Lauren Howell told him about MK trying to have Ava Sterling facilitate a partnership with Celestial Holdings, and when he heard about this, his heart instantly panicked. Panic like never before. He knew MK well enough and understood that their desire to collaborate with Celestial Holdings was entirely reasonable, but of all people, they chose Ava Sterling. Find the newest release on novel fire.net He had slowly climbed to his current position from being a despised illegitimate child, and he knew too many dark secrets. Without much thought, he understood MK’s intentions and sensed the underlying mystery. Ava was acquainted with the president of Celestial Holdings, and not unfamiliar. And that day, she abruptly rejected him, very clearly. He thought Joyner had done something, but didn’t expect it to be about this matter. He feared losing the person he had waited for years to someone else, because she was too extraordinary, too wonderful. Jace Kingsley gripped his phone tightly, and at this moment, his eyes showed no trace of warmth, only coldness. He couldn’t let her be taken away; she was his. In the room, the phone suddenly rang; Ava Sterling was no longer at the pool but on the bed. And the sound came from the ground by the door. She had thrown her bag on the floor when she entered, and the ringing came from inside her bag. Her phone was ringing. Someone was calling her. This sound pulled her thoughtless mind a little out of the fog; she instinctively wanted to push the person on top of her, but as she was about to move, he treated her more forcefully. Uncontrollably, Ava Sterling made a sound, and then her drawn thought broke, her mind once again muddled. "Sorry, the number you dialed is temporarily unavailable, please..." Jace Kingsley listened to the ruthless automated female voice and hung up the call, then dialed again. Swiftly, the same automated female voice sounded again. The call connected, but she didn’t pick up. At this moment, his heart sank. As if possessed, he kept calling when she didn’t answer. Just like that, the sound of the phone kept ringing in the bedroom, Ava Sterling heard it, but the person seemed to do it on purpose. The more the phone rang, the more relentless he treated her, even carrying her into the bathroom, turning on the shower immediately, the water cascading down, drowning out the sound from outside. And she was subjected to his strong grip once more. Logically, she should resist and refuse, but strangely, she felt like she had consumed something, like being drugged by him, completely immersed in his dominance. Ava Sterling thought, she must be too obsessed with his body... After Jace Kingsley made numerous calls with no answer, he looked down, closed his eyes, his hand tightly gripping the phone, his knuckles turning white. He had a vague feeling, an extremely bad feeling... After a long while, his eyes opened, filled with deep darkness. He picked up the phone and dialed another number: "Investigate, investigate the people at The Pearce Manor dinner party, who she is with, where she went." The call ended, Jace Kingsley looked at the manor deeply shrouded by the night, endless chill emanating from his eyes... Cars on the street gradually decreased until none could be seen, the boundless night engulfing the entire city. Deep slumber was complete. In the room, the fervent atmosphere had faded, leaving only the lingering traces of intimate encounters, quietly drifting in the air. Poe Vaughn clad in a robe, stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, lighting a cigarette, gazing at the person asleep on the bed. Her long hair spread across a pillow, her cheek turned to the side, revealing her thick, peaceful eyelashes. An arm lazily stretched out, resting on the thin blanket, she slept heavily, her breathing light and subtle. Poe Vaughn observed this sleeping face, white smoke drifted from his lips and nose, blurring his features, also blurring those deep eyes.