The Man Who Destroyed Me Is Now Begging to Mend Me 5

A bitter smile touched Sophia’s lips. She had fooled herself into thinking she was numb to Lucas’s coldness. But his command still sent a fresh, sharp pain through her chest.

She knew there was no point arguing with a man who had already chosen the other woman’s side.

“I won’t apologize,” Sophia said, her fist closing tightly around the bracelet. “What for?”

Emily looked up at Lucas with well-practiced vulnerability. “I’m causing trouble here, Lucas. I should

Lucas caught her wrist before she could take a second step. “You’re staying right here.”

His attention snapped back to Sophia, his expression darkening. “Now, Sophia, apologize to Emily.”

The room blurred as tears filled Sophia’s eyes, twisting his familiar face into a stranger’s.

go.”

She lifted the simple bracelet between them. “This is my stuff in the first place. Since when is taking back what was stolen a crime?”

“Your stuff? Since when do you have anything of your own?” Lucas’s lips curled in a sneer. “I’ve paid for every stitch of clothing on your back.”

The words hit Sophia like a physical blow, forcing a bitter laugh from her lips.

He knew perfectly well she earned her own living, yet he took every opportunity to demean her.

“This bracelet came from Grace Abbey,” she countered, her voice trembling. “You didn’t pay a cent for it.”

Lucas’s eyes dropped to the simple beads in her palm. “You think I care about some cheap bracelet?” he scoffed.

Hot tears streamed down Sophia’s face without warning. Wiping them away, Sophia made a silent vow-this would be the last time he reduced her to this.

“Fine!” With one sharp motion, she snapped the bracelet’s cord, sending beads skittering across the floor.

Lucas watched the scattered beads come to rest, his hand curling into a white-knuckled fist at his side.

He knew how much that bracelet meant to her, but the moment Emily wanted it, he didn’t hesitate to take it off and hand it over.

Lucas’s head snapped up, his eyes blazing. “Sophia!”

“I want a divorce,” Sophia said, her voice eerily calm. As she opened her hand, the last bead from the bracelet clattered onto the floor between them. “Let’s just end this.”

The sound was small, but in the tense silence, it was deafening, echoing in Lucas’s mind.

He let out a short laugh, his gaze locked on her. “You think a threat will work? You should know better than

“This has to be a ploy, he thought to himself. ‘She loves me too much to go through with it. She has accepted her role as Emily’s replacement from the beginning and has never once tried to leave.

‘She would never have the strength to walk away from me.’

“Go make us something to eat, and we can forget this ever happened.” Lucas was certain he had thrown Sophia a lifeline. He waited, fully expecting her to be overcome with relief and scurry off to the kitchen.

He’d been away on business, and days of unfamiliar rich food had left his stomach unsettled.

What he craved was Sophia’s cooking-simple, hearty food that tasted like home. It was a flavor he couldn’t find anywhere else.

“You can go eat your ass,” Sophia shot back. She picked up her bag, her lips twisting into a scornful smile, and walked out without a backward glance.

That smile grated on Lucas’s nerves more than the insult itself. In his frustration, his eyes fell on the string of prayer beads lying scattered on the floor, and he gave them an impatient kick.

‘So that’s her game. She wants to challenge me? I’d like to see just how long her resolve will hold,’ he thought, fuming.

*****

Sophia sped away from Nightfall Estate, her phone buzzing relentlessly on the passenger seat. Lucas’s name flashed across the screen again and again until she finally grabbed it and blocked his number for good.

When she looked up at the road, she blinked, her vision blurring for a moment. She braced for the familiar sting of tears, but when her fingers touched her skin, it was dry.

It was only then that she noticed the soft patter against the windshield. A fine drizzle had begun to fall, and a quiet melancholy settled over her, as gray as the sky.

Up ahead, the flickering hazard lights of a sleek black car broke the rhythm of the rain.

A man in a soaked suit, looking to be in his forties, stood beside it, waving frantically at passing traffic.

Almost without conscious thought, Sophia found herself flipping on her turn signal and pulling over.

She rolled down her window as the man rushed over. “Everything okay?” she asked.

“It’s my boss,” the man said, his voice tight with panic. “He’s having a heart attack. The ambulance is stuck in a multi-car accident. Please, can you take us to the hospital?”

Sophia hesitated. Letting two strange men into her car, especially in this weather, felt dangerous. Every cautionary tale she’d ever heard flashed through her mind.

Seeing her hesitation, the man added urgently, “I promise we’re not dangerous. My boss is-”

But Sophia was already moving, cutting the engine and stepping out into the downpour. “Just get him to my car, now,” she called out as she rushed toward their vehicle.

As she got closer, she recognized the distinctive emblem of the black Maybach.

Working together, they carefully transferred the elderly man from the luxury sedan into Sophia’s more modest car.

The old man’s lips were tinged with blue, and each ragged breath seemed like a struggle, clear signs of his critical condition.

Sliding behind the wheel, Sophia started the car and pulled back onto the road, pushing through the veils of

rain.

In the backseat, the middle-aged man was a whirlwind of activity on his phone, coordinating with a hospital and alerting the family.

Beyond the windows, the storm seemed to intensify, as if trying to match the urgency inside the car.

After ensuring everything was in place, the man turned to Sophia with heartfelt appreciation. “You’re the only one who stopped in this downpour. We can’t thank you enough.”

A warm smile touched Sophia’s lips. “Some things are just meant to be.”

Fifteen minutes later, they arrived at the hospital entrance where medical staff stood ready.

The team swiftly transferred the elderly man to a stretcher and hurried him inside for emergency care.

Just as Sophia was about to drive away, she spotted a lone leather shoe in the backseat—the one the elderly man had been wearing.

After a moment’s hesitation, she parked properly and carried the shoe to the reception desk, logging it as a lost item.

Sophia was just turning to leave when a group emerged from the hospital’s main entrance.

At the front of the group was a man whose height and posture commanded attention. He turned his sharp gaze on her, and the intensity in his eyes was so commanding that it felt like a physical pressure.

“That frown means trouble, Sophia thought. She averted her gaze and continued walking, brushing past the group without a second look.

It wasn’t until she was back in the driver’s seat that she felt the chill of her wet clothes clinging to her skin.

As she dried her hair with a towel from the backseat, a notification popped up on her phone while she was opening the navigation app.

It was a post from Emily: [Nothing says ‘forever’ like a soft-boiled egg made with love! My ultimate comfort food.]

The post featured two photos-one showed a soft-boiled egg with a ketchup heart, and the other captured a tall man’s back as he stood at the stove, an apron tied around his waist.

Sophia couldn’t help but compare. When she was with Lucas, he had acted like even pouring her a glass of water was a significant concession. Cooking a meal was utterly out of the question.

The fact that he was now cooking for Emily spoke volumes about where his true affections lay.

She closed the page and entered her apartment address into the navigation system before driving out of the parking lot.

As she watched the heavy rain outside, a single decisive thought crystallized in her mind-this marriage was

over.

Mark