Wallace was stunned at first. He then rushed over to Jessie. Only after confirming she was unharmed did he let out a breath of relief.
Jessie was the person Zane cared about the most. If anything were to happen to her that day, no one present would be spared.
Although Jessie was startled, she wasn’t surprised.
Phillip and Liliana had never liked her; that was a fact she had always known. Still, she didn’t expect such a blatant show of hostility the moment she returned. 2
Wallace was just about to speak up when Jessie raised a hand to stop him. “I’ll go by myself. You guys should wait at the door for now.”
Jessie stepped around the shattered porcelain on the floor and entered the living room. Inside, Phillip and Liliana were seated at the center, with Anna and Brandon to the side.
From the moment Jessie walked in, Brandon’s gaze never left her.
Noticing how different Brandon was acting, Anna clenched her fists, her eyes toward Jessie filled with veiled hostility.
“Mom, Dad,” Jessie stood to the side and greeted them in a formal tone.
Phillip scowled. “You still have the nerve to call me your father? You’ve completely disgraced the Hickman family! Brandon told us everything you’ve been missing for days! Where the hell have you been?
“You’re a married woman now, Jessie. You should only do what a wife is supposed to do. What the hell have you been doing all day? And what are you trying to do by bringing a bunch of bodyguards with you? Stage a coup?”
Phillip was growing more furious with every word, and Anna quickly went over to calm him. Don’t get so worked up, Dad. Jessie’s always been like this, hasn’t she? We just have to get used to it.”
Jessie sneered inwardly. Anna was always good at putting on an act. She might seem like she was trying to mediate, but in truth, she was adding fuel to the fire.
At this point, Wallace could no longer stay silent outside. This was the woman their boss treasured above all else, so how could he let her be subjected to such humiliation? Perhaps after spending too much time with Zane, Wallace had developed a bit of the same imposing air
as well.
Striding in, Wallace said sternly, “Mr. and Mrs. Hickman, those bodyguards outside are
carrying your gifts from Ms. Jessie. She’s being a good daughter to you, so I hope you can judge her more fairly.”
Wallace was in his 50s, so he was about the same age as Phillip and Liliana.
Phillip’s expression stiffened when he heard that. He gave Wallace a long look before narrowing his eyes. “And who might you be?”
Before Wallace could introduce himself, Anna was already jumping to conclusions to frame Jessie as a cheater.
“Jessie, so you ran away from home just to be with a man like this? I know I shouldn’t meddle in your business as your younger sister, but Brandon is your husband. Don’t you think what you’re doing is crossing the line?”
Wallace flinched at the words, then quickly retorted, “Ms. Anna, please watch what you say. I’m just a driver–nothing more.”
Anna’s eyes gleamed with even more contempt. “Jessie, are you that desperate? You’ll sleep with anyone now? This guy looks about the same age as Dad. Even if you really had to find someone else, couldn’t you have picked someone younger? He could practically be our father.”
Brandon had been silent this whole time, but inwardly, he had already assumed Jessie had cheated on him.
From the moment she walked in, Jessie hadn’t even had a chance to speak before they had all jumped to conclusions. She had still held a sliver of hope for this family before coming, but it
was gone now.
She calmly turned to Phillip. With a wry smile, she asked, “Dad, is everything I do wrong in your eyes? If you dislike me this much, then why did you bother acknowledging me in the first place back then?”
