The Call Boy I Met in Paris – Episode 55
The hallway outside the bedroom gave them enough distance to speak without waking Sophie, but it did nothing to lessen the hostility between them. Ted closed the door gently and faced Justin with the exhaustion of someone who had spent hours fearing the worst. Justin remained near the frame, unwilling to move farther from Sophie than necessary.
“I know you and Sophie were set up,” Justin said. “That is the only reason we are still talking instead of dealing with this differently.”
Ted gave a humorless laugh. “You make basic common sense sound generous.”
“What is your relationship with my wife?” The question had troubled Justin since the restaurant, and the night’s photographs had made it impossible to ignore. “Do not tell me what Sophie thinks you are. Tell me what you want.”
“She is my best friend. I have known her far longer than you.” Ted’s answer came without hesitation, but it did not erase the protective intensity in his expression. “When she calls, I show up. Tonight proved why.”
“Your best friend is being called a drunk and a cheater because pictures of you are everywhere.” Justin held up the phone. “Her reputation is being destroyed, and every repost makes it harder to correct the lie.”
“Do you think I care what strangers say about me?”
“You should care what they are doing to her.” Justin lowered the screen. “Swift Company is already vulnerable. Her father and Derek will use this to question her judgment, and Stella will pretend the scandal proves every lie she has told.”
Ted’s anger shifted into grim concentration. “I will take care of it.”
“How?”
“I will release a statement, provide the hospital record, and make it clear I rescued her after someone abandoned her. My legal team can force the accounts to retract the affair claim.”
Justin knew Patrick’s people were already doing all of those things, but revealing that would expose resources a supposed assistant should not possess. “Then do it quickly. From my point of view, the best thing you can do afterward is stay away from her.”
Ted stared at him, astonished by the demand. “You do not get to remove Sophie’s friends because you are insecure.”
“This is not about insecurity. Someone used your closeness as a weapon against her.”
“And next time they will use something else. Do you plan to lock her away until no one can photograph her?” Ted stepped closer. “Protecting Sophie means giving her choices, not deciding who she is allowed to trust.”
The argument struck too close to what Sophie had told Justin after the permit crisis. He wanted Ted gone because the man represented a history he could not compete with and a loyalty that did not depend on marriage. Calling it protection did not make the jealousy disappear.
A weak sound came from the bedroom. Both men turned toward the door, their conflict becoming irrelevant in the same instant.
Ted reached for the handle, but Justin stopped him. “I will stay with her.” After a tense pause, Ted stepped back, warning Justin to call if Sophie’s condition changed. Then he left, and Justin returned to the bedside to wait for his wife to wake.