Betrayed By The Billionaire

62

The blatant display of affection between Liam Martin and Sara drew every eye in the room toward Chloe Bishop.

Whispers rippled through the air. Everyone knows how much Chloe loved him. He’s doing this to humiliate her. Look at how pale she is—poor girl.

Chloe felt the walls closing in. Seeing the man she had worshiped for six years holding another woman with such tenderness made her want to bolt for the door. She was white-knuckling her dress, her dignity hanging by a thread.

Suddenly, a violent CRASH shattered the tension.

A heavy wine glass slammed onto the mahogany table directly in front of Liam and Sara. Shards of crystal and dark red wine exploded outward like shrapnel.

Liam reacted instantly, pulling Sara into his chest to shield her. While Sara remained untouched, a jagged fragment sliced a thin, crimson line across Liam’s cheek. His pristine white shirt—the one he took such pride in—was now ruined, soaked in ugly, dark stains of red wine.

The room fell into a deathly silence. Everyone was paralyzed by the sudden outburst.

Sara’s drunken haze evaporated instantly. "Liam! Your face!"

"I’m fine," Liam snapped, wiping a smear of wine from his jaw. His eyes, now burning with a murderous glint, locked onto the ice-cold figure standing across from him: Nora.

The glass had been her masterpiece.

Nora didn't flinch. she scooped up little Joy and turned to Chloe. "Chloe, let’s go. The air in here is so thick with filth it’s making me gag."

Chloe looked at Liam—at the fury in his eyes and the woman trembling in his arms—and a bitter, mocking smile touched her lips. So this is the kind of woman he truly prefers.

"Stop right there!" Sara cried out, her "white rabbit" persona turning fierce with indignation. She pointed a trembling finger at Nora. "I don't care who you think you are, you need to apologize to Liam right now!"

Nora paused and looked back at Sara with utter disdain. "And what exactly are you? A little homewrecker who seduced someone else’s fiancé. Who gave you permission to point your finger at me?"

The color drained from Sara's face. She swayed on her feet, looking as though she might faint from the sheer weight of the insult.

Liam steadied her, his expression darkening into a mask of cold fury. "Apologize. Now."

This time, Chloe stepped in front of Nora, meeting Liam’s rage head-on. Her voice was brittle and laced with contempt. "Apologize? To the two of you? You aren't worthy."

Liam’s gaze narrowed as it landed on Chloe. "This has nothing to do with you. Nora, I want you to apologize to Sara."

"She didn't say a single thing that wasn't true," Chloe countered, refusing to let Nora speak. She shot a frigid look at Sara. "You want an apology? Keep dreaming. Nora, let’s leave."

"Stand still, Chloe!" Liam’s hand shot out, silver-tight around her wrist. "I’m going to say this once. What happened between us is our business; it has nothing to do with Sara. Don't forget what your father did—Sara is the victim here."

He leaned in, his voice dropping to a dangerous chill. "I’m the one who wronged you. Sara knew nothing. If you want to hate someone, hate me. Stop slandering her name to your friends. Tell them to show some respect. If this happens again, don't blame me for forgetting our history."

In the past, these heartless words would have cut Chloe to the bone. But her heart had been shredded so many times lately that she felt nothing but a dull, localized numbness.

She let out a sharp, dry laugh. "Then I’ll just have to wait and see exactly how you plan to 'deal' with me."

She had never uttered a single word against Sara to anyone—except perhaps for that one time Sara called her to humiliate herself, and Chloe had mocked her in front of Xavier.

With a sharp jerk, she wrenched her wrist from his grip and turned away without looking back.

Lyra wanted to chase after them, but she glanced at Zackary and hesitated, torn between her friends and her new flame. She stomped her foot in frustration and pointed at the door. "Get out, Liam! You aren't welcome here!"

Zackary’s brow furrowed in annoyance. "Lyra, Liam is my friend. Mind your manners."

Liam didn't even acknowledge Lyra. He poured himself a fresh glass of wine, his composure returning with terrifying speed. "My apologies for ruining the mood, everyone. The tab is on me tonight. Enjoy yourselves."

He drained the glass in one gulp and led Sara out of the room.

Inside the elevator, little Joy was trembling. She had been terrified by her mother’s outburst and had stayed silent until the doors closed. Then, her little face crumpled and she burst into frantic sobs.

Chloe and Nora spent the entire ride down and several minutes in the lobby soothing her until the little girl finally exhausted herself, nodding off against Nora’s shoulder.

Nora held her daughter tight, her eyes weary as she looked at Chloe. "Tell me... why do people have to change?"