Papa! That Bad Man Hit My Mom!

After a seven-year relationship, my fiancé Bennett abandoned me on our marriage license day for a "marriage of convenience" with another woman. Heartbroken, I married the reclusive billionaire Damon Levy and disappeared.

Three years later, I returned, pregnant with our second child. The first person I saw was Bennett, now working as a driver, holding a sign for "Mrs. Levy."

He and his new wife didn't recognize me. They publicly humiliated me, mocking my simple dress and calling the priceless diamond bracelet from my husband a cheap fake.

At a gala, their cruelty escalated. They tripped me, stomped on my hand, and shattered my bracelet. Bennett slapped me across the face, hissing at me to stop lying.

Surrounded by their laughter, with my lip bleeding, I saw the man I once loved for the hollow, cruel person he truly was.

But then, the room went silent. My husband, Damon, walked in, holding our son. And my little boy pointed a finger straight at Bennett and shouted, "Papa! That bad man hit Mommy!"

Chapter 1

The pen hovered over the marriage license, a simple, stark document that promised a future I had dreamed of for seven years. My hand trembled, but it wasn't from excitement. It was from the chill spreading through my veins. Bennett wasn' t there. He was supposed to be, right by my side.

I looked at the empty chair beside me. The clerk cleared her throat. She had probably seen this a hundred times. A woman waiting, a man missing.

Then the office door burst open. Not Bennett. It was Jade Dunlap, her perfect blonde hair shining under the fluorescent lights, her smile a cruel slash across her face. And then I saw him. Bennett, walking in behind her, his hand resting casually on her lower back. My stomach dropped.

He didn't even look at me first. His eyes were on the clerk, a practiced charm already in place. Jade leaned in, whispering something in his ear, and they both chuckled. My lungs compressed.

"Addison," Bennett said, finally turning to me. His voice was smooth, too smooth. Like he was talking to a child, or a stranger. He didn't blink at my wide, trembling eyes. "I'm so sorry. Something urgent came up."

Urgent. This was our day. Our marriage license. My heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vise.

"What do you mean, 'urgent'?" My voice was a thin, reedy whisper I barely recognized.

Jade stepped forward, her expensive perfume suddenly suffocating. "Oh, darling. Bennett's so dedicated. He has to secure a critical business deal for Aurelis Capital. And for my son's inheritance, of course."

She smiled at me, a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "It's a temporary arrangement. A marriage of convenience. He promised me it would only last a month."

A month. My world tilted. My seven years, our shared dreams, reduced to a temporary inconvenience.

"You're marrying her?" The words were a physical pain tearing through my throat.

Bennett finally met my gaze. There was no apology, no remorse. Just a cold calculation. "It's for the firm, Addison. For our future. Just one month. I'll be back."

He honestly believed I would wait. He truly thought his "offer" to take me back was an act of charity. My vision blurred.

I glanced around the small, sterile office. The clerk looked away, embarrassed. The security guard at the door shifted uncomfortably. They knew. They saw the humiliation.

Seven years. Seven years of supporting his ambitions, cheering his small victories, comforting him through his failures. Seven years of pouring my heart into us, into him. I had sacrificed my own dreams, put my career on hold, all for the promise of "our future."

And now, "our future" was a month-long marriage to another woman.

Something inside me snapped. It wasn't a sudden explosion, but a quiet, definitive break. The Addison who loved Bennett, who believed in his promises, she ceased to exist in that moment.

"No," I said, my voice surprisingly steady. "You won't."

Bennett frowned, irritation flashing in his eyes. "Addison, don't be dramatic. This is business."

Jade linked her arm through his. "She's always been a bit much, hasn't she, darling?"

He didn't correct her. He just looked at me, waiting for me to understand, to accept.

But I saw him for what he was. A hollow man, chasing shadows of power, willing to sacrifice anything, anyone, for his own perceived gain. The man I loved was a ghost.

That night, I accepted the marriage proposal from Damon Levy. The terrifyingly powerful, reclusive tech billionaire my parents had been trying to set me up with for months. I needed an escape. I needed to disappear.

I left New York without a word, without a backward glance. The city that held so many memories, so many broken promises, faded in my rearview mirror.

Three years passed. Three years that reshaped me, rebuilt me.

Now, I was back.

The humid New York air hit me as I stepped off the private jet. My stomach fluttered, not with nerves, but with the gentle stirrings of the life growing inside me. My second child.

