My Ex-Husband Begged Me to Take Him Back - Chapter 60

Chapter 60: Who is this man?

“Get off of me.” Ava yanked her arm free from his grip. “Enough, Dylan. I’m not going to tolerate all this anymore. We are divorced now, and I can see anyone I want. You don’t get to control me anymore.”

“You can’t be with him.” Dylan stretched his hand toward her, but Nicholas stepped forward, pulling Ava toward him.

“She is not your property,” Nicholas said, his voice low yet etched with warning. “She has every right to decide who she wants in her life.”

Dylan’s insides churned with an overwhelming surge of rage as he fixated on Nicholas’s hand resting on Ava’s shoulder. The muscles of his jaw tightened. He wanted nothing more than to rip that hand away and erase any trace of Nicholas’s touch from her.

“As long as the divorce process isn’t final, she is still my wife,” Dylan growled, tugging at her arm.

Nicholas wasn’t backing down. His hold on Ava’s other arm remained steady, unyielding. “She has already severed ties with you. She doesn’t want to be with you anymore. Why are you forcing yourself on her?”

“I’m her husband,” Dylan shot back. “That gives me every right! You’re just an outsider. Stay out of this, or you’ll regret it. She is coming with me.” He tugged at her arm, his eyes blazing with possessiveness.

Nicholas pulled her back with equal force. “She is not going anywhere with you,”

Ava had finally had enough. Frustration and anger flared inside her as both men tugged at her from either side. “Stop it, both of you!” she barked and forcefully shrugged off their hands, freeing herself from their grip. She threw stern glares at them, her patience thoroughly exhausted. “I’m not going with either of you. I can go by myself.”

She stormed away.

“Ava!” Dylan shouted after her, about to follow. But just as he took a step, Nicholas’s hand shot out, pulling him back.

“Leave her alone,” Nicholas snarled. “She has made her choice. She doesn’t want to be with you anymore. Stop bothering her.”

“You are no one to tell me that.” With that, Dylan swung his fist at him.

Nicholas was also quick. He blocked the punch with lightning speed, seizing Dylan’s wrist in mid-air.

Their eyes locked. Both men stood motionless, muscles taut, breathing heavy, fury radiating from their tense forms. Neither was willing to back down.

“Ava is mine,” Dylan hissed dangerously. “She’ll come back to me, and I’ll make sure of it.”

Nicholas wasn’t intimidated. “She is an independent person and has the freedom to choose who she wants to spend her life with,” he countered vehemently. “You can’t force her to stay.”

“And do you think she will choose you?” Dylan scoffed sarcastically, shoving him away. “She loves me, and no matter what, that love isn’t going to die. You’ll see.”

Nicholas chuckled at his overconfidence. “Wake up, Dylan. She doesn’t love you anymore.” With a challenged look, he added, “Why would she stay with a control freak like you when she has better options? You’re living in a fantasy if you think she’ll ever want to be with you again.”

Dylan leveled the glare, accepting his challenge. “I’ll make her fall in love with me again. You and every other man will stand by and watch as we reunite.”

With that, he stormed away. Getting into his car, he ignited the engine, intending to follow Ava. Just as he was about to pull out of the parking lot, his phone rang with an incoming call from Justin. His mind raced as he wondered if his capable assistant had any update on the task he had entrusted him.

“Hello?” he answered, his tone clipped.

“Sir, I found something shocking about Miss Gianna,” Justin’s voice was low, tinged with urgency. “Please come quickly. I’m waiting for you at the office.”

“I’m on my way.” Dylan’s face darkened as he pulled the car out of the parking lot.

Inside her car, Ava muttered curses under her breath, her chest heaving with anger. “I can’t believe he still thinks he can control me. He wanted out of this marriage so badly, didn’t he? Now, I’m giving him his freedom. Shouldn’t he be happy, planning his life with Gianna? Why does he still want to hold on to me?”

Her foot pressed harder on the gas, her pulse pounding in her ears. “If you are thinking this is your way to take revenge on my father, you will regret it. Cross my path, and I’ll destroy you.”

As Ava drove home, her attention was suddenly caught by Gianna’s car parked haphazardly by the roadside. A flash of curiosity ignited within her as she spotted Gianna slipping into a narrow alleyway, a scarf wrapped tightly around her head.

“What is she doing here?” she mumbled.

Parking her car, Ava glanced down the alley where Gianna had vanished, a mix of apprehension and curiosity bubbling up inside her. Unable to shake the curiosity, she stepped out of the car and ventured after Gianna.

As she approached the alley, she spotted Gianna conversing with a man in a hooded jacket, his back turned to her. Straining her ears, she tried to catch a snippet of their conversation. Because of the distance, she couldn’t hear anything.

“Who is that man, and what is she doing with him?” Just as she was wondering, she saw them walking away. Ava followed them cautiously, glancing around. It was a narrow alleyway with no one around.

Her steps quickened a bit as she saw them taking the turn at the end of the alleyway. Hiding behind a wall, she craned her neck to see them enter a small, dilapidated house at the corner.

Ava looked back to check if anyone was coming before moving toward the house.

The door was locked. Ava looked at the worn-out building, wondering what they were doing inside. She walked to the side and noticed a window ajar. Sneaking up to the window, she peered inside, and her breath caught in her throat.

There, in the dust-filled room, stood Gianna and the hooded man, engaged in a hushed conversation. Ava’s eyes widened as she finally saw the man’s face.

‘Isn’t he Brian?’ she wondered to herself.