Once Us, Now Dust

Chapter 7

I picked up the scattered photos from the floor, barely sparing them a glance. It didn't take a genius to figure out Christopher had jumped to the wrong conclusion about my relationship with Jack.

Meeting his burning gaze with complete indifference, I said evenly, "Perfect timing. Now I won't have to introduce you two."

Christopher's brows furrowed. "Introduce? What the hell are you talking about?"

I shrugged, unfazed. "He's your new assistant. We signed the contract today."

Pulling the contract from my bag, I spread it out on the bed and smoothed the pages for him to see. Christopher flipped through them, his expression darkening with every turn.

His voice was sharp when he finally spoke. "Who gave you permission to quit without my approval?"

I tilted my head, lips curling in amusement. "How else are we supposed to get divorced?"

That shut him up. For a long moment, Christopher just stared at me like I'd grown a second head. His Adam's apple bobbed before he managed, "Divorce… Sophia, are you serious?"

In response, I pulled out the signed divorce papers and placed them beside Jack's contract. "Do I look like I'm joking?"

Christopher was frozen in place. When he finally spoke again, his voice was raw, almost pleading.

"Sophia, I've told you over and over, there's nothing going on between Mia and me. The kiss at the awards show was just a publicity stunt for our new drama."

His jaw clenched. "We're adults. Can you stop overreacting to trivial things? I don't have the energy to entertain your jealousy."

I wasn't very tall, but standing close enough, I had a clear view of the fresh bite mark on his collarbone.

Hearing his desperate excuses now, when I no longer cared, I couldn't help but smile.

"Christopher, you two have known each other since childhood, right?" I mused, voice light. "Honestly… I'm starting to root for you guys."

Before he could respond, the front door burst open.

Mia stumbled in, looking fragile and helpless. "Chris, honey…"

Christopher immediately rushed to her side, holding her as if she might collapse at any moment.

Mia reached up to touch his face, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "I was so worried about you. I drove all night just to get here."

Christopher's expression softened into pure tenderness. He cupped her cheek like she was something precious and scolded her gently.

"You shouldn't have come all this way. What if something happened? Look at your feet, you've got blisters all over from those damn heels."

Then, as if suddenly remembering my presence, he turned to me, eyes pleading.

"Sophia, can we not do this right now? You can see Mia's hurt, she needs to be taken care of. Just stay home and wait for me, okay? We'll talk later."

I nodded with a small, unreadable smile and reached for his suit jacket, handing it to him.

"Cover up properly. There are a lot of paparazzi outside."

Christopher gave me a grateful look before hastily throwing on the jacket. In his rush to leave with Mia, he didn't even notice he had put on mismatched shoes.

I watched them disappear through the door, then calmly shut it behind them.

Without a second thought, I called the housekeeper.

"Pack up all of Christopher's belongings," I instructed, my voice cool and steady. "Make sure everything is gone by tonight."