Chapter 246
His lips pressed into a tight line.
Anger simmered in his eyes.
They stared at each other in silence.
The air grew thick and suffocating.
Adrian Sinclair raised a hand to rub his temples.
His knuckles were white from the pressure.
His voice was low and rough. "Anna Ross, many things... are not as simple as they appear."
He stopped mid-sentence.
He saw the clear resentment in her eyes.
The explanations died in his throat.
He abruptly released her hand.
A red mark was clearly visible around her wrist.
Anna looked down, gently rubbing the sore spot.
Her gaze drifted involuntarily toward the sofa.
Adrian sat down with his back to her.
He slammed the glass of water onto the coffee table.
The water sloshed violently.
It mirrored his unsettled emotions.
"Please," she said, her voice trembling. "Howard Lowell has done nothing wrong to you. Don't transfer your hatred for me onto him."
She bit her lower lip until it bled.
The metallic taste spread across her tongue.
She spoke bitterly. "The debt I owe you, I will repay it myself."
"Repay?" He let out a cold laugh. "With what? Your body?"
The glass was hurled onto the table.
It made a sharp, grating sound.
Anna's face turned pale.
Her fingers clutched tightly at the hem of her clothes.
Her knuckles turned white.
She had already dragged one person down.
She couldn't let another innocent person get hurt.
She would bear all the sin alone.
Since she was already deep in the mud.
What did she have to fear from eternal damnation.
Tears fell silently.
Leaving cold trails on her cheeks.
Adrian watched that single tear.
His heart felt as if it were being repeatedly pierced by a sharp blade.
The pain was numbing.
She was crying.
For another man.
When she had hurt him back then.
Had she felt even an ounce of reluctance?
Or in her heart.
Had he never been worth caring about?
He sharply turned his face away.
Unwilling to look at her any longer.
Anna opened her eyes.
Her gaze was empty. "As long as you don't hurt the people around me, I will do anything."
"Hah..." A cold smile twisted his lips.
Adrian leaned back into the sofa.
He raised a hand to cover his eyes.
The setting sun cast its light through the window.
The dim, golden rays fell upon him.
Adding a layer of loneliness.
Two people who had once loved each other deeply.
Had actually come to this.
He had thought she was trapped by circumstances.
But it was just his own wishful thinking.
She could go this far for someone else.
Had she ever considered that he would feel heartache too?
In her eyes.
What exactly did he, Adrian Sinclair, amount to?
If he didn't still hold power and influence.
She would probably still be like she was three years ago.
Not even sparing him a single glance.
His Adam's apple moved with difficulty.
A faint redness tinged the corners of his eyes.
He lowered his head.
A self-mocking smile tugged at his lips.
Anna stared at him in a daze.
Her fingers curled unconsciously.
Was he upset?
That always proud Adrian Sinclair.
Could actually show such an expression.
Looking at his lean profile.
If it were before.
She would have gone to hug him.
But now.
She had long lost the right to do so.
She forced herself to look away.
As if that could lessen the dull ache in her chest.
"Since you say so." Adrian suddenly looked up.
His face had returned to its usual coldness. "Then show me your sincerity."
He gave her a cold glance. "Remember that hotel? Go wait for me there tonight."
Without waiting for her response.
His voice, sharp as an ice pick, spoke again. "Get out if there's nothing else."