Signed, Sealed, Scandalous

Chapter 19

For a moment, Sophia Sterling was stunned. She never expected there could be another place besides the Kingsley residence that held so many photographs of her.

"You…"

Her gaze toward him was indescribable.

When he realized her thoughts were veering off track, he lightly tapped her forehead.

"Silly."

"A single instance of love at first sight doesn't mean much. The Pierces have always been meticulous in choosing their partners."

"At first, I refused to admit I was drawn to you. But after one coincidental encounter after another, I finally acknowledged it, I had fallen for you."

Adrian Pierce paused, the intensity in his eyes impossible to conceal.

Sophia instinctively averted her gaze, licking her dry lips before asking stiffly, "And then?"

"Then…"

He recalled the countless seemingly coincidental meetings, his repeated attempts to get closer, each ending in vain.

"How many chance encounters does it take to be together? I didn't know. Because you always had your three childhood friends by your side, and the way you cared for them was impossible to miss."

"So I gave up on confessing my feelings. Fortunately, after the ninety-ninth encounter, I stepped out of my car and proposed to you."

As he spoke, fragmented memories slowly pieced themselves together in Sophia's mind.

Someone as remarkable as Adrian, she couldn't have seen him so many times without leaving an impression. Yet every time she glanced his way, Ethan, Liam, and Noah Kingsley would jealously block her view, demanding her attention solely for themselves.

So, in places she never noticed, someone had been quietly loving her all along.

Overcome with emotion, Sophia threw herself into Adrian's arms, holding him tightly.

"Adrian, let's never be apart again."

"Never," he murmured, his smile unrestrained.

Yet the atmosphere couldn't have been more different at the Kingsley residence.

The house was eerily silent.

Ethan, Liam, and Noah had been sitting in Sophia's room for who knew how long, the air thick with stillness.

Staring at the stark simplicity of her space, it finally dawned on them just how much they had failed her.

The princess they once spoiled rotten had been dragged into the dirt because of them.

But she had clawed her way out, without them.

And now, they didn't even know how to win her back.

What had they done wrong?

Hadn't they explained countless times? Their kindness toward Lily Wilson was nothing more than gratitude and pity, no other feelings involved.

So why was Sophia still jealous?

The doorbell rang downstairs several times before Noah irritably ran a hand through his hair and went to answer it.

"Lily? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at the hospital with your mom?"

Despite his impatience, he stepped aside to let her in.

Lily swallowed her initial words and instead said, "Mom's fine now. I was just worried about you all. You looked terrible the other day."

"You haven't been resting properly, have you? I'll make sure you eat and sleep well. You need your strength if you're going to apologize to Sophia."

With that, she strode confidently into the kitchen and began preparing a meal.

Having grown up watching her mother, she was a decent cook.

But cooking wasn't the real reason she was here.