On the Ruins of His Regret I Soar novel Chapter 99

Lance finally snapped out of his trance, his gaze falling on Catherine. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"Are you still thinking that woman is Jessica?" she asked, her voice tinged with worry.

"I know she's not," he said, his voice clipped and rational.

"Exactly," Catherine agreed. "You've already confirmed it. So you can stop staring. You're going to make her partner angry."

Lance fell silent.

Suddenly, Catherine lost all interest in dancing. "Lance, let's go sit down. My face is starting to hurt."

He immediately led her to the lounge area. As fate would have it, their table offered a clear view of George and Jessica. He tried to force himself not to watch them dance together, not to see how perfectly they moved as one. Catherine was right. It wasn't Jessica. He had no reason to be angry.

He stared down at the red wine swirling in his glass, his heart pounding in his chest. For the first time, he felt like he didn't know his own mind.

"Lance, you're acting strange tonight," Catherine said, her voice soft. "Is it because of Jessica? I've never seen you let anyone affect you like this. You always said that a truly powerful person can't let their emotions be controlled by others, or they'll develop a fatal weakness."

Lance was shocked. He had personally delivered a wedding invitation to Mr. George's estate and hadn't even been granted a meeting. On the day of the wedding, Mr. George had simply sent a gift and a check for over six hundred thousand dollars. He later learned that was his standard wedding gift to any family in the Kensington community.

He watched as the Cullinan began to pull up alongside him. On an impulse, he slammed his foot on the accelerator.

The sudden lurch startled Catherine, who was applying ointment to her bruised face. A dollop of cream landed on her forehead. "What's wrong?"

Lance’s eyes were fixed on the road ahead, a strange, inexplicable sense of rivalry bubbling up inside him. He didn't know why, but in that moment, he couldn't bear the thought of letting Mr. George pass him.