Mr. Chairman's Devious Wife novel Chapter 1

Sofia's lips trembled before she clasped the pictures in her hand.

The menu before her seemed to blur, the words dancing on the paper like elusive shadows. The soft hum of conversation inside the hushed ambiance of the Japanese restaurant enveloped Sofia like a cocoon. For a few minutes, the room felt almost suffocating.

"Where did you get these?" she asked, her gaze landing once again on the images of her boyfriend and elder sister together on the balcony of a hotel, kissing each other. A part of her was certain these were photoshopped.

After all, her sister Charlotte Lockhart had been very good to her, supporting her in everything. Why would she betray her trust? Moreover, Sofia’s boyfriend Daniel Beaumont had been with her for four years. Why would he suddenly betray the trust she gave him? This didn’t make sense.

"You can check the dates, time, and location behind each photo," the man across from her answered. She quickly turned the photos around, and just like he said, the information she was looking for was indeed scribbled behind each image.

"Mr. Beaumont, you must understand that this information is..." Her lips trembled as her gaze landed on Mr. Alexander Beaumont, Daniel’s older brother and the current CEO of Beaumont Empire. "Too much to handle."

She felt a tightness in her throat and a drumming in her temples.

"Having doubts despite all the evidence is normal," Alexander’s lips quirked up as he mused. "I would understand it if you have the photos checked for authenticity." Amusement flashed in his dark brown eyes.

She nodded. Again, her eyes landed on the photos. Without saying another word, she placed the photos back in the brown envelope and carefully stowed them inside her bag.

"Then may I know what Mr. Beaumont wants?" Sofia said. This made her confused as she had actually only met Mr. Beaumont once, and that was during a Christmas dinner two years ago. Despite being Daniel’s older brother, Alexander Beaumont buried himself in work. This man had been a well-known workaholic who missed his younger brother’s birthday for four consecutive years. Yet, out of nowhere, he would suddenly meet her. Why? Was it simply because he wanted to tell her about the photos?

Without saying a word, Mr. Beaumont signaled his secretary, who was standing behind him. The secretary then handed another folder to Sofia. She opened it without asking questions. She understood that Mr. Beaumont was a man of few words.

She quickly read the documents inside the folder, and almost immediately, her expression changed. "M— Marriage of Convenience?" She almost could not believe what she was reading. Mr. Beaumont wanted to marry her?

"Read the rest…"

Sofia bit her lower lip as her green eyes glazed over the entire document until she finally reached the last part that informed her this was but a temporary arrangement.

"Mr. Beaumont, I am your brother’s woman," she uttered as her heart raced against her chest. What was this man doing?

"Cheating brother," he added.

"I have yet to confirm this," she steadied her voice as she slowly comforted herself. There is still a high chance that Mr. Beaumont was lying and that the images were photoshopped. She convinced herself that this might just be another scheme.

Again, without saying a word, he pushed what looked like a black card her way. She stared at it and realized it was a hotel key card.