Chapter 1528 The Humbling He Never Saw
Ann's tears fell instantly. She wanted to jab a finger at Paul and yell, "Are you blind? When did you ever see me offend her?"
But she didn't dare—at work, she was respected and in control, but when it came to relationships, she felt utterly insignificant.
Paul couldn't see how much she'd been humbled.
In his mind, Ann was still the woman who'd used his amnesia to trick him into bed.
His patience gone, he shot her a cold look, then brushed past her with a final, biting remark: "Stop running after the Adams family. Try holding onto a little self-respect."
He was referring to Ann's dozen desperate phone calls, which he saw as pathetic harassment.
Ann stood frozen until his figure disappeared, then slowly leaned against the wall. She had witnessed Paul's tenderness before, but this was the first time she realized how devastating his cruelty could be.
Tears fell again as she hurried back to the restroom, staring at her red-rimmed eyes in the mirror. She'd been working overtime constantly, leaving her eyes bloodshot and her face gaunt, but the slaps had left her cheeks visibly swollen. Even speaking made the corner of her mouth ache.
Taking a deep breath, she heard footsteps behind her and tensed. In the mirror, she saw Shelley's face appear.
Shelley studied her dress curiously. "Did you change your dress halfway through the evening?"
Ann barely knew Shelley—they weren't friends, just acquaintances who'd met several times. She straightened immediately, her tone respectful. "Ms. Harper."
The restroom's lighting was much brighter than the party's ambient glow, and Shelley immediately noticed her swollen face, her eyes narrowing. "Who hit you?"
Selena had asked her to look after Ann, and now Ann had been assaulted at the party.
What bastard would dare do such a thing?
"No one. I just ate something I shouldn't have last night—a bit of an allergic reaction." Ann's lie was transparent.
Shelley grabbed her wrist firmly. "You think I can't tell? I can still see the handprint. Was it Paul? I just saw you talking to him. Come on, I'm taking you to confront him!"
Ann panicked, desperately trying to pull away, but Shelley's grip was iron-tight. Within moments, she was dragged from the restroom straight into the main ballroom.
Shelley had grown up getting everything she wanted, and despite the Harper family's recent troubles, everyone in their circle still respected her. She spotted Paul's location and marched Ann directly toward him.
Ann had never been able to stand up to Paul, and now, feeling herself drawn closer to him, she felt dizzy with fear.
Paul was discussing Raymond's situation with Alex when a shadow fell across them. Looking up, he saw an furious Shelley and a pale-faced Ann.
Alex raised an eyebrow, nudging Paul with his elbow. "Your handiwork?"
Alex knew Shelley was Selena's close friend, and Selena was Raymond's woman—that deserved some respect.
With both Selena and Raymond abroad, as a friend, he couldn't just stand by while someone bullied their circle.
Alex spoke up, "Ms. Harper, what exactly did Paul do to make you so angry? Let's talk this through—no need for violence."
Shelley certainly looked ready for a fight.
She released Ann's hand and locked eyes with Paul. "Did you slap her?"
She wouldn't have expected this man to hit women.
Ann stood behind her, quietly tugging at her fingers, silently begging her to stop. With so many people around, everyone was already staring.
Paul set his wine glass on a passing server's tray, his voice ice-cold. "No."
"But I saw her crying heartbroken after talking to you. Mr. Adams, surely you wouldn't stoop to bullying a woman?" Shelley's accusation hung in the air.
The word "bullying" made Ann's nose sting, and tears spilled over again despite her efforts.
Alex understood the complicated history between her and Paul—everything that had happened during Paul's brief amnesia.
But since Paul refused to acknowledge any of it after recovering his memory, what could anyone do?
He offered Ann a tissue, his voice gentle: "Ms. White, we're in public. Please try to hold it together. Whatever this is about, let's discuss it after we leave here."
Otherwise, by tomorrow, rumors would spread that he and Paul had ganged up to bully a woman. While he didn't care about his own reputation, if word reached Raymond abroad, that would be a problem to explain.
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