After the divorce, he begged

“You guys head back,” Rebecca said, shoving all her feelings aside. Right now, her mind was focused only on the

task she'd been assigned. “I'll spend the night here at the office.”

Ella wanted to let her go back to rest, but Rebecca spoke before she did. “We're here on behalf of PrimePlay

Technologies. If we don't finish what we were tasked with, it's bound to look bad for the company.”

“But if you don’t rest, how will you manage work and classes tomorrow?” Ella asked, concern in her voice.

“I should be done by four or five,” Rebecca said, checking the tand making a rough calculation. “I'll squeeze

in a little sleep.”

Ella still wanted to say something, but Rebecca convinced her to leave. ‘No way I'm letting anyone else pay for

my mistake,’ Rebecca thought, determined to take full responsibility for what had happened.

Ten minutes later, Rebecca was left alone in the office. She shut off all the overhead lights, leaving just a single

desk lamp casting a gentle glow on her workspace.

Maybe it was the sense of urgency, maybe it was her fear of damaging PrimePlay Technologies’ reputation, but

Rebecca finally locked away all her emotions and focused completely on her task.

At that moment, it hit her-the saying she'd seen somewhere was spot on: office workers barely got a second to

feel sad.

At night, they sobbed their heart out, letting all their feelings flood out when they were finally alone. But when

the morning cagain, they'd wipe away the tears, slap on a smile, and drag themselves back to work like

nothing ever happened.

For the next few hours, Rebecca buried herself in the assignment, set on proving she hadn't snagged her spot at

PrimePlay Technologies because of Jeffrey, but because she was truly capable.

Rebecca wanted to let him know that she could support herself, pay her own way, and live independently. She

had what it took to get by.

For every hour Rebecca kept working, Jeffrey remained upstairs, waiting for her just as long. In the entire

building, only the glow from their separate offices cut through the darkness.

At 4:40 in the morning, Rebecca finally wrapped up her assignment. She saved her work, shut the computer

down, grabbed her phone and bag, and set her alarm for 8 a.m.

Then she found a couch in the break room, curled up, and tried to get ssleep.

Worn out from the stress and overwork, Rebecca was out in no time, her breathing soon slow and steady. The

room settled into quiet, until the door quietly opened.

Jeffrey stepped inside. He had on a white button-down, but his features was tinged with exhaustion. Feeling the

stuffy heat in the break room, Jeffrey turned on the air conditioner, setting it to just the right temperature.

Then he gently laid his suit jacket over her, so she wouldn't get cold while she slept.

After settling everything, he took a seat beside her, his gaze drinking in every delicate feature of her sleeping

face. He couldn't figure out why she had to be so stubborn.

If she'd only let him take care of her, she wouldn't need to work herself to exhaustion. She wouldn't have to pull

all-nighters anymore. She could spend her days doing whatever she loved, without having to wear herself out for

just a little cash.

“Why can’t you just make things a little easier for yourself?” Jeffrey murmured, his chest heavy with emotion.

“You insist on taking on all this suffering, when you don’t even have to.”

Rebecca was dead to the world, oblivious to his arrival and everything he said.

At 7:55 in the morning, Jeffrey woke up first. He used her finger to unlock her phone and checked the alarm

she'd set.

Then he quietly switched off the air conditioner, gently lifted his suit jacket over her, and slipped out of the break

room at 7:59, leaving no sign he'd ever been there.

At exactly 8 a.m., Rebecca's alarm went off. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and sat up on the couch, still groggy.

Just as she was about to head off to freshen up, she suddenly noticed a familiar scent in the air.

She sniffed softly. It was that subtle, refreshing fragrance she always associated with Jeffrey. Before she could

dwell on it, her phone rang. It was Ella. “Where are you? | brought you sbreakfast. Ceat,” Ella said.

“I'll be right there,” Rebecca replied, quickly straightening her clothes before heading out.

Ella passed her the bag of breakfast. Rebecca thanked her, feeling truly grateful.

