Chapter 304
Chapter 305
Elissa’s cheeks flushed a deep red. When she finally looked up, she found herself caught in Rowan’s unwavering stare.
He knew exactly where her mind had wandered. Gazing at her with a hint of amusement, he asked, “What were you thinking about to get so flustered p>
He sounded so serious that for a moment, Elissa doubted herself, wondering if she’d read too much
into things.
But there were two other people sitting in the front seats. She couldn’t possibly say what she was really thinking: That she’d been thinking about him, and how easily he could make her lose her
composure.
Rowan clearly banked on her not having the nerve to say it out loud. He didn’t care about embarrassment, but she did.
So, Elissa simply fell silent. When it came to verbal sparring, she sometimes just couldn’t win against him.
The car finally pulled up in front of Vistapeak Gardens. Elissa opened the door and stepped out. Just as she was about to enter the building, Rowan strode up and caught her hand in his.
“Didn’t we agree to have dinner together at home?” he reminded her quietly.
Together. He meant it–hand in hand, not letting her slip away for even a step.
His palm was warm, almost electric, sending tingles up her arm and all through her body.
Inside, lan had already arranged for dinner to be picked up from their favorite restaurant. By the time Elissa sat down to eat, the food was still warm and comforting.
This time, when dinner was over, Elissa didn’t rush off. Instead, she set down her fork and turned to look at Rowan sitting beside her.
She watched him longer than she had in the elevator earlier–so long that her eyes began to sting with dryness.
Rowan noticed her odd behavior and raised an eyebrow, watching her with lazy curiosity. “Did you get possessed tonight or something p>
“No…” Elissa hesitated, then slowly reached out, her slender fingers moving over the fabric of his shirt, searching across his chest.
Rowan’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He looked at her, his dark eyes kindling with a familiar heat. “And what do you think you’re doing p>
But Elissa seemed not to hear him. She kept searching, her fingers finally stopping at a spot where the fabric was uneven–beneath it, a scar, the skin slightly raised. Her heart clenched painfully.
She didn’t understand herself. Why did simply touching this old wound make her feel so unbearably sad?
Rowan realized what she was doing. His gaze darkened as he caught her hand, trying to gently pull
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her away. But just then, Elissa looked up at him, her eyes rimmed red, brimming with tears. “Did it hurt a lot? Back then p>
That question.
Rowan tried to remember, but the truth was, that day had been chaos. He’d had too many things to worry about; pain wasn’t even on his mind.
He’d just been grateful to be alive.
Most of all, he’d been relieved that she hadn’t been in the car with him. That she wasn’t there–by his
side.
He reached over, pinched her cheek lightly, and managed a crooked smile. “I barely remember. Do you want to kiss it better for me p>
He was teasing, as always.
But the words made Elissa’s heart flutter. When she was little, Rowan had spoiled her shamelessly–if
she so much as scraped her knee, she’d make him kiss it better.
Now, though, that felt like ancient history.
She glanced at him, embarrassed. “It’s already healed. What’s the point p>
“If you know that, why even ask?” Rowan’s tone softened. “It’s all in the past. What matters now is your research. Don’t let your mind wander p>
-As if anything about you could ever be “just something else p>
That unspoken thought startled Elissa. She ducked her head, pretending to focus on her dinner to hide her fluster. “I know, ” she mumbled.
She was clear–headed; she knew what she had to do. There were so many things she wanted to accomplish, but none of them would be possible unless this project succeeded.
So she threw herself into work, not allowing herself to think about anything else.
Finally, she’d managed to push the project all the way to the clinical trial application stage.
That morning, as usual, Elissa walked into the R&D department with her bag slung over her shoulder–only for Cliff to intercept her and steer her straight toward the conference room.
She frowned, puzzled. “Cliff, what’s going on? Is there some emergency meeting today p>
“Not a meeting,” Cliff replied, grinning. As they neared the door, he covered her eyes with his hand. “Ready? It’s a surprise p>
“Uh–what?” Elissa was still confused.
She heard the conference room door swing open, and suddenly everyone in the R&D department erupted in unison:
“Dr. Drummond! Congratulations on your breakthrough p>
“Congrats, Dr. Drummond–and to the entire Traditional Medicine Unit for a spectacular win p>
“Dr. Drummond, you’re incredible. This time, you really put us all to shame p>
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Someone noticed Xavier hanging back, lost in thought, and nudged him. “Hey, Xavier, what are you doing zoning out at a time like this? Shouldn’t you be congratulating your team leader p>
Xavier snapped out of it, laughing. “I’m just too happy, I guess p>
“Elissa, congrats. As your mentor–and your teammate–I couldn’t be prouder,” he added.
Cliff finally let go of her eyes. When Elissa opened them, she saw genuine smiles on every face around her–and the conference room had been decorated for the occasion. On the table sat an
enormous cake.
“Thank you, everyone. This project wouldn’t have gotten anywhere without each and every one of
you p>
The happiness in her chest was real. Still, she tempered it, adding, “But we’ll only know if we’ve truly succeeded once the clinical trial results are in p>
Yesterday, they’d finished the final round of data verification. The results had already been sent to the relevant departments. Now it was time to move on to production and the beginning of the clinical trials.
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