "You mean... a real marriage?"

"Now that it’s happened, I’m willing to take responsibility."

"Besides, we were engaged to begin with. You don’t need to feel any pressure."

Alaric Blackwood’s tone was light and persuasive.

He was certain that last night had been Sophie Shaw’s first time.

She had given him something so precious, and he had to take responsibility for it.

"But you..."

Sophie Shaw’s mind was a complete mess. Thinking of all the tabloid news about Alaric Blackwood, she couldn’t make a decision so quickly.

"You said it yourself, didn’t you? If we got along well, we could extend the marriage."

"I did say that, but that was with the agreement in place."

Alaric Blackwood tilted his head to look at her, a smile in his charming eyes, his gaze gentle. "Where did you put the agreements?"

"In my room."

"Go get them. Then come find me in the study."

Sophie Shaw murmured an "oh," and when she felt the arm around her waist loosen, she immediately scrambled out of Alaric Blackwood’s embrace and ran back to her room on the second floor.

She retrieved the agreements from a desk drawer, left her room, and found the study. Alaric Blackwood was already waiting for her.

The man walked straight toward her, took the agreements from her hands, and turned toward the large desk.

His back was to her. She didn’t know what he was doing.

Then she heard the sound of a paper shredder starting up. Alarmed, she rushed forward...

Too late.

Alaric Blackwood had fed both agreements into the machine, shredding them to pieces.

Her eyes widened as she stared at him. "You—" ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

"They’re voided agreements. Can’t I shred them?" Alaric Blackwood’s lips curled into a triumphant smile.

"You did that on purpose?"

"I did. So what? Not happy about it? I gave you the card. If you’re not happy, go to the mall and spend five million for me. I’d love to see it."

...

Sophie Shaw was both surprised and baffled by this side of Alaric Blackwood.

"I told you I’d take responsibility for you. I wasn’t joking."

Alaric Blackwood watched the shredder, making sure both documents were destroyed beyond recognition. Then he turned his gaze and ruffled the top of Sophie Shaw’s dazed head with his large hand.

"If you don’t say anything, I’ll take that as a yes."

As he spoke, he wrapped an arm around her waist and gently pulled her into his embrace. His large hand cradled the back of her head, pressing her cheek against his chest.

Listening to the strong thumping of his heart, her thoughts still a tangled mess, she suddenly heard the man’s voice by her ear. "Mrs. Blackwood, last night was rather sudden. I didn’t take any precautions."

Her heart dropped. She immediately struggled out of his arms, turned, and ran out of the study.

She ran all the way out of the villa complex and bought the morning-after pill at a nearby pharmacy. Unable to wait until she got back to Maplewood Estate, she found a supermarket, bought a bottle of water, and swallowed one of the pills right there.

By the time she returned to Maplewood Estate, a strange black sedan was parked in the driveway. She had no idea who it belonged to.

She went inside and heard voices coming from the tea room on the first floor.

The tea room door was ajar, and she could faintly make out the voices of Alaric Blackwood and his assistant, Preston Chase.

’So the car outside must be Preston Chase’s.’

Assuming they were discussing work, she didn’t want to disturb them. She tiptoed upstairs and returned to her room.

Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she pulled her phone from her pocket and saw a message from Joseph Shaw: [I’ve already had someone pack your things. You’re coming for the homecoming visit tomorrow, so this saves you the trouble of packing.]

She hesitated for a moment, then, remembering the design sketches she had left out in her old room, she immediately called Joseph Shaw back.

The moment the call connected, she skipped the pleasantries and got straight to the point. "Dad, where are the drawings that were in my room?"

A few seconds of silence passed before Joseph Shaw’s voice came through. "I’m not sure. I’ll ask the housekeeper who cleaned your room."

"Ask her now."

"Alright."

Joseph Shaw didn’t hang up, but he must have muted the call, because for the next five minutes, there was complete silence from the other end.

Growing anxious, she said "Hello?" a few times. Finally, Joseph Shaw replied, "I asked the housekeeper. She said the papers were all wrinkled—some on the desk, some on the floor—so she thought they were just scrap and threw them out."

"What?"

"She threw them away."

"Dad, that was my mom’s sketchbook from before she died! It was full of her designs!"

Even though the designs weren’t complete—mostly just concepts—those unfinished works were still incredibly valuable.

"Sophie, calm down. I’ll have the housekeeper check the trash cans outside. Maybe the garbage collectors haven’t come by yet."

Joseph Shaw offered that small bit of reassurance before hanging up.

She waited for over half an hour, but Joseph Shaw didn’t call back. Instead, he replied via text message: [The housekeeper searched all the trash cans near the villa, but couldn’t find anything. The trash must have already been collected.]

Sophie Shaw felt herself start to break down. She tried calling Joseph Shaw again, but he didn’t pick up.

The incessant ringing of his phone was giving Joseph Shaw a headache.

He silenced his phone and looked over at Bianca Kane, who was sitting at the desk and fiddling with the drawings. "Do we really have to do this?"

Bianca Kane’s attention was entirely on the sketches. "Your ex-wife’s designs are quite good, but they’re unfinished."

"So what do you plan to do with these unfinished works?"

"Have the company’s designers refine them and turn them into finished products."

These designs will probably be bestsellers.

Joseph Shaw felt a knot of unease in his stomach. Thinking of Sophie Shaw’s panicked voice on the phone, he couldn’t stop himself from stepping forward to try and snatch the sketches back from Bianca Kane.

Bianca Kane sensed his intent and quickly shoved all the designs into a bookcase drawer, locking it.

"Joseph, you married into my family with nothing but a daughter in tow. I never looked down on you. I even helped you get rid of that house you could barely afford the mortgage on, giving you and your daughter a warm home."

She lit a slim cigarette, her sharp eyes staring at Joseph Shaw through the swirling smoke. "I’ve been so good to you and your daughter. Consider your ex-wife’s posthumous work a form of repayment. How about it?"