Chapter 422

Sophia had just finished discussing construction details with the foreman when she turned and met Sebastian's intense gaze. His eyes burned through her, making her skin prickle.

"Something on my face?"

"Yes."

She instinctively touched her cheek.

"What is it?"

"Adorable."

Sophia nearly choked on her water. She screwed the cap back on and glared. "Nice joke, Mr. Valdemar."

Sebastian rubbed his nose, his ears turning pink. "Terrible, I know."

The sun baked the concrete, heat waves distorting the air. He studied her sun-flushed face. "Didn't expect you to endure conditions like this."

"That doesn't sound like praise." She narrowed her eyes.

"It wasn't."

He remembered her in that five-figure gown at the gala. Now she stood in a dusty construction site debating concrete ratios with workers.

"Lunch time."

A line already formed at the food trucks. Workers squatted in shaded corners, devouring $2 boxed meals.

Sebastian spread his suit jacket over the steps. "Sit here."

Greasy stir-fried greens glistened in Sophia's box. She poked at them before setting her chopsticks down. Sebastian barely touched his food either.

"Has Ethan contacted you?"

Sophia swirled her water bottle, light fracturing through the liquid. "Took you long enough to ask."

She'd noticed his restrained curiosity all morning.

"Are you done with him?"

"Probably." She watched a crane's shadow stretch across the site. "If he stays away."

Sebastian said abruptly, "He postponed the wedding."

"And?" Sophia laughed lightly. "You think that means he cares?"

Cicadas screamed suddenly.

Sebastian studied her profile. "At least it shows hesitation."

"Hesitating whether to keep torturing me?" She stood, dusting off her pants. "That kind of care I can live without."

Her shadow contracted under the noon sun, coiled tight like a wary cat.