Chapter 8
For the next couple of days, Emma enjoyed happy times at home, deciding to start a new life.
She sent out several resumes and successfully received an interview invitation from
Morgan Industries in Los Angeles.
“Mom, I have an interview this afternoon. I’m heading out now,” Emma called toward the kitchen while changing her shoes.
Mrs. Pierce poked her head out with concern: “Be careful, drive safely.”
Emma stood in front of the Morgan Industries building, thinking she had arrived early, and decided to get coffee first.
“Order number 627, please pick up your order.”
Emma approached the pickup counter to get her coffee but accidentally touched another man’s hand.
“Sorry,” Emma quickly withdrew her hand and apologized, hurriedly checking the receipt in her hand, confirming it was indeed number 627.
Confused, she looked up at the man, coincidentally meeting his gaze.
The man waved the coffee in his hand and explained: “My label says 626. The barista probably called out the wrong number.”
Just then, the barista came over with another coffee, apologizing: “I’m sorry, miss. I called the wrong number earlier. This is your coffee.”
Emma accepted the coffee, smiling and waving it off: “No problem.”
“Hi, I’m Ryan Morgan.”
The man from earlier stopped Emma, extending his hand in introduction.
“I work here too. Maybe we’ll be colleagues.”
Chapter 8
Hearing this, Emma finally shook his hand and responded: “Hello, I’m Emma Pierce. I’m
here for the interview.”
Ryan heard Emma’s name and thought it sounded familiar but didn’t dwell on it.
“Hope your interview goes well. See you around.”
Neither Emma nor Ryan expected their next meeting to come so quickly.
When Emma walked into the conference room with her resume, she was surprised to see Ryan sitting in the center, and she momentarily forgot her self–introduction.
Ryan was looking down at his phone, and noticing the newcomer’s silence, he looked up to
find it was Emma.
“Good afternoon everyone, I’m Emma Pierce, graduated from…”
The interview went smoothly, and the start date was quickly confirmed.
When Emma came out, Ryan called her over: “What a coincidence. I’m the manager at Morgan Industries, overseeing the design department.”
“Since we’ll be colleagues, and it’s getting late, let me take you to dinner. What do you say?”
Ryan’s enthusiasm was a bit much for Emma, who politely declined: “Thank you, Mr. Morgan, but I have plans tonight.”
Hearing Emma had plans, Ryan quickly asked: “With your boyfriend?”
Though Emma didn’t understand Ryan’s intention, she still politely answered: “No.”
Receiving Emma’s answer, Ryan breathed a sigh of relief. Not a boyfriend–that’s good.
Emma’s onboarding went smoothly. With her strong work capabilities and gentle demeanor, she quickly integrated into the design department at Morgan Industries.
However, Emma fidgeted with the flowers on her desk, sighing with some annoyance.
A colleague nearby heard her sigh and leaned over to ask: “More flowers again? If I had a suitor sending me flowers every day, I wouldn’t be sighing.”
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Crashed Car, Crashed Crush:Amnesia Became My Reset Button
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Emma pulled out two roses and handed them over: “Hope you find someone special soon
too.”
What troubled Emma wasn’t that someone was sending flowers but that the sender was Ryan, technically her boss now. This added relationship layer made Emma a bit concerned.
On one hand, after the Talon incident, she wasn’t interested in dating. On the other hand, she worried that their pursuit relationship might be discovered, leading to gossip among other employees.
“Emma, can we have dinner tonight?” Emma received another invitation from Ryan.
Previously, when receiving these messages, Emma would reject them outright.
But today, Emma deleted her usual refusal and replied with a simple “Sure.”
Ryan’s immediate response showed his excitement even through text.
“I’ll book a restaurant. How does Italian sound?”
“Fine.”
Emma agreed to Ryan’s invitation because she wanted to use this opportunity to clarify things between them.
When Emma arrived at the restaurant, Ryan was already there.
The waiter led Emma to her seat, and Ryan handed her a bouquet of flowers: “I noticed you gave today’s roses to someone else. Don’t you like them?”
Emma lowered her head to gently sniff the beautifully packaged jasmine.
“No, I like flowers very much.”
“What about the person sending them?”
Emma was caught off guard by the question, eventually saying:
“Ryan, I don’t think we’re a good match.”
Chapter 8
“Emma, I’m serious about you.”
Emma couldn’t give Ryan an answer, maintaining her silence.
As a suitor, Ryan was perfect. Every day he sent fresh flowers, various gifts with love notes
tucked inside.
Although he was pursuing her, he never showed any special behavior at the company.
He balanced pursuit and respect perfectly.
The two sat in silence, with only the restaurant’s violin music in the background.
“Let’s eat first.”
Ryan finally broke the silence.
Emma felt a bit troubled inside and barely ate, drinking quite a bit of wine instead,
developing a slight buzz.
Ryan took away her wine glass, softly advising: “Don’t drink anymore. You’ll get drunk.
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Perhaps it was the alcohol, but Emma finally voiced the frustrations she’d kept bottled up.
“I’ve forgotten him completely. Why does my heart still ache?”
“What did he do to you?”
Ryan wondered who this “he” was that Emma mentioned.
Emma, slightly tipsy, mumbled: “It was my fault for pursuing him for so long, but I’ve moved on since losing my memory.”
“Why didn’t he listen to my explanation before pushing me into the water? Why did he believe her side of the story without question and assume it was my fault?”
As she spoke, Emma revealed the somewhat healed but still ugly burn scars on her arm.
Ryan stared at those scars, his pupils involuntarily dilating, his fingers trembling as they
traced Emma’s scars.
Chapter 8
From Emma’s fragmented words, Ryan could piece together the basic story.
It seemed Emma had previously encountered a jerk who broke her heart completely, which explained why she repeatedly rejected his pursuit.
Ryan’s eyes filled with sympathy, and he lowered his head to kiss her scars.
“Emma, I’ll make you completely forget him and accept me.”