?Chapter 679:


    Looking her in the eyes, he began, “I really think you’re smart, confident, and talented. I mean it. If you’re not seeing anyone, maybe you could give me a chance.”


    For a moment, Ste didn’t know what to say.


    She wanted to brush it off with a joke, but Rutherford’s honest tone made that feel wrong.


    Still, being serious about it felt a little awkward too.


    After all, she’d never thought of him that way.


    Rutherford noticed the hesitation in her eyes and gently looked away. “Hey, no pressure,” he said. “I’m not trying to rush you or make you ufortable.”


    And with his gaze elsewhere, Ste felt her shoulders rx just a bit.


    Rutherford dropped Ste off at her apartmentplex, and once she unbuckled her seatbelt, she thanked him politely before stepping out and heading toward her building.


    Luckily, William wasn’t standing by the entrance, which helped her rx a little. But as soon as she got home, her thoughts began looping back to Rutherford’s confession.


    She couldn’t shake the thought that both Rutherford and William handled their emotions in surprisingly simr ways. Maybe it was because they were longtime friends, but still, their approach felt too alike.


    They both confessed how they felt, directly and without sugarcoating. While their honesty was bold, it always seemed to catch herpletely off guard, leaving her unsure how to respond.


    Settling into her couch, Ste found herself thinking about Marc.


    Things with him had been different. They spent years getting to know one another before quietly slipping into a rtionship.


    Compared to that, both William and Rutherford felt like they were sprinting, and it just wasn’t her pace.


    She knew the two men couldn’t be more different.


    Rutherford had that charming, polished ease about him. He was friendly andposed. William, on the other hand, was all sharp lines and cool distance. He rarely let anyone in.<fn80ed> Readplete version only at f?i?n?d?n?o?v?e?l?</fn80ed>


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    Ste realized she was actuallyparing Rutherford and William, and it made her chuckle softly at herself.


    Ste brushed the situation aside and got up to attend to her own affairs.


    The next morning, just as she stepped out at her usual time for work, she noticed a car already parked out front. The window rolled down, and to her surprise, Rutherford was in the driver’s seat. “Ms. Gilbert, need a ride?” he called out casually.


    Ste stopped in her tracks. She hadn’t expected him to show up just to drive her to work.


    Her ce wasn’t exactly close to the institute, but it wasn’t too far either. If she remembered correctly, William once mentioned that Rutherford lived nowhere nearby.


    “Mr. Schoenberg, have you been waiting long?” she asked.


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