His Belated Love for the Abandoned Ex-Wife Chapter 172: Drawing Lines

Julian didn't even slow down.

He walked straight past Caleb, his voice low, controlled, and final. "You don't get a say in what I do."

Caleb stiffened where he stood, his hands clenching at his sides, but nothing came out.

Not a word.

Iris followed a step behind Julian, but she didn't get far before Lily closed the distance between them and grabbed her arm, fingers digging in just enough to stop her cold.

Iris turned, her expression sharpening instantly. "Let go."

Lily leaned in slightly, lowering her voice, but the edge in it didn't soften at all. "You're divorced. Stay away from him. Stop hovering around like you still have a chance. You don't."

Iris didn't hesitate. She pulled her arm free in one clean motion. "Whatever's going on between me and him has nothing to do with you."

Lily's composure cracked, just enough for emotion to slip through. "Nothing to do with me? I'm the one his family has already picked. I'm the only person they've ever approved of. Marrying him is just a matter of time." Her voice tightened. "You should really think about where you stand."

Celeste stepped in beside her, folding her arms, her tone blunt and cutting. "Don't push it. Stay away from Julian. If you don't, we can make things very difficult for you."

By then, Jenny and Selena had joined them, closing the circle without saying a word, the pressure building just from the numbers alone.

Four against one.

Iris took them in with a steady look, calm on the surface, even if she understood exactly what kind of situation she was standing in.

A wealthy heiress with a fragile reputation, a celebrity with a massive following, a spoiled socialite who had never heard the word no, and someone who knew her past better than anyone else.

Any one of them could cause trouble.

All of them together?

That was something else entirely.

Still, she didn't step back.

Not even an inch.

Her gaze moved from one face to the next, her voice even, controlled, but impossible to ignore. "You can think whatever you want. That's your choice. But I don't owe any of you an explanation, and I'm not the kind of person who needs to rely on anyone to get by. So if this is supposed to scare me, it doesn't."

And with that, she stepped past them.

Just like that.

No hesitation, no second glance.

She headed straight for the shoreline, the early morning air cool against her skin as she came to a stop with the rest of the group, her attention shifting to the horizon.

The sky was beginning to lighten, soft shades of gray and pale blue stretching out over the water, the first hint of gold breaking through at the edge.

The breeze carried the scent of salt and something clean, something new.

For a moment, everything felt still.

Julian turned his head, his gaze settling on her without him even realizing it, like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Iris felt it almost immediately.

She turned, their eyes meeting.

Something passed between them, quiet but undeniable, something neither of them said out loud.

Her fingers tightened slightly at her sides.

"Do I have something on my face?" she asked, a hint of awkwardness slipping into her voice.

Julian didn't answer.

Instead, he reached out and took her hand.

The contact caught her off guard. She tried to pull back on instinct, but his grip was firm without being forceful, warm in a way that grounded her before she could fully react.

She lowered her voice. "Why are you holding my hand?"

He glanced at her, completely unfazed. "Holding a friend's hand isn't that weird, is it?" A faint smile pulled at his mouth. "Iris, we're in this for the long run."

She frowned. "The long run... what?"

"Friendship."

The way he said it made it sound like he was only half telling the truth.

Iris let out a quiet breath. "Fine. Then you can let go now."

"Come on." He didn't.

Instead, he laced his fingers more securely with hers and started walking, pulling her with him down the beach, away from the others, ignoring every single look being thrown their way.

Iris could feel those looks, heavy and sharp against her back, and it made her uneasy enough that she tried again to pull free.

No luck.

"Julian, we're friends," she said, keeping her voice low but firm as she kept pace with him. "Friends don't walk around holding hands like this."

He slowed slightly, glancing toward the horizon where the sun was beginning to rise. "Maybe your version of friendship doesn't. Mine does."

That's such a stretch.

She shot him a look. "So you do this with Lily too?"

"I'm not friends with Lily."

That answer came fast.

"What about Mason and Daniel?" she pressed, a hint of amusement creeping in despite herself. "You hold their hands too?"

Julian paused just long enough to make it obvious he was thinking about it, then nodded like he'd reached a very reasonable conclusion. "Yeah. Same thing."

Iris let out a short, disbelieving breath, shaking her head as a reluctant smile tugged at her lips.

He was completely ridiculous.

And somehow, she didn't hate it.

They kept walking, the shoreline stretching out in front of them as the waves rolled in stronger now, one after another, the tide slowly rising under the glow of the waking sky.