No Divorce? The Billionaire's Love Chase! novel Chapter 182

York spun around, his fingers closing around her wrist. "Do you actually care about me?"

The question struck Claudia as absurd. "Does my concern even matter to you, compared to Miss James's?"

Whatever composure York had regained vanished.

He grabbed her by the waist, pulled her hard against him, and forced her down onto his lap.

He asked again, "Claudia. Can you just have a normal conversation with me?"

Claudia reminded him with the detached professionalism of a doctor treating a patient. "You have a wound on your back. Try not to strain it—mmph."

Before Claudia could finish, York silenced her with a kiss.

One of his hands clamped around her waist while the other cupped the back of her head, pulling her into a fiercely possessive kiss, as if he meant to crush her.

The wet sound of their lips meeting and the heat of their mingled breaths overwhelmed their senses.

Ignoring her struggles, York bit her lip—an act of release, of possession.

He didn't stop until her body went limp and she stopped fighting him. Only then did he reluctantly pull away.

With a careful thumb, he wiped a tear from the corner of her eye, his touch lingering. He held her gaze, taking in her shaky breaths and the faint flush returning to her skin. A moment passed before he seemed satisfied, finally letting her go.

He told himself her coldness was just a front, a product of her anger. Their bodies, at least, were the same as they'd always been—they still recognized each other.

"I'm going to wash up,"

Claudia said calmly before disappearing into the bathroom. She turned on the tap, quietly washed her face, brushed her teeth, and then returned to the bedroom.

After Claudia cleaned his wound, York went out to the balcony for a cigarette.

Claudia tidied up and went to bed without waiting for him.

After the host's introduction, it was Claudia's turn to speak.

Claudia waved away the speech Mark offered her, turning to face the blinding flashes of the cameras as she began to speak.

She explained that while visiting her mother at the hospital, she'd accidentally broken a little boy's water gun. She'd asked her husband to help her pick out a replacement for him.

She explained calmly that the little boy in her husband's arms was just a relative. Besides, she'd been present the entire time.

She intertwined her fingers with York's, assuring everyone that their marriage was strong. She then announced that she had instructed the Ferguson Group's legal department to find the source of these rumors and pursue legal action.

After explaining everything, Claudia didn't miss a beat. She turned to York, her expression soft and playful in front of all the cameras, and said she was craving the matcha truffles he made for her.

Without York having to say a single word, Claudia had resolved the entire issue and orchestrated their smooth exit.

As for York, faced with this version of Claudia, he was left in a long, stunned silence.