Chapter 214
Before Emily could ask her colleagues, she heard Delilah laughing and complaining from nearby, "None of us are allergic to lilies, except for Captain Brown. I'm afraid it's not a physical allergy for him, but a mental one, right?"
William's face darkened. After a pause, he opened the door and strode out of the office.
Emily returned to her desk with a puzzled look on her face. She thought carefully—wasn't it William and Jonathan who suggested she take time off last time?
Besides that, what else had she done to upset William?
"What's wrong with him?"
Emily looked at Joshua beside her.
Joshua smirked, closed his computer and stood up, "Men have those few days every month when they're in a bad mood. Don't take Captain Brown too seriously, it's normal!"
Normal?
Emily even thought that William should go see her therapist too.
Otherwise, bottling up emotions for too long would definitely cause problems.
The landline phone rang downstairs.
Emily was free, so she got up to answer it.
It was Alfonso, excitedly shouting on the other end, "Tell everyone the good news—we've found parents for forty-eight children in Harbor City and successfully sent them home!"
Forty-eight—that was no small number. Just thinking about it made Emily feel warmth flowing through her heart.
This wasn't just saving over forty young lives—behind each child was a whole family!
Times were different now from the past. With improving living conditions, every child was their parents' treasure. No one wanted to face the scene of being separated from their own flesh and blood.
Jonathan thought Emily and William deserved great credit for capturing Bronte and the others.
He specifically suggested to the state police that Emily should prepare a speech to publicly promote child safety protection measures.
Hearing Jonathan's words, Emily looked embarrassed, "Maybe not. After all, the person who really deserves credit for this arrest is Captain Carr. He was the one who first noticed Bronte's accomplice had a gun, and later it was Alfonso who went abroad to bring the children back."
"It's different, Emily. You were the one who keenly noticed the homeless begging children outside. If you hadn't discovered the clues first, we wouldn't have been able to identify the suspect so quickly. So this case is all your achievement!"
Jonathan looked at Emily with eyes full of appreciation.
Emily looked up and saw William coming upstairs. She quickly explained, "But this wasn't just my achievement. Captain Brown deserves credit too—he was the one who first noticed the footprints on the ground outside the orphanage."
"This was William's suggestion in the first place. Newcomers need more opportunities to practice. Go ahead!"
Jonathan patted Emily's shoulder with a smile.
What Emily never expected was that this was actually William's suggestion to Jonathan.
She walked quickly toward William, a bit embarrassed, "After work, if you have time, want to grab dinner together?"
"Don't you have a date?"
William glanced at Emily.
Emily looked confused and bewildered, "What do you mean? Who am I going on a date with?"
"You already accepted the flowers. Aren't you planning to go on a date with him?"
William frowned slightly, and while speaking, took another sip of coffee, deliberately acting casual and indifferent.
However, Emily didn't explain at all and just turned to leave.
She walked quickly upstairs, muttering, "This is ridiculous!"
Today she bought a pot of flowers from the flea market, and as soon as she got back to the police station, William acted all sarcastic. He didn't even ask why before questioning her like this.
His tone was full of reproach.
"What's wrong? Did you and William have another fight?"
Delilah smelled gossip and quickly came to Emily's desk, looking at her with curiosity.
Emily tilted her head, glanced at Delilah, then muttered quietly, "I don't know what I did to offend William. Why has he been giving me the cold shoulder since I got to work today?"
Delilah frowned, hesitated, then pointed at the flowers in front of Emily, "You bought these flowers yourself?"
"Of course. Who else would send me flowers?"
Emily couldn't help but laugh. She picked up the lilies in front of her, "I heard lilies are really good—they can calm your nerves and help you sleep better. They're perfect for our office!"
"I thought someone gave you those flowers. Looks like this is a big misunderstanding!"
Delilah rubbed her temples helplessly, "It's my fault. I made a joke earlier, saying Terrence sent you flowers, I..."
She looked like she wanted to say more but didn't know how. The words were on the tip of her tongue, but out of guilt, she didn't know how to explain.
Emily looked confused, having no idea what Delilah was feeling guilty about.
Delilah rubbed her hands together, muttering quietly, "I bet Captain Brown misunderstood too, that's why he's unhappy. So it seems—"
Before Emily could react, Delilah grabbed her hand, spun her around, and continued with a grin, "William must like you, otherwise he wouldn't care so much about this!"
Care about her?
On her way home after work, Emily kept thinking about Delilah's words.
She said William was angry because he cared too much about her.
But no matter how Emily thought about it, she just couldn't believe it was possible!
Suddenly, a car horn sounded behind Emily.
She instinctively turned around to look.
A familiar car slowly came into Emily's view. The window rolled down, and that handsome face entered her line of sight.
William beckoned to her, "It's rush hour. Let me give you a ride home?"
"No thanks. Who would dare get in your car? Who knows if you..."
Before Emily could finish, William had already opened the passenger door.
She stood there, hesitating, unable to decide whether to get in the car or not.
The next second, William picked up his phone and waved it in front of her, "You've been secretly investigating Light Feather Church lately. My informant has already obtained evidence of their crimes. Are you interested in coming with me to take a look?"
"Are you serious?"
Without thinking, Emily stepped forward and got into William's car.