The Billionaire CEO Betrays his Wife: He wants her back-Chapter 54: Scandalous

The door creaked open, slow and deliberate, as if the house itself was reluctant to reveal the scene unfolding within. Ethan’s breath came in ragged bursts, his chest heaving as he lunged at Bruce, his fists crashing down with a fury that seemed to echo through the room.

Each blow landed with a sickening thud, but Bruce didn’t fight back. He just stood there, bewildered, his hands half-raised as if trying to make sense of the chaos erupting around him.

Ethan’s face was a mask of pain—not just physical, but something deeper, something raw and unrelenting. His mind raced, replaying the betrayal over and over. Mara.

How could she? No matter how angry she’d been with him, no matter how much they’d argued, he never thought she’d go this far. Sure, he’d admitted to liking Maria-Isbel, but that was all it was—a fleeting attraction, nothing more. He’d never crossed that line. Never. And yet, here he was, standing in the wreckage of his trust, his fists bloodied and his heart shattered.

The room was a blur of motion and noise, but Ethan barely noticed. His world had narrowed to Bruce’s face, to the sickening crunch of his knuckles meeting flesh. He didn’t care that Bruce wasn’t fighting back. He didn’t care that the man looked just as confused as he was. All he cared about was the burning need to make someone pay for the ache in his chest. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

Meanwhile, the woman on the bed lay still, her face buried in her hands, her body trembling beneath the thin sheet she’d pulled over herself. The room was alive with whispers, with gasps, with the occasional click of a phone camera capturing the scandal for posterity. No one moved to help her. No one even seemed to see her as anything more than a prop in the drama unfolding before them.

"I can’t believe Mara would do something like this," a voice murmured from the crowd, low and disbelieving. "She was just announced as the boss’s wife, and now this? In his own house? It’s... it’s ridiculous." The words hung in the air, heavy with judgment and disbelief, but no one dared to step forward. Not yet.

Then, Celeb arrived. He pushed through the small crowd that had gathered at the door, his movements sharp and purposeful. His eyes darted around the room, taking in the scene with a calculating gaze.

Without a word, he strode to the bed, grabbed the woman by the arm, and yanked her up, wrapping the blanket tightly around her to shield her from the prying eyes and flashing cameras. Her face remained hidden, her identity a mystery that only added to the tension in the room.

Ethan barely registered Celeb’s arrival. His focus was still on Bruce, on the man who had somehow become the target of all his rage. But even as his fists continued to fly, a small part of him wondered—what had really happened here? Why wasn’t Bruce fighting back? And why did the woman on the bed seem so... afraid?

The questions swirled in his mind, but there was no time to answer them. Not now. Not when the pain was still so fresh, so all-consuming. Not when every eye in the room was watching, waiting to see what he would do next.

The tension in the room grew thicker, heavier, until it felt like the air itself might crack under the weight of it, but it held its breath as Lucy’s voice cut through the chaos, cool and melodious, yet laced with a sharp edge that demanded attention.

"I can’t believe you would do this to Ethan, Mara," she said, her words dripping with a feigned disappointment that made everyone turn their gaze toward Celeb and the woman he was desperately trying to shield.

The blanket was wrapped tightly around her, her face still hidden, but the tension in the room was palpable. Everyone believed it was Mara. How could it not be? The whispers had already begun, the accusations already forming on their lips.

Celeb hesitated for the briefest of moments, his grip tightening around the woman as he quickened his pace toward the door.

He knew the stakes. If her face was revealed now, there would be no denying the accusations later. But if he could just get her out of here, if he could just keep her identity hidden, they might still have a chance to control the narrative. His mind raced, calculating every possible move, every possible outcome. This wasn’t just about saving her—it was about saving himself.

But Lucy wasn’t about to let that happen. This was her moment, her carefully orchestrated play, and she wasn’t going to let Celeb or anyone else steal it from her. Her voice rang out again, sharp and commanding, cutting through the murmurs of the crowd.

"Mara, you’ve ruined the reputation of the law firm. How could you? Couldn’t you have held yourself back? Or at least done this somewhere else?" Her words were like a spark to dry kindling, igniting a firestorm of judgment and outrage.

The crowd erupted, their voices rising in a cacophony of accusations. Fingers pointed, phones were raised, and the pressure in the room became almost unbearable.

Celeb tried to push forward, but the crowd was closing in, their demands growing louder. "Show her face!" someone shouted. "Let her face everyone!" another voice added. The mob mentality had taken hold, and there was no stopping it now.

Lucy’s eyes gleamed with a dangerous satisfaction as she stepped forward, her movements deliberate and calculated. Before Celeb could react, before he could even think to stop her, she reached out and yanked the blanket away from the woman’s face. The room fell silent, the air thick with anticipation as everyone leaned in, eager to see the face of the woman who had caused so much scandal.

But what they saw wasn’t what they expected.

It wasn’t Mara.

It was Louisa.

The shock was instantaneous, rippling through the room like a wave. Gasps echoed off the walls, and for a moment, no one seemed to know what to say or do. Louisa’s face was pale, her eyes wide with a mixture of fear and defiance as she stared out at the crowd. The silence was deafening, broken only by the faint sound of someone’s phone hitting the floor.

Lucy’s expression faltered, her confidence wavering for the first time. This wasn’t part of the plan. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Her mind raced, trying to make sense of the situation, but the damage was already done. The crowd was already turning, their accusations shifting, their anger redirected.

And in the midst of it all, Ethan stood frozen, his fists still clenched, his breath coming in shallow gasps. The teetering edge of chaos, seemed to freeze as Mr. Anderson Sr.’s voice cut through the tension like a blade.

"Who is this woman?" he demanded, his tone sharp and authoritative. All eyes turned to Louisa, who stood trembling, her face a mixture of shock and fear. The blanket that had once shielded her now lay discarded at her feet, leaving her exposed to the judgmental stares of the crowd.

"Louisa!" Lucy’s voice rang out, her tone a mix of disbelief and accusation. Her mouth hung open, her carefully constructed plan unraveling before her eyes. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. Mara was supposed to be the one standing there, humiliated and exposed. Not Louisa. Not some random staff member from the law firm. How had Mara escaped this? How had she outmaneuvered her?

Ethan, who had been a storm of fury moments ago, now collapsed to the ground, his tie loosened, his chest heaving as he struggled to catch his breath. The fight had drained out of him, replaced by a hollow emptiness.

Celeb, too, seemed to deflate, his grip on Louisa slackening as he realized the woman he’d been trying to protect wasn’t Mara after all. He stepped back, his face a mask of confusion and frustration.

Lucy, quickly regained her composure. She couldn’t let this slip away from her. She couldn’t let anyone suspect her involvement. With a calculated shift in her expression, she turned to Louisa, her voice dripping with false indignation.

"Louisa, how could you try to smear Mara’s name by pretending to be her?" she accused, her words sharp and deliberate. The crowd, already hungry for someone to blame, latched onto her words like sharks to blood.

Louisa’s eyes widened in shock. She opened her mouth to protest, but no words came out. She looked around, desperate for someone to defend her, but no one stepped forward.

Not even Lucy, her supposed partner in crime. Instead, Lucy was the first to cast the stone, her betrayal cutting deeper than any accusation from the crowd.

Lucy’s mind raced. She had to salvage this. She had to make sure the blame fell squarely on Louisa. If she could just keep the focus on her, if she could just keep everyone from looking too closely, she might still come out of this unscathed. She thought she was safe.

She thought no one would ever find out she was the mastermind behind everything. But she had underestimated the Shepherd brothers. She had underestimated their reach, their resources, and their unwavering commitment to their baby sister.