The Billionaire And His Son Want Me Back (Paisley)

When Marissa saw the brooch, her expression shifted menacingly. Her usually gentle demeanor cracked as she snatched the brooch and hurled it to the floor. "This kind of trash has no place here."

Alexis fell silent immediately, understanding that Marissa wasn't talking about the brooch itself but was using it as a veiled jab at someone else.

They had been classmates since high school. Marissa had always maintained a graceful, magnanimous image in front of everyone-never clashing with others, always warm and accommodating. This was the first time Alexis had seen her so enraged and unhinged. For a moment, she didn't know how to react. After a long pause and seeing Marissa gradually calm down, Alexis finally spoke again, "Are you okay, Marissa?"

Marissa's shoulders rose and fell as she took two deep breaths. When she looked up, her face had returned to its usual calm and gentle expression. "I'm fine. I'm sorry for scaring you just now. I was just in a bad mood, but it's all good now."

Alexis sighed in relief, though a hint of confusion lingered in her mind. Something about Marissa felt different now, making it hard to treat her with the same casual familiarity as before. "Marissa, are you still planning to attend the opening gala later?"

Alexis had come here for the gala tonight and had even prepared the perfect dress for the occasion. But with Marissa in this state, Alexis wondered if her own attendance might depend on Marissa's decision. Marissa noticed the hope in Alexis' eyes and smiled, "Don't worry. I'll be there."

Alexis visibly relaxed, though she couldn't resist a superficial show of concern. "But are you sure you can handle it?"

Marissa caught the subtext but remained gentle and serene on the surface. "I'll be fine." There was no way she would skip this event-she wouldn't miss any opportunity to be by Dominick's side.

"Thank you for standing up for me today," Marissa said, taking Alexis' hand to convey friendliness and sincerity. "You have to believe me I was just panicking at the time. That's the only reason I did something so reckless. I wasn't thinking clearly..."

Marissa understood that any further denial would only backfire. It was better to admit fault and chalk it up to a momentary lapse of judgment. With her established reputation, forgiveness was almost guaranteed. Alexis, caught off guard by the gesture, felt her earlier doubts melt away. "You're my friend. We've known each other since high school. I know exactly what kind of person you are I'd never doubt you." Whether Marissa's words were genuine or not, Alexis didn't care. What mattered was that Marissa was Dominick's companion and a likely candidate to become his wife. Alexis knew that maintaining a good relationship with Marissa would only benefit her and the Foster family.

Marissa then put on a look of heartbreak, her eyes dropping to the floor. "But what will others think of me now?"noveldrama

"Everyone will naturally side with you," Alexis reassured her firmly. "As long as you're by Dominick's side, no matter how big a mistake you make, people will always try to understand.

"Really? That's a relief..." Marissa's eyes carried a faint smile, but her thoughts were entirely different. She pondered, 'Keeping these fools in line is just for appearances. I couldn't care less what they actually think. What matters to me is what Dom and Sonny think.

'Dom hasn't said anything directly, but he's definitely been colder toward me lately. And Sonny-he acted like he didn't even hear me calling his name earlier, no matter how many times I tried.'

At that moment, Julian knocked and stepped inside, speaking from behind the curtain, "Are you ready, Marissa? I'll take you back to your room."

"Yes, I'm ready," Marissa replied, leaning on Alexis for support as she walked out.

When Marissa saw Julian looking at her with his usual calm expression, she forced a bitter smile. "Julian, you know me. I don't even know what came over me today, doing something so foolish. Please believe me. It wasn't my intention. I just—"

"I understand," Julian interrupted, giving her shoulder a reassuring pat. "I know what kind of person you are."

He then pondered, 'I know Paisley, too. That woman has always been scheming. She married Dominick for his money, then left him and their child out of nowhere, leaving him utterly broken. And now, she's back, finding every excuse to show up in front of him again.

'Then there's her biological family, the Sullivans. They always act so opportunistic, pretending to care when they only want to benefit themselves.

'I don't believe for a second that the Sullivan family doesn't know about Paisley's return. And I definitely don't buy that they're unaware of her past with Dominick. They're just playing dumb in front of us.' Julian had been Marissa's classmate since high school. She had always been kind, gentle, and generous. Back then, even though she knew Dominick had married Paisley, she quietly endured her heartbreak and never caused trouble for Paisley.

Paisley, though, kept stirring up trouble for Marissa and had even come close to causing her a deadly allergic reaction. When it came to what happened today, Julian could see where Marissa was coming from.

Julian thought that Marissa had waited so long for Dominick to be single again and finally break free from Paisley's shadow. With just a bit more effort, Marissa could've ended up marrying Dominick. But, of course, Paisley had to come back now and throw Dominick's emotions into chaos.

Julian reasoned that Marissa had only acted out of a moment of panic. Everything she did wrong was because Paisley had driven her to it.

"I'll help you explain things to Dom," Julian assured Marissa. "Don't worry. He and I both know you're not a cruel person."

"Okay," Marissa murmured, lowering her gaze to hide the cold glint in her eyes.