My Fiancé's Scandals Never End, So I Married His Uncle Instead-Chapter 115: Questioning the Marriage Contract

Chapter 115: Chapter 115: Questioning the Marriage Contract

Sterling Group.

The ground-floor café.

As Summer Sutton finished her second cup of coffee, the door to the private room was finally pushed open.

The pleasant surprise on her face vanished the moment she saw who it was, her interest waning. "Assistant Rhodes."

Evan Rhodes paused for a moment before walking over and sitting down across from her. He didn’t order coffee, simply stating politely, "Miss Sutton, you’ve come all the way to Metropia, but the Boss is swamped with work and doesn’t have time to see you. He sent me to meet with you on his behalf. You can tell me whatever you need to say, and I will be sure to report it to him faithfully."

"Is he swamped with work, or does he simply not want to see me?" Summer Sutton’s expression turned cold, her face tinged with a hint of derision. "Have I become that repulsive to him now?"

"Miss Sutton, you know the Boss’s temperament," Evan Rhodes said after a moment of thought. "Ever since you exposed your relationship with him a few months ago and broke the rules, there was no way he would treat you well again. And it’s not just you. Everyone at The Sterlings knows our Boss is decisive and ruthless. His word is law, and he’s not a man driven by emotion."

Summer Sutton was silent for a moment. "I have something to tell him. Let him know I need ten minutes."

She emphasized, "It’s something very private. I can only discuss it with him in person."

"I’m afraid that won’t be possible," Evan Rhodes said apologetically. "Perhaps you could try to arrange something with him privately. Miss Sutton, you and the Boss have years of history together. It’s not as if there’s no room for reconciliation."

"Talk privately? You think I haven’t tried?" Summer Sutton let out a bitter laugh and pointed to her phone. "He’s blocked my number and my WeChat. I used my agent’s phone to call him, and he hung up the second he heard my voice. How am I supposed to talk to him privately?"

Evan Rhodes said nothing.

Summer Sutton took a deep breath. "Assistant Rhodes, I’d like to ask you about something." 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Please, Miss Sutton."

"A couple of days ago, I heard the Second Young Master Sutton had a clash with the Ninth Master." A flicker of hope sparked within Summer Sutton. "Was it because of me?"

She had already returned to Oakhaven by then. But having spent all these years in Port Sovereign, she had built up a network of contacts. Word of Kian Sterling’s late-night clash with Brian Sutton had reached her. The incident happened on the very day she had met with Brian Sutton. She heard that her brother had been beaten so badly in the hallway of Kian Sterling’s hotel that he’d suffered a bone fracture. On top of that, Kian Sterling had also severed several of his company’s major business pipelines. The whole affair had caused quite a commotion.

’In the past, when she’d faced harassment and the industry’s "unspoken rules" in Port Sovereign, Kian Sterling had been just as ruthless, scaring all those shady characters into submission. But in recent years, he’d grown weary of it, usually sending Evan Rhodes to handle things. And after the scandal broke, he’d adopted a completely cold and indifferent attitude, ignoring her plight entirely.’

’This clash with the Second Young Master Sutton couldn’t help but rekindle a spark of hope in her, making her feel that things between her and Kian Sterling were beginning to thaw.’

But Evan Rhodes remained silent, giving her no affirmative answer.

Summer Sutton’s heart began to sink once more. "It wasn’t?"

Evan Rhodes shook his head. "It had nothing to do with you, Miss Sutton. As for the rest... please don’t ask. I can’t say any more."

’Evan Rhodes had already been back in Metropia at the time, so he wasn’t there to witness it. But ruining a family’s fortune wasn’t a small matter. The Sutton Family hadn’t just raised hell in Port Sovereign; they’d also sent a formal complaint to Metropia, so he had a rough idea of what had happened. For years, whenever Summer Sutton ran into trouble, the Boss would let the situation fester, only stepping in to clean things up when she was at her breaking point, and even then, he was never truly invested. But if anyone ever crossed Miss Sterling, the Boss wouldn’t wait even an hour. He would always make a heavy-handed example of them, never allowing Miss Sterling to suffer an injustice for even a single night.’

’Before, Evan Rhodes had simply thought it was a case of a brother being deeply protective of his sister.’

