You Had Me, You Lost Me, You'll Never Find Me novel Chapter 135

Then he ordered Gideon to drive away.

Gideon noticed the bruises on Ashton's face but didn't dare pry. He just asked, "Boss, should we head to the hospital to get that looked at?"

"No."

Ashton stared at his phone, the screen lighting up and going dark repeatedly. He spent over ten minutes drafting a single message before finally hitting send.

It read: "The engagement is off."

But the moment it went through, a massive red exclamation point popped up.

Sylvia had blocked him again.

A wave of suffocating frustration washed over Ashton, compounding the burning agony radiating across his back. He threw his phone aside and let out a cold, cynical laugh, his brow heavy with fury.

He didn't even have to guess—she had definitely blocked his phone number, too.

That woman had always been this ruthless when she made up her mind.

As Gideon drove toward Ashton's apartment building, they stopped at a red light. Ashton suddenly demanded Gideon's phone.

He dialed a familiar string of numbers from memory.

"Hello?" The moment Sylvia answered and recognized his breathing, she hung up instantly.

When had Ashton ever been forced to swallow this much humiliation? Only with Sylvia did he tolerate such endless frustration. Otherwise, what kind of woman couldn't he have?

But what else could he do? He was the one who had driven her away. Whatever happened now, he just had to take it.

His face looked as though it were carved from ice. He ordered Gideon to park outside Sylvia's apartment complex.

He knew her daily schedule by heart.

He just didn't want to go up and knock on her door, terrified she would accuse him of pushing her too hard again.

—

A harsh evening wind whipped up as the sky turned a suffocating pitch black. Streetlights flickered on, casting dim, yellow pools over the pavement while the relentless rain slashed down like silver needles.

Sylvia had just gotten back from the hospital.

Her tone was freezing.

Ashton didn't answer right away. The harsh white light illuminated her, making her skin look as pale as snow. Drenched by the rain, her clothes clung to her curves. He pulled the jacket tighter around her, wrapping her up securely.

He stared down at her, his voice thick with exhaustion, yet his dark eyes burned with an unsettling tenderness.

"Why are you running around in rain this heavy?" he murmured, a hint of scolding in his tone.

Sylvia's fingers tightened around the fabric of the jacket. It smelled exactly like him, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of her gratitude.

"Did you do that to Julian?" It was the only question she cared about.

Ashton looked at her. "Yes."

Smack!

The slap was fast and vicious.

Ashton's head snapped to the side, and the faint taste of copper flooded his mouth.