“Did you and Mr. Hanson pull an all-nighter together last night?” Ella asked, sounding casual.

Rebecca was confused. She took a sip of her milk and then asked, “What are you talking about?”

Ella shrugged, her tone light. “I saw Mr. Hanson leaving when | cin. He was carrying his jacket. His shirt

looked a bit rumpled, like he hadn't changed it yet.”

Rebecca’s hand hovered mid-air, and all she could think about was that familiar scent that had lingered when

she woke up. ‘Wait, did he stay here all night?’ she thought.

“What's wrong?” Ella asked.

“He probably just popped in to check on things,” Rebecca replied; she couldn't help feeling a little unsettled. “I

didn’t see him at all, neither when | went to sleep nor when | woke up.”

Rebecca couldn't help but think Jeffrey was such a contradiction. Outwardly, he was harsh and distant, but

behind the scenes, he was always quietly looking out for her.

If he really wants what's best for me, why can’t he just letgo?’ Rebecca thought. ‘Why won't he letlive

the life | want, free and on my own terms?‘

Ella nodded, letting the matter drop and moving on to what really mattered to her. “Did you finish the

Chapter 153

assignment?”

“Yes,” Rebecca said simply.

55 vouchers

After a brief exchange, they both dug into their breakfast. When they were done, Rebecca hit the bathroom to

freshen up, splashing cold water over her face again and again.

She'd powered through most of the night. Now her head was heavy and she seriously needed to snap

out of it.

Meanwhile, Jeffrey was just as wiped out as Rebecca, but he could basically force himself to keep grinding at

work anyway.

“Should | reschedule your meeting for later this afternoon? Maybe get a bit more sleep?” Gregory asked softly,

knowing full well Jeffrey had been up all night.

“No need,” Jeffrey said, cool as ever. He looked as straight-faced and sharp as he always did. “I've got stuff

going on this afternoon, too.”

Gregory could see there was no changing his mind, so he dropped the subject.

For the whole day, Rebecca was absorbed in her own projects, while Jeffrey was busy with his duties at the

company. Both of them were exhausted, but neither sent so much as a message or called.

That afternoon, Rebecca and Ella managed to clock out early. Exhausted, Rebecca just wanted to hurry back to

the hotel and collapse onto her bed. But just her luck, she bumped into Jeffrey in the elevator.

He'd skipped the private VIP elevator just to join them in the crowded one. Rebecca's face couldn't help but turn

cold.

After the awkward silence, they arrived on the 18th floor. Ella headed out first. As Rebecca started to follow,

Jeffrey stepped in front of her, blocking the way.

Rebecca shot him a look. “What do you want?”

Jeffrey glanced at Ella, who was still holding the elevator doors

open.

Ella knew what he meant and slowly withdrew her hand. The elevator doors slid shut, and the elevator started

moving up to the 19th floor.

Rebecca broke the silence. “I know you cto the break room last night. But I'm not changing my mind. Even

if you keep doing things forin secret, I'm still set on walking away from you.”

Jeffrey's gaze met hers, his face completely impassive, giving nothing away. Just when Rebecca thought she'd

finally gotten under his skin, he spoke up. “Do you know why | cand left without letting you notice it?”

“Of course | do,” Rebecca fired back, her words merciless. “You're trying to soothe your guilty conscience and

make up for all the crap you've putthrough.”

“You're wrong,” Jeffrey said.

Chapter 153

Rebecca lifted her eyes, locking onto his, confused.

55 vouchers

“Because | knew that if you found out, you'd just say those harsh things, just like now,” Jeffrey said.

He couldn't help thinking Rebecca was made of stone. “I just want to be good to you. | don’t want you to make it

out to be something it's not.”

|

AD

Comment

Send gift

word

word

mmMwWLIII0fiflo&1

mmMwWLIII0fiflo&1

mmMwWLIII0fiflo&1

mmMwWLIII0fiflo&1

mmMwWL1i10f1ifl0&1

mmMwWLIiI0fiflO&1