Chapter 183
Hadley performed like she always did, moving through her set with ease. It all went smoothly, until she finished and made her way back to the dressing room, wiping the makeup off her face.
She figured Eric was here for business. After all, he used to frequent the place.
Once she finished removing her makeup, she slipped into the dressing room to change. But even from inside, she could hear raised voices. It sounded like an argument.
Could it be Eric?
No, it wasn’t him. The voice that cut through the air was sharp, unmistakably female.
Hadley hurried to change, her fingers moving faster than usual. She pushed open the door and stepped outside.
“Let me through! I’m going to tear that little vixen apart today!”
The woman’s voice screeched, high-pitched and nearly unbearable.
“Hey! You can’t go in there!” someone yelled.
“Stop her!” another voice called out.
“Move!” the woman shouted.
The dressing room door was suddenly thrown open—more like it was kicked in.
Hadley had just regained her balance when a young woman, around her age, stormed in with an air of fury. “You!”
The woman jabbed a finger toward Hadley, her stance full of disdain and superiority.
“You bitch!”
“What?” Hadley blinked, completely confused. She had no idea what was going on.
The woman took two sharp steps forward, her gaze locking with Hadley’s. “Are you Hadley Pearson?” She raised an eyebrow, a smirk tugging at the corners of her lips.
Hadley stood frozen, her mind racing, before she nodded. “Yes, that’s me…”
Before she could say another word, the woman’s hand shot up, and in a swift motion, slapped Hadley hard across the face.
𝒆𝓷𝓬𝓱𝓮𝓬𝓴 𝒄𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓼 𝓱𝒆𝓻𝑒: 𝗀𝒶𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝓈.𝒸𝑜𝓂
The force of the blow caught Hadley completely off guard. She instinctively raised her hand to her cheek, her brows knitted in pain.
With a burst of anger, Hadley glared at the woman.
“How dare you glare at me?” The woman sneered, lifting her chin in defiance. “What? Don’t women like you, with no shame, deserve to be slapped?”
Hadley was completely lost. She had no idea where this was coming from.
“Hadley…” Lennon’s voice cut through, stepping in behind the woman, waving his hands frantically and mouthing something.
Hadley squinted, trying to catch the word Lennon was silently saying. Duran?
So, this woman was here because of Duran? But wasn’t he divorced? Besides, this woman looked too young to be his wife.
“Hadley!”
The woman’s sharp voice cut through her thoughts, and she pointed a finger at Hadley, her posture exuding superiority.
Pointing directly at Hadley’s nose, the woman spoke with icy command.
“I’m telling you now—stay away from my dad! Girls like you, who sleep around and pretend to be innocent, only want his money and power. He might be fooled, but I won’t stand for it!”