Chapter 283: No One Can Snatch Her Away

Chapter 283: Chapter 283: No One Can Snatch Her Away

Sophie was speechless.

But she didn’t back down. "Get out of the car."

"No."

"Mr. Yates, don’t be unreasonable."

"I’m going to be."

"..."

The idol figure she remembered as cool and aloof had suddenly become shameless, his audacity rivaling even Alaric Blackwood’s. For a moment, Sophie was rendered completely speechless.

Seeing she couldn’t get Yuri out of the car, she decided to ignore him, started the engine, and slammed on the gas.

The car followed her usual route, heading from Heart of the Ocean toward Maplewood Estate.

Yuri spent the entire drive staring at her. By the time he snapped out of it, the Cayenne had already entered Maplewood Estate.

He was a bit stunned. "Miss Shaw, what are you planning to do, bringing me back to your home?"

"I didn’t bring you here. I’m just going home like I normally do."

"Then... is Alaric Blackwood really home?"

"Barring any surprises, he should be back from work by now."

"Should be?"

"Mhm."

Sophie pulled the car into the driveway and parked. As she unbuckled her seatbelt, she glanced at the man in the passenger seat, a wicked, unprecedented smile playing on her lips. "Since you insisted on following me, Mr. Yates, I guess I’ll have to hand you over to my husband."

Yuri: ...

Sophie pushed open the car door and got out.

It was still raining, even harder than when she had left work.

Hearing the car, Alaric Blackwood went to the window. When he saw Sophie get out, he immediately opened an umbrella and went out to meet her.

However, another person got out of the car.

Yuri.

He held the umbrella over Sophie’s head, instinctively pulling her into his embrace. His arm wrapped around her waist, all but screaming his possessiveness. 𝑓𝑟ℯℴ𝓂

Yuri stood by the passenger door, hands in his trouser pockets, maintaining his usual cool and aloof posture.

Raindrops splattered against his face. The man tilted his chin up slightly, watching Alaric Blackwood and Sophie, determined not to be intimidated by Alaric’s powerful presence.

"Mr. Blackwood, it’s been a while."

He offered a polite greeting, and Alaric Blackwood, not to be outdone in civility, returned it in kind. "Hello, Mr. Yates. What brings you here?"

"I was in the neighborhood and hitched a ride with Miss Shaw. If it’s not too much trouble, I was hoping to join you for dinner."

"It is trouble. As it happens, the cook isn’t here today."

Alaric Blackwood shot him down with a smile. "Shall I call a taxi for you, Mr. Yates?"

Yuri froze.

After a long moment, he scoffed. "Piss off."

He turned to leave.

Before he was even out of the driveway, he heard Alaric Blackwood’s taunts. "Mr. Yates, you’re a man of status. Why are you always coveting another man’s wife? Can’t you find one of your own?"

"Or perhaps Mr. Yates has a thing for married women? You enjoy being the other man?"

His steps halted. He turned back, looked at Alaric Blackwood’s arrogant face, and couldn’t stop himself from striding over, fist raised to strike.

However, before the fist could land on Alaric Blackwood’s face, the man had already handed the umbrella to Sophie, pulled her behind him, and tilted his head to dodge the punch. He even swung his own hand and—SLAP!—slapped him across the face.

The movements were fluid and absurdly fast.

He was utterly dumbfounded.

Alaric Blackwood hadn’t thrown a punch. He’d slapped him. Like a woman.

This was the ultimate insult.

His eyes turned bloodshot as he glared at Alaric Blackwood. "You—"

"SLAP!"

Another slap landed on his face, in the exact same spot, the new handprint perfectly overlapping the first.

"Two strikes."

Alaric Blackwood kept one hand protectively on Sophie behind him and lightly shook out the other. "If you still don’t know your place, Mr. Yates, I won’t be so gentle with the third slap."

Yuri gritted his teeth and turned to leave.

Alaric Blackwood said coldly, "Name a price for the necklace. And don’t be unreasonable."

"Not for sale."

"Then I’ll destroy your jewelry group."

At these words, Yuri’s legs suddenly felt as if they were filled with lead, and he couldn’t take another step forward.

He stood frozen in place, his back to Alaric Blackwood and Sophie, an inexplicable panic rising in his chest.

Although he was an undeniable force in the jewelry industry, for a capital tycoon like Alaric Blackwood, destroying his company would be as easy as flipping a switch.

In business, no one wanted to make enemies, but when certain interests were threatened, it wasn’t impossible for allies to become adversaries.

’Alaric Blackwood, though young and aggressive with an unpredictable temperament, had never failed to accomplish anything he set his mind to.’

’He felt a deep sense of dread.’

’Was a necklace—a piece of leverage over Sophie—really worth making an enemy of Alaric Blackwood?’

He stood frozen for a moment before finally finding his legs again. He turned to face Alaric Blackwood. "Tell me, are you and Miss Shaw actually in a contract marriage?"

"No."

Alaric Blackwood’s expression grew serious. "I love my wife. I have for many years."

"From the moment she was born, from the day she came into this world, she was destined to be mine—Alaric Blackwood’s."

"No one can take her from me!"

Yuri’s face turned cold, bit by bit, as he skillfully concealed all his emotions.

His gaze shifted to Sophie, who was hiding behind Alaric Blackwood. "And you?"

"I love my husband."

Those four simple words completely shattered all his hopes.

’It was laughable, really. When did he even start paying attention to Sophie Shaw?’

’Because she was married, he had made a point of keeping his distance. If she had been single, he would have pursued her long ago without a second thought.’

’He only started to make a move after hearing that her marriage to Alaric Blackwood was just a contract... ’

’Unfortunately, it was just a rumor.’

’In the end, he was the clown.’

He suddenly let out a soft, scoffing laugh. "Fine! I concede!"

Despite the lingering trace of bitterness, he couldn’t gamble away all of Diamond Belle Jewelers for one woman.

It wasn’t worth it.

"Seventy million for the necklace!"

He stated the selling price.

Before Alaric Blackwood could speak, Sophie said, "Sixty million!"

"Can we not haggle? Are you two really hurting for ten million?"

Alaric Blackwood smiled. "We’re not, but my wife said sixty million, so sixty million it is."

"..."

Yuri felt like a complete sucker.

"Fine."

He turned and left.

"My assistant will contact you with the account details. Once the payment is received, I’ll have someone deliver the necklace."

With those parting words, the man walked out of the driveway into the pouring rain.

By the time he reached the entrance of the estate, his clothes were soaked through, and the rain had chilled him to the bone.

Fortunately, his driver had followed him. The car couldn’t enter the residential area, but both car and driver were waiting outside the complex.

Seeing his sorry state, the driver quickly pulled the car up in front of him.

After getting in the car, the first thing he did was pull out his phone to contact his assistant...

Alaric Blackwood led Sophie back into the house. As he was using a towel to dry her damp hair, she suddenly stood on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on his lips.

The hand drying her hair froze for a second. A faint smile touched his lips. "Don’t tease. It’s not completely dark yet."

Sophie didn’t care.

She stood on her toes again, wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and kissed him.