Chapter 9

<p>Worried about Sophie, Lucas left Charlotte with his assistant and caregiver, then hopped on a helicopter and headed straight back to Riverdale.</p><p>Once he landed in Riverdale, he ordered an enormous bouquet of blue roses and rushed over to the Hart residence.</p><p>On the way, Lucas had his speech all planned out. He was ready to pull at Sophie's heartstrings and reason with her, determined to win her back.</p><p>Sophie was so kind, so loving, and so tender-hearted. Lucas was convinced she'd come around and they'd get back together.</p><p>But what Lucas didn't expect was that when he arrived at the Hart residence and rang the doorbell, it was the housekeeper who opened the door.</p><p>Normally, the housekeeper would greet Lucas with a big smile, but the moment she saw him, her smile vanished.</p><p>She shot him a cold look and snapped, "What are you doing here? You're not welcome!"</p><p>Lucas tried to sound polite. "I'm here to see Sophie. Is she home?"</p><p>The housekeeper let out a cold laugh. "She's not here! Listen, Miss Sophie doesn't have time for you. She's got better things to do. Why don't you take your heartless self somewhere else and stop bothering us!"</p><p>Lucas frowned, his voice sharp. "This is between me and Sophie. You're the housekeeper and why are you sticking your nose in?"</p><p>The housekeeper spat at him and slammed the door shut.</p><p>No matter how many times Lucas rang the doorbell, she acted like he didn't even exist.</p><p>Lucas had never been so embarrassed in his life; his mood was in the gutter.</p><p>Then, his mother called.</p><p>"Lucas, I saw her parents at The Carousel Restaurant. They're probably having dinner there. You should come over right now"! Mrs. Bennett said.</p><p>Lucas didn't waste a second. He jumped in his car and sped off to The Carousel Restaurant.</p><p>But as he pulled into the parking lot, he ran into James, who was getting out of his customized Brabus, a bag of snacks in hand.</p><p>James squinted at Lucas, who was holding a bouquet of flowers. "Mr. Bennett, what's all this?"</p><p>James had always ignored Lucas before. This was the first time he'd ever bothered to greet him.</p><p>Lucas was surprised and a little awkward. "My fiancée's having dinner here, so I came to join her and her parents."</p><p>James smirked. "Is that so? My wife and her parents are big fans of this place too. We're all having dinner together tonight."</p><p>Is he seriously bragging about being married?' Lucas thought. He managed a polite smile and said, "Congrats on your wedding, Mr. Sterling."</p><p>"Thanks!" James replied, flashing a grin.</p><p>James grinned and waved the bag in Lucas's face. "This is my wife's favorite, pudding cups. I went out of my way to get them for her!"</p><p>Lucas glanced at the pudding cups in James's hand and sneered inwardly. 'Pudding cups? Seriously? She's probably not from some low-class background.</p><p>No wonder she married James without revealing her identity,' Lucas thought.</p><p>With his mind elsewhere, Lucas put on a fake smile and stepped into the elevator.</p><p>Not knowing which private room Sophie was in, Lucas went to the front desk to ask.</p><p>After learning from the waiter that Sophie and her parents were dining in the VIP Suite, Lucas made a beeline for it, bouquet in hand.</p><p>But before he even reached the door, he was unexpectedly stopped by a bodyguard.</p><p>*****</p><p>The bodyguard, dressed in black, cut him off rudely. "Our boss is inside, having dinner with his wife and her parents. If you're not family, scram!"</p><p>Lucas didn't buy it for a second. He was certain it was Sophie and her parents inside.</p><p>Now they'd even brought in bodyguards to block him, and cooked up some tale about a "boss" and his "newlywed wife."</p><p>Sophie sure knows how to spin a story to mess with me,' Lucas thought.</p><p>He was convinced Sophie was mad at him, but with those burly bodyguards blocking his way, there was no way he could even catch a glimpse of her.</p><p>Sophie had blocked his number, so he couldn't even get through to her.</p><p>Lucas tracked down a waiter to see if he could borrow a phone and call Sophie.</p><p>But as he was looking for a waiter, he ran into some other diners.</p><p>As Lucas walked by, the diners gave him strange looks.</p><p>The gossip was quiet, but Lucas could still hear their whispers.</p><p>"Seriously, how shameless can you get? How does he even dare to show his face in public?"</p><p>"Yeah, I've never seen anyone so low,getting involved with his brother's wife? My god, that's sick! If it were me, I'd never be able to show my face again!"</p><p>"Exactly! He could have a rich heiress, but he goes after a widow instead. Wow, talk about twisted tastes!"</p><p>Lucas stopped in his tracks, shooting a look at the people who were pointing fingers and whispering about him.</p><p>What are they even talking about? Lucas wondered, feeling clueless.</p><p>He couldn't understand their words.</p><p>Still confused, Lucas flagged down a waiter and asked if he could borrow a phone. The waiter brushed him off, saying he didn't have one, and gave Lucas a look like he was beneath him,full of contempt.</p><p>What the hell is going on? 'Lucas thought, feeling seriously annoyed.</p><p>Then, his assistant called.</p><p>"Mr. Bennett, something big happened! "the assistant said.</p>