Madly Yours (Nora Reed) novel Chapter 343

As those words fell, the whispers in the banquet hall came to a dead stop.

It made sense.

Everything that woman just said was entirely one-sided. No one here actually knew the truth.

Who exactly was Hudson Lancaster?

He was the head of the Lancaster family in San Francisco, the Butcher who ruled both the corporate world and the underground.

Would a man like that marry the wrong woman?

Who would possibly buy that?

For a moment, the crowd simply watched and waited, eager to see how this drama would play out.

Standing in the center of the hall, Jade Reed still held up the Certified Marriage Certificate Copy, but the smugness on her face had quickly morphed into pure panic.

She hadn't expected Hudson to react like this.

She had assumed that by exposing the truth in front of all these people, the Lancasters would be forced to acknowledge her as the rightful Mrs. Lancaster just to save face and silence the gossip.

But Hudson wasn't playing by the rules.

"It's real," Jade said, her voice rising in desperation. "This is a Certified Marriage Certificate Copy from the Bureau of Vital Records! My name is on it!"

She took a step forward, trying to shove the evidence into Hudson's face.

He didn't take it. He didn't even look at her.

Instead, he turned his gaze toward a gray-haired older man sitting a few tables away.

"Mr. Beckett, you worked at the Bureau of Records for thirty years. No one knows how to spot a fake better than you. Would you mind taking a look?"

"You rascal. I came here to enjoy Beatrice's birthday gala, and now you're putting me back to work?"

The older man's quip drew a collective, knowing chuckle from the crowd.

Though he complained, Thomas Beckett slowly pushed himself to his feet.

Seeing this, Jade practically threw the document into his hands.

Thomas took the paper, turning it over a few times. He even pulled out his reading glasses, polished the lenses, slipped them on, and examined it again.

Penelope Reed, frantic, broke into a sprint and chased after them.

Marcus Reed, thoroughly humiliated, kept his head down and marched out of the hall.

Nora Reed couldn't believe the massive crisis had been dismantled so effortlessly.

While she was still processing it all, she felt a warm hand slip into hers, fingers intertwining.

"Since our wedding, I haven't officially introduced her to all our friends and family," Hudson said, his deep voice carrying through the room. When he looked at Nora, his gaze softened in a way he didn't even realize.

"My wife. Nora Reed."

Instantly, the room erupted into a chorus of congratulations, filled with all the standard clichés about eternal happiness and starting a family.

Hudson accepted every single compliment with a smile, his usual ruthless, unapproachable demeanor completely vanished.

Before long, the banquet hall was buzzing with lively conversation again, as if the ridiculous spectacle had never happened.

"What exactly just happened?"

Seeing that no one was paying attention to them, Nora tugged on Hudson's sleeve and whispered her question.