Part 98

Quickly, Anastasia ran after Antony. She called his name repeatedly, but Antony chose to ignore her until her stiletto heels finally brought her close to him. She immediately reached out and grabbed Antony's arm, but he harshly brushed her off.

"Antony, listen to me. Please. I'm really sorry. I apologize," she said in a whiny tone.

The woman tried to grab Antony's hand again, but he pushed her away once more, causing her to fall and kneel on the cold marble floor.

Not wanting to give up, Anastasia wrapped her arms around Antony's legs, forcing him to stop.

"I'm truly sorry," she pleaded again, her voice desperate. She begged for the man's compassion, finally realizing that everything Antony had said in the room earlier was no joke. "I... I..." She couldn't find the words. "I'm sorry, please forgive me," she begged, tears starting to wet her face.

Antony looked down at her with a sharp gaze. "Do you realize that what you're doing has crossed the line?" he asked in his cold tone.

Anastasia looked up again. "I—I just wanted to help her," she defended.

Disgusted, Antony raised the corner of his mouth and looked at her cynically.

"Helping, you say?" he scoffed, clearly not believing her defense. "From the beginning, you had malicious intentions toward me and Claire, didn't you?" Antony accused again. "If you truly meant well, this wouldn't be the path you'd take."

"I did all of this because I'm jealous!" Anastasia exclaimed loudly. Her eyes met Antony's with equal sharpness. "I'm jealous of you and Claire. How can she, who just entered your life, make you fall in love so easily? Meanwhile, I've been with you for a year, but you've never looked at me the way you look at her," she said, her tone softening.

"I've tried to make you fall in love with me, but you've never cared about me," she continued, her voice trembling. The woman was still sitting on the floor, looking utterly pitiful.

Antony laughed mockingly. "You said what?" He crouched down to align himself with Anastasia. With a scornful gaze, Antony looked at her. "She's better than you in every way," he said. "Because she never tries to seduce me. Because she's a woman who loves my child. Because I want her, and I pursued her. Not the other way around," Antony said in his cold tone.

Every sentence he uttered was a jab at Anastasia.

Anastasia realized this. How could she not? She had openly disliked Flavia, believing that Antony himself didn't want the child, evident from how he interacted with his daughter all this time. But she was mistaken. Flavia was, after all, Antony's precious daughter. And although he didn't show it, Antony loved his daughter in his own way.

And she had indeed tried to flirt with Antony, pursuing him relentlessly. In every possible way, she clung to him, as if to announce to the world that Antony was hers with her possessive attitude.

This time, she had brought the man's ex-wife with her, seeking both revenge and a way to show Claire that Antony had always been surrounded by women far superior to her.

But Anastasia never expected Antony to react like this. She knew that Antony was famously cold-hearted. Yet, she thought their past relationship might at least give him a reason to make an exception for her and that it would be easy for him to forgive her. However, she was wrong.

"If you want forgiveness, ask Claire, not me. Because here, the one you're truly hurting is my wife, not me. If you manage to earn her forgiveness, maybe your future will be brighter.

"But as long as you don't get her forgiveness, don't blame me if your life ends up in shambles," Antony said, standing back up and pulling his leg away roughly, causing Anastasia to kneel on the cold floor.

He didn't care that they were now the center of attention. He didn't care if he was seen as an inhumane man.

People must treat others like humans if they want to be treated as such. To Antony, Anastasia was nothing more than a deceiver willing to do anything for her own pleasure.

Antony entered the elevator, raking a hand through his hair harshly. Now he had to think about where to find Claire.

Why was his wife running from the problem instead of facing it with him?

But Antony couldn't entirely blame Claire. The girl had felt insecure from the beginning. It wasn't just about Anastasia or his ex-wife suddenly showing up, but about what his mother-in-law had said the other day.

He could see the mocking smile on his mother-in-law's face when he caught a glimpse of her while he himself was stunned by the arrival of that unwelcome guest.

If Claire's mother managed to influence her thoughts and urged her to call off the wedding, Antony wouldn't hesitate to do something even more ruthless to Anastasia or his ex-wife.

To him, both women were worth no more than garbage.

Antony tried to call Gladwin, the last person he was sure knew where Claire was. But the young man, who was now his brother-in-law, didn't answer his call.

Damn! Now Gladwin couldn't be enlisted as an accomplice.

As a man and a brother, Gladwin must have a low opinion of him now. Of course, he would choose to protect his sister over Antony, who was essentially a nobody.

Antony walked quickly back to his car. Where was he supposed to look for Claire? The girl couldn't possibly be hiding in the same place.

Damn it, why hadn't he just planted a tracker on her phone so he would know where she was going? That way, he wouldn't be struggling like this. Unfortunately, Antony had never anticipated that this would happen.

He grabbed his phone again and contacted his trusted associates, ordering them to find Claire's whereabouts as quickly as possible. Just after he hung up, his phone rang again, and Gladwin's name appeared on the screen.

"Where's Claire?" he asked without any pleasantries.

"Uwooowwww, take it easy, bro," Gladwin said with his usual sarcastic tone. "She's fine; she just needs some time to herself right now." Gladwin continued in a more serious tone. "Is everything settled between you two? I mean, with your ex-wife showing up unexpectedly?" he added, trying to clarify Antony's confusion.

"There's nothing between us. I consider it over," Antony replied firmly.

"I know this isn't my place. It's between you two, but I hope you can be careful with Claire," the man advised. "It's like the rain hasn't fully subsided, and the storm has hit again. Just imagine how she feels. Not to mention the jabs she has to take from our mother. You know what that's like," Gladwin explained further.

"I understand," Antony replied quietly. "Where is Claire now?" he asked, wanting to know.

"She hasn't gone anywhere," Gladwin answered flatly. "She just went back to her house."

"To her house?" Antony asked, surprised. He thought Claire would disappear like last time.

"Yeah, to her house. Where did you think she'd go? Abroad? You know her visa is in your hands. How could she run that far?" Gladwin scoffed.

Antony banged his forehead against the steering wheel in front of him. How could he be so careless?

That's right; all of Claire's identification documents were with him because he had planned a surprise for their honeymoon. Although now, Antony himself was unsure if the surprise would still mean anything to his wife.

"I really appreciate it," Antony said sincerely.

"Just give me fifty percent of Coskun's shares if you really appreciate it," the man replied with a booming laugh.

Antony knew it was just a joke, but he would consider it. While he wouldn't go as far as giving away fifty percent, he could at least offer Gladwin a few shares as a gift.

Antony then pressed the gas pedal, driving his car toward Claire's residence. His wife. Even though they should be enjoying a beautiful time together and taking a long trip, thanks to that unpleasant incident, Antony had to hold himself back.

First, he needed to win Claire's heart back.