Chapter 17
“Ten years ago, at the yacht party in the Hamptons…”
“Have you forgotten who you saved?”
Sophia froze, her memory pulled back a decade. At that party, she had been on the deck when she heard a splash. A young boy had fallen overboard. Before anyone else could react, she had dived in after him.
The water was ice–cold, but she swam desperately toward the struggling figure. After swallowing several mouthfuls of seawater, she finally dragged him back to the deck.
“Are you okay?” she’d asked, soaked to the bone but ignoring herself as she knelt to perform first aid.
The little boy coughed up water and opened his eyes, his lashes beaded with moisture. She had taken off her jacket and wrapped it around his shivering body. “Hey, kid. Be more careful next time.”
The boy had clutched her jacket, his eyes shining like stars.
Sophia snapped back to the present, staring at Alexander in disbelief. “That little kid who fell in the water… that was you?!”
The tips of Alexander’s ears flushed. “Yes.”
“I’ve been looking for you for ten years.”
Sophia suddenly laughed. “But you were only twelve then, and I was sixteen. I’m four years older than you.” She raised an
eyebrow. “I hadn’t even had my first crush, and were already in love?”
Alexander looked at her, his gaze clear and earnest. “Princess, do you want the truth?”
“Go on.”
“Because you were like an angel,” he said softly. “You saved me, and you were so gentle. You made me believe there was still light in the world.”
Sophia was speechless. Countless people had called her beautiful, but hearing it from Alexander felt different. His eyes were so clear, without a trace of pretense, as if he were holding his entire heart out for her to see.
“Frincess,” Alexander suddenly took a step forward. “I truly love you.‘
“I didn’t mean to deceive you. If you want to leave, the five hundred million is still yours, and I’ll let you go.”
“But if you’re willing to give me a chance…” His voice trembled slightly. “Let me give you a home. I’ll spend my entire life treating you right.”
The word “home” struck a deep chord in Sophia’s heart. She suddenly remembered everything–Don Romano marrying her off, the pictures of Isabella in Vincent’s study, the three days in jail, the desolation of burning down the mansion.
Where else could she go? The Romano family was no longer her home, and Vincent…
She looked at the man before her, four years her junior. Alexander’s gaze was too pure, so
Maybe… she could try? At least here, someone loved her with all their heart.
Sophia held out her hand.
ise sapientemture it made her ache.
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