This statement hit Avery like a bolt of lightning. She exploded, "Weren’t you always the one paying before? Why did you bring me to the mall if you don’t have money?!"
Selina tilted her head slightly, feigning curiosity as she countered, "You said you wanted to shop, so I came along to accompany you. Avery, did you overspend and run out of money?"
The people around them started to exchange puzzled looks.
Avery’s face flushed red and white in turns before she threw a tantrum. "I don’t care! You have to pay for me!"
Then she shouted at the store manager, "Ask her for the money! She’s loaded!"
The manager hesitated, glancing between them.
Selina put on a look of disappointment and said, "Avery, I thought we were friends, but all you want is for me to foot the bill?"
"I’m not your mother. You’re in your twenties, spending recklessly, and now you expect me to clean up after you?"
Avery was livid and snapped, "We’re family! Can’t you even help me with this? If you don’t pay, I’ll tell your grandfather! You’re as good as dead!"
The onlookers murmured amongst themselves, finding Avery’s words to be over the line.
Just then, Selina lowered her head and sighed softly.
"What kind of family are we, exactly? You’re the niece of a mistress; I’m the daughter of the legal wife. We don’t even share blood relations."
"I’ve already been kind by treating you as a friend, yet here you are guilt-tripping me. Do you think that just because I’m the legitimate daughter of the Clark family, I’m obligated to financially support the mistress’s entire clan?"
Avery nearly choked. Mistress? What mistress? She didn’t care about that—she only knew she was broke, and Selina was her personal ATM!
Fuming, Avery smashed the coffee cup next to her, charging at Selina like a madwoman. She raised her hand for a slap and screamed, "You’re the one who said we were friends! Who else would put up with a cursed wretch like you?! Now you’re turning your back on me? ... Ah!"
A loud smack echoed through the store. Selina had swiftly caught Avery’s hand mid-air and returned the slap without hesitation.
"Avery, you call me your friend, but all you’ve ever done is treat me like a cash machine, coveting my mother’s inheritance."
"Now that I’m married and don’t want to waste money on you anymore, you resort to violence? How is that fair?"
Avery’s eyes widened in shock. "You... you dare hit me..."
Selina’s words carried so much weight that everyone—customers and the store manager alike—froze in surprise.
Suddenly, a woman’s voice rang out from somewhere in the store. "Isn’t that the eldest daughter of the Clark family? The Clarks say Selina is rude and uncultured, but she seems pretty well-mannered to me!"
"And Avery is Katie’s niece? The mistress’s niece thinks she can hit and insult the legitimate daughter? Their family drove the first wife to her death and now dares to bully her daughter? How shameless!"
"Katie pretends to be a kind stepmother, and Natalia keeps calling Selina ’sister’. But behind closed doors, they treat the legal wife’s daughter like this? Disgusting!"
The manager’s expression darkened with open disdain. "Even the mistress’s niece dares to act so brazenly in our store? Who gave you the guts? Get out!"
Avery was on the verge of losing her mind. She was the one who got slapped, yet everyone was sympathizing with Selina?
As the security guards prepared to escort Avery out, a commotion erupted near the entrance.
Everyone turned their heads to see a group of bodyguards parting the way. Not far behind, a man was striding toward them.
The crowd collectively gasped.
The man had deep-set eyes, sharp features, a tall and perfectly proportioned figure, and an intimidating presence.
Wearing gold-rimmed glasses, his sharpness was tempered slightly, giving him a refined and intellectual air.
Selina froze, stammering, "Logan?!"
While everyone stood in stunned silence, one of the bodyguards stepped forward and spoke in a stern tone. "What’s going on here? Who dares to harm a distinguished guest?"
Distinguished guest?
Selina almost choked on her breath. She stared at him in shock, and it took her a while to process that Logan was indeed speaking to her.
Who hits someone and then complains about their own hand hurting? Isn’t the usual question supposed to be whether the victim is hurt?
Selina was about to say her hand didn’t hurt, but when she caught a glimpse of Avery’s near-manic expression out of the corner of her eye, she changed her mind.
"It does hurt. My palm is red and sore," she said with a pitiful pout.
The crowd fell into a stunned silence for an entire minute.
Avery’s face turned ashen as she gaped at Selina in disbelief. "Selina, do you have no shame?!"
She was the one who got slapped! How dare Selina play the victim?
Selina lowered her head, her voice soft. "See? She’s still insulting me."
"Shut up!" Avery’s dreams of becoming a wealthy wife crumbled in an instant. She couldn’t accept the thought of Selina, once trampled beneath her, now rising to humiliate her in return.
Desperately, she blurted out, "Sir, you don’t know the truth! Selina is a shameless tramp! Even her fiancé didn’t want her! Her mother died when she was a child, and she’s cursed! Nobody—"
Slap! ƒгeewёbnovel.com
Before she could finish, a bodyguard stepped forward and delivered a resounding slap to her face, leaving her cheeks swollen and red.
Logan narrowed his eyes. "Take her back to the Clark family and let them deal with her."
Selina raised an eyebrow, intrigued. Take her back to the Clark family...
James and Grandpa Clark were obsessed with maintaining their reputation. Even though Avery was Katie’s niece, her behavior had embarrassed the Clark family. They wouldn’t let this slide easily.
This should be entertaining.
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