She's Too Busy Winning to Watch Him Cry novel Chapter 157

Lyra met with Caleb to discuss the Sinclairs.

The ruined family had exactly one manufacturing plant left to their name.

Lyra walked Caleb through her research. He was sympathetic to the cause, and they spent hours strategizing. At one point, Arthur poked his head into the office, smiled warmly at his children working together, ruffled Lyra's hair, and left them to it.

That evening, Caspian called to invite her to the movies.

Ever since his birthday, he had been reaching out far more frequently.

He rarely used to ask her out on weeknights.

After a moment's hesitation, Lyra agreed to go.

She asked Secretary Montgomery to have Madeline's car detailed and returned to the Vance residence, then grabbed the keys to one of her family's cars and drove toward the university.

They caught a football game and decided to grab dinner afterward.

Fate, however, had a twisted sense of humor; they ran straight into Rowan and Jasmine at the restaurant.

Caspian offered his brother a quick greeting before steering Lyra to their reserved table.

As he sat down, he leaned in. "My brother's been looking at real estate lately. I think he's finally planning to tie the knot."

Lyra froze for a split second, then offered a tight nod.

The difference between love and indifference was painfully clear.

In her past life, she had been forced to live with her in-laws the entire time she was married to Rowan. He had never bothered to buy them a home of their own. But now that it was his true love, a sprawling new house was an absolute necessity.

Pushing away the bitter thoughts of how unfair it all was, Lyra buried her face in the menu alongside Caspian. Barely a minute passed before Rowan and Jasmine walked over and slid into the empty seats across from them.

Lyra exchanged a bewildered glance with Caspian and slowly lowered her menu.

"Rowan?" Caspian asked, clearly confused.

"It's better when we all eat together," Rowan stated.

Caspian and Lyra weren't the only ones caught off guard; Jasmine cast a surprised look at Rowan.

It just proved Rowan had made the right choice by picking her.

Rowan shifted his attention to Lyra. "What have you been busy with at the company? I hear Fairchild Holdings is focusing heavily on the new BMS development."

Lyra paused. She met Rowan's eyes for a fleeting second before looking away. "Caleb handles all the heavy lifting at Fairchild Holdings. I don't really understand the technical side of things."

A faint, patronizing smile touched Jasmine's lips. "Rowan, how could Lyra possibly understand all that? Honestly, I think it's amazing she even manages to hold down a job there."

It was a thinly veiled insult, but Lyra didn't have the energy to snap back.

A waiter arrived with an array of dishes. Since Lyra and Caspian hadn't even ordered yet, this was obviously Rowan's doing.

He had ordered more than enough to feed all four of them.

The restaurant manager scurried over, practically bowing to Rowan. "Mr. Jameson, everything has been prepared exactly to your liking. Please, enjoy."

His tone dripped with careful reverence. The manager clearly knew who Rowan was but had no clue about Caspian, rarely letting his eyes stray toward the younger brother. He offered a practiced, sweeping smile to the rest of the table before bowing and rushing off.