Possessed No More: The True Star Returns to Claim Her Throne-Chapter 41: Ex-boyfriend

She paid the bill. A waiter came in to pack up the leftovers, and Chloe Sterling and Talia White had already put their masks and hats back on.

"Should we get a cab?" The restaurant wasn’t far from their hotel, but it was still over a ten-minute walk.

Talia White said, "Let’s walk. We should walk it off after eating so much."

There was a lot of food left over. George Shaw carried the takeout bags as the group walked out. The restaurant was really crowded by then, with no empty tables outside. Coincidentally, the young waitress from before was leading a party inside.

’And the two people in the middle of the group were quite a surprise.’

"Riley Perry?"

Vernon Jacobs never thought he would see Riley Perry again like this, not after she had caught him cheating. She seemed even more beautiful. His gaze locked onto her instantly. Under the dim lights of the hallway, she seemed to glow, making it impossible for him to look away.

The smile on Riley Perry’s face never faltered. Her gaze flicked past Vernon Jacobs, not even pausing for half a second before landing briefly on Gigi Walsh, who was clinging to his arm. She then retracted her gaze completely and turned to Chloe Sterling and the others. "Let’s go. It’s getting late."

Gigi Walsh saw Vernon Jacobs staring intently at Riley Perry and was instantly annoyed. She pinched his arm hard.

Vernon Jacobs hissed in pain, finally tearing his gaze away. His tone was sharp when he spoke. "What was that for?"

’What the hell is wrong with me? When Riley Perry looked my way, her eyes were filled with contempt and disdain, yet I found her incredibly alluring. My heart is pounding even more than it used to!’

Gigi Walsh forced a smile. "We ran into an old friend. Don’t just stand there like an idiot. Say hello."

’Damn it, did Riley Perry get plastic surgery or something? She was never this beautiful before, and she always dressed so tackily. How did she transform like this overnight?’

The people with them had no idea about the drama between the three, and one person piped up, "You know each other? Then join us!"

Vernon Jacobs felt a little awkward, but he greeted her anyway. "Riley Perry, are you shooting a film here too? Want to join us for a drink?"

Riley Perry looked up, her tone flat and utterly emotionless. "No, thanks. I’m afraid I’d be so disgusted I’d throw up."

"You..." Vernon Jacobs was so taken aback he was speechless.

Gigi Walsh was used to being treated like a princess and couldn’t tolerate the slightest offense. How could she stand it when this hick starlet, Riley Perry, dared to call her disgusting?

"Riley Perry, I know you’re upset that I’m with Vernon, but you can’t blame us. Your reputation is garbage. If Zane had stayed with you, you would have just dragged him through the mud too..."

Chloe Sterling and Talia White were certainly familiar with Gigi Walsh. She was a popular starlet, more famous than Riley Perry, and was said to come from a well-off family—otherwise, a guy like Vernon Jacobs wouldn’t have given her the time of day. What they hadn’t expected was for Gigi Walsh to not only steal Riley’s ex-boyfriend but to now stand there shamelessly blaming Riley for it!

They started to speak up in her defense, but Riley Perry shot them a look. Chloe Sterling would be fine, but Talia White came from a humble background. It would be all too easy for a pair like Vernon Jacobs and Gigi Walsh to sabotage her career.

’I can handle this myself anyway. No need to drag others into it.’

Seeing her two friends back down, Riley Perry turned her attention to Gigi Walsh. "The reason I’m ignoring you is because I don’t waste time arguing with trash. But since you insist on getting in my face, don’t blame me for what comes next."

"You two probably don’t know, but I recorded everything that happened that day..."

The color drained from Vernon Jacobs’ and Gigi Walsh’s faces. They were both entertainers; if an explicit video like that got online, their careers would be over.

"Riley Perry, you can’t..." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Riley Perry’s voice was cold. "Oh, I can."

Rocco, meanwhile, was laughing inwardly. He might be Riley Perry’s assistant now, but at his core, he was still a paparazzo—one with incredibly sharp professional instincts.

So, the second the two groups had collided, he had secretly pulled out his phone and started filming.

Seeing the looks of panic on their faces now, he found it incredibly satisfying.

Gigi Walsh stomped her foot in fury. ’That bitch. She really is a scheming piece of work, actually daring to record it.’ "Riley Perry, you hand over that video right now, or I’ll make your life a living hell!"

’Does my girlfriend have a single brain cell?’ Vernon Jacobs wondered. ’How can you threaten someone who’s holding all the cards?’

"Riley, for the sake of what we once had... I know we wronged you. Just tell me what you want. I’ll do whatever I can to make it happen, as long as you delete that video."

Seeing the two scumbags panic, Riley Perry was suddenly in no hurry at all. She casually tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, her alluring eyes twinkling as a smile touched the corners of her lips. "Don’t you dare say that. I was never in love with you. You were just so persistent and thick-skinned that I couldn’t get rid of you and was forced to accept. I figured, hey, I’ve never been in a relationship, might as well see what it’s like with you. I just didn’t expect you to be such a lowlife that you’d cheat on me!"

"What, nervous now? And I haven’t even gotten to the good part yet!"

"Gigi Walsh, that person claiming his surname was Chen, the one who offered Director Quinn twenty million to have me replaced... he was your little errand boy, wasn’t he?"

"You’d better tell the truth. Otherwise, I’ll post the video online right now. And while I’m at it, I’ll hire a hundred or so clickbait accounts to celebrate your beautiful, unrestrained love story!"

With that, she casually waved the phone in her hand.

Gigi Walsh’s face went pale. She couldn’t believe Director Quinn was so pig-headed. It was bad enough he’d rejected her investment, but he’d actually gone and told Riley Perry? Still, it wasn’t that big of a deal. So what if she admitted it?

"That’s right, it was me! You’re a no-talent, Z-list nobody. Who knows what kind of dirty tricks you pulled to get into Director Quinn’s production in the first place? I was just trying to keep you from ruining his film!"

Riley Perry waved her phone again. "You know, I think I’ll just post the video after all. We can all see how our superstar, Gigi, strips naked to seduce someone else’s boyfriend!"

"You wouldn’t dare!" Gigi Walsh shrieked, flustered and furious. "Fine, I’ll talk! I just wanted to run you out of the entertainment industry, so I tried to steal the role. Too bad Director Quinn is completely incorruptible—he turned down money that was handed to him on a silver platter! It’s not like you lost anything, so why are you still hung up on such a small thing! I’ve confessed, now delete the video!"

Riley Perry feigned confusion. "What are you talking about? What video? What am I deleting?"

Gigi Walsh’s expression darkened further. "What’s that supposed to mean?"

Riley Perry grinned triumphantly. "You morons. I was bluffing."

Gigi Walsh: "..."

As he watched her—those red lips parting to call him a moron, her eyes filled with a brazen, unrestrained contempt—Vernon Jacobs felt a tremor in his heart. There wasn’t a trace of anger. Instead, there was only a sense of melancholy, and even a pang of regret.

He pursed his lips. While he was relieved to learn that Riley Perry had no actual evidence, his gaze on her grew deeper, more complex.