Ex Husband Returns: The Martial Arts Godmaster

Chapter 7: The Special Guest

The moment Logan stepped into the ballroom, Samantha's carefully maintained composure as the perfect hostess completely shattered. Without a second thought for protocol or her status as the guest of honor, she lifted the hem of her expensive gown and rushed across the marble floor toward him.

"Logan!" she called out, her voice filled with genuine delight that echoed across the suddenly quiet ballroom. "You came! I was so worried you might change your mind!"

The assembled guests watched in stunned silence as the mayor's daughter, the youngest congresswoman in state history, threw her arms around a man in shabby work clothes as if he were the most important person in the world.

"Thank you for keeping your promise," Samantha whispered, her eyes shining with happiness. "This means everything to me."

Logan stood stiffly in her embrace, clearly uncomfortable with the public display of affection, but he didn't push her away.

“ I am a man of my words.”

Near the center of the ballroom, a tall, handsome young man in an expensive Italian suit watched the scene with growing fury. Carlos Mendoza, heir to the Mendoza shipping empire and one of the city's most eligible bachelors, felt his jaw clench as he witnessed Samantha showing more genuine warmth to this stranger than she had ever shown to him.

"What the hell is this?" Carlos muttered to his friend beside him. "She's never even hugged me, and she's all over some... some vagrant!"

"Who is that guy?" his friend asked, squinting at Logan's worn clothing. "He looks like he crawled out of a dumpster."

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out," Carlos snarled, his hands balling into fists.

Meanwhile, scattered throughout the crowd, several older guests had recognized Logan despite his humble appearance. A distinguished man in his sixties who controlled the city's largest construction company started to move forward, but Logan caught his eye and gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head.

The message was clear: maintain the facade.

The construction magnate immediately stopped and melted back into the crowd, though his eyes remained fixed on Logan with obvious reverence.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Mayor Richards called out, stepping forward to address his confused guests. "I'd like you all to meet someone very special!"

Samantha finally released Logan, though she remained close to his side, her face glowing with pride.

"This is Logan," she announced to the ballroom. "He's my personal hero and the guest of honor tonight!"

A murmur of confusion rippled through the crowd of young socialites and business heirs.

"Guest of honor?" a young woman in designer clothes whispered loudly. "But I thought Carlos was supposed to be—"

"Logan is the man who saved my life yesterday," Samantha continued, her voice carrying clearly across the room. "He risked everything to rescue me from kidnappers, and I owe him a debt I can never repay."

The crowd's confusion deepened as they took in Logan's appearance—his faded jeans, worn work boots, and simple button-down shirt that had clearly seen better days.

"That's your hero?" scoffed a young man wearing a watch worth more than most people's cars. "He looks like he should be delivering our food, not eating it!"

"Seriously," laughed another guest, "did he rescue you with a mop and bucket?"

"Maybe he confused the kidnappers by pretending to be a janitor," suggested a third, causing a wave of cruel laughter to sweep through the young crowd.

Carlos stepped forward, his face red with embarrassment and rage. "Samantha, surely there's been some mistake. This... person... can't possibly be your guest of honor."

"And why not?" Samantha asked, her tone cooling noticeably.

"Look at him!" Carlos gestured dismissively at Logan. "He's dressed like a common laborer! A pest exterminator! How could someone like that possibly save anyone?"

"He looks more like he needs saving himself," called out a young woman. "From poverty!"

The crowd of privileged youth erupted in laughter, clearly enjoying the opportunity to mock someone they saw as beneath their social class.

"I bet he doesn't even own a car," someone shouted. "Probably took the bus here!"

"Or crawled here like the cockroach he resembles!" added another voice.

Carlos felt his confidence returning as the crowd rallied behind him. He had been planning to propose to Samantha tonight, had spent months preparing the perfect romantic gesture, and this shabby interloper had completely ruined his plans.

"Samantha," Carlos said with forced charm, "surely you can see how inappropriate this is. You're a congresswoman, the mayor's daughter! You can't be seen associating with... with whatever this thing is."

"This thing?" Samantha's voice was dangerously quiet.

"He's like a parasite," Carlos continued, emboldened by the crowd's support. "Feeding off your kindness, your status. People like him are always looking for a way to climb up from the gutter."

Logan remained silent throughout the verbal assault, his expression unreadable as the young elite took turns insulting him.

"Look at those hands!" laughed a young businessman. "Probably never seen a manicure in his life!"

"And that haircut!" added a socialite. "Did he cut it himself with garden shears?"

"He smells like fertilizer and failure," complained another guest, covering her nose dramatically.

Carlos was building up to deliver what he hoped would be the crushing blow that would expose this pretender for what he truly was, when another voice cut through the laughter like a knife.

"Well, well, well," came a familiar, venomous tone. "If it isn't my pathetic ex-husband."

The crowd turned to see Amelia Blackwood stepping forward, her diamonds glittering in the chandelier light and her lips curved in a cruel smile.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Amelia announced with theatrical flair, "allow me to introduce you to Logan the nobody. My former husband and the most worthless insect ever to crawl across the earth."

Darien appeared beside her, his arm sliding possessively around her waist. "Ah, the delivery boy who ruined our wedding reception. Still dressed like a vagrant, I see."

"You know this creature?" Carlos asked, his eyes lighting up with malicious interest.

"Unfortunately, yes," Amelia replied with disgust. "I wasted three years of my life married to this cockroach before I came to my senses."

The crowd gasped and began murmuring excitedly. This was better than any entertainment they could have hoped for.

"He lived in my house like a parasite," Amelia continued, her voice growing louder and more vicious. "Crawling around, begging for scraps, surviving off my charity like the worthless maggot he is!"

"The poor girl had to support this leech for years," Darien added sympathetically. "Imagine the humiliation of being married to such a bottom-feeder."