The Man Who Waited vs. The Man Who Wasted novel Chapter 272

Adrian and Audrey walked ahead of them.

Audrey was practically bursting with a physical need to be close to him, constantly pressing her body against his as they walked.

Adrian, on the other hand, seemed hyper-aware of the public setting and clearly wasn't entirely comfortable with the PDA.

Liam leaned in and whispered to Jocelyn.

"I'm guessing the mistress up there has no idea about Adrian's special little confidante. If she found out, wouldn't she throw the mother of all temper tantrums?"

Jocelyn ignored the bait and shot him a dirty look.

"Everything was fine. Why on earth did you agree to have lunch with them?"

The four of them, eating together?

It was bound to be a powder keg.

Liam shrugged.

"We have to eat anyway. This just saves us paying for a meal. I just dumped a massive amount of cash into that investment; my pockets are feeling a little light right now."

"Yeah, right!" Jocelyn let out a laugh. "Since when is Liam Bancroft short on cash?"

Liam just smiled and said nothing.

"By the way," Jocelyn asked. "What were you two talking about in there?"

"Want to know?" Liam teased. "Beg me."

Jocelyn rolled her eyes.

"Sarah really needs to put you in your place."

"Her? I think the jury's still out on who puts who in their place. Don't forget, she's the one who needs a favor from me right now. If I wasn't playing the fake boyfriend to get her parents off her back, do you think she'd be having any peace right now?"

She would have been set up on blind dates until she dropped dead!

Jocelyn felt a twinge of sympathy for Sarah.

"She doesn't really have a choice. Don't use your favor as an excuse to bully her."

Liam rolled his eyes dramatically.

"Darling, could you be any more blind? She kicked me last time, and I still have the bruise to prove it."

Even knowing he was exaggerating, Jocelyn almost laughed out loud.

"You almost managed to change the subject. Are you really not going to tell me what you guys talked about?"

Liam dropped the teasing act.

"He told me the divorce was something he was forced into. He said he never meant to hurt you, and he warned me to stay away from you, claiming you're not my type."

Jocelyn's lips twitched.

"And you believed that garbage?"

"I believe that I'm absolutely going to make a move on you."

The restaurant was a retro-themed place called Nostalgia.

"But Mr. Bancroft loves it. And Mr. Lowell is paying today, isn't he?"

Liam grinned like a thief.

"I guess those years we spent fighting in the trenches together weren't for nothing. You still remember exactly how I like my food."

"Jo, I think I'm falling even more in love with you. What am I going to do?"

Jocelyn kept her head down, ignoring him.

Just keep acting, she thought.

Sure enough, Adrian's face darkened instantly.

"Mr. Bancroft, we agreed this was just a casual lunch. Let's drop the inappropriate jokes."

Liam smirked. "I was just speaking from the heart. Fine, I'll keep my mouth shut. Let's eat."

Of course, Adrian and Audrey probably didn't enjoy a single bite of that meal.

Jocelyn and Liam, on the other hand, had a great appetite.

And it would have been a perfectly fine lunch, if a certain unexpected guest hadn't crashed the party.

Claire Lowell's sudden appearance made Jocelyn feel like she'd just seen a ghost.

Seriously, this girl had a habit of popping up out of nowhere.

Adrian quickly explained.