Chapter 1590:
“Absolutely not!” Lyla jerked away, defiant.
“I want Wesley. Nobody else even matters. It’s just an engagement. Nothing is set in stone. Even if they walk down the aisle, divorce is always an option. I’m not giving up—not now, not ever!”
Once Lyla set her sights on something, she refused to let go. In her mind, Wesley already belonged to her.
Carola hesitated, desperate to talk her out of it, but she didn’t know how.
“You barely scraped by last time…” Carola swallowed the rest, afraid of wounding Lyla’s pride. All she could do was sigh.
“Fighting this hard is only hurting you, Lyla.”
But Lyla’s stare was wild, her jaw locked tight. She wouldn’t let go—not for anything. Letting go had never been part of her plan.
And Lyla wasn’t the only one who refused to accept Wesley’s proposal to Elena. Miles away, Rose Manor lay shrouded in gloom. Torin spent the night chain-smoking in the dark, lost in his own thoughts.
No one dared disturb him.
The tension in the air was thick enough to choke on.
When dawn finally crept in, Torin stepped out. His expression was unreadable, as if he’d left his feelings behind in the shadows.
A subordinate’s nervous voice broke the silence.
“Mr. Duncan, there’s a lady outside asking to see you.”
Without even glancing up, Torin replied, “Unless it’s Elena, send her away.”
Lyla, lingering nearby, caught every word. Her face darkened, but she forced composure onto her features and strode straight up to him. She didn’t hesitate.
“You want Elena, don’t you? I want Wesley just as badly. Why not join forces?”
Torin finally met her gaze, his look as lazy as it was dangerous.
“And what plan do you have in mind?”
𝓡𝓮𝓪𝓵 𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓲𝓸𝓷 @ 𝓰ⱥ𝗅𝗇𝗈ν𝖊𝗅𝘀⸳𝓬𝓸𝓶
Lyla smiled—sharp, confident.
“Yesterday’s headlines made things clear for both of us. You want her, and I want him. If we work together, maybe we can get what we both want.”
Torin arched a brow.
“And what exactly makes you think I’d cooperate with you?”
The ease with which he took the bait emboldened Lyla. She laid out the scheme she’d meticulously crafted, watching closely for his reaction.
Torin listened without the slightest change in expression, his emerald eyes flickering with something like amusement.
“So you want me to supply the poison.”
Lyla nodded.
“Exactly. Once this works, Wesley and that—” She almost let the insult slip out by habit. She bit it back just as Torin’s gaze sharpened into something dangerous.
“Elena… they’re finished. When they split, we’ll finally have our opening.”
Inwardly, Lyla sneered. Handsome as Torin was, his taste in women bordered on pathetic. What could he possibly see in someone like Elena?
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