’But after seeing that mysterious file from Port Sovereign, Evan Rhodes had caught a glimpse of something very sensitive. When it came to Kian Sterling and Miss Sterling, he was now even more careful not to breathe a word to anyone.’

His silent denial of Summer Sutton’s guess was enough to leave the famous Port Sovereign star looking crestfallen. Her knuckles turned white as she gripped her coffee cup, and the atmosphere in the private room grew heavy and oppressive.

Evan Rhodes sat in silence, occasionally glancing at the time.

Ten minutes later, he rose to his feet politely. "Well then, if there’s nothing else, Miss Sutton, shall I arrange for someone to escort you back to Oakhaven?"

Summer Sutton didn’t move. "Assistant Rhodes, let me use your phone."

"Miss Sutton, that’s not appropriate."

"Then would it be more appropriate for me to storm into his office?" Summer Sutton’s tone was icy. "Even if I can’t see him, it wouldn’t be hard to cause a scene at the entrance to the Sterling Group and get myself trending."

Evan Rhodes lowered his gaze, thinking for several seconds. He then took out his phone, put it on speaker, and dialed Kian Sterling’s private number.

After a few rings, Kian Sterling’s icy voice came from the other end. "What is it?"

"Boss, Miss Sutton has something to say to you," Evan Rhodes said, bracing himself.

The other end was silent.

Summer Sutton, no longer caring that an outsider like Evan Rhodes was present, spoke directly into the phone.

"Ninth Master, it doesn’t matter that you won’t see me. I just need a straight answer from you."

He was met with indifferent silence.

She closed her eyes and asked bluntly, "I found a marriage contract at the Sutton residence—a contract for a marriage between you and me, Ninth Master. It has your signature and handprint, as well as the signatures of my mother and yours. I want to ask you, Ninth Master, do you acknowledge this or not?"

"A marriage contract?" Kian Sterling finally let out a cold laugh. "The Sutton family? How could they possibly have a marriage contract?"

"It’s a photograph of it, secretly taken by the butler back then."

Kian Sterling’s reply was detached. "Get your hands on the original, then we can talk."

"The original is most likely in your hands, Ninth Master. Why would you say something like that?" Summer Sutton was growing hysterical. "A man of your stature... you had the guts to sign it, but now you don’t have the guts to admit it?"

Kian Sterling’s voice was as cold as ice. "There is no marriage contract between you and me."

Summer Sutton’s eyes turned red. "Ninth Master... when did you become such a hypocrite..."

The line suddenly went dead.

The next moment, a message came through on Evan Rhodes’s phone. He glanced down at it, then looked at Summer Sutton with a trace of pity.

"Miss Sutton, the air in Oakhaven is getting chilly. The Boss has ordered that you be sent back to Port Sovereign immediately. He’s having someone take over your studio in Oakhaven. You’ll get it back when you learn how to behave."

"By what right! By what right does Kian Sterling do this!" Summer Sutton’s face was ashen, and her whole body trembled. "By what right does he control my life! This is... he’s restricting my freedom..."

"Miss Sutton," Evan Rhodes interrupted gently. "That’s enough. Don’t force the Boss to take back everything he’s invested in you over the years."

’Knowing Kian Sterling’s cold and unfeeling nature, she knew he was cruel enough to actually do it.’

Summer Sutton bit her lip so hard she couldn’t speak.

Evan Rhodes lowered his gaze and made a gesturing motion. "The bodyguards are already waiting at the door. After you, Miss Sutton."

「Several hours later.」

Far away in Port Sovereign, the Second Young Master Sutton received another phone call.

"If..." The voice on the other end was faint, with an almost unreal hoarseness. "I can side with you, but I’ll need the Sutton Family to use all of its resources to help me get my shares back. Do you dare?"

"My dear sister, you jest..." Second Young Master Sutton was still in a hospital gown, his arm in a sling as he lounged on a deck chair, a mean and cold expression on his face. "I have my own score to settle with the Ninth Master. Of course I’m on your side, sister."

"I will arrive in Port Sovereign in three hours," Summer Sutton’s voice was distant. "I want to see a sign of your sincerity."

The Second Young Master Sutton began to laugh, slowly and deliberately.