The Man Who Waited vs. The Man Who Wasted novel Chapter 209

It wasn't in Northwood. It was far away in the remote countryside of another city. It made sense why Marcus had been so extremely cautious.

He had been terrified Diana would find out.

Jocelyn locked the address into her phone's GPS, then ripped the original piece of paper to shreds and threw it in the trash.

Only then did she finally have the mental energy to look at the rest of the box.

No wonder it was so heavy.

It was completely packed with high-end jewelry.

It was everything Marcus had secretly hoarded for her over the years, locked safely in this vault because he knew Diana would throw a fit if she found out.

Beneath the jewelry lay a thick stack of photos.

They were all solo shots of Jocelyn.

And judging by the framing, whoever took them was a terrible photographer.

Several of the photos were completely blurry.

On the back of each photo, someone had written her age.

One year old, two years old, three years old... All the way up to twenty-five.

The photo from when she was twenty-five was of Jocelyn wearing a pure white wedding dress.

It was the day she married Adrian.

In the photo, she was standing in the crowd, her eyes shining like stars as she desperately searched for Adrian's face.

Jocelyn laughed mockingly at herself. What a fool I was!

She was just about to put the photos away when her gaze suddenly froze.

In the background of that wedding photo, nestled among the blurry shapes of the wedding guests...

There was a figure that looked incredibly familiar.

The side profile looked exactly like someone she knew.

Was that Julian?

Jocelyn shook her head.

She had to be losing her mind. Why would she think it was Julian?

Three years ago, he was running his empire down in Austin. Why on earth would he have come all the way to Northwood City?

And why would he be at her wedding?

Looking at the stack of photos, Jocelyn's emotions were a tangled mess.

When they locked eyes, Jocelyn felt nothing but cold, distant hatred for him.

Adrian, acting like he still owned the place, casually walked up.

"Let's go inside. It's freezing out here. We need to talk."

Jocelyn shoved the box she was carrying through the front door and then pulled it shut, blocking his path.

"Say whatever you have to say right here."

Adrian didn't push it. He pulled out a cigarette and lit it.

"I definitely crossed a line the other day. I shouldn't have lost my temper at your father's funeral. I apologize."

Jocelyn sneered.

"I don't need your cheap apologies. You can't just slap a 'sorry' on everything you destroy and expect it to magically fix it."

Adrian sighed. "But your father's death really had nothing to do with me."

Jocelyn glared. "Let me ask you one question."

Adrian met her gaze. "Go ahead."

Jocelyn's voice was sharp. "That day at the hospital... did you, or did you not, explicitly say that it would benefit you if my father never woke up?"