The Call Boy I Met in Paris – Episode 73
The next morning, Sophie woke Justin with news she considered more urgent than his attempt to pull her back beneath the blankets. “Aunt Susan is coming.”
“How urgent can that be?” he asked, still half asleep.
“She is my mother’s sister and the only person who ever felt like real family after Mom died.” Sophie pushed his shoulder. “And she does not know I am married.”
Justin sat up. “Tell her when she arrives.”
“There is another problem. Please do not introduce yourself as the CEO of Lake Enterprises.”
He raised a brow. “You learned the truth yesterday and already want me to start lying again?”
“Aunt Susan hated how my father used money and status to control my mother. She believes marrying a wealthy man leads to the same trap. She also has a heart condition, and I do not want to shock her.”
“Understood.” Justin smiled. “I will be your stay-at-home husband.”
When Susan arrived, she swept Sophie into an embrace and spoke breathlessly about her recent European tour. Then she noticed Justin standing behind them.
“Aunt Susan, this is Justin,” Sophie said. “My husband.”
Susan stared. “Husband? You got married? Since when, and why did you not tell me?”
Sophie blamed the company crisis and her wish to offer a surprise. Susan examined Justin carefully, then admitted he was handsome and appeared kind.
Over lunch, Susan watched the small ways he cared for Sophie without making a performance of it. “After your mother died, you rarely smiled,” she said. “Today you are different. I think much of that is because of this man.”
“Justin is nothing like my father,” Sophie said.
“I can see that.” Susan took Justin’s hand. “She can be stubborn, but she is soft inside. Treat her well.”
“I will love Sophie with all my heart,” Justin promised.
Across town, Stella told Karen that Sophie was reopening the investigation. Worse, Justin Lake—the richest and most powerful businessman in the city—was helping her.
Karen’s face hardened. The secret she had protected for years could not survive Justin’s resources. “Then we strike first,” she said, and Stella agreed.