The One He Dismissed Became The One He Died For novel Chapter 260

"You're just a crippled dog's wife, you still dare to—"

*Splash!*

Claire snatched a full champagne flute from the nearest tray and threw the entire glass directly into the man's face.

As the alcohol dripped down his cheeks, before he could even process what had happened, she slapped him hard across the face.

A sharp, resounding crack echoed through the space, packing incredible force, shocking the entire hall into absolute silence.

"Insulting my husband? Consider this your reward!"

"You bitch, you dare lay hands on me! I'll—" The short, pudgy man lunged forward, raising his hand to strike. But before he could even touch Claire, his wrist was seized in a vice grip.

The man shrieked in agony. Miles stood right behind him, his expression dripping with such absolute disgust it was as if he were looking at a piece of garbage.

"Miles... Miles Zimmerman, let go—ah!" He was violently thrown backward by Miles, crashing hard onto the floor. The people around him hastily backed away; no one offered a hand to help him up.

Miles closed the distance to Claire in a flash, quickly looking her up and down. "Are you hurt?"

Claire's delicate lips trembled. Her teeth instinctively bit down on her lower lip as her eyes welled up with red-hot tears.

"Where are you hurt? Where did he touch you?" Miles's voice cracked with panic, his eyes sweeping over Claire with suppressed intensity.

"I'm not hurt, and he didn't touch me..." Claire's voice was a whisper. She wasn't upset because she was bullied; she was upset because Miles had been disowned by the Zimmerman family, and he had kept something so massive completely hidden from her.

Her fingers subconsciously gripped the edge of his blazer.

The more distressed she looked, the more Miles's anxiety flared.

A sharp, grating voice shattered the moment.

"Miles... oh, wait. You're not part of the Zimmerman family anymore, so I guess I just have to call you by your name—Miles Zimmerman."

Yvonne smiled mockingly. After being suppressed for years by this man who was barely older than her, she finally had her moment of absolute triumph.

With Miles out of the picture, she was the true leading lady of the Zimmerman family! Aside from her father, she was the sole future heir to the Zimmerman Group!

Yvonne glared down her nose at Claire. "You really overplayed your hand. You're just a nobody designer, and you actually have the nerve to defend a former Zimmerman? If it wasn't for Miles's connections, you'd be absolutely nothing!"

"Nati is a genius! She's just some low-level designer from Luna Atelier!"

The crowd's gaze shifted, now looking at Yvonne with blatant contempt. Lauren Sinclair quietly slipped a few steps away to distance herself from the sheer embarrassment. As soon as her contract ended, she needed to get as far away from this mess as possible.

Harvey stopped squarely in front of Claire.

"It's been years since we last crossed paths. It's an absolute honor to see you again. A while back, Dr. Zimmerman graciously acted as a bridge for a small collaboration with OCHH Luxury. Once this project wraps up, we definitely need to have a proper sit-down."

The entire room stared at Claire in absolute envy.

What did that mean? An exclusive agency partnership!

Harvey's eyes fell on the cheongsam Claire was wearing.

"That original piece you're wearing was recently auctioned off to a Wall Street magnate who operates out of the country."

He shot a deeply meaningful glance at Miles, the man who had just been relentlessly mocked by the crowd for being broke and powerless.

"I certainly didn't expect to see it on Ms. Jenner today."