Chapter 13 Why Is He Angry?
Aria frowned in pain as he hugged her roughly. "Arthur, what are you doing?"
Arthur ignored Aria and grabbed the man in front of him by the shoulder. "Arthur Grant. Nice to meet you. And you are?"
The grip was merciless, making the man bend over in pain and ask between gasps, "Who are you?"
Aria sensed something was wrong and quickly separated them.
"Mr. Charles White, I'm so sorry."
Arthur's fists clenched with audible cracks, his voice practically grinding through his teeth.
"Aria, don't you think you owe me an explanation about where this Charles came from? Why is he here, kissing your hand?"
"Are you two that close? Why have I never heard of him?"
Aria was so angry she felt dizzy.
Arthur was being completely shameless! Such a double standard!
He could hang around with Sophie without a care, but she couldn't?
Why?
Besides, nothing was going on between her and Charles White.
"Arthur, shake your head and listen - do you hear the ocean in there? I really don't know what goes on in your brain all day!"
"Mr. White is a painter I invited, and he's a very important client of mine!"
"If you're going to have a meltdown, go find a room by yourself. Smash things, hurt yourself, whatever - just don't drag other people into it!"
Arthur's face darkened as he grabbed Aria's wrist, squeezing so hard it nearly brought tears to her eyes.
Charles reached over to pull Arthur away. "Mr. Grant, let go! This is ungentlemanly - you can't treat a lady this roughly!"
Arthur glared back. "I told you, stay away from my wife!"
"Arthur, you're hurting me!" Aria pulled her hand back, her voice filled with hurt and anger.
He'd completely lost it!
With so many eyes on them, didn't he feel embarrassed?
Sophie and her father were even standing nearby, enjoying their humiliation.
Hotel security finally rushed over.
But knowing Arthur was hosting the event, no one dared step forward.
Charles brushed off his clothes and straightened his slightly crooked bow tie.
"Ms. Hall, I'm very sorry to put you in such an awkward position. Clearly, my friendly gesture was misunderstood."
These words reignited Arthur's anger just as it had started to cool.
"Misunderstood? How is it a misunderstanding? Should I wait until your lips land on my wife's lips?"
Charles raised his eyebrows with a mocking tone.
"I was simply behaving as a gentleman should. Mr. Grant should probably see a doctor about your paranoia."
"Suspecting your wife like this will only make your marriage more difficult."
Aria felt dizzy, her stomach churning again.
She took a deep breath. "Arthur, tonight is Grant Corporation's charity gala, not a place for you to display your paranoia!"
"Your behavior right now isn't just embarrassing Mr. White - you're disturbing all the guests. Is this really the purpose of your event?"
The words hit Arthur like a slap in the face.
He looked at Aria with disbelief.
In his memory, Aria had always been gentle around him, even somewhat timid.
Whatever he said or did, she never objected.
But today, right now, in front of all these people, she was criticizing him so harshly.
All for a painter she'd just met?
"Aria, you..."
He started to speak, his voice hoarse, but Aria didn't let him finish before apologizing to Charles.
"I'm truly sorry. My husband is always like this."
Charles shook his head. "No, no, Ms. Hall, you've done nothing wrong. The one who needs to apologize isn't you - it's this crude, rude man."
His gaze turned to Arthur.
Several Grant Corporation executives and assistants finally pushed through the crowd, rushing forward to smooth things over.
A senior executive tried to ease the tension. "Mr. White, we're terribly sorry. This incident is entirely our oversight..."
An assistant whispered in Arthur's ear.
"Mr. Grant, Mr. White is an important board member of the Heritage Trust Foundation, and a partner we've been trying to secure."
"Mrs. Grant worked so hard to get him here. If this blows up, it'll be very bad for the company."
Arthur froze.
Charles lifted his chin with a cold snort, as if deliberately provoking him.
But now, Arthur's anger was gradually being suppressed by reason.
A question he'd just pushed down now surfaced clearly.
Why had he lost control like that?
Just because Aria made a small mistake?
He couldn't lie to himself anymore - it was simply because that man kissed Aria's hand.
And because of the smile Aria showed that man.
But if it was male jealousy, would he be this angry if Sophie did the same with other men?
Arthur was a bit scared by his own thoughts.
Could it be...
After a long while, Arthur finally spoke. Though his tone was still unfriendly, at least it wasn't hostile anymore.
"If my earlier action caused you any physical harm or affected your work, I'm willing to compensate you three times over."
Charles snorted dismissively, then turned to Aria. "I'm fine, but I really worry for you having such an impulsive and rude husband."
That one sentence nearly reignited Arthur's anger.
But fortunately, the scene was finally brought under control.
Charles went to the hospital accompanied by company executives, and the gala continued.
Finally came the auction segment, with everyone sitting together calmly.
Due to the earlier incident, the atmosphere was noticeably less enthusiastic than before.
Arthur and Aria sat together. As the items were being displayed, he suddenly took her hand.
"I think we need to talk again."