Chapter 268

Hannah paused briefly, something dawning on her.Her lashes fluttered, and she cocked her head at Vincent. "Are you upset?"

"No," Vincent replied, eyes shifting away. "I'm fine."The final syllables dragged out, strained through gritted teeth.

But Hannah stared at him like a code had been cracked, her gaze glued to his face, tightened with suppressed fury.

This marked the second occasion she'd witnessed his temper sparked by another man by her side. The first had been when she shared a dance with Miles,and his glare had carved straight through the crowd like a blade, suffocating in its sharpness.

But Vincent had never reacted like that before.

During their marriage, when admirers circled her, he had worn the same blank mask, unaffected and silent. No anger, no questions, as though men orbiting her were no more unusual than air.

That had once convinced Hannah that Vincent held no affection for her. Yet after their separation, those hidden expressions emerged-clear, unfiltered. He was furious because another man stood too close to her.

That understanding sparked a quiet intrigue in her, as if she had just uncovered a crucial piece of a puzzle.So, she let her lips curl, faintly amused, as if she'd just heard a brilliant punchline, and with a deliberately flammable sweetness, said, "Why not?Claude is truly remarkable."

Her gaze pierced his, and she added, "He treats my parents with such kindness, and he's even more considerate to me."

Vincent's stare turned frigid. "Then leave," he said flatly, tone as final as a slammed door. "Go be with Claude."

He even lifted one arm to gesture toward the exit, the motion stiff from the strain in his spine.

"Alright," Hannah answered sharply, as if those words had been a long-awaited cue. She pivoted on her heel,her pace brisk, not a shred of hesitation slowing her down.

Her swift decision hit Vincent like a dagger plunged straight into his chest.

As her hand reached for the metal knob, Vincent,acting on pure instinct, rose from the mattress and snatched her wrist with a grip that brooked no refusal.

"Ow..." The jerk awakened pain in his back, and a groan escaped him as he staggered slightly,his body recoiling in agony. Still, his hold on her wrist remained unrelenting, tightening in reflex as his pain intensified.

The jolt tugged Hannah off balance, forcing her a step backward toward the bed. Her footing wobbled,and she nearly landed on the mattress's edge,

cutting the space between them in half.

She raised her eyes to his, finding a hurricane swirling behind them. "Vincent." She noticed how pale he'd gone, the sweat clinging to his brow,and blurted,"You..."

She wanted to scold him for his recklessness, but what escaped her mouth was the question that had kept her awake all night. "Why do you react like this every time Claude is involved?"

Her voice, carried at such close range, rang sharp and unwavering, demanding a reply.

Vincent's pulse thudded violently beneath his ribs,erratic and loud beneath the pain. The contact of her skin against his sent a flush straight through him,scattering his thoughts.

"Because..." he rasped,voice nearly swallowed by his own hesitation, dry and broken. He fumbled for language that could carry the weight and finally surrendered two syllables. "Jealous, perhaps."

Hannah's eyes widened slightly, a hint of disbelief dancing before shifting into something more curious."Jealous?"

She leaned in, inching closer until her breath warmed his skin, echoing his admission with a voice drenched in mockery. "You're jealous of him? You, Vincent,jealous of Claude?"

Her breath grazed his cheek, and his heart stumbled over itself before sinking deeper into trembling chaos.

"Yes." He shut his eyes for a moment, and when they opened again, defeat shimmered within the shadows."He knows how to charm your parents."

A trace of sourness slipped into the words, so faint that he didn't even realize it.

The phrase "and he knows how to charm you"trembled on the edge of his tongue, but he crushed it down, releasing only a heavy exhale.

Stillness claimed the space between them.

Hannah's eyes never left him. Her voice dropped,heavy with meaning and laced with something deeper than before. "Vincent, when the building was burning, why did you risk your life to rush in?"