Chapter 149 Who Had an Affair?

Chapter 149: Chapter 149: Who Had an Affair?

Sophie didn’t understand why Finn Lockwood had come over out of nowhere to snap at her.

She asked bluntly, "Who are you talking about? Who’s having an affair?"

Finn was actually stumped by this question. He hadn’t expected Sophie to not feel ashamed, but instead brazenly continue the topic. Frowning involuntarily, he shot a subtle glance toward Stella Sutton. He truly felt that Sophie lacked any sense of propriety.

How could Sophie not understand? The one with something to hide was someone else entirely. If she really pushed the question, who would dare to answer? If anyone was having an affair, it was Stella doing it right out in the open.

Stella felt somewhat displeased. If Sophie wanted to make insinuations about her, she was being completely underhanded about it—playing these little mind games was simply too unpresentable.

She continued to ignore Sophie, turning to Finn instead. "This is Mr. Linton. He’s quite interested in my triage robot. Finn, do you want to have a chat with him?"

She was quite confident about this. After all, Finn had given up on Helios and directly invested in her project. The Lockwood family had a significant reputation; seeing that Finn had invested, many people were naturally willing to follow suit. He was her living billboard.

She couldn’t be bothered to argue with Sophie over her pointed remarks just now. Finn and Evan York were both protecting her, so why should she care what fuss Sophie made? After all, she was busy managing her project, while Sophie was still wallowing in petty female rivalry and neglecting her real duties. They were destined to have nothing in common.

Only then did Finn walk over.

Julian Sterling gave Sophie an indifferent glance, then turned away to take a phone call. He didn’t greet her the entire time. It was impossible for anyone to tell that they had been married for seven years.

Peter Preston had known Sophie since they were kids, and he couldn’t stand seeing her suffer such indignity. "If your divorce certificate wasn’t still being withheld and Lydia’s situation wasn’t still up in the air, you could expose Stella as the mistress right here and now. Let’s see who’d be laughing then."

Unfortunately, the Sterling family had no regard for personal feelings and insisted on dragging things out with her. Sophie wanted to do just that, but she had to act rationally. She thought that pushing Julian to finalize things was the main priority.

Meanwhile, Finn had just about finished his chat and had helped pull in a new investment.

Stella’s smile grew even more enthusiastic. "Thank you for being so thoughtful of me."

Finn didn’t think much of it. "It’s only right. The Lockwood family hasn’t repaid our debt of gratitude to you yet, so of course I will always keep it in mind."

Stella observed Finn’s expression for a moment before asking tentatively, "Did your grandfather say anything?"

"Say what?" Finn suddenly realized what she meant. "Oh, he did. You probably don’t know, but Sophie tried to take credit for you saving my grandfather. She was exposed by him. The reputation of ’Mrs. Sterling’ is already ruined in my grandfather’s eyes."

Stella’s expression changed slightly. She glanced at Finn, instantly guessing the finer details of what had happened. Master Lockwood had mistaken her for Mrs. Sterling, and Finn had misunderstood that it was Sophie, the actual Mrs. Sterling, who had gone to take the credit...

She didn’t explain. After all, this kind of misunderstanding only benefited her. Moreover, Finn was her friend now, so there was no need to make certain things too clear. It wasn’t a bad thing for Finn to harbor even heavier animosity toward Sophie.

"Is that so? I don’t care about such empty titles. She can say whatever she wants," she said, her expression returning to normal.

Looking at Stella’s indifferent demeanor, Finn couldn’t help but feel that the difference between the two women was starkly obvious. If Sophie had even half of Stella’s virtue and grace, would she really be so despised by her own husband?

Sophie had no idea what was happening on their side. She had just received a WhatsApp message from Philip Preston saying he had arrived and would come find her in a bit. With her senior brother arriving, Sophie felt quite relaxed. She just needed to follow his lead.

Soon after, people swarmed toward the entrance. Sophie looked over.

Philip had indeed arrived. Though he was over fifty, he lacked the paunch typical of middle-aged men. He remained refined and upright, greeting everyone with a warm, approachable demeanor. Sophie didn’t push her way to the front. She had to let others show their faces and exchange their necessary pleasantries first.

It was Philip who squeezed out of the crowd, heading straight toward her and Peter. "Sophie, I heard about the situation at Kingsford Medical University. We might be working together in the future. Does this mean we’ll be on equal footing now?"

Philip was actually quite thrilled by this outcome. The higher-ups valued talent and were never stingy when it came to promoting capable individuals. Only then could the nation’s medical field have a more stable and long-term development. For Sophie to achieve such a feat at her age... truly, there hadn’t been many like her in years.

Sophie smiled sheepishly. "Please don’t tease me. It’ll probably take some time to prepare, as we’re still going through the formalities."

Being on "equal footing" was an exaggeration. She was still young, after all, and had only been granted an exception by a stroke of luck. She at least had that much self-awareness.

Philip was just about to say something else when a voice filled with joy rang out from behind him, "Director Preston, I finally have the honor of meeting you."

Philip turned around. His gaze swept past Stella and landed squarely on Julian’s face. How could he not recognize him? This was his junior sister’s heartless husband!

Julian took the initiative to nod. "Mr. Preston, it’s been a long time."

In this circle, people were bound to cross paths to some extent. Philip and Julian had met on a few occasions before, though they hadn’t conversed deeply. Furthermore, since Sophie had said their marriage was kept hidden, he had simply pretended not to know that Julian was married.

But now, Philip stared at Stella, who was brazenly holding onto Julian’s arm.

Stella had just seen Philip go over to speak with Sophie. But of course, she assumed Philip had only gone over there for his own son. If Philip could be so mild-mannered toward an obscure nobody from Helios like Sophie, he certainly wouldn’t treat her any worse. She stepped forward politely, flashing a radiant smile. "Director Preston, this is our first time meeting. You might not know me. I am—"

"I know you," Philip interrupted her.