From His Fake Wife to Billionaire Heiress Chapter 40: The Unjust Accusation

Riley was long accustomed to Anthea ordering her around like that. In Anthea's view, Riley was essentially a live-in assistant—on call 24/7, expected to manage everything and everyone in the Ashford household.

In the past, Riley might have offered some explanation.

But now...

She simply looked at Anthea calmly and replied, "Really? So just because I wasn't here, they all decided to leave instead of staying as guests?"

Anthea was momentarily silenced by Riley's soft but pointed response. Her carefully maintained composure cracked, and her face flushed with irritation.

Riley didn't wait around to watch her react further. "I'm tired," she said flatly. "I'm going upstairs." Without another glance, she headed straight for the staircase and back to her room.

Not long after, the front door opened again.

Sophia had returned with Jeremy.

"Grandma, I'm home!" the little boy called out cheerfully, running toward Anthea.

Anthea pulled her grandson into a hug, some of her frustration easing—but not enough to keep her from complaining bitterly to Sophia.

"Riley is getting more out of hand by the day. She doesn't go into the office, she's never home—who knows what she's really up to out there? She has no sense of what it means to be a proper wife."

While wiping her son's forehead, Sophia listened, a quick, calculating glint flashing in her eyes.

"Jeremy, sweetie," she said gently, "why don't you go play in your room for a bit? Mommy needs to talk with Grandma."

Once Jeremy was out of earshot, Sophia settled onto the sofa beside Anthea. "Mom, try not to let it upset you too much," she remarked casually. "Riley... probably has her own life outside. Maybe she just doesn't feel like coming home lately."

That only stoked Anthea's irritation. "What 'life' could possibly be more important than taking care of her husband and her household?" she snapped coldly.

"Well, that's not always the case," Sophia replied softly.

She lowered her voice and gave Anthea a meaningful look.

Then, having successfully piqued her curiosity, Sophia slowly pulled out her phone and showed her the photo she'd taken earlier.

Taken from a deliberately awkward angle, the picture showed Riley from behind, standing very close to a man in a hoodie. Riley's head was tilted toward him as if they were sharing an intimate conversation.

Anthea's eyes widened. To her, that discreet snapshot was all the proof she needed—Riley was betraying the family.

"Unbelievable!" Anthea shot up from the couch. "So this is why she's been so hard to pin down lately! Carrying on with some man behind Lucas' back—and a college kid, by the looks of it? How disgraceful can she be?"

Her assumption that he was a "college kid" came solely from the man's tall, youthful build in the hoodie. But by now, Anthea was too furious to think clearly.

"I'm going up there right now to confront her! Let's see if she still has the nerve to stay under this roof!" She turned sharply toward the staircase.

"Mom, wait—don't act rashly!"

Sophia caught her arm just in time and spoke in a soothing tone. "Dad and Lucas will be home soon. If they see you this upset, they'll think you're just picking on her again."

On the surface, Sophia sounded protective of Anthea—but every word was carefully chosen to pour fuel on the fire. She knew exactly how to escalate things.

Just as she expected, Anthea halted.

She was right. Sophia was right.

Confronting Riley alone wouldn't be enough.

If she was going to put Riley on trial, it had to be in front of Julian and Lucas—exposing the scandal completely, leaving Riley with no way to talk her way out of it.

Anthea took a slow breath and patted Sophia's hand, giving her an approving nod. "You're so thoughtful. Send me that picture, will you?"

When dinnertime arrived, a housekeeper knocked on Riley's door and asked her to come downstairs.

Riley acknowledged her, took her time smoothing her clothes, and made her way down at an unhurried pace.

But as she descended the spiral staircase, she immediately sensed the unusually heavy atmosphere in the living room.

Julian, Anthea, Lucas, and Sophia were each seated in separate spots on the large sectional sofa, leaving the central seat conspicuously empty—like a courtroom waiting for the accused to take her place.

Even Jeremy, who was usually buzzing around, had been sent to his room ahead of time by Sophia, kept away from the gathering tension.

All their eyes locked onto her.

Riley smirked inwardly.

Before she could even speak, Anthea launched her attack.

"Riley!" she demanded sharply, turning her phone screen toward her. "I want to know who this man is! How dare you sneak around with someone behind Lucas' back!"

Riley's gaze fell calmly on the screen.

It showed the exact photo Sophia had taken earlier—Riley and Sebastian walking into the restaurant together.