Chapter 74
She Wasn't Taking the Rap for Cheating
Quite a few wealthy wives had long since been jealous of Tanya Sterling's smug look just now.
Now that her future daughter-in-law, Naomi Pierce, had been exposed for something like this, they couldn't help mocking her, gathering together and covering their mouths as they snickered.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Who would've thought the dignified daughter of the Bennett family would be this promiscuous—she'll sleep with any man."
"Just a moment ago I was envying Ethan Sterling, but now he looks like a complete joke! Bringing a woman like this home would just make people laugh at you, right?"
"Exactly! This is hilarious. Tanya Sterling kept saying her son was going to be the Bennett family's future golden son-in-law, looking all pleased with herself. Is this bringing home a phoenix? More like bringing home a pheasant! Hahaha... how humiliating!"
"Do you think Naomi Pierce might not be some Bennett family heiress at all, but a fake phoenix? Look, they've been bragging about the Bennett family for so long, and now there's not even a trace of them here."
"I think that's possible too."
Those words were like a thunderclap in Tanya Sterling's and Ethan Sterling's minds.
That's right—the Bennett family had never shown up!
Could it be that Naomi Pierce had been lying to them from the very beginning?
Ethan Sterling's eyes turned bloodshot as he clenched his fists in fury. It was the despair of falling from heaven into hell, of hope shattering. Two extremes of rage spread through his chest, making him as frenzied as an enraged lion.
He strode toward Naomi Pierce. "Naomi Pierce! How dare you betray me!"
Seeing this, Tanya Sterling hurried forward to stop Ethan Sterling. After all, Naomi Pierce was still the Bennett family's daughter, and tearing things apart with her would do them no good.
She said in a low voice, "Ethan, calm down. Naomi is the Bennett family's..."
Ethan Sterling flung Tanya Sterling's hand away and shouted angrily, "Mom, her family's not even here, and you still don't get it? We've all been played by her!"
"P-played?" Tanya Sterling muttered to herself, completely stunned.
Ethan Sterling yanked Naomi Pierce to her feet and, like a madman, viciously wrapped his hands around her neck.
He roared furiously, "You bitch! I'm going to kill you!"
With Ethan Sterling's utterly furious bellow, the banquet hall descended into chaos.
Though Tanya Sterling was furious too, she'd weathered more storms than Ethan Sterling had. She immediately ordered someone to go shut off the big screen.
Claire Bennett watched the two people who had fallen out in front of her with cold eyes.
Ethan Sterling was in a blind rage now, punching and kicking Naomi Pierce without the slightest regard for the fact that she was a woman, while Naomi Pierce, beaten so badly she could only clutch her head and scream, looked fragile and pitiful. The people around them couldn't stop him.
She should have been happy at this moment, but it didn't feel nearly as satisfying as she had imagined.
Ethan Sterling had carried three years of her feelings.
Now, the way he felt to her was no longer the same as before. As for what was between him and Naomi Pierce, it had nothing to do with her anymore. This was the end between them.
But there was still one thing she had to announce to everyone.
She was not taking the rap for cheating!
Claire Bennett walked over, picked up a microphone, and said, "Guests, Mr. Ethan Sterling and I did date before, but after he cheated with Naomi Pierce, I immediately broke up with him. As for Naomi Pierce's claim that I cheated, that's completely made up."
The guests around her showed shocked looks in their eyes when they heard this.
Claire Bennett continued, "I will post the text messages Ethan Sterling sent me before he had even broken up with me on my studio's public account. Who exactly cheated will be clear soon enough!"
When Claire Bennett finished speaking, the entire banquet hall became even more chaotic.
Everyone watched Ethan Sterling furiously beating Naomi Pierce while trying to process Claire Bennett's words at the same time; their brains were about to short-circuit.
After speaking, Claire Bennett posted all the recent text messages Ethan Sterling had sent her.
Someone searched for Claire Bennett Mural Studio's public account and immediately saw the screenshots of those messages. Looking at the timestamps, everyone exploded.
"Look at the dates on these—Ethan Sterling and Naomi Pierce's engagement invitations had already been sent out for quite a while by then."
"That's true! Doesn't that mean Ethan Sterling was two-timing them?"
"Looks like Claire Bennett wasn't the one cheating at all—Ethan Sterling was the one having an affair!"
Naomi Pierce had been beaten so badly that someone couldn't stand to watch anymore and pulled Ethan Sterling away. Ethan Sterling happened to hear what Claire Bennett said. Now his reputation was ruined and he'd become a scumbag, and Naomi Pierce wasn't even a Bennett family heiress. It was like he'd thrown away the sesame seeds and picked up the watermelon, only to lose out in the end!
Looking at the breathtakingly beautiful and captivating Claire Bennett in front of him, regret surged up in Ethan Sterling's heart.
In his agitation, Ethan Sterling wanted to step forward and grab Claire Bennett to talk to her.
Before Ethan Sterling could touch Claire Bennett, a tall, handsome figure stepped in front of him. He looked up and saw Julian Sterling's cold, distant, striking face, and his own expression instantly turned ugly.