Chapter 485


    Sophia nced at Madeline before opening the box in the briefcase. To her surprise, a set of emerald


    jewelryy neatly inside.


    As someone who had seen a lot in her life, Sophia had had many people shower her with gifts,


    especially when they wanted to secure Sunshine Group''s investment.


    However, due to her somewhat mysterious profile in thepany, no one could ever find out her likes


    and dislikes. As a result, the gifts she received were plenty but varied.


    Even the fake vase that had once turned Megan''s family topsy-turvy was identally acquired by


    Sophia. After all, it was impossible to get out of socializing, so why not collect some antiques that might


    be put to good use in the future.


    Later, after acknowledging the Dawsons as her maternal family, Sophia''s collection grew even more.


    As it turned out, Penelope''s hobbies during her younger days were making money and umting all


    kinds of antiques. She acquired so many of them that the small vi next to the Dawson residence was


    brimming with her impressive collection.


    Since Lukas was a public official, the Dawsons needed to keep a low profile. Sophia, however, was a


    businesswoman and could always use an antique or two as decorative pieces. Therefore, Perrin


    handpicked several items the year before and gifted them to Sophia.


    Anyone with a bit of understanding and knowledge of antiques would know that the set of emerald


    jewelry was far from ordinary. Needless to say, Sophia could tell from the detailed sculpting alone that


    the jewelry items were vintage and worth a small fortune.


    Madeline nced at Sophia and exined, "When Mdm. Rose went abroad, the only thing she took


    with her was this set of emerald jewelry, which also happened to be Old Mrs. Lenoir''s wedding gift.


    Before the Lenoir family went bankrupt, someone had offered Old Mrs. Lenoir more than eighty million


    for the jewelry set. However, she rejected them because she intended to pass the jewelry down to


    Mdm. Rose. Later, when the Lenoir family got into trouble, Old Mrs. Lenoir did consider selling the set


    cheap to get themselves out of the financial hole. Sadly, the debt was far too much, and Old Mr. Lenoir


    had killed himself before anything could be done. As such, Mdm. Rose and Old Mrs. Lenoir left the


    country with nothing but this wedding gift of hers."


    After a pause, Madeline continued, "A few days ago, Mdm. Rose instructed me to gift the jewelry to


    you. She knows you aren''t short of money or antiques, but she still wanted you to have it. I hope you


    won''t reject her kind offer, Ms. Yarrow."


    Naturally, there was no way Sophia could bring herself to turn down such a heartfelt gesture.


    In fact, if Rose hadn''t passed away, she''d have waited until udius and Sophia''s wedding day to give


    thetter the jewelry set in person.


    s, that opportunity was gone. She didn''t even have the energy to speak before she breathed her


    last, so she could only trust Madeline to pass the message on to Sophia.


    Sophia closed the box and met Madeline''s gaze. "Thank you, Ms. Zobek. I love this gift."


    "That''s good to hear, Ms. Yarrow," Madeline replied, her lips curled into a smile.


    She had served Rose faithfully for over two decades, and now that thetter was gone, she seemed to


    have aged ten years in a matter of days.


    "I''ll be busy tomorrow, so I won''t be able to see you off, Ms. Yarrow. Have a safe trip. Goodbye until


    next time."


    "Okay."


    Having seen Madeline off, Sophia stared wistfully at the box in her hands before walking back into her


    room.


    When udius returned that night, Sophia wasted no time showing him the emerald jewelry set. "Look.


    Mdm. Lenoir entrusted Ms. Zobek to give this to me."


    "Oh. This was originally intended for Yasmin."


    Upon hearing the man, Sophia arched a brow. "If I hadn''t followed you in the casino that fateful day,


    would you and Yasmin be married by now?"


    I wouldn''t be surprised if that were the case... After all, the Lenoir and Lawre families have a strong


    alliance, and Yasmin does seem to like udius a lot. Besides, Rose''s condition was deteriorating so


    quickly that both families might have considered bringing Yasmin and udius'' wedding forward.


    udius lifted his head and stared solemnly at Sophia. "I won''t marry Yasmin."


    Even before Sophia appeared, I had never once thought about marrying Yasmin. Why would I when I


    don''t even like her? I had known this since I was a kid, for goodness'' sake...


    Sophia couldn''t help but chuckle. After closing the jewelry box, she carefully ced it back into the


    briefcase and locked it. "Well, don''t be so sure of yourself," she said teasingly, eyshes fluttering as


    she turned her attention back to udius.


    Feeling his heart skip a beat, udius approached Sophia and pulled her onto the bed. "I don''t


    remember what Alexander Xenos was like, but I, udius Lenoir, will never marry someone I don''t


    like."


    After a pause and seemingly knowing what Sophia was worried about, he added, "Not even my parents


    will be able to force me into it."


    Moreover, I really don''t have any romantic feelings for Yasmin...


    Sophia looped her arms around the man''s neck and smiled. "You won''t marry someone you don''t like,


    but what about those you like?"


    "I won''t like anyone else."


    In all honesty, Sophia was only joking. She wasn''t the kind to get hung up on things that weren''t within


    her control. Alexander had already lost his memory, so there was a chance of him falling in love with


    someone else if they hadn''t reunited.


    After all, it wasn''t surprising for anyone to fall in love several times in their lifetime.


    Simrly, if Sophia hadn''t met Alexander first, who was to say she wouldn''t have married another man?


    Despite that, udius remained very serious as he stared into Sophia''s eyes.


    Thetter felt herself blushing from the close contact and promptly loosened her arms around udius''


    neck. Even though she went on to give his shoulder a nudge, it wasn''t enough to make him budge.


    udius lowered his head to nce at her. "When I look at you, I feel something that no one else has


    ever made me feel."


    If it had been some other woman that night, I wouldn''t have bothered to look at them. Bruce and the


    rest have tried setting me up with plenty of women before, but I''ve never taken a liking to any of them.


    Even when I first caught Sophia staring at me in the casino, I genuinely thought she was just another


    woman sent by Bruce. However, I was overwhelmed by an indescribable feeling when I finally met her


    gaze... It was as though there was something magical about her that drew me in, so much so that I


    couldn''t help but follow her to the restroom. Yes. I had willingly walked into her "trap" that night, and


    what a beautiful trap it was.


    "Oh? And what does that feel like?" Sophia asked smilingly.


    "It makes me want to kiss and hug you," udius replied, straightforward and confident.


    With that, Sophia looked down at udius'' chin before suddenly leaning in to kiss him on his lips. "Like


    this?"


    Instead of replying, udius decided to let his actions do the talking.


    Sophia''s kiss might have been soft and gentle, but udius didn''t hold his back. He kissed with such


    intensity that it left her giddy with arousal. Exclusive content ? by N?(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.


    At one point, Sophia couldn''t help but moan and grab udius'' arm.


    Before long, the quiet room was filled with the sounds of their gasps and heavy breathing...