Chapter 27
After the drinks, Yolanda got in the car with Charles. Jack was driving up front.
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Charles had a little to drink tonight. He propped his head on one hand and glanced at the hairclip in her hair. It looked nice- surprising, coming from someone as uptight as Samuel.
He reached over, pulled it out, and tossed it into a tight corner of the car, before Yolanda got a chance to stop him. “We’ve got tons of these at home,” he said.
Yolanda stayed quiet, just staring out the window. Charles could shower his other women with cars and houses, but she couldn’t take a gift from another man–all about his stupid pride.
Yolanda wasn’t good at fighting with Charles, and there wasn’t much point.
The car pulled up to Moonbay Estate. Charles watched as she got out and headed upstairs without a word.
He paused, raising an eyebrow. “This little softie has a temper now?‘ he thought, a spark of interest flickering in his eyes as he told Jack, “Go buy a bunch more of those hairclips.”
Jack didn’t ask why. After all, Charles had always done whatever he wanted.
Yolanda went back to the guest room. She sprayed her ankle again with the stuff Ian had given her. Suddenly, she heard footsteps at the door and looked up to find Charles there.
He slowly unbuttoned his shirt, his eyes scanning the room–the farthest from the master bedroom, and pretty small.
She grabbed the pajamas nearby, ready to head to the shower. He caught her arm and asked, “Where are you going to do?”
He scooped her up in his arms and headed for the bed, his voice calm and even. “We’ll wash up after.”
Yolanda almost scoffed. ‘He was with Sophie this morning, and he still has energy left for this tonight?‘ she thought.
In two years of marriage, Charles rarely touched her. He liked women who were fiery in bed. But Yolanda was stuck in her little box of rules–when things got too intense, she only dared to beg softly, never bold like Sophie.
“I don’t feel good today. I don’t want to,” Yolanda mumbled. She burrowed under the covers, her face cold. Once, when Charles came on to her, her eyes would’ve lit up with love. But not anymore.
Charles sat on the edge of the bed and tilted her chin up. “It’s just a hair clip. Why are you this upset?”
Yolanda dropped her gaze, hesitated, and then looped her arms around his neck. “After this, will you leave again for work?”
Charles raised an eyebrow, feeling an unexpected softness in his chest. “I’ll stay home with you tonight.”
The words barely left his mouth when his phone rang–Sophie was calling.
Yolanda slowly let go, her voice flat. “Must be work. Go answer it.”
Charles stood and grabbed the phone.
Sophie’s sugary voice poured out. “Charles, I sent you some pics. Take a look–you like them?”
Charles glanced down, swiping through the photos. Sophie was posing in provocative shots, wearing that outfit he’d bought her.
A text popped up from Sophie: [I’ll wait two hours, but that’s it. I had a rough scare today and wanna crash early.]
Charles smirked. ‘Sophie’s little games are kind of cute—way better than the boring Yolanda,‘ he thought.
He grabbed his coat and turned to Yolanda. “Heading to an overseas meeting. I had Jack pick up that hair clip for you. Get some rest.”
Yolanda didn’t say a thing. Only after Charles left did she pull out her phone. She had two SIM cards–one she barely used, and Charles didn’t know a thing about it.
She messaged Sean asking for Sophie’s contact info, then sent her a friend request on WhatsApp.
Sophie had just sent Charles those photos, sure he’d swing by that night. Feeling pretty pleased with herself, she saw the friend request
1/2
2:15 AM P P
Chapter 27
pop up. The note read: [Charles’s wife.]
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Sophie was momentarily startled, but quickly she collected herself. ‘Charles’s wife has no clout at home. This was the perfect opportunity to push her out,‘ she thought.
She accepted the request and waited for Yolanda to speak first.
But Yolanda simply added Sophie–she could be useful–and then went to take a shower calmly.
Sophie waited until Charles showed up, and still nothing came through on her phone. ‘Looks like this so–called Mrs. Sinclair is a total pushover,‘ she thought with a smirk.
As soon as Charles walked in, she jumped into his arms. They didn’t slow down till midnight. Half–asleep, she watched him get dressed. “Charles? You leaving?” she asked.
Charles nodded. “Yeah. Be good. Don’t pull a stunt like this morning again.”
Tears welled in Sophie’s eyes as she wrapped her arms around his waist. “It’s all Tessa’s fault. Can you handle her for me?”
Charles paused–that name again. He remembered that earlier, Yolanda had mentioned Tessa, wanting to sign her to her studio. He’d agreed without thinking.
He handed Sophie a bank card with three million on it and said, “Tessa’s Yolanda’s now. Leave her alone.”
A flash of anger crossed Sophie’s face–she knew Yolanda was his wife.
But she forced a smile. “Got it. So Tessa really knows Mrs. Sinclair. I thought she was lying about being friends with your wife. Sorry, Charles–I won’t bother her anymore.”
Charles loved how compliant she was outside the bedroom. He pinched her chin and kissed her. “Good girl.”
*****
Middle of the night, Yolanda’s phone buzzed with a message. Sophie’d sent over some intimate shots of her and Charles.
In the photos, Sophie’s neck was covered in hickeys. Her freshly manicured hand rested on Charles’s chest. The whole scene screamed how intense things had gotten between them.
Yolanda checked Sophie’s Twitter. She’d just posted: [He just left. From here, I can see the fireworks–tonight’s were real nice.] There was a blurry picture of a guy’s shadow with it.
Yolanda figured the post was probably only visible to her, meant to provoke her. After thinking it over, she sent Sophie $30 and texted: [Thanks for the gig.]
Sophie thought she’d won this round. But as she saw the $30 transfer and those four words, her blood started to boil.
‘Fucking bitch! She’s just as
sirritatin
as Tessa. I won’t let either of them get off easy,’ she fumed to herself.
