From His Fake Wife to Billionaire Heiress Chapter 241: A Challenge

Riley fixed her gaze straight on Devin and let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "What do I mean? Come on—you have to lay out bait first if you're hoping to dig up bigger leads."

Her words struck like a thunderclap. Devin's expression twisted in an instant, and even the onlooking villagers froze stock-still, caught up in the tense scene unfolding before them.

Bait? Leads?

Could it be that Riley was deliberately drawing the hidden culprit out into the open?

Without another word, Riley shot a cold glare at Devin and raised her phone high. On the screen, her call log was clearly visible.

"Right here—I've got the record from last night when I called the police after being drugged. The timing lines up perfectly with when they brought you in for questioning."

She paused, then added with clear contempt, "I really didn't think you'd have the guts, Mr. Hardy. The police never released an official statement about what you did last night, so you decided to double down? You brought this whole crowd here to pressure me into admitting I slept with that fool son of yours?

"Did you really think a fake little 'proof' like that would be enough to ruin me?"

Riley took a step forward, her presence suddenly filling the space.

Devin was sweating for real now.

He hadn't expected Riley to come out swinging like this.

But a desperate man always finds a crooked logic—even backed into a corner, he'll search for any crack to slip through.

Devin knew there was no backing out now. If he folded here, last night's charges would stick for good.

His mind raced, scrambling to find another hole in Riley's story.

Soon, he forced himself to fire back. "Ms. Harper—don't try to bluff me with some police report! If you're so sure of yourself, why not let someone check whether what I'm saying is true? If you've got nothing to hide, why are you so scared of a simple exam?"

He clung to the demand for a physical exam like a lifeline, trying to force Riley into a corner and refocus the villagers' attention on whether she was "pure" or not.

Riley knew Devin was just a cornered rat, trying to drag her down with him through shame and spectacle.

Her gaze remained sharp, her voice steady. "Why should I have to prove anything just because you say so? And in a setting like this? With everyone watching, using my own body to satisfy your sick little fantasy?

"If you want proof, fine. Let's go to the most reputable third-party clinic in Havenbrook and have a state-appointed physician conduct the examination. If it turns out I never had any contact with your son..." Riley let the pause hang, then lowered her voice. "...then you will publicly livestream an apology to everyone in Havenbrook. You'll admit that as the mayor of Cedar Creek, you have no moral integrity—that you not only lied through your teeth, but tried to publicly shame a woman with a false accusation."

Riley's terms landed like a hammer.

"That's—" Beads of sweat rolled down Devin's temples.

She raised her voice, pressing harder. "Well, Mr. Hardy? Do you dare accept those terms?"

Devin's face twitched. He was hesitating now.

A public livestream apology? Admitting he had no moral standing?

That was even harder for him to swallow than jail time!

He'd made the whole story up. If this blew up and the results came out clean, Devin would be finished—completely.

Not only would he be disgraced and sent to prison, but his good-for-nothing son would be run out of Cedar Creek for good.

Worse still, it would stain the Hardy family name. People might even start digging up the Hardy family plot in the local cemetery, saying he'd corrupted the town's morals and ruined its reputation.

That would be the ultimate disgrace to his ancestors.

Just as Devin was about to grit his teeth and stammer out some slimy excuse to buy time, a voice suddenly called out from inside the construction site.

"Ms. Harper—you're finally back! I was looking for you all night."

Everyone turned. Harvey walked out, his face tired but brightening when he saw Riley.

When Riley had returned earlier, she hadn't seen Harvey, and it had bothered her.

The whole inconsistency in Devin's story hinged on what Harvey might say.

But Devin and his crew had shown up almost immediately, so she hadn't had a chance to track Harvey down.

And now, Harvey's seemingly offhand remark landed like another bombshell.

It confirmed Riley had been out all night.

Devin's eyes lit up. His deflated confidence surged back to life.

"Ms. Harper—see? How can you deny it now? Even your own crew knows you weren't here last night! That means you were clearly with my son!

"You can refuse to admit it all you want, but don't worry—marry into the Hardy family, and I'll treat you right. I hear you're from out of state, so I'll make sure you get a proper wedding gift—eighty, even a hundred thousand, no problem! Let's just get this wedding settled today, and we'll all be family."

Devin's words shoved Riley right back into the center of the storm.

Riley's heart sank. She stared at Devin's smug, twisted face, hardly believing that because of this one unexpected twist, she was trapped all over again.