From His Fake Wife to Billionaire Heiress Chapter 189: A Dark Bargain

"Bastard?"

Sophia didn't even blink at the insult. Instead, a cold, derisive laugh escaped her lips.

"Harvey, did your brain rot while you were locked up?

"You actually believe everything they air on TV?"

"Let me lay it out for you. I'm the real Mrs. Ashford—Lucas and I are legally married, filed at the city hall. That woman you see on screen? She's nothing but a decoy Lucas and I set up to keep his grandpa off our backs."

Harvey's eyes narrowed. His face was a mask of disbelief.

Sophia savored his reaction and pressed on. "Caleb can't stand me, and Lucas hasn't fully secured his position as heir yet. He's still under Caleb's thumb. So we had to play it this way. For now, Jeremy and I have to stay in the shadows.

"So do you get it now? If you care about Jeremy at all—if you want him to have a future—then you should help me clear the path so I can step into the light as the real Mrs. Ashford. Once that happens, our son will be the sole heir to the Ashford empire."

Our son.

The words hit Harvey like a shockwave. His heart hammered violently in his chest.

He stared at this ambitious woman in front of him, and his mind began painting a picture he couldn't resist.

His own son, inheriting a billion-dollar fortune.

And him—the biological father of that heir...

What kind of power would that bring?

Harvey's breathing grew heavy. He tossed his long-extinguished cigarette onto the pavement and ground it under his heel.

He looked up, locking eyes with Sophia, and asked one final question, "Aren't you afraid Lucas might someday demand a DNA test and figure it all out?"

Sophia offered a thin, icy smile.

"The day Jeremy was born, I made sure every legitimate DNA testing lab in Havenbrook was... taken care of.

"As long as the test is run in this city, no matter how many times Lucas checks, the report will always say the same thing—that Jeremy is his biological son. He'll never know."

Harvey stared at her, stunned. The woman before him was no longer just some old fling. She was cunning, ruthless—a viper in elegant clothing.

He fell silent for a long moment, weighing the enormous temptation against the steep risks.

In the end, his hunger for money and influence overpowered everything else.

"Alright," Harvey said finally, drawing a deep breath as if sealing a pact. "What do you need me to do?"

Seeing she had finally reeled him in, Sophia felt a surge of quiet triumph.

But she kept her composure. "I need someone to handle certain things for me... things I can't do myself."

Harvey caught on immediately. A gleam of greed flashed in his eyes. "Fine. But... I'll need five million up front. Consider it a... welcome gift from the boy's real father."

Five million.

Sophia's heart stuttered. It was a lot, but right now, it didn't matter.

Keeping Harvey around was like planting a live grenade. But on the other hand, with a man like him in her pocket—someone who wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty—she could finally take care of obstacles she'd never dared touch before.

He was a double-edged sword. Used carefully, he could clear every hurdle in her path.

The risk was worth it.

"Deal," she agreed without hesitation. "I'll get you the money as soon as I can. But Harvey, remember this—we're in this together now. What happened today, Jeremy's real parentage... you bury it deep and never breathe a word. Because if this ever gets out, none of us are walking away in one piece."

Her final words hung in the air, heavy with warning.

Harvey smirked.

"Don't worry," he said, his tone laced with implication. "For our son's future... my lips are sealed."

Two hours later, Sophia finally arrived at the hospital.

Lucas was standing rigidly outside the emergency room. His posture was straight but tense, and his tailored suit was wrinkled from hours of waiting.

He had been on edge all night. The moment he spotted Sophia, the anger he'd been bottling up finally erupted.

"Where the hell have you been?" He turned, his handsome face tight with fury. "Did you find anything?"

Sophia had rehearsed her emotions the whole way there.

She hurried toward him, wearing just the right blend of worry and guilt. Her eyes were faintly red-rimmed. "Lucas, I'm so sorry. I... I've been dealing with the restaurant this whole time."

She paused, letting indignation flash across her features, and delivered the lie she'd prepared. "Turns out it was one of the new kitchen hires. He'd been holding a grudge against his manager over a bonus dispute—took it out on everyone else."