Pursuing Her

Sophie didn't really seem to mind as she had long since gotten used to Charmaine's nasty attitude.

“You need proof before making such accusations, Mrs. Tanner. I had nothing to do with Willow fainting. If anything, you should be thanking me for sending her to the hospital!”

Not wanting to waste any more of her time and energy arguing with Charmaine, Sophie turned around and began dragging Tristan out of there.

Willow had fainted due to a low blood sugar level, so it wasn't anything serious.

“Hah...” Charmaine let out a cold chuckle in response.

I used to regret treating Sophie poorly before, but now, I just wish I could strangle her to death! How dare she take that tone with me? I'm her mother, for crying out loud! Such insolence is unacceptable!

Although she was infuriated, she didn't dare lash out at Sophie because Tristan was standing right next to her.

Even if Tristan wasn't there, the dangerous aura emanating from Sophie was terrifying enough to deter her.

Given the circumstances, all Charmaine could do was pin her hopes on Willow.

If Clayton can make a comeback, we'll become members of the upper class. I sure hope he'll be all right...

After leaving the hospital, Tristan opened the car door for Sophie and said, “Wait in the car. I'll be right back!”

Unsure of what he was going to do, Sophie replied, “All right.”

Tristan then closed the car door and walked away.

Ten minutes later, he returned with two scoops of ice cream.

“Here you go.”

Tristan didn't like eating ice cream, but he remembered how Ysabelle would eat it whenever she was in a bad mood, and it would make her feel much better afterward.

He figured Sophie must've felt upset after hearing those nasty remarks from her mother.

Sophie froze in shock and confusion when she saw the ice cream cones in his hands.

Did he just run all the way there just to get me some ice cream? I don't like ice cream, but he did queue up in this scorching heat just to buy it for me. What should I do?

“Tristan, you...”

Unsure of what to say, she simply stared at him with a conflicted look in her eyes.

“Which would you prefer?” Tristan asked.

Although he didn't like ice cream, he still wanted to share the frozen treat with her.

“I'll have this one!” Sophie replied as she picked the strawberry-flavored one, leaving Tristan with the vanilla flavored one.

He picked those two flavors because those were the ones she chose when getting milkshakes.

Just like that, the two of them sat in the car with the air-conditioning on as they munched on their ice cream. For some reason, eating ice cream felt a lot more tolerable when they did it together.

Noticing that Tristan had been staring at her ice cream cone, Sophie held it up to his face and asked, “Do you want to give mine a try?”

Tristan paused for a brief moment before giving her ice cream a lick.

It wasn't until he licked it that Sophie realized what she had done.

Oh, my goodness! That ice cream has my saliva all over it!

“I'm sorry! I didn't do it on purpose! I just thought you might want to try it, that's all!”

“Yeah, I did want to give it a try.”

The atmosphere in the car changed as the two individuals known for their aloofness had an intimate moment together.

“Would you like to try mine?” Tristan asked.

Sophie shook her head. “I actually don't like ice cream.”

Tristan fell silent instantly when he heard that.

What? Does this mean I went through all that trouble for nothing?

“That being said, it feels kind of nice eating it with you!” Sophie added, much to his relief.

She's right. I don't like ice cream either, but I kind of enjoy eating it with her. Is this the power of love? Does one just end up liking anything as long as they're doing it with someone they love?

Tristan tossed the ice cream cones into the trash and said with a chuckle, “Same here. I don't like ice cream either.”

“Tristan, I'm actually a lot stronger than you think. When something happens to you often, you tend to get used to it, and it doesn't bother you as much.”

Sophie knew he was trying to cheer her up with ice cream because of what Charmaine said earlier, but she wasn't bothered by it at all.

“Even so, I don't want you getting used to that sort of thing.”

All Tristan wanted was to protect and love the woman before him for the rest of their lives, so he refused to let anyone mistreat her.

“I don't mind it at all, though.”

There's no way to control the way people think, so why even bother trying to change them? Besides, it would be too exhausting to constantly worry about how others perceive me.

“Now that you have me in your life, I'll be sure to keep you safe from harm. I won't let anyone else mistreat you ever again.”

Tristan was determined to protect her from anyone who would hurt her, including her family members.

“Don't worry. I'm really fine,” Sophie reassured him.

He always has my best interests in mind. Having him in my life is probably the best thing that has ever happened to me.

“I mean what I said, Sophie. You no longer have to worry about a thing. All you need to know is that you're the one I love the most.”

In order to ensure her happiness and make up for her tragic childhood, Tristan was willing to shelter her from any storm that they could encounter.