Cold Husband Burning Regret: The Divorce He Couldn't Handle novel Chapter 181

A thought flashed through her mind.

Child abuse.

Charlotte stopped in her tracks, glancing back at Hans, who was curled up behind the flowerbed, quietly sobbing. She hesitated for half a minute before walking over.

Hans wiped at his tears, only to see someone holding out a tissue to him.

He looked up, dazed for a few seconds, then pushed her hand away. "You're a bad person. I don't want anything from you!"

Charlotte didn’t take offense. “If I were really a bad person, I would’ve thrown you out of here already.”

Hans clenched his little fists, his lips trembling as he stayed silent.

“How did you get hurt on your leg?” she asked.

At that, Hans quickly tugged down his pant leg to hide it, unease and fear flashing in his eyes.

Charlotte caught the look on his face. “Was it your mother who did this to you?”

“…No,” he whispered, barely audible.

His mom only hit him because he misbehaved. She loved him, didn’t she?

“Did you tell Mr. Howard?”

“Mom never hurt me! Never!” Hans suddenly clapped his hands over his ears and bolted away.

Charlotte realized she might have crossed a line. After all, he wasn’t her child—why was she even getting involved?

She was about to leave when she nearly ran into Genevieve head-on. Genevieve saw Hans running off in tears, then spotted Charlotte, and immediately assumed the worst. “Charlotte, why are you picking on a kid? Even if you can’t stand Tricia’s son, you have no right to kick him out, do you?”

“Kicking him out?” Charlotte couldn’t help but laugh. “If I really wanted to do that, do you think you’d have any say in the matter?”

“You—” Genevieve’s face darkened. The memory of the previous night’s events made her glare with resentment. “Just because Grandma likes you, don’t get too full of yourself! I’m warning you—my brother adores Hans. If Hans is ever hurt, he won’t let you off the hook!”

“Fine by me.” Charlotte brushed right past her, unbothered. “If you’ve got a problem, go whine to Evander.”

She ignored Genevieve and walked away without looking back.

“No time lately,” Jonathan replied without even glancing up. “If you’re that lonely, Miss Winthrop, maybe you should put more effort into seducing Evander.” He set down his file and let out a dry laugh. “If you really want to be the next Mrs. Howard, my help alone isn’t enough. You’ll have to do better than that, don’t you think?”

The smile faded from Tricia’s face. By the time he hung up, her expression had soured completely.

If Evander would have her, why would she bother with Jonathan?

Meanwhile, after ending the call, Jonathan opened Charlotte’s WhatsApp. He hadn’t messaged her since that day.

He had to admit, after meeting Charlotte and noticing the strange tension between her and Evander, he’d guessed there was more to their relationship than met the eye. His initial conversations with Charlotte had been nothing more than a ploy to get under Evander’s skin.

And, in a way, it had worked.

He’d seen the irritation on Evander’s face that day—exactly what he’d hoped for.

But the satisfaction he expected never came.

Every time he thought about how Charlotte and Rachel trusted him so completely, guilt gnawed at him—a guilt so heavy he couldn’t bear to face it, forcing him to keep his distance.

He couldn’t even imagine how the two of them would react if they ever learned the truth. Would they fall apart? Or would they simply hate him?