You Had Me, You Lost Me, You'll Never Find Me novel Chapter 90

Since they hadn't been officially engaged before, Tristan had kept his mouth shut. He was a master at reading the room.

Ashton remained completely silent, treating the comment with tacit indifference.

Sitting beside him, Reina playfully pouted, feigning a spoiled annoyance. "If you don't speak, no one's going to think you're mute, Tristan!"

The table erupted in laughter.

Connor Brooks crossed his legs, leaning back with a lazy smirk. "So, when's the big day? I heard you're skipping the engagement and going straight to the altar?"

Luke Zane shot a quick glance at Ashton. Seeing the billionaire had no intention of answering, he stepped in. "Probably September, at the latest. Reina will be fully recovered from her surgery by then."

"Perfect," Tristan grinned. "September weather is gorgeous. Prime honeymoon season. Just don't forget to send me an invite! We practically grew up together, I'm definitely crashing the party."

Reina blushed beautifully. "Nothing is set in stone yet. Don't jinx it."

Connor raised an eyebrow. "What's left to set? The parents have already given the green light."

"Connor!" Reina scolded, hiding her ecstatic smile.

Amidst the raucous laughter and teasing, Ashton's silence felt unnervingly heavy. He just kept drinking, methodically draining more than half a bottle of wine.

For a man with his tolerance, half a bottle was nothing.

But his suffocating silence was incredibly out of character.

Sensing the shift in the atmosphere, Tristan quickly pivoted the conversation, ordering a few more bottles and aggressively insisting the drinks were on him.

A young, fresh-faced waitress arrived with the new order. At a passing glance, her delicate features bore a striking resemblance to Sylvia.

As the girl leaned over to swap out Ashton's near-empty bottle, his predatory gaze locked onto her, freezing in place.

Reina immediately noticed the terrifying shift in his demeanor. Her voice turned to ice. "We don't need you here. Get out."

Tristan looked shocked. When a man of that caliber was used to having his physical needs met, going cold turkey was agonizing. He hadn't expected Ashton to endure the frustration for this long.

"So what's his deal?" Tristan asked. "I heard Sylvia already moved on. She's engaged and pregnant. Ashton isn't the type to go begging."

Luke took a frustrated pull from his glass. "What else can he do? He just has to wait for the obsession to burn out."

His ex-girlfriend getting pregnant by another man immediately after their breakup was a massive blow to his ego.

Crawling back to her now would be the ultimate humiliation.

She was completely damaged goods.

With Ashton's terrifyingly arrogant pride, it was physically impossible.

Besides, he had Reina now. The engagement was locked in, and both billionaire families were watching like hawks. A scandal of that magnitude was out of the question.