The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

Sophie's movement across the room halted abruptly as she exclaimed indignantly, "Who are you calling irrelevant? Victoria is my sister, which makesPercival's sister-in-law by extension. You, his so-called fiancée, are the outsider here!" Her words only added to the already frosty atmosphere, making it downright suffocating.

Thomas glanced at Percival, marveling inwardly at the absurdity of the situation: "This matchmaker must've lost their mind." Leopold, whose attention had been solely on the lavish spread of food before him, nodded in agreement without looking up. Before Vivienne could even open her mouth, Percival slightly leaned back, as if Sophie was a plague he wanted to avoid, quickly putting distance between them. "Vivienne is my wife." His gaze lifted slightly, his usual disdain replaced with a rare seriousness as he said, "My lawful wife." Vivienne couldn't help but laugh out loud.

There was something endearing about Percival when he got all serious.

Ever since they had made it official and updated their status on Facebook, although everyone in their circle knew about their marriage, there were still many who were unaware of their union.

Only Victoria from the Abernathy family was in the know; others might have stumbled upon it while looking her up, but Sophie was likely clueless, or she wouldn't have referred to Vivienne as the fiancée.

Vivienne was convinced that if Sophie uttered "fiancée" one more time, Percival would not hesitate to show her the door. Percival's gaze on Sophie was filled with undisguised aversion, "Remember to bring your brain next tyou go out." If it weren't for Victoria inviting her, he wouldn't even let Sophie step foot in the house.

Sophie, cheeks flushed and lips quivering, eyes brimming with tears, looked on the verge of crying, "How can you say that to me?" Percival, however, didn't spare her another glance, his eyes solely for Vivienne.

He needed to cleanse his sight with his wife's image after being subjected to such unpleasantness.

Victoria, raising her glass nonchalantly, voiced her agreement, "Cousin speaks my mind. I never acknowledged her as my sister; she insisted on tagging along." "Given the circumstances, I suggest we call off this meeting." Vivienne set down her cutlery, her gaze lightly sweeping over Sophie's indignant face.

"Percival, let's go," she suggested, patting her stomach, "Let's try a different place." Percival stood up, his look softening as he turned to Vivienne, a stark contrast to his disdainful treatment of Sophie, "What would you like to eat? I'll take you there." They completely ignored Harrison.

Before Victoria could react, Harrison abruptly stood up, following the duo to the door.

Just as he was about to reach for Vivienne's shoulder, Leopold slapped his hand away and, alongside Thomas, positioned themselves protectively in front of Vivienne and Percival, "Mr. Schram, Vivienne is far too precious to be touched by the likes of you." Harrison's already icy demeanor turned glacial, "Mr. Sterling, I don't think my family matters concern you." Vivienne stopped in her tracks, turning to face Harrison, "Family matters? And who might your family be?" Harrison's smile tightened, "Callingout in front of others isn't very becoming, is it?" "Others?" Vivienne laughed, "Leopold is my junior, my family. In case you've forgotten your name, letremind you, Harrison, you're a Schram, not an Ellington!" She paused, then added, "And stop callingyour cousin-in-law. I've said it before: I acknowledge Victoria as my cousin, but you -I do not!" Harrison's complexion turned an ugly shade of red and purple as he struggled for words, then said et through clenched teeth, "Whether you acceptor not, Victoria is my wife. That's something you can't change." "So?" Vivienne's response was nonchalant.

Just as Harrison was about to retort, Sophie, unable to contain herself any longer, stood up and rushed to his side, grasping his hand with a pained expression, "No matter what, he's my sister's husband. How can you not show him a shred of respect?" Her eyes, filled with a mix of pity and righteous indignation, kept darting towards Percival.

In that moment, an epiphany struck Leopold.

Sophie was all over him in the past; could it be she was aiming to get closer to Percival all along...

The person who finally glimpsed the truth couldn't share it with Thomas in time, as Victoria, Harrison's legitimate wife, made her belated entrance, drawing everyone's attention.

With grace, she brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear, and then another sound echoed.

Sophie screamed, recoiling from Harrison and clutching her hand.

Before she could voice her accusation, she was met with Victoria's icy stare, feeling as though a thousand needles of frost were piercing her skin.

The chill made her shiver.

Fortunately, Victoria's gaze moved on after a brief moment.

Catching a glimpse of the fading red mark on Harrison's hand, she generously placed her hand over his, "Dear sister-in-law, we're all family here, after all. And since we've all ctoday, it's best to speak our minds, isn't it?" She gestured for everyone to look at the dining table, "This feast is all set; it would be a shto let it go to waste." Vivienne chuckled lightly, "No wonder you caught Gavin's eye. There's a way to ask for favors, and you two haven't learned a bit of it." Whether intentional or not, she emphasized Gavin's name.

Harrison's stormy gaze suddenly calmed, and he looked up sharply at Vivienne, "Did my father-in-law seek you out today solely over the Kipling matter?" Vivienne casually pulled up a chair, her smile ambiguous, "He askedto persuade Kaitlyn to issue a letter of forgiveness. Your issues weren't mentioned at all."