Sophia hadn't told Warren that Anna was coming to dinner. But as soon as the doorbell rang, he turned to her with a furrowed brow.
"Expecting someone?"
She smiled sweetly, entwining her arms with his. "It's Anna."
"What?!" He spit out the water he was drinking, dropped the glass cup and turned to her squarely. "What do you mean Anna? You invited her to dinner?"
With an innocent smile on her face, she nodded. "Yes, we deserve to know if her husband is real or not, don't we?"
"Wait…" he raised an eyebrow. "Her husband isn't real?"
"That's what we suspect. That's why we invited her to dinner. I think she only did that to get you jealous. Let her know you don't love her, and that it's me you love, okay?"
She nudged him lightly, trying to get him to play along, but before she could push further, Anna walked into the room alone.
Sophia snorted, a little too pleased with herself. "See? I told you. No husband. Just her playing pretend."
Kathryn walked into the dining room at that moment, glancing curiously at Anna and then back at the door, expecting a man to follow suit. But no one walked in after her.
Her mother scoffed and took a seat without taking her eyes off Anna.
Victory was within Sophia's grasp as she took a sip of her wine with legs crossed.
Warren shot to his feet, his gaze locked on Anna with a mix of disbelief and something Sophia couldn't quite decipher.
"Anna?" he muttered, as Anna took a seat across from her.
Sophia shot him a cold glare. "What the hell are you doing?"
He glanced briefly at her, then slumped back into his seat, muttering under his breath. "Where is he?" he finally asked, a little too quietly.
"Where is who?" Anna looked amused at the question. Sophia was damn sure she knew who Warren was referring to.
"Where is your husband, Anna?" Kathryn also demanded. "You were supposed to be here with him, weren't you?"
Instead of answering, Anna folded her arms around her bosom and remained silent.
Her silence was killing Sophia, so she snorted and looked away in irritation.
"What excuse have you come up with this time, Annalyn?" Kathryn finally asked, breaking the silence that stretched between them.
They expected someone to walk in and introduce himself as Anna's husband, but there was no one walking in. Anna sat there looking amused and nonchalant like she had some tricks up her sleeves.
Sophia shook her head slightly and watched Anna stare at Warren for a moment. She wished Warren would take the cue to tell Anna he didn't love her and that she, Sophia was the one he wanted, but the fool was silent.
And watching her too.
Instead of replying again, Anna's gaze turned to the set table, the scent of delicious food wafting into Sophia's nose.
"Keeping mute is not going to help you, Annalyn. Mother and I are already aware of the fake husband plot. All we asked for today was to have dinner together! And yet here you are, alone! That means I was right. You don't have a husband and everything was a facade…"
"Aidan," Anna said, her voice firm and unwavering, "My husband appreciates the invitation. He is running a bit late and will be here soon."
There was no point in arguing with her when it was obvious she was just doing all of this to buy herself enough time.
"We will wait for her so-called husband, and he'll be let loose if he doesn't show up."
A weird, stuffy silence stretched above and between them. Kathryn folded her arms over her chest as she stared at Anna, her gaze cold and hard.
The minutes ticked by, and the silence became more tense. Sophia could see the telltale signs of her mother losing patience.
And sure enough, after several more minutes dragged by, Kathryn spoke, her voice filled with a slight edge.
"This is pointless. Annalyn doesn't have a husband. Let's just eat and get this over with," she announced.
Anna shrugged with pride.
"You guys go ahead and eat. I will not touch a single drop of food or drink unless my husband gets here," Anna muttered, and it made Sophia want to drop her plate.
Did she just assure them there was indeed a man in the picture?
Sophia chuckled darkly to hide her nervousness. "Why? Scared of being poisoned?"
She held Anna's gaze and let her see how cold her eyes were before Anna responded.
"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. I don't want anything, thank you."
What? Did she find out something?
"Aidan," Anna said again, her voice unwavering, "My husband appreciates the invitation. He is running a bit late and will be here soon."
Warren suddenly reached out and grabbed Anna's hand. "Come on, let's talk," he urged, his voice strained with frustration.
Anna raised a brow at him and jerked her hand away. "Let go of me, Warren." Her tone was cool, almost dismissive.
But Warren's fingers only tightened around her wrist, and Sophia's temper flared.
Anna winced, her eyes narrowing. "Let go of me, Warren!" she repeated with more force this time. But he didn't respond, his focus still locked on Anna.
"We need to talk…"
This display was enough to ignite a fire inside Sophia, but she remained still, watching the drama unfold.
Suddenly, the door creaked open, interrupting the tense standoff. A tall figure stood in the doorway, his presence filling the room like a heavy storm cloud.
He was built like a brick wall, with broad shoulders, towering height, and an air of strength that made him impossible to ignore.
His tousled dark hair framed a chiseled jawline, and his piercing deep-set eyes seemed to see right through Sophia.
Her breath hitched as their eyes locked. She took in the hot, sexy, Greek-god before her, with excitement darting down her spine.
His gaze shifted away from hers and she almost cried out with frustration. He locked eyes with Anna and Warren, and then darted his eyes down to Warren's hold on Anna's wrist.
Without missing a beat, he spoke in a low, commanding voice, "Let go of my wife."
Sophia's heart skipped a beat as the realization hit her like a punch to the gut, and she shot to her feet.
This Greek-god was Anna's husband?
Before she could stop herself, she exclaimed loudly in disbelief, "What?!"