The Man Who Waited vs. The Man Who Wasted novel Chapter 161

"Who upset you this time? Was it Audrey? Or your wife, Jocelyn?"

Adrian tapped the empty seat across from him.

Lana gracefully sat down, her posture perfectly elegant.

Adrian stared at her beautiful face. "I feel like I've revealed too much to you."

Lana smiled warmly. "I'm your confidante. I'm here to share your highs and lows. No matter how much you tell me, my lips are sealed. You've always known you can trust me, haven't you?"

The tension between Adrian's eyebrows eased slightly.

"That's exactly why you caught my eye in the first place."

Lana replied, "I'm just lucky I bear a slight resemblance to the woman you love. If someone else had this face, I wouldn't have stood a chance."

Lana still remembered the first time she saw Adrian Lowell.

He had come to The Sovereign Club alone, booking the most expensive VIP lounge just to sit in the dark and drink heavily.

Terrified that something might happen, the club manager had hovered outside the door, hesitating to go in for fear of sparking Adrian's legendary temper. Adrian had explicitly ordered that no one was to disturb him.

At that exact moment, Lana had been walking by.

The manager practically shoved her inside.

The moment Lana laid eyes on Adrian, she froze.

She had seen countless wealthy men at The Sovereign Club, but she had never encountered anyone with such striking, aristocratic features.

When Adrian looked up and saw her, he froze, too.

It wasn't because she was breathtakingly beautiful or had an incredible figure. It was because Lana bore an uncanny resemblance to Audrey.

Adrian, a man who famously despised having hostesses for company at the club, told Lana to stay.

Despite it being their first meeting, the conversation flowed effortlessly.

Fueled by alcohol, Adrian had poured his heart out.

That was the night Lana first heard the name Audrey. She also learned the reason behind his heavy drinking: the woman he loved was about to marry his own twin brother.

Now, at the mere mention of Audrey, the knot between Adrian's brows tightened once more.

"What do you think... I should do about her?"

"Audrey has lost her husband. The two of you share a child. You don't love your wife. So why won't you divorce Jocelyn and marry Audrey? I refuse to believe it's just because you're afraid of a little society gossip."

Adrian's dark eyes narrowed dangerously.

"You're not the first person to ask me that."

"But you haven't told anyone the truth, have you?" Lana pressed.

"If you want the real answer, I'll give it to you. And consider yourself special, because you're the only person I've ever told."

"I'm honored."

The man's gaze flickered with a chilling, unsettling darkness.

“Did you think I’d just let three years of my life vanish without a trace, as if they meant nothing?”

For the first time, Lana's smile faltered.

"But you still sleep with her..."

Adrian replied coldly, "I can love her, and I can sleep with her. But I will never marry her."