Addicted After Marriage: Marrying My Abstinent Boss-Chapter 231: The Truth Comes to Light

Zane Sterling returned to the familiar villa.

Sophia Lowell was already asleep.

Everything here had remained unchanged, as though he had returned to the past once more.

She still rested her head on one pillow, holding another one in her arms—still his, just like when she had first moved in, nothing had changed.

Zane sat sideways by the bed, watching her intently.

Tenderness lingered in his eyes as he gazed at her for a long, long time.

Perhaps having slept for quite a while, she turned over, supporting her abdomen as she shifted to the other side, taking the pillow along with her.

Her smooth hair cascaded to the other side with her movement, a few strands of black hair still draped over her cheek.

She used to be a light sleeper; Zane realized that over time, she became exceptionally calm when sleeping with him.

As if Zane was her harbor.

He gently reached out, tucking the strands of hair behind her ear.

Leaning slightly forward, he kissed her cheek, his large hand sliding down the pillow to her abdomen.

"Goodnight."

He snugged the blanket edges and got up to shower.

Just as he was about to go to the bathroom, Ethan Sinclair called.

[Did you set fire to Tim Sawyer’s studio?] Ethan.

[Do you have too much free time?] Zane lowered his voice, worried about disturbing the person in bed.

[I just can’t think of anyone else who would do such a thing.]

[The image you have of me is truly hard to summarize.] Zane walked out to the balcony.

[Not very good.]

Ethan had helped him handle a lot of things, Tim Sawyer’s matters were common, Ethan thought Zane would simply end it with a fire; unexpectedly, someone took further action against her.

Zane paused, his gaze falling on the person lying in bed, wanting to say something but not uttering it.

[Do you need me to do anything?] Ethan asked.

[No, just leave it.]

[Just like that?] Ethan was puzzled.

Is that the end of it?

Zane hung up the phone, went downstairs, and called Ansel Gallagher.

"Where did you go and what did you do tonight?" Zane cross-legged on the sofa, penetrating Ansel’s little secrets with an examining gaze.

"Nothing," Ansel pursed his lips.

"Did you lead the lady into bad deeds?" Zane stared at his guilty eyes.

Ansel raised his head slightly, not looking at Zane, "No."

"Ansel Gallagher, you’re brought by me. You lie and can’t even look at me, do you need me to expose you?"

Ansel said nothing.

Zane sighed, the person he had nurtured for so long turned to Sophia in just a few words, becoming her confidant, even deceiving him, the true master.

"Did you leave anything at the scene?" Zane asked.

"No..." Ansel hurried to cover his mouth after speaking.

Zane chuckled, probing a bit made Ansel’s big tail reveal itself.

"Still claim you did nothing bad!" He chuckled lowly, fiddling with the lighter found in her bag.

Ansel scratched his head, unsure whom to listen to at this moment.

"Madam said not to let people bully sir."

"Hmm, I see, you can go to sleep now."

Zane was somewhat surprised by Sophia’s boldness in doing such a thing outright.

"Wait."

Ansel was about to leave when Zane stopped him, "What else did Madam say?"

"Madam said if you listen, there’s meat to eat; if not, no dinner," Ansel.

"..." Zane frowned, "Anything else?"

Ansel thought for a moment, "Madam also said the bad woman wouldn’t dare report it."

Not dare report it?

Did Sophia obtain something?

Zane waved Ansel away.

Ansel didn’t dare linger, hurriedly departed.

Zane frowned, unable to fathom it, but reluctant to interfere with what she wanted to do, he could only arrange for people to clean the site to avoid trouble.

*

Tim Sawyer bit her lip, alone and forlorn, standing in front of the studio.

It was already one o’clock in the morning, fire-fighting had just ended.

The studio was drenched inside and out, and so was she.

Two hours ago it was clean, now it had been burned beyond recognition, the walls blackened.

The prepared clothing was completely destroyed, all her drafts and materials turned to ash.

The loss was a massive expense, not to mention needing renovation later.

More importantly, she had to compensate for reserved dresses, refund deposits, almost losing a large portion of old clients overnight.

Her hands clenched tightly, nails embedding into flesh, turning the surrounding area pale. Her chest heaved with rage, almost suffocating.

It wasn’t hard to deduce who could do this, especially after meeting Sophia earlier today, making it evident who did it.

Her lips curled into a cold smile.

Sophia being angry wasn’t necessarily a bad outcome, but she hadn’t expected her to be so bold.

She picked up her phone, accessed the night’s surveillance.

In the footage, Sophia brazenly opened her phone, like when Tim Sawyer showed her those unbearable photos earlier.

Sophia pressed the photo on her phone close to the camera, Tim Sawyer’s face turned pale, her phone almost slipping from her hand.

Then Sophia openly ignited the flame.

Tim Sawyer saw in Sophia’s eyes, the gaze she had for Sophia back then.

It was loathing, chillingly sharp, unwaveringly determined.

Seemingly fearless of anything.

"Miss Sawyer, we’ve reported this for you, let us know if you need anything else while we’re still here," the firefighter, noticing the pretty girl, voluntarily helped report.

The area rarely experiences fires from electrical aging, thus the fire chief reported it for her.

Tim Sawyer stood stunned for two seconds, saying, "No, no! No need to report!"

She swallowed, afraid of anyone noticing anything. Forcing a smile, she said, "Sorry for the inconvenience, I can handle this myself, please cancel it, let’s not waste police resources. It’s late now, everyone should rest; I’ll handle it..."

Seeing her calm yet detached, the fire chief said no more.

"Alright, take care, we’ve thoroughly checked, no major issues found. You can call us if needed later." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

"Okay, thank you." Tim Sawyer managed a weak smile.

The firefighters left.

Tim Sawyer, holding her phone, turned the light on, walked into the ruins.

She truly dared not report.

Her legs were weak, having lost control upon seeing the photos Sophia had.

She had no clue how Sophia obtained them, if they’re released, it would be real trouble.

Did Sophia merely wish to burn the studio with the photos?

Tim Sawyer worried, worried Sophia wouldn’t let her off easily.

She panicked.

A feeling of impending doom arose.

More than impending doom, this was terrifying beyond measure!

This cannot get out!

No way, she must find Sophia!

Moreover, this time was unlike any before.