The Call Boy I Met in Paris – Episode 71
Stella’s promise should have felt like victory. Instead, once the office door closed behind her, the strength holding Sophie upright disappeared. She had spent years wondering whether grief had distorted her memories, and now fear in Stella’s face confirmed that someone had hidden the truth.
Justin found her alone in the conference room, staring at the financial records without seeing them. “It is okay,” he said, approaching slowly.
“No, it is not.” Sophie pressed a hand over her mouth, but the tears came anyway. “My mother trusted these people. My father replaced her, Karen took her place, and Stella may have known all this time.”
Justin drew her into his arms. “You can cry.”
She resisted for only a moment before gripping his jacket. “My mom, Justin…”
“I know.” He held her until the boardroom, the arrest, and Stella’s terrified confession no longer seemed to close around her. “You had a hard day.”
“It was also a good day,” Sophie said when she could speak again. “I finally protected the company. Maybe I can still make her proud.”
“You already have.”
The certainty in his answer steadied her, but it also revived every unanswered question about the man offering it. His power at the Monet reception, Lake Enterprises’ obedience, Patrick’s impossible access, and the speed with which he solved the fire-safety crisis no longer allowed an innocent explanation.
“There is something you need to tell me,” Sophie said. “No more jokes. No more convenient stories.”
Justin released a quiet breath. The moment he had delayed through fear and selfish hope had finally arrived. “I am the CEO of Lake Enterprises.”
Sophie stepped out of his arms. She had suspected influence, wealth, even a hidden executive position, but the full truth still struck with humiliating force. “You let me believe you were a call boy.”
“You decided that before I understood what you meant. Then you offered me a contract marriage, and I…” He gave her an apologetic look. “I wanted the chance to know you without my name standing between us.”
“So the hotel, the Maple Plaza project, the contract—”
“All mine. The work you did was still yours. I opened doors, but I never falsified your talent.”
Anger and relief collided inside her. He had deceived her, yet the deception explained every mystery she had been afraid to examine. More painfully, it meant he had never needed her monthly payment and had stayed because he chose to.
“I am not forgiving you tonight,” Sophie said.
“Fair.” Justin offered his hand. “But will you let me feed you while you decide how angry to be? I know a very good French restaurant.”