No More Waiting, She Chooses Love

I immediately glanced at Ernest, scolding Deborah, "Are you out of your mind? What are you babbling about?"

"I'm not babbling. I'm saying you two are workaholics, and I feel like I'm at my breaking point," Deborah slouched in the car seat.

"You'll have to hang in there. It won't be much longer," I had checked the remaining schedule today, and by our current pace, we were about ten days from finishing up.

"How much longer?" It seemed Deborah couldn't stand another day.

I looked through the rearview mirror at Ernest and replied, "About ten days."

"Ten days, huh," Deborah muttered as if she had lost all hope in life.

By the time we got to the hotel, Deborah had already fallen asleep. I called her name a few times, but she wouldn't budge. Finally, I leaned close to her ear, "If you don't get up now, I'm going to have Ernest carry you."

"That sounds nice." Deborah stretched her arms.

Her response made me laugh, and I tugged at her. "Come on, get up."

Deborah, squinting her eyes, let me pull her into the elevator and up to our floor. Just as we reached our room, Ernest, who had been quiet, finally spoke up, "Felicia, I need to talk to you."

My heart skipped a beat. "Okay."

Deborah, too drowsy to care, stumbled into the room without a second thought.

I turned to Ernest, asking, "What's on your mind, Mr. Collins?"

"I've already spoken with the company. I'll finish the work here," Ernest's words made me utter an "Oh."

I wasn't surprised, because if he left, I would truly throw up my job.

Even without me and Ernest, the amusement park's lighting setup would continue, but it definitely wouldn't be finished on schedule.All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

More importantly, the lighting effects would probably differ from our current setup.

The most crucial point was that Conrad probably didn't want me to leave the company. He hadn't pressured Ernest's company to replace him, likely fearing I'd do as I said.

"Mhm," was all I replied to Ernest.

"Are you planning to resign after this project?" Ernest's question caught

e

to see through my plans.

me off guard. I had 2!?!

"Yes," I didn't deny it to him.

He nodded slightly. "We can still speed up our progress."

"Huh?" I was puzzled.

Speeding up meant more overtime, and even if Ernest and I could handle it, Deborah probably couldn't.

"No need for overtime. Just keep working hours as they are, but finish sooner," Ernest's suggestion made me laugh. "Are you joking, Mr. Collins?"

"No, I'm serious," Ernest looked earnest.

I said, "There's no need, really. We just need to finish on schedule."

"You want to leave, right? So, I'm trying to get you out of here as soon as possible," Ernest's words stunned me.

But then I said, "No need. Besides,

ét

even if we finish early, I can't leave early. I have to wait until the amusement park is fully inspected and even opens."

Ernest's gaze deepened, but I didn't explain further.

Since I didn't plan to be with him, there was no need to share my thoughts.

It seemed he was determined to finish the setup early without making Deborah and me work overtime. He was doing it himself.

"Good morning, Ms. Hudson!" someone greeted me from behind.

"Morning!" I automatically responded, but then I realized something was off.

I turned around and saw Dustin in work clothes and a safety helmet, which caught me off guard.