Page 72 of King of Pride

Her mouth snapped shut, but she quickly recovered and slipped her arm through Ivan’s, pressing herself against him.

“I mean, you must have heard that Ivan sent me a gift as soon as I came back,” she continued, her voice becoming sweeter. “It really showed me how much he still cares about me. No one knows better than me how well Ivan treats the woman he loves.”

Her gaze slid toward Rose.

“After all, now you are his girlfriend. I’m sure he treats you wonderfully too. If you understood how much he loves you, you’d realize how lucky you are.”

Rose stared at her in disbelief.

Then a cold, humorless smile touched her lips.

“Are you sure you have a single functioning brain cell?”

Jessica’s expression froze.

Rose continued, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Do you really think I’m too stupid to understand your pathetic little ‘pick-me’ act? You keep bragging about everything Ivan does for you as if you’re the only person capable of recognizing how shallow and transparent you are.”

Her eyes narrowed.

“Do you honestly think you’re the only intelligent person on this planet?”

Jessica’s face fell.

A deeply offended expression immediately replaced her smile.

Beside her, Ivan’s jaw tightened.

His expression darkened as he glared at Rose.

“Are you seriously going to act like this?” he snapped. “She’s trying to make you understand, and all you’re doing is insulting her. Do you think this makes you look good? Or your father?”

Rose's expression hardened.

“You and I are in a relationship,” Ivan continued, his voice growing more forceful. “You can’t just decide to end it and walk away whenever you want. Come inside. We’re going to talk.”

He reached for her arm.

The moment his hand moved toward her, Rose stiffened.

“Don’t touch me.”

Ivan paused.

But before he could respond, Rose’s gaze shifted toward the restaurant on the ground floor of Monroe Industries.

An unwelcome memory flashed through her mind.

Six months earlier, when Jessica had returned to the city for a short stay, Ivan had been in a meeting at Rose’s father’s company and couldn’t wait to see her. The moment he received a call from Jessica, he had asked her to meet him at the restaurant downstairs.

Rose had been there too.

She still remembered sitting across from them while Ivan had spoken to Jessica with an eagerness she had rarely seen from him.

At one point, he had casually asked Rose to get his coffee.

He had even given her specific instructions about exactly how he wanted it prepared.