Chapter 349 Between Two Strangers (Part One)

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Rufus had been smoking more recently. He had grown used to tasting nicotine on his mouth. The familiar scent calmed him. But he never smoked inside the house. He always went out when he needed a smoke.

Old habits die hard. Like a mechanism, he had always found his steps taking him to the door whenever he wanted to smoke. He remembered Cassandra's voice clearly, scolding him not to smoke inside the house. She didn't like the smell of cigarettes, and so the conscious choice of going outside had turned into habit, lasting one, it seemed.

She was gone now, and yet he found himself doing the same things he used to. The habit had stuck to him. No matter how cold it was outside, there was no other place in the house he would smoke except the courtyard.

People come, people go; other times, people get left behind. He didn't want to be the one left hanging on to something that was no longer there.

However, he was powerless against his emotions. She was gone, but he kept chasing her, running after her shadow. There was nothing he could do but love her in the most secret corner of his heart.

Life went on for him like that, missing someone loved and lost. Nothing was ever certain, and people kept on grasping on things that had already changed.

Rufus had sent over Victor to watch that hotel closely. However, it was all in vain. Cassandra never once showed herself. There was a nagging feeling in him that he was close to her, and yet, he felt as if she was far beyond his reach somehow.

He had made a call to Jasper and Michelle earlier. The two were abroad now, and Rufus found himself unable to speak of even a fraction of his aches. The pain grew like vines around him, clinging to him tightl

“Who does she think she is? I won’t marry her even if she is the last woman on earth,” said Hiram Rong.

“Marry into a family with tens of billions of assets? How lucky I am! I won’t be so foolish as to break off the engagement. At worst, I can receive money as part of the divorce settlement,” said Rachel Ruan.

Their great-grandfathers made a pact about their engagement a hundred years ago...

ndering if there is a way to know if it would still be possible to correct them."

The pain in his voice had smitten her deep. Cassandra was unable to help herself and asked, "Did you make any mistakes before?"

Her heart started to beat fast as she waited for his answer.

A surge of emotion rose inside her, filling her brain. She could feel the blood pulsating in her temples.

"Me? Yes, I did. I hurt the woman I love. She was everything to me, but I pushed her away and said things she didn't deserve. She's gone now, and no matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to find her,"

Rufus stated slowly. Strangely, he spilled his heart out to a stranger. He couldn't see her face and yet here he was, confessing his anguish in the dark to her.

Cassandra froze at his words. For a moment, there was nothing but silence. It was as if all other sounds had been muted and all she heard was her heartbeat. Her blood left a trail of fire in her veins and it flowed throughout her body.

Did Rufus mean her? Was she the reason for his pain?

Fighting to keep her voice from shaking, she said next, "So, what do you plan to do now?"