Jameson’s eyes immediately fixed on the jade in her hand.
“Lauren,” he said coldly, “it’s just a pendant. Why can’t you give it to Yvette? Consider it an apology gift.”
“Jameson, I didn’t steal it,” Yvette said with mock indignation, her voice dripping with false innocence. “I have one just like this. It’s very expensive, something ordinary people could never afford. If it really is hers, maybe it was a gift from some man.”
Her words twisted the truth effortlessly. Jameson’s gaze darkened as he looked at me.
I glanced between him and the pendant, which still dangled perilously out the window.
Clenching my teeth, I dropped to my knees with a thud, swallowing my pride as I begged Yvette.
“Please, give me back my pendant.”
Jameson’s eyes narrowed as he watched me kneel. He stepped forward, his expression a mix of anger and discomfort, and tried to pull me up.
But I was trembling, desperate, and clung to his leg in panic. “Jameson, please! Help me! Make her give it back! I’ll forgive you for breaking off our engagement. I’ll leave if that’s what you want. I’ll stay far, far away...”
The helplessness and despair of having my lifeline held hostage brought tears streaming down my face.
But my words only made him angrier.
“So, this pendant really is a gift from some man, isn’t it?”
I stared at him in disbelief. After everything we’d been through, after years of knowing each other, he trusted Yvette’s lies over me.
When I didn’t respond, his expression darkened further.
He shoved me aside with force and turned to Yvette, his voice gentle and doting. “If this pendant belongs to you, then you can do whatever she wants with it.”
Yvette smiled triumphantly. "James, you know how much I hate it when people claim my things as theirs. If that’s the case, I’d rather not have it at all."
Before her words had fully settled, the jade pendant was flung out the window.
“No! Stop!” I screamed, my voice hoarse with desperation, and lunged toward the window, ready to jump after it.
Jameson was quicker. He wrapped his arms tightly around my waist, pulling me back before I could throw myself out.
Frantic, I shoved him aside and bolted downstairs, the sound of the pendant hitting water echoing in my mind.
Without hesitation, I dove headfirst into the freezing swimming pool.