After I Stopped Loving Him (Isabella and Ethan) novel Chapter 482

“Butler!”

“Natalie.”

Natalie didn’t even bother to look up. “From now on, don’t let that woman set foot in this house unless I say so.”

The butler hesitated, glancing at her nervously. “But what if Jackson really decides to marry her?”

He was worried about his own job. If Deborah really became the lady of the house, there’d be hell to pay for anyone who crossed her.

Natalie’s eyes narrowed, cold and sharp. “We’ll see about that when the time comes. For now, nothing’s settled. As long as she hasn’t married in, this house is mine to run. Cynthia was married for twenty years and never dared to act out in front of me, but that woman... she’s getting way too bold.”

She grabbed her purse from the sofa, dug out her phone, and handed it to the butler. “Take a picture of my face. Make sure you get the bruise. I want Jackson and Jordan to see what she’s done.”

Jackson might be infatuated with that woman, but even he couldn’t ignore this. Natalie still had the Gates family behind her. Deborah’s family? They had nothing. They used to be dirt poor. Their fortunes only changed after Deborah wormed her way into Jackson’s bed and became his mistress.

And now, Deborah was constantly asking Jackson to find jobs for her relatives in the Lane Group’s companies. Was she trying to sneak her people in and challenge Jordan for control?

The butler did as he was told and snapped a few photos of Natalie’s swollen cheek.

He went to fetch some ice, and Natalie waved him away, pressing the cold pack to her face herself.

Thinking about Deborah’s arrogance made Natalie’s blood boil. The real crisis facing her and her husband wasn’t Ethan growing distant, it was that woman trying to force her way into the family. And she’d already had a son with Jackson. Women with sons always had big ambitions. She’d definitely try to claw her way to the family fortune.

But the Lane family’s billions would only ever belong to Jordan.

When their eyes met, the air practically crackled.

Jordan’s face turned icy, his glare sharp as a knife. “What are you doing here?”

Deborah raised her chin defiantly. “Why, Jordan? Can’t you see my face is swollen too? Your so-called classy wife hit me first. I’m not her mother, I don’t have to put up with her tantrums.”

“She slapped me, so I slapped her back. I’m not stupid enough to just stand there and take it.”

“Honestly, the only reason I didn’t go ten times harder was for Jackson’s sake. I didn’t want things to get too ugly. After all, we’re going to be family soon.”

She scoffed. “Seriously, Jordan, your taste in women is terrible. You married this supposedly high-society lady, but honestly, she’s got no manners at all. All she does is act innocent and put on a show. She’s completely fake.”