novelraw Chapter 299 - 177 Is it illegal for me to sleep with my woman?
Chapter 299 - 177 Is it illegal for me to sleep with my woman?
Charlotte suddenly turned her head back and glared at Joseph Shaw, so angry she almost wanted to hit him.
"Can’t you see she’s crying? She doesn’t want this. If she doesn’t want it, then it’s not okay." Looking at Annie holding the blanket to cover her tear-streaked face made her heartache.
It’s girls like this who make people feel tender-hearted; Charlotte’s heart felt as if it was being pricked by needles. How could anyone be so shameless?
"Get out..." The voice was hoarse, seemingly filled with suppressed desire and anger. If this woman weren’t Atlas’s, he would have already dragged her out and thrown her off the balcony.
Charlotte’s expression was even darker than Joseph Shaw’s.
"Why should I get out? You should be the one leaving." Charlotte glanced at Atlas Hallow, who had already retreated from the room.
If Atlas were here, Annie wouldn’t be able to get up and dress. It was simply too humiliating.
After Atlas exited, Charlotte quickly picked up the coat thrown on the floor, walked to the bed, and handed it to Annie.
Ten minutes later, all four were properly dressed, sitting in Annie’s cramped room.
The entire atmosphere was incredibly strange. Annie’s room was small, and both Atlas and Joseph Shaw were over six feet tall. Sitting on that narrow sofa, they practically had no space to stretch their legs.
Charlotte and Annie sat on the bed, Charlotte glaring fiercely at Joseph Shaw. Today, she had to make things clear with this person, because Annie had explicitly rejected Joseph Shaw, and Annie had told her she never wanted anything to do with him again. So she had to help Annie clarify this matter.
"I didn’t expect you to have a hobby of invading people’s private lives..." Joseph Shaw, with his narrow phoenix eyes, spoke with deep sarcasm.
"There’s nothing worth invading. You’re not that great. He has everything you do, and even better than you, so you don’t need to be so confident." Charlotte retorted, not afraid to deal with ruffians. These kinds of men were the most detestable, and she suddenly found Joseph Shaw’s face to be repugnant.
Joseph Shaw glanced at Atlas Hallow with a look that seemed to say, "can’t you control your woman?" But Atlas shrugged, seemingly answering that he couldn’t do anything about it now.
"Whether I’m confident or not is none of your concern. Now you can leave." He was almost about to explode, having just been provoked by this woman bursting in, leading him to nearly lose it. He’s cleared up now that all his discomfort in the past few months stemmed from Annie quitting, his anger too intense with no outlet. So, he had to bring her back.
No one could stop him, not even Atlas’s wife dared try to control him.
"Annie is an employee of my company. What you did earlier, if she wants to pursue it, you’ll be legally responsible." Charlotte’s face turned extremely serious. She couldn’t just stand by on such matters, both personally and professionally — Annie was her good friend and subordinate.
"You don’t seem to understand. She’s my woman. Is sleeping with my own woman illegal?" Joseph Shaw glanced disdainfully at Atlas Hallow, who had, since marrying, appeared to be spineless, allowing a woman to climb on top of him. It was unbearable.
"Don’t get angry." Atlas Hallow completely ignored Charlotte’s disdainful gaze, his low, pleasant voice rising into the air.
"I’m the one who’s angry." Joseph Shaw snapped, his eyes practically shooting sparks.
"Your anger has nothing to do with me, right?" Atlas remained calm and composed, looking like he was enjoying the show.
Nothing productive would come from such a conversation. Charlotte saw Annie was already so embarrassed and silent.
"Annie, just rest for now. You can handle today’s events however you wish, and if needed, I’m willing to testify for you." In such a case, Charlotte couldn’t handle Annie’s affairs herself; this was Annie’s personal business. But if necessary, either she or the company was willing to be Annie’s support.
Atlas was relieved, because if the situation dragged on any longer it would become awkward.
Especially given Joseph Shaw’s nature, it was clear just by his straightforward actions, his ire keeping him from acting because Charlotte was Atlas’s woman. If it had been someone else, Joseph Shaw wouldn’t hesitate to hit women.
