Second Chances Don’t Come Easy Novel – “Sophie, did you forget your place?” Mitchell’s sarcastic words chilled her to the bone. “No, I didn’t—” “Are you trying to say you didn’t set me up three years ago? Or that you didn’t force me to marry you?”Mitchell grabbed her neck. His eyes scornfully swept over the cup of honey tea she had brought in earlier. “Years have passed, yet your tactics remain as underhanded as ever!” Back then, she had also served him a cup of honey tea, and then everything spiraled out of control. Intense disgust filled Mitchell’s eyes. With a swift motion, he threw Sophie off the bed. The disgust in his eyes grew. “Get out!” Sophie’s heart clenched painfully when she saw the unmasked abhorrence in his gaze. She was truly tired of this. “Mitchell, let’s get a divorce,” she said.
“I’m back.” In her bedroom, Sophie Warner stared at the message on her phone, lost in thought. It was from an unknown number. Normally, she would have dismissed it as a message someone had sent by mistake. But for some reason, she found herself inexplicably intrigued. A sudden knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. “Ms. Sophie.” It was the housekeeper, Wrenn Torres. Sophie set her phone down and said, “Come in.” Wrenn entered the room, carrying a tray with a cup of honey tea. With just one glance, Sophie understood what Wrenn was there for. Wrenn asked, “Is Mr. Mitchell staying in the guest room again? Ms. Sophie, forgive me for speaking out of turn, but there are certain matters where you should take the initiative as his wife.” In bed, Sophie tightened her grip on the blanket beneath her, feeling a surge of humiliation. She knew all too well that the honey tea was just an excuse. What Gertrude Foster, Mitchell’s grandmother, actually wanted to remind her of was that she had to seduce Mitchell. Like a hooker, she was to seduce her own husband.
But Sophie couldn’t argue against her. She was an orphan who had been adopted by the Warner family. They had raised her, arranged for her education, and let her work at the family company, Warner Enterprises, after graduation. In the end, she had married Mitchell, the current head of the Warner family. Everything she had was given to her by the Warners. She had no right to oppose Gertrude’s wishes. “I understand. You can leave it there. I’ll take it over to him later,” Sophie replied softly, releasing her tightly clenched fists. Wrenn seemed satisfied with her response and left after placing the cup down. Sophie stared at the honey tea for a long time before finally picking it up and going to knock on Mitchell’s door. “Mitchell, are you asleep?” “Come in.” A man’s voice promptly sounded from within the room. Sophie opened the door and stepped inside.
Seeing the cup of honey tea in her hand, Mitchell’s eyes flashed with mockery. “What’s this? Are you here to beg for favors?” A wave of embarrassment washed over Sophie. She wanted nothing more than to turn around and leave. However, as she recalled Wrenn’s words, she restrained herself. “Now that you know, please fulfill your duties as a husband. You should also know that Granny has been hoping that we would have a child.” While saying so, Sophie set the cup down and walked over to Mitchell, undoing the buttons of her shirt without hesitation. Sophie’s movements faltered, and her entire body felt hot. Memories of that fateful night involuntarily surfaced in her mind. That night had been their only moment of intimacy. Mitchell’s fiery body, his strong arms—every recollection made Sophie’s body heat up. As her thoughts drifted, she suddenly felt weightless.
Mitchell had lifted her and tossed her onto the bed. His solid frame pressed down on her. A hint of shyness and secret anticipation ignited in Sophie’s heart. She deeply loved Mitchell, and she yearned for him to be kind and close to her. But since that night, he hadn’t touched her again. Would he touch her tonight? “Sophie, did you forget your place?” Mitchell’s sarcastic words chilled her to the bone, as if he had thrown a bucket of cold water over her. The blush on her face vanished immediately, leaving her pale. “No, I didn’t—” “Didn’t what?” Mitchell grabbed her neck. “Are you trying to say you didn’t set me up three years ago? Or that you didn’t force me to marry you?” His eyes scornfully swept over the cup of honey tea she had brought in earlier.
“Years have passed, yet your tactics remain as underhanded as ever!” Back then, she had also served him a cup of honey tea, and then everything spiraled out of control. Intense disgust filled Mitchell’s eyes. With a swift motion, he threw Sophie off the bed. The disgust in his eyes grew. “Get out!” Sophie’s heart clenched painfully when she saw the unmasked abhorrence in his gaze. Suddenly, she wasn’t sure if her persistence had any meaning. She was truly tired of this. “Mitchell, let’s get a divorce,” she said.