Damon had arranged for a private car to pick me up. He was notoriously private, and always ensured my comfort and safety. I wore a simple, elegant ivory silk dress that draped perfectly over my growing belly, and my hair was pulled back in a loose, effortless bun. My only jewelry was the custom-made diamond bracelet Damon had given me for our anniversary, its unique design shimmering subtly on my wrist. It was a piece that spoke of understated luxury, not overt flashiness.

As I walked into the bustling arrivals hall, my eyes scanned for a driver with a sign. The crowd parted around me, a natural deference to the quiet confidence I now exuded. I found the sign, clutched in the hand of a man whose face, even after three years, was instantly recognizable.

Bennett Reed.

My breath hitched. The air seemed to solidify around me. Bennett, holding a sign that read, "Mrs. Levy."

He hadn't seen me yet. His eyes darted nervously through the crowd, a forced smile on his face. He looked... older. More stressed. But the arrogance still clung to him like cheap cologne.

My gaze drifted to his wrist. A familiar gold watch gleamed there. The one I had saved for, for months, to buy him as a graduation gift. A bitter taste filled my mouth. He was still wearing it.

He finally spotted me. His eyes widened, then narrowed in confusion. He clearly didn't recognize me, not truly. He was looking for a "Mrs. Levy," someone grander, perhaps older, certainly more ostentatious than the woman standing before him.

Then his eyes landed on the diamond bracelet on my wrist. A flicker of something, curiosity perhaps, crossed his face, quickly replaced by a dismissive sneer.

"Addison?" he said, a mixture of disbelief and condescension in his voice. "Is that really you?"

I didn't answer. I just watched him, a cold, analytical gaze.

He took a step closer, his eyes raking over my simple dress. "Lost your way? Or are you here to greet someone yourself? Trying to catch a glimpse of the rich and famous, perhaps?"

His voice was low, but laced with a familiar mockery. He still thought I was the same desperate girl he'd abandoned.

"That bracelet," he scoffed, gesturing to my wrist, "trying a little too hard, aren't we? Looks like a cheap knock-off. Trying to pretend you're someone important?"

He even reached out, as if to touch it, to confirm his judgment. I pulled my hand back, a slow, deliberate movement.

"Look, Addison," he continued, oblivious to my reaction, "I know things didn't work out. But you really need to stop with this pathetic act. If you're struggling, I could maybe... put in a word for you. A junior assistant at Aurelis, perhaps? You could get half-decent clothes, stop trying to pass off fake jewelry as real."

His words landed like tiny, insignificant pebbles. I just looked at him. The man who had once been my entire world. Now, he was just... sad. And utterly, completely wrong.

The bracelet wasn't a knock-off. It was bespoke, personally designed by Damon, its diamonds flawless, its craftsmanship unparalleled. Its worth could probably buy Bennett's entire firm. But he wouldn't know that. He only saw what he wanted to see: a poor, pathetic Addison trying to be something she wasn't.

My silence seemed to fuel his arrogance. He laughed. "Still the silent type, huh? Well, no wonder you're still... like this. Life hit you hard, didn't it? After I left, I mean."

He adjusted his tie, his chest puffing out slightly. "You know, I actually wondered about you sometimes. Thought you might come crawling back. But I guess you had too much pride for that, didn't you? Pity."

My gaze hardened. He was still the same. And I was no longer the girl who would tolerate it.

"Bennett," a shrill voice cut through the air. Jade Dunlap, of course. She swept towards him, clinging to his arm. "Darling, what's taking so long? The car is waiting."

She caught sight of me then. Her eyes widened, morphing into a triumphant smirk. "Oh, look what the cat dragged in. Addison Henry. Still slumming it, I see."

Behind her, a small entourage of impeccably dressed women giggled. They were Jade's usual sycophants, always ready to echo her disdain. One of them, a woman I vaguely remembered from a charity event, pointed at my dress.

"Is that... silk?" she whispered, loud enough for everyone to hear. "It looks so... plain."

Another chimed in. "And that bracelet! Oh, dear. You really shouldn't try to wear such things if they're obviously fake. It just makes you look desperate."

My face remained impassive. Inside, a cold fire began to simmer.

Bennett, regaining his composure with Jade by his side, smirked. "She thinks she's important. Apparently, she's here to pick someone up too."

"Pick someone up?" Jade laughed, a harsh, brittle sound. "With that outfit? Please. More likely she's looking for a handout, or a job. Bennett, darling, remember that little offer you made? Maybe she can be the new nanny for our son. She's good with kids, always was."

