The Man Who Never Looked Away novel Chapter 23

Lavinia deliberately dragged out her evening routine, hoping he would take the hint and leave.

Instead, he remained rooted directly behind her.

Unsettled by his presence, she finally prompted, "You've been ignoring work all afternoon. Don't you need to make some calls or return some messages?"

Garnett kept his arms folded. "Did you miss the royal decree earlier? We're supposed to be making a little heir."

The bottle of toner nearly slipped from her fingers and shattered on the floor.

Noting her sudden panic, he arched an eyebrow. "What's the matter? Isn't this exactly what you wanted? A baby guarantees your permanent status in this family."

She felt utterly humiliated.

Yanking open a drawer, she pulled out a sheet mask. Even if it dried to a crisp on her face, she was determined to outlast him.

Just as she went to tear the packet open, it was abruptly snatched from her hands.

Garnett held it out of reach, looking highly amused. "Why on earth are you doing skincare at a time like this?"

Furious, she stood up to grab it back, but he smoothly snaked an arm around her waist, caging her against his solid chest.

A shadow fell over her, and she instinctively turned her face away.

Hitting a wall, his eyes narrowed as he stared at her coldly.

"What? It's been two years. Don't tell me you've never thought about this."

"I heard everything outside the tea room today," she replied calmly. "If you don't even like me, why force this?"

"Like?" He let out a dark chuckle. "Did you honestly think I married you because I liked you?"

He lifted a hand, his fingers gripping her chin. "Back in the day, whenever you brought Saul soup or drinks, why did you always make it a point to walk past our classroom? Did you think I was too blind to see what you were doing?"

She stared at him, keeping her lips tightly sealed.

She had fallen for him back then because he had stepped in to help her and Saul. She had loved him because she hadn't yet realized what kind of man he truly was.

They stood mere inches apart, both locked in their own heavy silence.

After a long pause, he slowly raised his hand, his fingertips hovering just over the reddened corners of her eyes, hesitating to make contact.

"Don't talk back to me, Lavinia. I don't want to hurt you."

Right on cue, the phone on the nightstand began to ring.

He stepped away, picking it up and glancing at the screen.

"Hello? Sigrid, is everything alright?" His tone instantly shifted, growing incredibly patient and gentle, a stark contrast to his earlier coldness.

"Have I?"

"There was this one time the school bullies cornered you, and I happened to walk by and helped you out. Do you remember what you said to me?"

"I don't."

"You told me, 'Don't flatter yourself.'" She laughed softly.

"Did I? I can't believe I was such a jerk."

"We didn't interact much back then, but I always had this feeling that you were destined for something extraordinary."

Charley turned around, pulled out a sleek business card, and slid it across the counter.

[Titan Fund, Account Manager, Charley Sheffield]

Sigrid's heart sank slightly in disappointment. Her intuition had been completely wrong.

He was just another corporate drone in finance, making so little he had to moonlight as a bartender.

Waving the card lightly, she smiled. "I'll add your contact info later. See you around, old friend."

He watched her strut out of the bar, then casually picked up his phone, sending a text to a contact saved simply as "Z":