Chapter 2
The moment I woke up, the first thing I saw was the ocean, and my mood instantly lifted.
Still, after being Matthew's agent for so many years, it had become second nature to open Twitter and check the latest news about him.
The feed was flooded with a live reality show.
Its title flashed across the screen in bold letters: [Mr. Carter and His First Crush: An Ordinary but Happy Day.]
The show was being filmed at a seaside villa.
The longer I stared, the more familiar it looked. That villa was right next door to me.
The entire island belonged to me, and every villa on it was mine. I usually rented them out.
The one Sophie and Matthew were filming in was the smallest and cheapest, yet the daily rent still ran into tens of thousands of dollars.
After all, I had furnished every single villa with top-of-the-line furniture.
Sophie faced the camera with a dazzling smile. "Welcome to my home. It's a little simple, but I hope you won't mind."
Blake clung to Sophie's hand, his voice brimming with excitement. "Mr. Moore, your house is so beautiful."
Matthew nodded beside them, joy flickering across his face, impossible to hide.
It wasn't surprising that neither Matthew nor Blake knew the villa belonged to me.
In past summers, I had wanted to bring Blake here on vacation, but he always refused, saying he found being with me boring.
I knew very well that Matthew had brought Blake here plenty of times instead, alongside Sophie, enjoying happy summers without me.
The comments section exploded with envy.
[Simple? She must be kidding. Then what am I living in? A slum?]
[No, not even a slum. Sophie's doghouse is worth more than my entire lifetime's salary. God, I wish I could be rich someday.]
Soon, viewers dug up that the villa, and in fact, the entire island, was privately owned. When someone asked if Sophie was secretly wealthy, a shy blush colored her cheeks.
"This wasn't something I bought. It was a gift from my daddy."
After Sophie's playful exchange with the audience, the ordinary but happy day finally began.
The tasks were simple. Matthew and Sophie would make lunch together, collect seashells at the beach to create a decoration, and end the evening with fireworks.
Their lunch was nothing fancy, just ham and cheese sandwiches. Even someone with zero cooking skills could pull that off.
The ingredients had already been prepared by the production team. All Matthew and Sophie needed to do was fry some ham, slice bread and tomatoes, and assemble everything.
But Sophie fumbled clumsily as she tried to fry the ham. She didn't even know how to turn on the induction stove, holding a lid in front of her face like a shield as if a few drops of oil might burn her.
She was every inch the innocent heiress who had never lifted a finger at home.
Matthew tied her apron for her and patiently showed her what to do. Blake giggled behind his hands as he peeked at their interaction.
The livestream audience swooned over their chemistry. While gushing about the couple, they still made sure to mock me.
[I knew it. Mr. Carter never loved his agent. The unloved one is always just the mistress.]
I was used to these cruel comments. I yawned, bored, about to close the livestream. And then I saw Sophie smear peanut butter onto Blake's sandwich.
I didn't even bother putting on proper clothes. I threw on a coat and ran straight to the villa next door. By the time I got there, Blake had already eaten half of his sandwich.
The audience froze as a strange woman barged into the scene. Even Matthew stared at me in shock. "Lydia, what are you doing here?"
Sophie recognized me instantly. Hostility flashed across her eyes, though she quickly masked it. She couldn't afford to let the viewers see her jealousy on camera.
I had no time for her. Blake's face had flushed bright red. Angry rashes spread across his arms, and his breathing grew ragged.
"Mom, help me—" he gasped, before collapsing to the floor.
The crew rushed to respond, realizing it was an allergic reaction. They frantically asked if anyone had brought medication.
Sophie stood frozen, helpless. Matthew panicked, too, but it was clear. He didn't even remember what his own son was allergic to.
Ignoring Sophie completely, I bolted upstairs to the cabinet where I had stashed an emergency medical kit. Inside was the allergy medication I had prepared for Blake long ago.
When I rushed back, Blake was limp but thankfully not in full anaphylactic shock.
I lifted his head gently and fed him the medicine. A staff member quickly handed me a glass of water to help him swallow.
Gradually, the redness on his skin began to fade, though he was still nauseous and weak.
The filming couldn't continue. I carried Blake into a bedroom to rest. After closing the door softly, I turned back to find Sophie on the couch, eyes red with tears, Matthew at her side, whispering comfort. The sight made my blood boil.
Meanwhile, the livestream chat was going insane with twisted commentary.
[Sophie didn't mean it. If you were a real mother, you'd take better care of your child. How can you blame her?]
[Sophie has always been so good to Blake. I bet this agent bribed the crew to set Sophie up.]
[We'll just wait until Blake wakes up. Kids don't lie. If he says Sophie didn't mean it, then it proves this woman staged the whole scene just to clear her own name.]