You Had Me, You Lost Me, You'll Never Find Me novel Chapter 77

Inside a VIP booth at The Reign, the atmosphere was a haze of neon lights and lavish decadence.

Cigarette smoke drifted into the air. A man sat with his long legs crossed, lazily smoking. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, and a stunning hostess leaned intimately against his muscular frame. He neither acknowledged her nor pushed her away, looking every bit the seasoned, nonchalant playboy.

His striking eyes were slightly narrowed, exuding an inexplicable, detached sense of gloom.

But underneath it all, he was entirely cold.

Jared Yates rubbed his hands together nervously. "Mr. Wyatt, about that plot of land on the north side... do you think we could..."

Before he could finish, Ashton's closest buddy, Luke Zane, cut him off. "We're not talking business tonight. We're just here to relax."

Luke had set up the gathering, and Jared had only tagged along thanks to Connor Brooks. Jared's family had money, but they were nothing compared to the Wyatts. Catching the hint, Jared gave an awkward laugh, shrank back into his seat, and subtly signaled the hostess sitting next to Ashton.

She was a VIP hostess hired to pour drinks and select songs, but she had her own agenda regarding Ashton's wealth and looks. Rumor had it he was currently single, and she saw this as her golden opportunity. She boldly reached out to trail her fingers across his solid chest, only for Ashton to violently shove her to the floor.

"Who the hell told you to touch me?"

His lips were pressed into a tight, hard line, his tone completely unforgiving.

Connor threw a glance at the girl and lazily intervened. "Can't you see Ashton isn't in the mood tonight? Get out of here."

The girl scrambled away in utter humiliation. Jared wiped the sweat from his forehead, terrified to push his luck any further.

Luke noticed Ashton constantly checking his phone, his expression turning darker by the minute. It wasn't hard to guess what was on his mind.

He had just answered a call that was abruptly hung up on him. It had to be Sylvia. Who else in the world would dare hang up on Ashton Wyatt?

Then again, Ashton had been brutal on the phone.

What did he mean by, 'You want the spotlight, but you can't even handle a little heat?'

Spending so much time with Ashton meant Luke knew all his pathetic little quirks.

Despite Ashton always walking around with a stone-cold, untouchable aura, he actually loved it when women acted sweet and needy with him.

Even during that phone call just now, he was acting like a total hard-ass, simply waiting for Sylvia to soften up and beg him for help so he could swoop in and fix everything.

The problem was, that only worked when Sylvia actually loved him and was willing to compromise.

Now that they were broken up, why would she give a damn about his ego?

Still, despite judging him internally, Luke felt bad for his friend. Ashton's perpetually frustrated mood was ruining the vibe. "Honestly, I've been thinking about investing in a movie myself. I think a certain someone's acting in The Mist is phenomenal. I might just hire her as my leading lady."

He placed heavy emphasis on 'certain someone'. As expected, Ashton reacted instantly, his eyes narrowing dangerously at Luke. "Who exactly are you trying to hire?"

Looking at Ashton's murderous expression, Luke knew exactly what was going through his head.