?


    The call ended with the sound of a dial tone.


    Tom mmed his phone onto the floor with a scowl. The screen shattered instantly, reflecting his grim expression.


    Sullivan, unable to reach Reba, began to feel a growing sense of anxiety.


    What if Reba had taken the money and then gone back on her word, sending those incriminating documents to Damon?


    Upon thinking of her past behavior, Sullivan''s anxiety deepened, but he had no idea where she was. All he could do was wait for her to contact him. "Sullivan. Sullivan? What''s wrong with you?" Demi asked.


    Sullivan snapped out of his thoughts and looked over at Demi, forcing a smile. "What''s going on?"


    Demi handed him a file and reported, "There''s an issue with this data. We need to verify it with N. If these numbers are wrong, the experiment will need to be redone."


    Sullivan nced at the file and took it from her. "Got it. I''ll go to her. You take care of the other tasks."


    Actually, Demi had nned to ask N herself, but she was surprised that Sullivan had taken the initiative. She assumed he probably wanted to see Ruby.


    Her gaze dropped, and a mix of emotions swirled inside her. She didn''t feel inferior to Ruby in any way, so why did Sullivan seem to like her? "Alright, Sullivan. Please hurry. These data are urgently needed," Demi reminded him.


    Sullivan nodded. "I''m on it."


    With that, he left the office with the file.


    At theb...


    Sullivan found Ruby standing in front of the equipment, recording data. He approached her and asked, "Where''s N?"


    Ruby frowned when she heard his voice and turned to look at him. "She went to pick up the experiment materials. Is there something you need?"


    Upon noticing her tense expression,


    Sullivan''s eyes darkened. He handed her the file. "These data have issues. Take a look and see what''s going


    on


    UMS


    Recognizing it was work-rted, Ruby put down her notebook and took the file from him, carefully reviewing it. She quickly identified the problem-it was the same issue fromst time.


    "Sullivan, please wait a moment. I''ll find the correct data for you, along with thetest set of results," she said.


    Sullivan''s gaze followed her as she moved. "Alright."


    Ruby didn''t look back at him as she went to find the new data. Soon, she returned with a file in hand, saying, "Sullivan, this is the correct data. We''ve double-checked it."


    Sullivan took the file but didn''t leave immediately. "Are you free tonight? I''d like to have dinner with you."


    Ruby pursed her lips, instinctively avoiding his gaze as she replied, "I might have to workte tonight."


    "It''s fine. No matter howte it gets, I''ll wait. I''ll send you the restaurant details, and you cane after you finish work," Sullivan said. Before Ruby could refuse, he turned and left quickly.


    Watching his retreating figure, she felt a pang of helplessness. She felt she had made herself clear, yet he still insisted on pursuing her.


    To her, if someone truly cared for another person, they wouldn''t do things that made the other person ufortable.


    Sullivan''s behavior was too domineering.


    Instead of feeling any affection from him, she sensed that he simply wanted to prove his own charm or perhaps he had some other unknown motive.