She's Too Busy Winning to Watch Him Cry novel Chapter 215

In the nightmare, he was trapped in a freezing, desolate room. On the four stark white walls, two massive words were scrawled in blinding crimson: *MY REGRET*. It looked like it had been painted in fresh blood, permanently burned into his retinas.

Every stroke of the letters felt like a jagged knife carving into his very bones.

Rowan bolted upright in the dead of night, his chest heaving. Exhaustion clawed at him, but it was heavily overpowered by a surge of raw, irritable frustration.

What the hell did he have to regret? Absolutely nothing.

"I know Jasmine got hurt, but you really shouldn't be staying up all night torturing yourself over it," Victoria commented the next morning, frowning at the dark circles under her son's eyes.

Commissioner Jameson took a slow sip of his morning tea without looking up from the newspaper. "Are you heading back to the hospital today?"

"I have a city council summit this morning. I'll go later," Rowan replied smoothly.

Victoria sighed. "With Caspian's temper... he still fully blames you for his mentor's death. Who knows what crazy stunt he'll pull next? We should really just ship him off to med school abroad. You don't want Jasmine ending up in the crossfire again, do you?"

Rowan dismissed the idea instantly. "No need."

Seeing how fiercely Rowan still protected his younger brother, Commissioner Jameson merely shook his head in silent resignation.

"He won't pull a stunt like that again," Rowan stated firmly.

...

Fairchild Enterprises was also slated to attend the city council summit, but Lyra's head was entirely in the clouds during the proceedings.

It had been too late to call Delilah last night, so Caleb had held off on breaking the pregnancy news. First thing this morning, he had driven Kayla straight to the retreat to surprise their mother.

He was convinced that the prospect of becoming a grandmother would finally be the push Delilah needed to come home.

Lyra wasn't entirely sure his plan would work, and the suspense had her anxiously checking her phone every five minutes.

Finally, during a short recess, Caleb's name flashed on her screen.

"She agreed to come home," he announced.

Lyra's eyes lit up like fireworks. She practically shot out of her chair. "Really?"

Her voice had echoed a bit too loudly across the room. Waylon Grayson and several other executives turned to stare. Blushing furiously, she slapped a hand over her mouth.

The perfect timing of the twins felt like a lifeline, dragging her out of the darkness and offering a brand-new beginning.

"We're packing her things right now," Caleb told Lyra over the phone. "We should be back at the estate by eleven. Just in time for lunch."

"Okay! Drive safely," Lyra beamed.

Hanging up, she was entirely too wired to sit through the rest of the stuffy summit. Before the second half of the meeting even commenced, she whispered a quick excuse to Waylon, grabbed her designer purse, and slipped out the back doors.

The second she got into her car, she called Martha to break the incredible news. Then, she drove straight to the upscale organic market to meet up with her and Liam.

Martha had already loaded up a cart full of fresh groceries, but Lyra tossed in a few more premium ingredients for good measure.

Lugging bags of groceries into the house, Lyra immediately tied on an apron and took command of the kitchen.

Moving with practiced grace, she julienned ginger to prep the seafood and laid down a bed of scallions, expertly crafting The 'Eight Treasures' Sea Bass.

Liam acted as her sous-chef, blanching the BBQ ribs on the other side of the kitchen island. "Seriously, Lyra, where on earth did you learn to cook like a Michelin-star chef?"

"Oh, please. I'm just a natural genius. I watched a few tutorials online and mastered it," she teased with a wink.