Augustine instinctively pulled her closer, his stance protective as he glared at Denis.
Denis stiffened under Augustine’s gaze. He was only minutes late. If he had arrived a little earlier, Anne would have been in his arms. He could have been the one to save her—the hero of the mont. But Augustine had stolen that role.
A mix of resentnt and frustration burned inside him. Stretching out his hand, he demanded, "Anne, co here."
"Why are you here?" Anne snapped. "Did you co to see if I had been humiliated?"
Denis faltered, montarily at a loss for words. "I can explain, but you have to co with ."
"She is not going anywhere with you," Augustine cut in firmly.
"You..." Denis jabbed a finger at him, his face darkening with rage. "Stay out of this. This is between and Anne."
"She is my wife," Augustine stated with unwavering authority. "Her problems are my problems."
Denis’s jaw clenched. "Shut your filthy mouth!" He turned back to Anne, his voice urgent. "Co with . We need to talk."
"There is nothing left to say," Anne responded, her voice heavy with sorrow. "What happened today had destroyed whatever was left between us."
Tears welled in her eyes, spilling over. "You... you sold to that man just for a business deal."
Denis shook his head, regret finally creeping into his expression. "No, it’s not like that. I didn’t—"
"He told everything," Anne cut him off. "He said you sent to entertain him for the entire day. You treated like a transaction, like an object to be traded." Her voice broke as she choked on her tears. "You wanted him to ruin ..."
"Anne..." Denis stretched out his hand toward her, but Augustine stepped in between them, blocking him.
"Step back," he warned.
Denis’s eyes blazed with fury. "This is between and Anne. Stay out of it."
"She is my wife," Augustine stated firmly.
Denis grabbed Augustine by the collar, his face contorted in rage. "Trying to steal my woman? Do you think this little act will provoke ? Let warn you—don’t cross . You won’t be able to handle the consequences."
Augustine clenched his jaw, his muscles twitching with barely restrained anger. He longed to beat Denis senseless, but that would be far too easy. No, he wanted Denis to suffer every mont of his life. Taking a steady breath, he forced himself to stay composed.
"I will do whatever it takes to protect my wife," he said coldly, shoving Denis’s hands away. "What happened today proves she isn’t safe working under you. She’ll be resigning—approve it without any trouble."
Denis let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "Who do you think you are to make that decision? She is my employee. Without my approval, she can’t resign. If she tries, she’ll have to pay the penalty, which she can’t afford."
"I can pay it," Augustine stated without hesitation.
Denis’s laughter grew even more derisive. "You? Don’t act like a hero in front of her. No job, no savings, not even a house to call your own, yet you are pretending to be her savior! What kind of man are you?"
Augustine’s fists trembled at his sides, his patience slipping.
Denis sneered, his arrogance growing. "If my family withdraws their support from you, you’ll end up on the streets. What right do you have to challenge ? Your father was a bastard, and so are you. You don’t even belong to the Beaumonts."
The mont those words left Denis’s mouth, Augustine lost control. His fist shot forward, striking Denis hard. Stumbling back, Denis nearly fell, but Haris caught him just in ti.
"Get off !" Denis snarled, pushing Haris aside before turning his furious glare back to Augustine. "You dare hit ?"
"I’ll do worse," Augustine growled, ready to strike again.
"Stop!" Anne intervened, grabbing Augustine’s arm and pulling him back.
"Don’t fight with him," she pleaded, afraid of the consequences Denis might bring upon Augustine. "Step back." She moved in front of him, shielding him, turning her gaze to Denis.
"And you," she said with unwavering resolve, "stop interfering in my life. I won’t work for you anymore, and I refuse to pay any penalty."
She held up her phone. "I recorded my conversation with Mr. Lee. You instructed him to have ’fun’ with in exchange for signing the deal."
Denis’s confident expression faltered. He had indeed sent that ssage, but he had never intended it literally—it was only ant to intimidate her.
"I only did that to make you beg ," he blurted, desperate to explain. "I wanted you to co to , to apologize. I thought you’d reach out to when you were in trouble and ask for my help. I was right outside the hotel, ready to step in. But—"
Anne couldn’t disbelieve what she had just heard. Her chest tightened with a mix of anger and disappointnt. How had she ever loved this man?
"You... you did this just to make beg?" she choked out. With every layer of deception peeling away, the true face of the man she once cared for was revealed—and it made her hate herself even more.
"To you, I was just a toy," she spat. "Soone to be ek, submissive, obedient. You trampled on my dignity and played with my emotions over and over. But even a toy feels pain."
Denis knew his plan had failed terribly this ti. He could feel her slipping away from him completely, and it fueled his desperation.
"I know I made a mistake," he said hastily. "But I can make it right. Co with ." He reached for her.
She took a step back, keeping her hands out of his reach. "Approve my resignation," she demanded. "If you refuse, I’ll release this recording to the press. You certainly won’t want to risk your reputation and your company’s na."
Denis’s expression darkened, his muscles tensing. "Are you threatening ?" he grunted, baring his teeth, disbelief lacing his voice.
"You gave no other choice," she said firmly.
Denis’s nostrils flared. He wanted to keep her tied to him, but he couldn’t afford a scandal, not when his company was already struggling from recent setbacks. He had no choice but to concede.
"Fine," he bit out. "I’ll approve your resignation."
"Let’s go." Anne grasped Augustine’s hand and walked away without looking back.
Denis remained frozen in place, his gaze locked on their retreating figures. ’This isn’t over. I’ll make you crawl back to .’
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