Free Web NovelChapter 279: Chapter 279 Keep A Distance From My Fiancée
The question came out of nowhere.
There was no buildup, no probing, no gradual unraveling.
Ryan threw it at Rose without warning, leaving her no time to prepare.
Her throat tightened, but her expression remained perfectly composed.
That was what annoyed her most about Ryan.
His perception was almost frightening. He always struck straight at the heart of the matter with a single, decisive blow.
If she hadn’t already imagined and rehearsed how to deal with this situation countless times, she would have been caught completely off guard by his sudden attack.
A faint smile curved Rose’s lips. “Mr. Knight, what makes you say that?”
Ryan didn’t miss the slightest change in her expression.
He stepped toward her, forcing her back one step at a time.
“If Ariel weren’t my child—if you had been secretly seeing Trevor, had a daughter with him, and if he were willing to take the child back and raise her—you would have used him long ago to escape the Knight family... and escape me.”
“So why did you have a daughter for him, yet continue to remain in a loveless marriage with me?”
“You’re Aster. Your achievements alone are more than enough to earn the Robinson family’s approval. So why would Trevor and the Robinson family willingly allow the child to grow up without her mother, giving up the chance to have a complete family?”
His voice remained calm throughout, as though he were simply stating facts.
Rose, however, could feel her heartbeat quickening.
She looked up at him. “If she were your daughter, why would I need Trevor to help raise her?”
“Help?”
Ryan ignored the deeper meaning of her words, focusing only on that single word.
A chill ran down Rose’s spine.
He took another step forward, closing the distance between them inch by inch.
“What kind of deal did you make with Trevor?”
When her back finally pressed against the car, Ryan reached out and gripped her elbow.
His dark eyes, as deep as ink, carried an indescribable pressure.
“Rose, tell me... does Ariel have anything to do with me?”
He no longer called her Ariel Robinson.
He simply called her Ariel, as though he were trying to give himself one final reason to believe.
Rose’s breathing quickened.
She was genuinely afraid of Ryan.
Even when he had nothing more than a suspicion, his instincts always struck frighteningly close to the truth.
He had even guessed that her arrangement with Trevor involved entrusting Ariel to him.
She had never given him any evidence.
Yet Ryan was never a man who could be easily deceived.
She met his unwavering gaze.
He simply stared at her.
Although her heart trembled, she kept her composure.
“Because of guilt.”
She enunciated every word clearly.
Ryan’s eyes flickered.
Rose continued with a trace of sarcasm. “We’ve barely shared a bed since we got married, and every single time, we used protection.”
“So tell me—was there ever a single occasion when we didn’t?”
“Even when we were completely swept up in the moment, you insisted on using protection before going any further. If there wasn’t any available, you’d rather stop altogether.”
“Do you really think a couple like that could possibly have a child?”
Her mind drifted back to when she was only twenty years old—young, naïve, and desperately insecure.
She had treasured every moment of intimacy with Ryan, hoping it would bring them closer.
Once, when he stopped because there was no contraception and said he needed to take a shower instead, she had clung to him and pleaded, “I can take the morning-after pill...”
She had loved him so completely that she had willingly cast aside her pride.
Back then, Ryan had simply looked at her quietly for a long moment before gently removing her arms from around him and walking into the bathroom.
He refused.
At the time, she had comforted herself by believing he was worried that the pill would damage her health.
Later, she could no longer deceive herself.
He simply didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks.
Perhaps...
He hadn’t even trusted her to take the medication afterward.
Only then had she finally understood the truth.
Rose stared directly into Ryan’s eyes. “Have you forgotten what our marriage was like?”
“What makes you think Ariel has anything to do with you?”
“I said I felt guilty because I shouldn’t have done those things while we were still married.”
“That’s why I wanted to explain everything to you. I wanted to wait until you were the one who asked for a divorce, so I could leave without carrying any guilt.”
“I just never expected us to remain entangled for so many more years.”
“Isn’t that explanation enough?”
She deliberately made her words even harsher.
Because she was certain of one thing.
Ryan didn’t remember the one and only night they hadn’t used protection—the night before he left the country, when he was completely drunk.
That single forgotten night was the only thing giving her confidence now.
Her words were merciless.
The sarcasm in her expression was unmistakable.
She was mocking his arrogance.
Mocking him for believing the child could possibly belong to him.
Ryan remained silent.
She couldn’t read the emotions hidden behind his eyes.
The two stood locked in a silent standoff.
Rose left him absolutely no room to negotiate.
Since there was no longer anything between them, she had to be ruthless.
Ruthless enough to completely erase any suspicion that Ariel might be connected to him.
She had already let him go.
Why would she ever use a child to bind them together again?
Although neither of them raised their voice, it felt as though invisible blades were pointed directly at each other’s hearts.
No one knew how long the silence lasted.
Ryan lowered his gaze.
His eyes briefly fell upon the hand gripping Rose’s elbow.
A faint, self-mocking smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
“Fine.”
“That explanation is enough.”
Rose instantly felt the tension in her chest ease.
But the very next second, Ryan looked at her again.
His voice was cold and razor-sharp. “Is that your explanation?”
“During our marriage, wasn’t I also acting with reasonable caution?”
His gaze locked onto hers beneath the glaring afternoon light.
Every word left no room for escape.
“If you truly want to draw a clear line between us... then prove it.”
“Have Ariel take a paternity test with me.”
Rose’s breath caught.
She stared at him in disbelief.
Her eyes remained fixed on his calm, calculating expression.
She had never imagined Ryan would be this relentless.
Even after everything she had just said...
He still intended to proceed according to his own judgment.
Rose tried to pull her arm free.
“Ryan, we’re divorced.”
“I don’t have to comply with your unreasonable demands.”
“This would hurt both the Robinson family and the child.”
“Why should they have to go through something like this just so you can put your mind at ease?”
Ryan’s expression grew colder.
His grip tightened slightly as he leaned closer, looking directly into her eyes.
“Rose... we’re divorced.”
“That doesn’t mean I’m dead.”
“If you’re going to marry Trevor, and Ariel is your daughter...”
“What do you expect everyone else to think of me?”
Rose was left speechless.
Her eyes trembled.
She struggled to free herself from his grasp.
Just then—
The screech of brakes shattered the silence.
A car door swung open.
The sharp sound of leather shoes striking the pavement drew rapidly closer.
The next second, a commanding voice rang out.
“Mr. Knight, I’d appreciate it if you kept an appropriate distance from my fiancée.”
