The living room's bustling noises were divided by a glass door.
Sophia was looking at Donald closely, watching his response.
When he heard how she addressed him, he shut down even further. He turned to return to the living room, his black eyes fixed on something with no feeling in them.
Sophia moved immediately to the front to obstruct his path.
Donald gave a little scowl. "Out of my way."
People were much more interested in hearing him talk because of his elegant tone and deep, lovely voice.
Sophia had a suspicion. "You... don't recognize me?"
Donald gave her a downcast expression. "Should I?"
He sensed that strange eyes were watching him attentively as soon as he stepped into the Johnson home.
Unlike the obedient and repulsive looks of others, its gaze was transparent and open.
Donald glanced at her a few more times because of this.
The girl had amazing beauty. She had fair skin. She had a mole at the corner of her eye and passionate eyes, which were lovely but not provocative. She was meekly standing in the corner, yet there was something almost rebellious about her.
And she didn't run away when she saw that he was staring at her. Rather, she shot him a quick glance in return.
Her boldness surprised him even more than the ladies who had thrown themselves at him. At first, he had assumed she was different from others. He was called "honey" by her.
Donald stressed, "Miss, I'm married," with a hint of impatience. Please act appropriately."
Sophia was taken aback.
Despite it being obvious that he didn't know her, the man claimed to be married. Was the registration with the Civil Affairs Bureau incorrect?
"May I ask who your wife is?" she inquired.
"It has nothing to do with you."
His response was succinct and icy.
Pulling out a photocopy of the marriage license, Sophia held it up to him and said, "Mr. Donald Parker, this man is you, right?"
Donald examined the photocopy, noting the woman's name was Sophia Johnson.
He looked up again, making fun of her. "An original isn't that pricey, Miss Johnson? If you're leading this, you ought to act more professionally."
Donald didn't go back to the living room after that. Rather, he marched past the little garden and out to the parking lot.
Sophia tried to talk to him as she hurried after him, but two men in black suits stopped her.
As he left, Sophia held her ground and called out to him. "This paper is authentic, Donald. You may verify it with the Civil Affairs Bureau if you don't believe it."
Donald continued on. He immediately got into the car and drove off.
He left his personal assistant behind and went back to the living room, where Mia was waiting for him.
Mia had just watched Sophia clutching to Donald Parker but didn't catch what exactly they were saying. Seeing Donald go and Sophia racing out on her electric bike to pursue him, she instantly inquired, "Why did Donald leave? Did someone insult him?"
The personal assistant gave a little smile. "Donald had to go early since he needed to attend to some affairs. Miss Johnson, will you kindly let the household elders know?"
It was clear that the employer didn't hold it against the girl because he didn't chastise her.
Mia politely waved the helper away with a nod right away.
The remainder of the Parker family left after deciding on the wedding date and wrapping up lunch.
Lucas seemed concerned after saying goodbye to the visitors. "Donald departed; why? Were we doing anything to aggravate him?"
Mia balled her fists, remembering how Donald had appeared preoccupied all day, as if he was searching for someone, and then seeing Sophia's troublemaking expression.
Her gaze wavered. "I saw Sophia bugging Donald, Dad. When Donald left, he left a note and appeared to be quite upset."
"What message?"
"Donald said, he wants you to teach your daughter well." Mia nibbled on her lip. "With Sophia behaving like this, will the Parker family think we're not disciplining her properly?"
Lucas's expression became pale.
-
Sophia lost sight of Donald when riding her electric scooter outside the villa area.
Her phone rang while she was second-guessing what she had done.
As she answered, she heard Samson, her subordinate, talking on the other end of the telephone. "Boss, a lot of people have been looking into who Dr. Bruce is lately."
Sophia furrowed her brow. "They haven't uncovered anything, have they?"
"Obviously not. After all, nobody would ever assume that Dr. Bruce, the woman who solved the hydrogen fuel problem, is actually a pretty young lady who recently received her college degree."
"Anything else?" Sophia interrupted his digression.
"Oh yes, I've found the information on Donald Parker!"
"Tell me."
"The second son of the Parker Family's old master is Mike Parker. He was transferred abroad when he was young because of rumors that he has a violent and cruel nature. Everyone assumed that his older brother, Donald Parker's father, would inherit the family estate. But Donald Parker abruptly returned to the nation last week, employing a cunning strategy to compel his father to step down and assume leadership of the Parker Group."
Samson questioned inquisitively, "Didn't you discover someone suitable for a fictitious marriage today? How could the fiancé suddenly become such a heartless monster? Boss, the company's IPO will be impacted if your marital situation is unstable."
Sophia scowled. "Check out his schedule and contact details. I'll go speak with him once again.
She caved in to Maryann's ridiculous demand for an instant marriage since it would help the company's initial public offering (IPO) if she was married as the legal representative.
However, she was wed to an unfamiliar person and was unaware of any hidden agendas.
Since Donald Parker was not an average person, it would be wise to file for divorce as soon as possible in order to prevent pointless arguments.
Sophia ended the call and massaged her temples.
It was getting a little problematic. Donald Parker was followed by security wherever he went because of his prominence, thus meeting him would be difficult.
She should not have angered him earlier by calling him "honey" out of the blue.
With a sigh, she turned on her small scooter and made her way home.
She arrived in an outside city village after leaving the busy city core.
She barely had enough money to rent an old house here when she moved out of the Johnson family home during her junior high years. Since then, she'd become used to it and never moved.
She turned a corner and was just about to get home when an old elderly woman in her 80s or 90s jumped out of the side of the road!
Sophia braked hard and barely avoided a collision.
She assumed the elderly woman was trying to purposefully cause an accident when she first glanced at her, but she soon recognized something wasn't right.
The elderly woman was tiny and skinny, yet she was well-dressed and didn't seem to be from a typical household. She wore a tag around her neck with a phone number and a letter saying, "Please call this number if you find this lady." There will be an award."
A family member was missing for someone.
Sophia pulled out her phone right away and started ringing the number on the tag.
The elderly woman had been looking at nothing before, but now she was moving. Her hazy eyes gleamed as she grasped Sophia's wrist. "My grandchild-in-law! My granddaughter-in-law is you."
Sophia's lips corner quivered.
After being unmarried for twenty-two years, she unexpectedly married someone else.
These days, was the Civil Affairs Bureau selling husbands at wholesale prices?
"Granny, who is your grandson?" she questioned jokingly, finding it humorous.
The elderly woman tortured her mind.