Chapter 588: Betty Doesn't Want Richard Anymore
In the lounge, Richard was tailing Betty like a shadow, looking all serious, making sure she didn't get bumped around by the crowd.
Richard wasn't seeing himself as Betty's hubby anymore; he was all about protecting her and the baby she was carrying.
Betty shot Richard a quick glance, then looked down, keeping quiet.
"Hang here for a bit, I gotta talk business," Betty said.
Avery was off to chat with some big shots, and Betty had to back her up.
Deborah was back with the Hawthornes, and Avery's spot in the Hawthorne Group was shaky.
Deborah was a sly and ruthless chick, and Betty was worried Avery couldn't handle her solo.
Richard just nodded and stayed put, waiting.
He was like a loyal puppy; whatever Betty said, he did.
"Richard." As Betty walked away, Aleah tiptoed over, looking all nervous. "Richard, you seriously don't remember me?"
Richard frowned, gave Aleah a once-over, and took a step back, signaling her to keep her distance.
Aleah's eyes got all teary, but she forced a smile. "Richard, let me reintroduce myself. I'm Aleah, your classmate since elementary school. We were in love for years. But Betty came between us and bought off our relationship with cash."
Aleah glanced Betty's way, her voice cracking. "See, money's awesome, right? With it, you can do whatever, stomp on people's dignity, buy their feelings, and force me to go abroad and marry someone I don't love."
Richard looked at Aleah, then at Betty. "She's not like that."
"You just forgot, Richard. She made you marry her by threatening you with me, all for my sake." Aleah nervously tried to grab his hand. "Richard, trust me, I wouldn't lie to you."
Aleah pulled out old photos and Richard's old diary. "Richard, this is all I could find, proof you loved me deeply. You gave me this diary before you left. I know you love me; you wouldn't love anyone else."
Richard stared at the diary, silent for a while. "How do I know if I wrote this?"
Aleah was taken aback. "Richard, this is your handwriting."
"I don't even remember who I am; how can I remember my handwriting?" Richard flipped through the diary, frowning. "Are you sure I wrote this?"
The diary was full of sappy stuff like "I like you," "I'll only love you in this life," "I'll marry you," and "Wait for me to come back."
Aleah's face fell, and she was stunned for a long time. Then she choked up. "Richard, this is proof of your love for me."
Seeing Richard stay silent, Aleah nervously added, "Betty isn't as innocent as she seems. She's got ties with gangs in Muskow and Maple Grove; she's bad news."
Behind her, Betty came back, squinting. "What's that? Let me see."
Richard jumped and quickly shoved the diary back into Aleah's hands. "Nothing, just an account book."
Betty sneered. "An account book? Do you owe her money?"
Aleah, with teary eyes, said, "This is Richard's diary. He promised to marry me when he returned and wrote it all in here."
Betty nodded and held out her hand. "Hand it over. Let me see."
Aleah hesitated but eventually handed the diary to Betty.
Betty flipped through a few pages, her face turning grim. "Not bad."
Who would've thought teenage Richard was all about writing love letters? Now, he looked totally clueless.
After skimming the diary, Betty tossed it back to Aleah. "Keep it safe, frame it; this will be your last memory."
Then, she yanked Richard in front of her. "Remember, he's mine now, my husband, the father of my baby. If you come near him again, I'll be even nastier than you think."
Aleah, with teary eyes, looked at Richard, blocking him with her hand. "Richard, remember quickly."
Betty frowned. "What, should I smack you? Is your face itching?"
"If you have the guts, hit me. Let Richard see your true colors." Aleah taunted Betty.
"I've never seen someone begging for a slap." Betty raised her hand but didn't hit Aleah's face. She turned to Richard. "You hit her. My hand hurts."
Richard looked confused, glanced around, and pointed at himself. "Who? Me?"
"Is there anyone else here?" Betty snapped, still fuming over the love letter diary.
"Betty, you're so vicious. Stealing Richard with your tricks wasn't enough? Do you think money can buy everything? You can't buy his love. He'll remember how good I was and love me for it." Aleah, with reddened eyes, glared at Betty.
Betty looked at Aleah disdainfully. "To me, you're not even a rival, just a clown."
"Richard, are you just gonna watch her hit me?" Aleah looked at Richard.
Richard stayed silent, saying nothing.
Aleah's eyes welled up, and suddenly, a waiter bumped into her, causing her to push Betty away.
There were steps behind Betty, and she fell backward.
Aleah also lost her balance and fell.
At the critical moment, Richard protected Betty, falling on the steps himself and letting her fall on him.
"Richard." Betty looked at Richard nervously.
Richard hit his head, shook it hard, and took a long time to recover.
Betty looked at Richard worriedly, checking his head. "Are you okay? Did you get hurt?"
Richard held his head.
After a long time, Richard looked up at Aleah. "Aleah."
Aleah was stunned for a moment, then, with reddened eyes, covered her mouth and cried. "Richard, did you remember me?"
Betty's heart tightened, looking at him. "Richard."
Richard looked at Betty with unfamiliar eyes, confused. "Who are you?"
Betty suddenly stood up, her stomach hurting badly.
The doctor had said that Richard had a blood clot in his brain, which could cause him to regain his memory at any time or make him lose it again.
The blood clot could move, and his memory could be confused.
Apparently, at this moment, Richard only remembered Aleah and not Betty.
"You." Richard instinctively wanted to get up and help Betty.
"Richard, my ankle hurts so much." Aleah cried, her ankle seemingly swollen and red.
Richard ran over, picked up Aleah, and left. Before leaving, he looked back at Betty. "Who is she?"
"She's a bad woman, who broke us up." Aleah tightly hugged Richard, provocatively looking at Betty.
Next to Betty, several other bodyguards nervously ran over. "Madam, should we take Richard back and lock him up?"
If he lost his memory, he shouldn't be running around.
Betty raised her hand to stop them, shook her head, and said in a low voice, "No need. I'll give him one day. If he doesn't come back, I don't want him anymore."
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