The Night She Came Home

Chapter 4 Set‑Up

Jessica Davis POV

“It wasn’t hard at all.”

I shook my head, glancing down at my three‑carat diamond ring. “I was poor, that’s why I married a rich man like Lawrence. High society doesn’t surprise me much. You people are just infinitely more hypocritical than the rest of us.”

Lucy was clearly stunned by my blunt honesty. She shoved me away in disgust.

“You know your place now. Someone who’ll sleep with anyone for money doesn’t deserve to be Larry’s wife. You ought to walk away of your own free will!”

Her insults only made her look hideous to me. It was absurd that Lawrence had mistaken me for someone like her.

At least I was honest about what I’d done.

This so‑called wealthy lady could only spin more hypocritical lies than me, all in the hopes of stealing another woman’s husband.

“I told you, I won’t leave him unless he files for divorce himself.”

I leaned in close to her, patting her cheek lightly with my palm. “Miss Smith, instead of wasting your time on me, go fawn over your Larry. See if he’s willing to give up half his fortune and divorce me for you.”

I watched Lucy’s face turn bright red, yet she couldn’t get a single word out to counter me.

No doubt she’d come to me because she couldn’t get what she wanted from Lawrence, hoping I’d bow out voluntarily.

That impulsive urge to ask for divorce had faded. I was glad Lawrence had been too drunk to remember what happened the night before.

“Jessica, all you want is money!”

Lucy seemed to have thought of something. She pulled a check out of her purse, signed it, and flung it right in my face. “Fifty million. That’s enough for you to live lavishly for the rest of your life!”

My eyes widened in shock. I picked it up, examined it closely, and carefully counted the string of zeros on it.

“Wow, Miss Smith, you’re so wealthy. How kind of you to give me all this money just because you know I’m poor.”

“Give it to you? Don’t be ridiculous. Take the money and leave Lawrence!”

Lucy lost control of her temper, seething with rage. “You should know that even if we get divorced, I’ll get Los Angeles’s top lawyers to fight Lawrence’s case. You will never get anywhere near fifty million! This is your best possible offer!”

She wore a satisfied look, confidently waiting for me to nod and agree.

I stared at the check for a long moment, then tucked it down inside Lucy’s collar. “Miss Smith, don’t waste your breath. The bond between Lawrence and me can’t be measured by money. And if it could, it would be worth far more than fifty million.”

Lucy clearly hadn’t expected me to refuse. She froze for a second, then slapped me hard across the face. “Who gave you permission to say no? Don’t think you can just refuse to divorce and leave me powerless!”

I was caught completely off‑guard when Lucy dropped her act and resorted to physical violence.

A shrill scream came from behind me. “You b***h! How dare you hit my best friend! I’ll show you what I’m capable of!”

I felt myself being yanked backward. When I looked back at Lucy, Grace was already brawling with her.

“Grace! Stop! Cut it out!”

I watched as both Grace and Lucy were covered in scratch marks. Panicked, I didn’t have the strength to pull them apart. So I turned on the faucet and splashed a bucket of water straight in Lucy’s face.

“You b***h! How dare you splash water on me!” Lucy shrieked.

“What do you think? We’ve got plenty more we’re willing to do! Wanna test us?”

Grace wouldn’t back down and took the chance to land a few kicks. If I hadn’t pulled her away in time, I’m sure she would’ve climbed on top of Lucy and kept beating her.

“Grace, are you okay?”

I spotted a bleeding scratch on her neck and bent down to check on her, my heart aching. I failed to notice Lucy had gotten back to her feet and hurled a bucket of water at us.

“Ah!”

Grace and I both screamed, drawing stares from several people peering into the restroom.

Lucy pulled out cash, flung it at my face, and warned me to get away from Lawrence if I didn’t want to end up dead.

That made both Grace and me furious. We exchanged a look and moved in at the same time.

Grace lunged forward and grabbed Lucy by the hair. I seized the moment to slam the restroom door shut, then stuffed the cash into Lucy’s mouth.

“Lucy, I’m a petty woman. I never let anyone who hurts me get away with it! Even if I end up divorcing Lawrence, I won’t let you get what you want!”

I had no intention of going too far. But ever since I was seventeen, I’d sworn I would never let anyone insult me with money. And Lucy had crossed my line today.

I opened the door and gestured for Grace to let her go. Reluctantly, Grace released Lucy.

Lucy stumbled to her feet, leaning against the wall. Glancing at her disheveled reflection in the mirror, her eyes turned red with rage. She glared at me viciously.

“Jessica, you’ll pay for this! I won’t let you get away with it!”

Right after she spoke, she was terrified by Grace’s fierce glare and bolted out of the restroom.

I pulled myself together, worrying out loud. “Grace, what if she goes running to Lawrence? I…”

Grace took my hands firmly and reassured me. “Jessica, I know Lawrence loves her, but we’re not here to be pushed around. If being with him means you have to go through all this, then let those two have each other.”

Grace was my guardian angel.

I nodded. My confused heart grew resolute again, and I spotted the water‑soaked check lying on the floor.

This wasn’t about whether I should get a divorce anymore. It was about figuring out what I truly wanted.

I’d always been a rational person. Now I saw clearly: Lawrence didn’t love me. I’d just been caught up in an illusion. I picked up the check again and smiled at Grace. “Grace, I think it’s time I go back to my original goal.”

Just then, Lucy burst back in. She dropped down onto the spot closest to us and started trembling.

I thought she’d fallen ill. But when I stepped forward to check on her, she grabbed my wrist. Her voice quivered with feigned terror. “Mrs. Davis, I never wanted to ruin your relationship with Lawrence. Please stop hurting me. I’m begging you.”

She wept and pleaded, her voice shaking.

“Miss Smith, what are you talking about? We didn’t do anything to you!”

I sensed something was off and scrambled to pull away from Lucy, only for her to roll sideways, using my movement as a prop.

I’d stood up too abruptly and stumbled toward the sink.

Yet I felt no pain at all. Lawrence’s angry voice boomed in my ears: “What are you doing?!”

I opened my eyes, stunned to find Lawrence holding me in his arms. I opened my mouth to explain. “I… Lawrence, it’s not what it looks like.”

My feeble defense sounded like nothing but an excuse. I saw disappointment in his eyes.

Lawrence let go of me and knelt down to check on Lucy.

That was when I noticed blood trickling from Lucy’s head — she’d hit it against one of the bathroom fixtures.

Lucy opened her eyes, her face streaked with blood and tears. She threw her arms around Lawrence and sobbed. “Larry, thank god you’re here. I thought I was going to die in here.”

Realizing what Lucy’s bizarre stunt had been about, Grace rushed to defend me. “Lawrence, she hit herself on purpose!”

But it was too late. Lawrence wasn’t going to believe a word of it.