Claire’s hand paused mid-motion.
For a second, she thought she was seeing things.
Why the hell was Nelson here?
Wasn’t the Cooper Group based somewhere else, not in CTR Times Square Tower?
“What’s he doing here?” she muttered.
Adrian followed her gaze, face instantly turning sour with disdain.
Claire was only stunned for a moment before she quickly put two and two together.
He must’ve somehow found out that Velora Studio was signing with XR today, showed up to try and intercept Vera.
Too bad he had no idea that his ex-wife, the woman he dumped overseas for three years, was actually Vera Quinn—the designer from Velora.
“Whatever.
Not my problem.”
Claire pulled her gaze back lazily.
They were already divorced.
She had zero interest in playing the “let’s be friends” game with her ex.
Didn’t even bother saying hi.
Instead, she took the roses in her hands and walked side by side with Adrian, her posture sleek and relaxed.
Nelson had never seen this version of Claire before.
The outdated heavy bangs she used to hide behind?
Gone.
Her sleek hair was braided back, showing off her striking and delicate features.
Under the sunlight, her beauty practically lit up the surroundings.
He locked eyes on her like he’d forgotten to blink, trying to convince himself that this couldn’t be Claire.
The girl he remembered was all hunched shoulders and stiff smiles, always speaking like she was afraid of being a bother.
No way could she be the same woman who now exuded confidence with every step.
But even from across the square, he could clearly see the little moon-shaped scar near her temple.
She’d gotten it as a kid when he dragged her into climbing a tree and she fell.
She’d cried for days but refused to let the mark be removed, saying it looked cute.
Their relatives used to tease him about it every year.
Then Serena came back into the picture, Claire grew out her bangs, and no one talked about that stuff again.
Sure, people might look alike.
But even the scar matched—it had to be her.
After not seeing her for a week, and now she was standing right there, Nelson didn’t even think twice.
He stormed towards her.
But just as he got close, the man who gave her the roses leaned in, casually wrapping an arm around her slim waist…
Nelson’s eyes went dark, and before his brain could catch up, his fist flew straight at Adrian’s face.
No warning at all.
Claire was genuinely caught off guard.
Before she could even curse him out, she was already rushing to check on Adrian.
But before her hand even reached him, her wrist was yanked back.
She struggled hard, glaring.
“Nelson, let go of me!”
But he was way too strong, easily dragging her in front of him.
“Claire, you’ve been MIA for a week.
So this is what you’ve been up to?”
Her face flushed with anger, she wanted to bite him.
“Are you insane?
You’re hurting me, let go already!”
He did loosen his grip—barely—but still kept a firm hold.
“This isn’t where you should be.
Come home with me.”
Claire actually let out a dry laugh.
“Seriously?
If you’re so sure something’s wrong with my brain, maybe go get yours checked first.
Why can’t I be here?
I’m here for work.
Am I breaking some law?
And go home with you?
In your dreams.
Now get your hands off me!”
“Work?
You call getting flowers from a man work?”
Nelson suddenly remembered the woman holding roses that night—he could clearly picture her side profile now, and it lined up perfectly.
His fury instantly reignited.
“Claire, even if the Thompson family kicked you out, that doesn’t mean you have to throw yourself away like this!
Do you even know what kind of guy he is?”Adrian had barely recovered from the punch when he heard Nelson’s words.
Honestly, he couldn’t help but laugh.
“Mr.
Cooper, care to explain exactly what kind of man you think I am?
Is there some law that says I can’t send flowers?
And seriously, if receiving a bouquet of roses makes someone ‘corrupt,’ then I guess half the world’s in trouble.”
He wiped the blood at the corner of his mouth and gave Nelson a cold smirk.
All this drama over him sending flowers to someone he considered his little sister?
Yeah sure, roses could give off the wrong signal, but still—who did Nelson think he was?
Guy went MIA on his wife for three full years while she was overseas, and now he’s suddenly playing the protective husband?
What a joke.
Nelson yanked Claire behind him and locked eyes with Adrian, his tone sharp.
“Mr.
Fields, you know exactly what you’re doing, so why pretend otherwise?
The entertainment world’s as messy as it gets, and you’re no stranger to it.
My wife’s not used to all this, so I’d appreciate it if you back off.”
Claire didn’t miss a beat.
She shook off his hand hard.
“We’re divorced, Nelson.
Do I really need your say-so before accepting a bunch of flowers?
Who do you think you are?”
Maybe it was the word “divorced” that hit a nerve, but Nelson’s grip suddenly loosened, and Claire easily pulled away from him.
Her fair wrist was tinged red, and she frowned, rubbing it gently as she walked over to Adrian and crouched beside him.
“It’s red?” Adrian’s face tightened with concern.
Since his little princess came back, everyone at home treated her like a treasure.
And now this guy—without even really laying hands on her—marking up her wrist like that?
What if he had actually used force?
“Does it hurt?
Want to come up and put some ointment on it?”
It wasn’t so much painful, but Claire wanted nothing more than to get away from Nelson.
She nodded without hesitation, a sad little shadow passing over her face.
Nelson, seeing the red mark, had just started feeling a little guilty—but his gaze shifted, and what really stung was seeing them standing so close.
That hurt worse than any bruise.
“Claire, we may have signed the divorce papers, but until they’re finalized, you’re still my wife.”
Claire stopped in her tracks, looked up slowly, and gave a half-smile with just enough edge to cut.
“Your wife now, huh?
Funny how you only start calling me that now.
And even if technically we’re not fully done yet—since you had time during our marriage to take care of Serena, why can’t I go ahead and find my next chapter?”
“My next…
chapter?”
Nelson repeated the phrase, his jaw tight, eyes dark and stormy as they bore into hers.
Then he turned his glare onto Adrian.
“That’s your idea of a next chapter?”
“Excuse me?” Adrian raised a brow.
“What’s that supposed to mean?
I’d argue her taste this time around is a serious upgrade from her last one.”
Nelson shot him a fierce look.
“Your Claire?”
Adrian wasn’t flustered at all.
“She’s hardly yours, is she?”
“That’s enough!”
Claire interjected, cutting off their childish back-and-forth.
She lifted her eyes to Nelson, steady as ever.
“If you’ve got energy to waste arguing with me, maybe use it to actually get the paperwork finalized.
I’ll admit my judgment was garbage back then, but that doesn’t mean I need you trying to fix it.”
That stabbed a nerve.
Nelson flared up again.
“I’ve got no right?
As long as I hold off on finalizing it, you’re still legally my wife.
So what part of that makes me unqualified?”
Claire’s lips pulled into a faint smile as she leaned in a bit.
“So, Nelson, does that mean…
you’re not planning on marrying Serena anymore?”