Chapter 98 He Protects Others
At these words, Fiona's expression relaxed, and the corners of her lips instinctively curled upward, but she quickly suppressed it.
Zachary was still protecting her.
She knew that during this period of time when he was cold towards her, he was still angry at her for leaving him and going abroad.
Winona clenched her fingers tightly together, lifted her chin, and looked down at him as though she were a powerful cockerel. "Don't dream, I won't apologize to Fiona."
Fury consumed Zachary's face, like a raging storm about to engulf Winona and tear her into pieces. "I didn't ask you to apologize to Fiona, but to apologize to the child."
Just as Fiona was preparing to intervene and demonstrate her magnanimity, she suddenly found herself at a loss for words.
Winona sneered and laughed condescendingly, "I didn't expect you to be a good father."
Zachary ignored her sarcasm and stood up. His height and imposing presence immediately overshadowed Winona's demeanor. He grasped her wrist, exerting a slight force, and pulled her into his embrace across the desk. "Apologize."
Coffee stains still adorned his face as Winona was pulled towards him, and a few droplets fell onto her head from his jawline.
This jerk wasn't content with his own troubles; he had to drag her down with him.
"If you're afraid of my words coming true, you should've never crossed paths with me. It would've been better for you to live a blissful life with Fiona until old age," she said.
Fiona interjected, "Winona, the conflicts between us were nothing more than the vanity and jealousy of young girls. Besides a few sarcastic remarks during college, we haven't done anything extreme. We haven't even stayed in touch all these years. Isn't it a bit too harsh for you to insult me?"
Fiona was partly right, but not entirely.
From an outsider's perspective, it seemed like two supporters of different departments engaging in an ongoing battle to outdo each other. Although it had escalated to an unsightly level, the two main parties had never personally confronted each other.
However, Winona knew that the strong animosity towards her from those people was fueled by Fiona's covert actions.
She still couldn't understand why Fiona despised her so much. Was it all because of that ranking posted on the forum? They were from different departments, both excelling in their respective fields of study, making it impossible to compare academically. Yet, some bored individuals started harboring resentment based on superficial factors like appearance, physique, and family background.
Winona gestured towards a painting on the table with her eyes. "Zachary bought this painting at a high price, and you spread the news around campus. Then, Cassie exposed me, all part of your plan to humiliate me, isolate me from everyone, and subject me to their incessant verbal attacks. Such a great effort just to crush someone insignificant like me. You really must be willing to go to great lengths."
A sense of panic briefly crossed Fiona's mind. Instinctively, she looked at Zachary and saw a calm demeanor but unsettlingly cold eyes.
He asked, "Were you bullied?"
Winona pushed him away, expressing her disgust. "When you set up this scheme, you already had my predicament all planned out, didn't you? Now you're pretending to care. It's truly repulsive."
Fiona took a deep breath, suppressing her inner turmoil. "Winona, I don't know where you heard these rumors, but I had no knowledge that Zachary bought the painting. I accidentally overheard teachers discussing it, and the promotion was done for the school's recruitment. I discussed this matter with the school leadership. If you don't believe me, you can ask them."
Back then, she had only found out that Zachary was the one who bought Winona's painting when she saw him framing it. This infuriated her, and she fell prey to the provocations of others, using Cassie as a tool to stage this whole act.
Years had passed, and she never expected this revelation to suddenly emerge and catch her off guard.
"Winona, if you insulted me out of jealousy, then there was no need for it. I..."
"Cassie was just acting as a go-between for our team leader. It has nothing to do with me whether we succeed in our negotiations or not," Fiona tried to change the topic, but things didn't go as she had hoped.
Winona smirked, "If it wasn't you, then someone must have been foolish enough to try and please you."
"Winona," Zachary's voice grew icy, clearly displeased, "I bought the painting, but I don't know anything about what happened afterward, and I didn't plot anything with anyone."
Fiona looked at him in surprise. Based on her understanding of Zachary, even if he doted on a woman, he would never allow anyone to disrespect him.
Almost getting slapped, having coffee thrown at him, and being ridiculed as a scumbag and a fool—through it all, he remained calm and collected, except when Winona cursed his child.
This was definitely not the decisive and intimidating president of the Bailey Group. He was nothing more than a loyal dog.
Winona gave Zachary a look that said 'I don't believe you.' "Then tell me, what do you find appealing about this painting? Is it because it looks good, or because it holds value as a collectible, or does it simply bring you joy?"
While every painting was an artist's labor of love, Winona didn't like this one, which depicted her tragic past.
Zachary remained silent for a few seconds before skipping the question, "I will have someone look into this matter."
"No need, I will investigate it myself. If you don't interfere, I'll consider it appreciated," Winona glanced at her watch; it was almost time to leave. "We'll handle the divorce tomorrow morning. If I don't see you there, I'll have my lawyer file the papers directly."
Even if Zachary made excuses to delay, after two years of separation, the court would automatically grant the divorce.
As Winona turned to leave, Zachary grabbed her hand, refusing to let her move an inch. "Fiona, you can go outside. We'll discuss this another day."
Fiona's face turned pale, and she subconsciously looked at the man beside her.
But Zachary didn't even glance at her; his eyes were fixed on Winona's face.
Fiona closed her eyes, her face still swollen from Winona's slap. "Zachary, she's acting unreasonably and hitting people. Why are you protecting her?"
"Fiona, leave," Zachary spoke again, his voice now icy to the extreme. "Just tell your team leader how much investment you need."
Fiona looked at him, disappointment and sadness evident in her eyes, she turned and walked out.
The office door was closed.
The next moment, Zachary held Winona's face, pulling her closer. "You insist on bringing up the divorce?"
"It's not about bringing it up, it's because we were already heading for divorce," Winona struggled to break free from his grasp at the risk of injuring herself. "Stay away from me. Because of you, I now despise all males. I even want to slap every passing male dog I see."
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