"You’d better leave soon. If you intrude here again without Annie’s consent, our company won’t stand by idly." Charlotte said to Joseph Shaw, her face extremely serious.
He’d never encountered such infuriating matters before. What kind of woman did Atlas marry, to be so fond of minding others’ business?
But he knew Charlotte was pregnant, dear to Atlas, so he had to tolerate it.
As he left, he shot Annie a meaningful look, both a threat and a warning.
Annie sat on the edge of the bed, head down, not saying a word, letting Charlotte lead everyone out. As the door closed, tears fell again. No matter how strong she was, it was useless. Perhaps physically or psychologically, Joseph Shaw was far superior.
Charlotte was sitting in the car, still not over the shock from earlier.
What she saw was truly distressing. Fortunately, Annie wasn’t seen in any compromising state, or it would have been even more humiliating for a young woman.
"What are you thinking?" said Atlas, watching Charlotte’s dazed expression. Today’s events were baffling; unlocking the door and entering, he’d witnessed everything.
"Wondering why some men always push things. Why can’t they respect the other’s wishes if they don’t agree?" Charlotte sighed heavily at how heartbreaking such matters were. She knew Annie didn’t want to entangle with Joseph Shaw or send him to the police, which was the most painful.
Unable to be ruthless means unable to escape; unable to escape means remaining trapped in suffering.
"How do you know she doesn’t want it?" Atlas cocked his mouth with confidence, speaking like some omnipotent being.
"Why would she want it? She wouldn’t have left Joseph Shaw’s company otherwise." Charlotte glanced around, the rolling wheels scattering various faces—none identical. Each car’s occupants had different stories, but seeing Annie today made her heart ache unbearably.
Annie’s eyes were almost despairing; such helplessness and hopelessness were too heart-wrenching.
When they returned to the Hallow Family, it was already evening. She hadn’t eaten dinner and had no appetite, not knowing if it was due to too many sweets or being in a fouled mood. Going upstairs, she encountered Kinsley Lee, who smilingly greeted Charlotte with particular interest in her belly.
"Charlotte, it’s been looking bigger lately. When is the due date? The doctor must be scheduled, right? Doctor Gray, my good friend, is a gynecological expert; should I ask?" Kinsley Lee smiled, her eyes lingering on Charlotte’s belly as she spoke politely.
"The due date is late August, and the doctor’s already arranged; thank you." Charlotte didn’t know why Kinsley was behaving so politely now—possibly due to something Atlas’s father had said to her in the study, making her courteous.
Charlotte felt a bit uncomfortable, but Kinsley was an elder, so she definitely had to respond politely.
Kinsley was mentally calculating, confirming the timing matched. From when Atlas had agreed to meet Hailey Hill, tampering with the timeline, it worked out almost perfectly to a late August delivery.
Carefully verifying, each minor discovery excited her; she could easily plunge Atlas and Charlotte into despair. The thought thrilled her.
Besides, even if the child was Charlotte and Atlas’s, knowing Atlas had promised another woman, would Charlotte stay with the Hallows? What woman can handle that?
She was just waiting for chaos in the Hallow Family, then her son could smoothly return and take charge.
Atlas saw Kinsley’s enthusiastic smile, his gaze darkening. Even Charlotte could feel Kinsley’s changes; Atlas noticed some oddities.
But where had things gone wrong?
In the bedroom, Charlotte curled up on the sofa, not wanting to change clothes, experiencing poor appetite and fatigue these last couple days. Just going out for a short time drained her.
"Why not change into something comfortable?" Atlas approached, sitting and looking at Charlotte’s face, showing some fatigue; today, she was overly excited.
"Don’t want to change." Charlotte groaned softly, her coquettish voice filling the air with a sweet, sticky essence.
"Then I’ll take care of it." His big hand reached behind Charlotte, carefully unzipping her dress.
The opened zipper was like cracking an eggshell, revealing skin smoother than egg whites: "Not even wearing undergarments?" His voice low and raspy, breath heating the room’s atmosphere...