Mitchell’s expression remained unchanged. His tone dripped with sarcasm as he asked, “Is this your new tactic? Retreat to advance?” “No, I’m serious.” “Are you?” Mitchell’s gaze swept over Sophie disdainfully, filled with mockery and stark disbelief. “You willingly sacrificed your chastity to force me into marrying you. Now you’re tired of it and want to be with someone else? Even if we divorce, I’ll be the one who brings it up! You have no right!” “Fine. I’ll wait for you to bring it up.” Sophie slowly got up from the floor, adjusted her shirt, and headed out. As she reached the door, she couldn’t help but turn back to look at Mitchell. “I…” Sophie wanted to explain everything that had transpired back then, but she recalled the words that one person had said to her. Her gaze dimmed, and all her explanations turned into feeble excuses. “Someday, you’ll understand.” She actually wanted to ask him if he remembered what day it was. However, she quickly realized that he probably didn’t. It was their third wedding anniversary. But for him, it was probably the anniversary of a disaster.
In the morning, the ringing of her phone broke the silence. The call was from Kendall Levine, one of her acquaintances. Sophie collected herself and answered the call. “Kendall, what’s the matter?” Kendall’s voice came through quickly. “Sophie, bad news! The company is in trouble!” “The mining team had an accident. The families of the victims have come to the office, and they’ve brought many media reporters with them. It’s a mess. You need to come over quickly.” Kendall’s voice sounded urgent. “Keep everyone calm for now. I’ll be there shortly.” She quickly hung up the phone and made her way to the office. As Sophie reached the entrance to Warner Enterprises, she immediately spotted Mitchell, who was surrounded by a crowd of people and reporters. Sophie took a deep breath, steadying herself, and walked toward the crowd. Out of nowhere, a flash of white light passed before her eyes. She instinctively looked over and saw someone in the crowd holding a dagger, their gaze fierce as they stared in Mitchell’s direction. Sophie’s eyes widened. With no time to think, she lunged at Mitchell.
“Watch out!” There was a sharp, piercing sound of a blade cutting through flesh. Sophie’s body went limp, and she collapsed to the floor. “Cherie!” Mitchell exclaimed as he held the unconscious Sophie tightly in his arms, a hint of panic crossing his usually impassive face. He strode out of the building with Sophie cradled in his arms. “Get her to the hospital now!” In her dazed state, Sophie thought she heard a tremor in Mitchell’s voice and the long-forgotten term of endearment he used for her—Cherie. She tried to see his face, but she could only make out his jawline before she blacked.
When Sophie regained consciousness, she found herself in the hospital, surrounded by the sterile white walls of the ward. A commotion outside the door caught her attention. When a familiar name reached her ears amidst the clamor, her grip on the bowl tightened. Kendall didn’t notice Sophie’s distress as she excitedly shared gossip with her. “Sophie, guess who I ran into earlier? It was none other than the nation’s sweetheart, Wyola Thompson, who’s been the talk of the town recently!” Then, Kendall pulled up a news page on her phone and showed it to Sophie. Sophie immediately recognized the two people in the video. It was Mitchell and his new romantic interest, Wyola. Seeing Wyola’s familiar face in the video, Sophie felt her heart throb in pain. During the course of their three years of marriage, Mitchell had had various female companions around him.
Each one bore some resemblance to that one person. It was as though they were silently reminding her of something. She watched as Mitchell, who should have been by her side, stood next to another woman and affectionately linked arms with her, smiling and laughing. “Ms. Wyola, can you tell us why you’re at the hospital with Mr. Warner? Rumors are circulating that you two are in a relationship. Is it true?” “Some witnesses saw you coming out of the obstetrics and gynecology department. Does that mean both of you are expecting a child?” The questions from the reporters buzzed in Sophie’s mind, but she couldn’t hear them.
All she could think about were the words “obstetrics and gynecology”. Wyola was pregnant? Mitchell had known all along that Gertrude was pressuring her to have a child, yet he had refused to touch her. He had said she was filthy, and he would rather be with other women. But now he had let Wyola get pregnant with his child. Sophie thought of earlier that morning when Mitchell had forced her to take the morning-after pill. Sophie felt like an icy dagger had been thrust into her chest, stabbing her heart deeply. The next moment, she spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed on the bed.