Chapter 159 A Blow Exchanged


    Zacharias felt as if a knife had split open his chest, the cold wind rushing straight in.


    “Anneliese! Babe, stop!” He struggled forward, voice hoarse with desperation.


    But Anneliese never looked back. Jonathan’s tall frame stood firmly between them, and Zacharias couldn’t break past him.


    As Anneliese’s figure disappeared from view, rage consumed Zacharias. He clenched his fists and swung hard at Jonathan.


    Jonathan instinctively raised his hand to block, but a flicker of hesitation slowed him for just an instant. Zacharias‘ fist grazed his cheekbone, and in the same moment, Jonathannded a heavy punch of his own.


    The blownded with a sharp <i>bam</i>. Zacharias staggered back two steps, the corner of his lip split, the taste of blood flooding his mouth.


    “Jonathan, do mouth.


    you


    dare admit you like her?” Zacharias sneered, wiping the blood from his


    Jonathan’s expression remained calm andposed, but the words he spoke carried lethal weight. “Why wouldn’t I? Yes. I like her very much.”


    To Zacharias, it was outrageous. This man dared to confess, right in front of her husband, that he liked his wife, saying it as casually as if he werementing on the weather.


    Jonathan’s rxed stance, his ordinary tone, only made the deration more arrogant, more unforgivable. Zacharias was so livid that he nearly coughed up blood; in fact, his mouth was already full of it. Jonathan hadn’t held back his punch in the slightest.


    Grinding his teeth, Zacharias shot back coldly, “Ha. The great Fullbuster heir, and not even a shred of shame at being someone’s homewrecker.”


    “Mr. Shaw,” Jonathan countered, his voice loose and sardonic, “you had no shame, cheating first. Compared to that, I’m nothing.”


    Zacharias‘ fists trembled. “Do you dare tell Anne who you really are? She’ll never ept you if she knows you’re only approaching her out of guilt, to make amends. I know her better than anyone–you and she have no chance. None. I’m warning you, stop before you hurt her.”


    He thought those words wouldnd like a fatal blow, that he’d finally see Jonathan’s polished, aristocratic mask crack into panic and shame. But Jonathan didn’t so much as blink.


    <b>9:35 </b><b>Thu</b>, Sep 11


    Chapter 159 A Blow Exchanged


    39


    s


    He only regarded Zacharias with a cold, dismissive gaze. “You don’t know her as well as you think. If there’s one man in this world she’ll never be with again, it’s the one who left her bruised all over and disappointed beyond repair–you.”


    Anneliese had brought Meatloaf home, but her heart was far from at ease. She found herself running to the balcony, opening the window to peer outside. From this height, this distance, she couldn’t see a thing.


    Regret crept in. Why had she listened to Jonathan so easily? Zacharias already misunderstood her rtionship with him. She shouldn’t have dragged Jonathan further into it. Who knew what Zacharias might do to him in a fit of madness?


    She paced the living room, debating whether to run back out again, when the doorbell rang.


    She rushed to the door and yanked it open. Seeing the tall figure standing there, she blurted anxiously, “Are you okay?”


    Jonathan’s lips curved faintly, but instead of answering, he asked, “How were you so sure it was me outside?”


    She had opened the door too fast, clearly without checking. She couldn’t even exin why, but she had known it was Jonathan, not Zacharias. Pressing her lips together, she said, “You wouldn’t have trouble handling someone like Zacharias, right?”


    Jonathan took it as praise, as though she’d said he was stronger. His brows arched slightly. “He went home. Rest easy. If that’s all, I’ll head upstairs.”


    His words said one thing, but his body said another. He didn’t move, just angled his face slightly so that his right cheek, already bruised, was clearly visible to her. Anneliese noticed immediately and grabbed his arm. “What happened to your face? Zacharias has gone mad–he actually hit you?!”


    Jonathan lifted his hand to cover the bruise, brushing it off. “It’s nothing, just a scratch. I hit back too. Give it a night’s rest and the swelling will go down.”


    “That’s not good enough. Come inside. It needs to be treated, or it definitely won’t be gone by morning.”


    She pulled Jonathan into her apartment. Meatloaf was the most weing of all, bounding up with a wagging tail and spinning in circles.


    “I don’t have men’s slippers here,” she said quickly. “Don’t worry about changing. Sit on the couch and wait–I’ll get the medicine.”


    <b>9:35 </b><b>Thu</b>, <b>Sep </b>11


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