Chapter 1501
[ 615 words ]
“It might be a minute. I just woke up.”
Since he was already right downstairs, Lorelei couldn’t exactly turn him away without being rude.
“Take your time.” Joel sounded completely at ease, his voice warm and bright. “Lori, I’ll wait as long as it takes.”
Lorelei’s heart gave a little jolt.
What was that supposed to mean?
Ten minutes later.
Lorelei quickly freshened up and headed down to the restaurant.
Joel, dressed in a crisp white dress shirt, was sitting at a table, typing away on his laptop.
“Joel,” Lorelei greeted him, taking the seat across from him.
“You’re here.”
Joel immediately shut his laptop and pushed it aside, looking at her with a gentle smile. “I grabbed your favorites. Sandwiches, oat milk, and cheese puffs.”
“Thank you.”
Lorelei managed a stiff smile, unable to help but ask, “What brings you to Yalania so suddenly?”
“I came to find you.” Joel held her gaze, the smile on his handsome face warm and full of affection. “Lori, I flew here specifically for you.”
Lorelei’s smile froze. She could guess where this was going and instinctively averted her eyes.
“Suki told me you signed the divorce papers,” Joel said straightforwardly. “Lori, I want to shoot my shot.”
“Joel “
Lorelei cut him off, her face turning pale. “Harold and I aren’t officially divorced yet. I don’t want to drag anyone else into this.”
“And besides, I’m not looking to jump into any kind of relationship right now. Not for a long time.”
It was as polite of a rejection as she could muster.
“I know.” Joel’s lips curved upward into a perfectly gentlemanly smile. “That’s why
I’m here to get in line. I’ll wait for you to finalize your divorce. And if you ever decide you’re ready for a new relationship, I hope you’ll consider letting me be first on the list.”
“Joel, I…”
Lorelei sat frozen, feeling as though something was lodged in her throat.
From the very beginning, she had only ever seen him as an older brother figure. She never had any romantic feelings for him whatsoever.
“I know.”
Knowing exactly what she wanted to
say,
b fell silent for a few seconds
murmuring softly, Lori, no,
matter how long it takes, TIM
He would wait for her to process everything, wait for her wounds to heal, wait until
she found the energy to love the world again.
Lorelei stared at him, feeling entirely drained.
Don’t wait.
It would never go anywhere.
She refused to let herself fall into the same trap twice.
In Australis.
Inside a cafe.
It had been three hours by the time Harold and Felicia finalized the surgical treatment plan.
“I heard your sister is a top surgeon,” Felicia said, picking up her bag and giving Harold a bright, charming smile “If you guys had found her sooner, maybe Eleanor would be fully recovered by now.”
Felicia had known about Eleanor’s condition for a year.
At the time, Harold had reached out for help, and happened to contact her mentor.
That was how she ended up on the research team.
Multiple institutions had collaborated and debated for a year before finally finalizing this surgical plan.
Harold had poured every ounce of his energy into making it happen.
“Yeah.” Harold nodded. “Thank you for all your hard work lately.”
Eleanor’s condition required a strict regimen of pre-operative medication before they could even attempt the surgery.
Even with a miracle doctor like his sister-in-law, without this
foundational treatment, there was no guarantee his grandmother would survive the operating table.
“We’re just about ready. We should be able to operate next month.”
Felicia smiled, then couldn’t resist asking, “By the way, why didn’t Lorelei come with you today?”
“I heard a rumor that you two were getting a divorce. You aren’t actually planning on doing that, are you?”
“No divorce.”
Harold pressed his lips together, his tone flat. “However, the plan to have two kids has officially been put on the agenda.”
Felicia’s smile instantly froze.
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