Chapter Nine: The Woman from the Past
796 Words
Sophia Blake stepped inside without waiting to be invited.
She carried herself with effortless confidence, dressed in a tailored cream pantsuit and dark sunglasses that hid little of the anger in her eyes.
Nathan closed the door behind her.
“You should’ve called.”
“I figured you were too busy.”
Her gaze drifted to Amelia, who stood by the kitchen island with a spatula still in her hand.
“I can see why.”
The room fell silent.
Nathan spoke first.
“Sophia, this is Amelia.”
Sophia gave a polite smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“We’ve met.”
She looked Amelia up and down.
“The schoolteacher.”
Amelia returned the smile.
“The actress.”
Nathan pinched the bridge of his nose.
“This isn’t starting well.”
Sophia removed her sunglasses and placed a thick envelope on the kitchen counter.
“I’m not here to fight.”
“I’m here because you need to see this.”
Nathan frowned.
“What is it?”
“Open it.”
Inside were photographs.
Dozens of them.
Some showed Nathan leaving the studio.
Others showed Amelia entering her apartment.
A few even showed her classroom from across the street.
Nathan’s face hardened.
“Where did you get these?”
“A photographer offered to sell them to me.”
“And?”
“I bought them.”
Amelia looked up.
“You bought pictures of me?”
Sophia nodded.
“So no one else would.”
Nathan stared at her.
“You expect me to believe that?”
“You don’t have to.”
She leaned against the counter.
“But whoever’s following you…”
“They’re not selling these to magazines.”
“They’re collecting them.”
Oliver, who had just arrived for the morning briefing, picked up one of the photos.
His expression immediately changed.
“These weren’t taken over one day.”
Nathan looked at him.
“What do you mean?”
Oliver spread the photographs across the table.
“They’re dated.”
He pointed to the tiny digital timestamps.
“This one is three weeks old.”
“This one is from before the charity gala.”
Amelia frowned.
“But…”
“We hadn’t even met three weeks ago.”
“Exactly.”
Oliver replied.
“Someone was already watching Nathan.”
The realization settled over the room like a heavy fog.
The threats hadn’t started because of Amelia.
She had simply become part of someone else’s obsession.
Nathan quietly folded the photographs back into the envelope.
“Thank you.”
Sophia looked genuinely surprised.
“You’re thanking me?”
“You could’ve sold these.”
“You didn’t.”
She gave a small shrug.
“I’m your ex.”
“Not your enemy.”
As Sophia prepared to leave, she paused beside Amelia.
“I judged you too quickly.”
Amelia looked at her.
“I’ve done the same before.”
Sophia smiled faintly.
“Take care of him.”
She glanced toward Nathan.
“He pretends he’s stronger than he really is.”
Nathan laughed.
“I can still hear you.”
“I know.”
She walked out, closing the door softly behind her.
An hour later…
Nathan and Amelia headed to Hart Entertainment for a scheduled press conference promoting his upcoming film.
Oliver had insisted they couldn’t cancel.
“If you disappear now, the rumors get worse.”
As their car pulled into the underground parking garage, security seemed unusually tense.
Two additional guards were stationed at every entrance.
Nathan noticed immediately.
“What happened?”
One of the guards answered.
“This morning, someone tried to access the executive floor using a fake employee badge.”
“Were they caught?”
The guard shook his head.
“They disappeared before we could identify them.”
Nathan exchanged a worried glance with Amelia.
Whoever was behind this…
Was getting bolder.
The press conference began smoothly.
Nathan answered questions about the film.
The director spoke about production.
Everything seemed normal.
Then a reporter stood.
“Mr. Hart.”
“One last question.”
Nathan nodded.
“Go ahead.”
The reporter smiled.
“Your relationship with Miss Brooks…”
“Is it still just a publicity stunt?”
The room fell silent.
Every camera turned toward Nathan.
He looked at Amelia.
She gave the smallest nod.
It was his decision.
Nathan faced the microphones.
Then, for the first time since the contract began…
He abandoned the prepared answer.
“No.”
He said clearly.
“It may have started as an arrangement.”
“But somewhere along the way…”
“…she became the most honest part of my life.”
Across the room, Amelia’s heart skipped.
Because those words…
Weren’t in the script.
- Writer
