"Yes.

" he replied., I was about to say something when he whispered again,

"I can't help it, I can't help wanting to be close to you, to treat you well, and that includes... flirting with you.

", Indeed, if love could be controlled, it wouldn't ensnare everyone from mortals to the divine., I was at a loss for words, but Ernest just let go of me.

"Go back to your room, drink some water, and if you need anything, just call me.

", After he said that, he let go of my hand and pointed to my purse.

"Give me your key card, I'll open the door for you.

",

"No need,

" I snapped back to reality, pulling away from him.

"I can do it myself.

", I hurriedly fished out my key card, swiped it to open the door, and then leaned against it, unable to compose myself for a long time., When Deborah came back, I was already lying in bed. She was tiptoeing, probably to avoid waking me up., I didn't open my eyes because I didn't want to talk, but I heard Deborah mutter softly,

"Sleeping just fine, my coming here was pointless.

" Hearing that, I twitched my fingers under the blanket, realizing Deborah must have been sent by Ernest to check on me., Ernest... How did I get entangled with this man?, I couldn't figure out why, and soon, I drifted off to sleep., My dreams were chaotic; I even dreamed about my parents and the car crash they were in., Even though I had never seen the crash scene, I had sneaked a peek at their case file at the police station and saw the photos taken., Those images were etched into my mind, haunting my dreams., When I first joined the Wagner family, I used to dream about it more than once. In recent years, the dreams had almost stopped. But that night, I dreamed about it again., I woke up before dawn, checking my phone to see it was five in the morning., Lately, I've been waking up at this time, regardless of how late I go to bed., Despite drinking a lot the night before, my head didn't hurt, and I felt clear-headed., There were a few missed calls and messages on my phone because it was on silent, I didn't notice., Fanny had called twice, and there was also a message from Jacqueline., I wasn't sure what Jacqueline wanted, but I had a bad feeling it might have something to do with Conrad., But I had made my feelings clear, and she hadn't reached out recently. Could this be about Dustin?, I pondered for a moment before deciding to reply to Fanny first. It was too early for a call, so I opened the chat and saw several messages from her., Why didn't you answer? Are you alright?, Did Mr. Collins abduct you?, Call back or text, or I'm calling the cops., Were you at James's bar? Did something happen?, Fanny must have checked with James after failing to find me, or else she might have come knocking on my hotel door., I sent Fanny an emoji and a message:

"Her majesty is fine, just had a sudden urge for a little drink.

", After sending the message, my phone rang; it was Fanny., She must be on a night shift again, or she wouldn't have replied so quickly., Not wanting to wake Deborah, I went to the balcony to answer, and my eyes caught Ernest running below., This time I turned away, chatting with Fanny., When I finally told her about Ernest seeing the message, Fanny burst into laughter, then said,

"Felicia, I think Ernest could be a catch, why not give it a shot?

",

"I turned him down last night, not interested,

" I made my stance clear.,

"Alright then, once bitten, twice shy,

" Fanny sighed., After hanging up, I went to shower. When I came out, my phone rang again; it was Jacqueline., Hesitating for a moment, I answered,

"Jacqueline...

", Search the website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.