The man’s hands were gently massaging her temples. Frankly, if no one else were watching, Sophie Sullivan would have found it rather comfortable, even enjoyable.
However, Miss Shaw’s gaze seemed unusually intense.
Sophie’s lips curled; she glanced at Amelia Shaw with apparent indifference, then disdainfully withdrew her gaze. She expressed her contempt flawlessly. Like a noble queen looking down at a lowly servant groveling at her feet.
Edward Benson coughed lightly, then looked at Amelia Shaw. "Come and sit down." Given the current situation, it seemed Thomas Shannon wouldn’t be asking her to sit down anytime soon.
Amelia Shaw feigned ignorance. She didn’t believe Thomas Shannon would ignore her , treating her as if she were air.
"Thomas... who is this?" Amelia Shaw asked timidly, her soft voice carried a hint of delicate innocence. It was a quality Sophie Sullivan’s currently hoarse voice could never achieve.
Thomas Shannon’s thin lips pressed tightly together, and his hand movements paused for a few seconds. A slight curl touched Sophie Sullivan’s lips as she lazily drawled, "Thomas Shannon, don’t you have anything to explain to me?"
With that one sentence, she was staking her claim. Thomas Shannon was hers; therefore, he had to offer her a reasonable explanation for this woman, Amelia Shaw’s, presence. An explanation that would satisfy her.
Thomas Shannon regarded her with a complicated gaze. Sophie Sullivan, however, was fearless. With an almost imperceptible smile, she softly prompted, "Hm?"
He lowered his hands and pinched her overly delicate chin. "An old friend. That’s all."
"Hm." Sophie Sullivan nonchalantly withdrew her gaze and leaned over to pick up a grape from the fruit plate.
Her delicate fingertips picked up a grape. She took a bite with her red lips.
The beauty’s eyebrows knitted slightly, a hint of annoyance flashing in her eyes. She ate half the grape before feeding the other half into Thomas Shannon’s mouth.
Thomas Shannon froze. He’d never imagined the maniac would dare to act so audaciously! The half-grape pressed into his mouth was cloyingly sweet... Yet, when she tasted it, it had become "too sour." So, was the maniac deliberately putting on a show?
Amelia Shaw’s eyelids fluttered. An old friend, that’s all? In his heart, was she merely an old friend?
Her heart was a maelstrom of emotions. Amelia Shaw forced a bitter smile. "Thomas, you seem busy. I’ll leave first. Goodbye."
She turned around abruptly, trying to hide her fluster, but her underlying nervousness was still evident.
She walked away too quickly, tripped over her own feet, and stumbled awkwardly to the floor.
"AH..." A cry of pain escaped her lips.
Edward Benson gave Thomas Shannon a deep look, then rose and went to Amelia Shaw’s side. He gently helped the disheveled woman up from the floor. "Are you alright?"
"I’m fine. I’m really fine." Amelia Shaw kept her head down, tears spilling from her eyes and dripping onto the floor, one drop after another.
Sophie Sullivan laughed coldly. This kind of charade could only deceive foolish men. And she hadn’t forgotten to include Thomas Shannon in that category. The moment Miss Shaw fell, Sophie hadn’t missed the flicker of anxiety in his eyes or the way his body tensed.
"Don’t cry. I’ll take you to the hospital first," Edward Benson said, supporting her. "Can you stand?"
Amelia Shaw nodded resolutely, her voice weak and pitiful. "I can stand."
"Thomas, we’ll be leaving now."
Edward Benson’s words only earned a perfunctory "Mm" from Thomas Shannon.
Once their figures disappeared from view, Sophie Sullivan chuckled mockingly. "What’s the matter? Feeling heartbroken for her?"