The women around them snickered. My pregnancy was barely showing, but Jade's cruel offer was a deliberate jab at my past, my perceived failures.

I watched them, these people who had once been part of my life, now a grotesque parody of ambition and cruelty. Bennett, with his puffed chest and empty eyes. Jade, with her venomous smile. The pack of wolves echoing their every sneer.

They were so loud. So confident in their judgment. And so utterly, blindingly wrong.

My plain silk dress was a bespoke creation from a reclusive Italian designer, its simplicity a testament to its exorbitant cost. The "fake" bracelet was a unique masterpiece, its value surpassing anything they could ever hope to own. They saw poverty, where I saw understated wealth. They saw desperation, where I felt quiet power.

The old Addison might have crumpled. She might have cried, or tried to defend herself. But that Addison was gone. I just looked at them, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on my lips. They were so busy being cruel, so wrapped up in their own delusions, they couldn't even begin to grasp the reality of the situation. It was almost... amusing.

One of Jade's friends, a woman named Chloe who used to fawn over Bennett, stepped forward. "Oh, Addison, it's been so long! Bennett, you really should be nicer. She obviously misses you. Look at her, she's practically glowing over seeing you again."

Bennett' s smile tightened, a mix of awkwardness and renewed self-importance. "Well, Addison, you know I always had a soft spot for you. If things are really that bad, we can always discuss a... more stable arrangement. Perhaps you could be my personal assistant again. You were always good at organizing my schedule."

His condescending tone, his casual assumption of my continued devotion, scraped against the raw edge of my control. He was still the same arrogant fool, still believing he was doing me a favor.

He hadn't changed. Not one bit. And the painful truth was, I no longer cared enough to even feel angry. Just a profound, weary disgust.

"You know," Chloe continued, oblivious, her voice dripping with false sympathy, "Bennett has really moved up. He's practically running Aurelis Capital now. And Jade is so wonderful, always supporting him. You really should try to be happy for them, Addison, instead of... well, whatever this is." She gestured vaguely at my entire being.

Another woman peered at my dress. "Honestly, Addison, if you're going to try to impress people, you need better clothes. This looks like something you picked up at a thrift store."

"Or maybe," Jade interjected, her voice sharp as a knife, "she spent all her money on that gaudy fake bracelet, hoping someone important would notice her."

They all laughed, a chorus of mean-spirited mockery. They thought they were cutting me down, exposing my supposed poverty and desperation. They thought I was embarrassed.

I just watched them, the faint smile still on my lips. They had no idea. The dress was a new collection, exclusive, not yet publicly released. The bracelet, a token of a love so deep and powerful, they wouldn't understand it even if I explained.

The person I had been, the one easily wounded, easily broken, was gone. She had been replaced by a woman who knew her worth. A woman who was loved, truly loved, by a man more powerful than all of them combined.

My hand instinctively went to my belly, a silent comfort. I was bearing Damon's second child. My children were princes, their father a king. These people, these petty, cruel individuals, were nothing but fading echoes in the distance.

Bennett, misinterpreting my silence and the slight shift in my posture, leaned closer. "Don't look so forlorn, Addison. It's not a bad offer. I'm a generous man." He paused, a sneer twisting his lips. "Perhaps you're still upset about three years ago? You know, the marriage of convenience? It was for business, Addison. Purely business." He chuckled, as if sharing a private joke. "Honestly, I thought you'd have moved on by now. You know, found some mediocre man to settle down with, popped out a couple of kids. That was always your dream, wasn't it?"

My eyes, which had been distant, snapped back to his. The faint smile vanished. The cold fire within me intensified.

He had no idea. He had no idea what kind of future he had thrown away. He had no idea what kind of man he was casually dismissing. He had no idea what kind of woman he was humiliating. And most painfully, he had no idea that the "dream" he mocked had come true, far beyond anything his small, ambitious mind could comprehend.

A sudden, sharp pain flared in my hand. Not from his words, but a deep, throbbing ache. It was my bracelet. He had grabbed it, his fingers closing around the delicate metal.

"You really think this cheap thing is going to impress anyone, Addison?" he sneered, pulling at it. "It's tacky. Just like you."

"Let go," I said, my voice low, dangerous.

He ignored me, pulling harder. "Come on, let's just get rid of this trash."

The metal strained, then snapped. Diamonds scattered across the pristine airport floor, glittering like fallen stars. My breath hitched. Not for the monetary value, but for the meaning behind it. Damon. My husband.

My eyes met Bennett's, and the cold fire in me erupted into a silent, searing inferno.