Taming The Billionaire's Obsession - Chapter 9: Chapter 9

Ella's voice shook with guilt. Her friends thought Jane was bullying her again. They defended Ella and pointed the finger at Jane.
"What's your problem? Coming here to cause trouble? Ella's too nice for that. She wouldn't take your ring!"
"Face it, Jane. Everyone knows you're broke. You got into trouble even in college. What could you have that Ella would want?"
"Colin dumped you. Get over it. You're not the Ritter princess anymore!"
"Hey, Byron. Get this loser out of here. Having her here ruins the vibe!"
Those rich girls fussed over Ella, all talking at once. However, just over a year ago, they were all over Jane. Now that Jane was down, they all turned on her.
Jane ignored the insults. Her clear eyes stayed on Ella's face, her voice soft but firm. "Ella, I'll say it again, give me back my ring."
"I... I never took your ring. Stop blaming me! Jane, get lost, you bi—"
Before Ella could finish, Jane slapped her. Ella stared at Jane in shock. "You... How dare you hit me?"
Not just Ella, but the rich girls and other diners were all stunned.
Jane said firmly, word by word, "Ella, give me back my ring. Lie to me again, and I'll slap you again. I mean it."
"You... you bitch..." Ella snapped back after a moment. "How dare you hit me? Jane, you shameless trash, I'll kill you!" Ella lunged at Jane, and they fell onto the table.
Seeing her friend losing, Josie jumped in. The other ladies screamed and joined in, turning the place into chaos.
"What's going on here?" Just then, a deep, attractive male voice came from the back of the restaurant.
"Hayden!" Seeing the man step out of the VIP room, Byron was shocked. Ignoring the commotion, he rushed over.
"Why did you come out? If you need anything, just ring the bell. Don't bother yourself..." Byron was panicking.
The big shot in the private room had a temper. The slightest disturbance could cause trouble for the whole staff.
Earlier, the noise outside got Hayden's attention, the boss's right-hand man. Byron was afraid that they might all be in deep trouble.
But Hayden, the young man from the VIP room, didn't seem annoyed.
He leaned in, whispering something to Byron. As he spoke, his gaze stayed on Jane.
At that moment, Jane was pinned under Ella, biting her lip in pain. She looked up and saw a strange young man near Byron.
Jane's heart sank as she saw the man frown at her. She had a bad feeling.
After a moment, Hayden left. Then Byron came rushing back, looking flustered. "Enough, stop it! You guys—get over here and break it up," Byron urgently ordered the waiters to separate them.
They finally got them apart. Ella's left cheek was swollen, and her hair was a mess. Jane didn't have any bruises on her face, but Ella had secretly pinched her a few times, leaving some nasty purple marks.
Ella saw Byron coming and, with her wild hair, gave Jane a smug grin.
"Oh no, Jane, are they gonna throw us out?" Josie whispered nervously, moving closer and grabbing Jane's hand. She'd seen the guy from the VIP room, too.
The private rooms were off-limits to regular folks. The people inside were ones even a rich kid like Josie didn't want to mess with.
Jane bit her lip but didn't say anything. She just squeezed Josie's hand back, her palm getting sweaty.
Just then, Byron walked over with a serious face. "I'm afraid we can't serve these guests. Get them out, now!"
But the waiters didn't kick Jane out. Instead, they asked Ella and her friends to leave.
Ella shouted, "What? You must have me mixed up! I'm Ella, the Judd family's daughter. Byron told you to throw Jane out. Why are you grabbing me?"
One of the waiters replied, "Sorry, Ms. Judd. Byron said you're not welcome here anymore. To save face, please come with us."
Ella screamed, "No! I don't believe it. I want to talk to Byron myself."
Byron looked apologetic, nervously rubbing his hands as he approached Jane. "Ms. Ritter, are you okay? Did you get hurt? We messed up earlier. It was a misunderstanding. Please don't be mad. From now on, no membership is needed to eat here, and your meal today is free."
Jane stood there, eyes wide with surprise. She thought she'd be kicked out. She was wondering if it was all because of that guy.
Josie grumbled, "Free meal? Do you think we care? Snobbish jerk!"
"You're right. I'm the snobby jerk. Ms. Ritter, Ms. Pace, please do me a favor. Have a seat in the booth inside. Let me make it up to you." Byron wiped his sweat, not daring to argue, flashing a fake smile.
He didn't expect Jane to have such influence. A small argument caught the VIP's attention in the private room. That important person even sent his assistant to help her.
Byron was super friendly. Jane didn't want to make a scene, so she led Josie back to their seats. Unfortunately, the ring was gone. Ella and her friends had already been kicked out by the staff.
At the same time, in the VIP room, Hayden was reporting to Luke, "Mr. Drake, the commotion outside is over." Hayden was Luke's top assistant. It was Luke who had ordered Hayden to help Jane.
Luke, sitting at the head of the table, didn't respond at all. His brow furrowed as he stared at Jane in the booth.
The VIP room's glass was one-way; people inside could see out, but others couldn't see in. Right there, Luke watched through it. He saw that Jane, the quiet woman he knew, had a bold side, even getting into a public fight.
Right then, Harvey Chappell, Luke's second assistant, pushed open the door. He reported with a disdainful tone, "Mr. Drake, I checked it out. Jane is totally clueless. She got into a fight over a ring!"
Hayden and Harvey were brothers, both sons of Ford. But compared to Hayden, Harvey clearly disliked Jane even more.
"A ring?" Luke's eyes narrowed.
Harvey replied, "Yeah, a ring. No idea why anyone would fight over such a useless ring."
Lost in thought, Luke looked through the glass again, his gaze fixed on Jane's face.
Just then, Jane, who was whispering to Josie nearby, seemed to sense his gaze. She looked up toward the private room. Jane, who had been calm, suddenly smiled at Luke through the glass, her red lips curling into a bright grin.
Luke's eyes darkened.
A moment later, a gentle and elegant man appeared in the hallway outside the private room.
"Warren, over here!" Jane stood up and waved at the man with a charming smile.