Hearing Danielle's promise, Nash's tense shoulders finally relaxed, and his voice filled with relief.
"Thank you, Miss Crawford! From now on, I'll keep you updated on Mr. Davidson's condition and anything happening with Nathan. If you need anything at all, just let me know. I'll do everything I can to help."
Danielle nodded and, without another word, got into a taxi.
As the car pulled away, she watched the hotel recede in the distance. She opened her phone and pulled up her chat with Alexander, her thumb hovering over the screen for a long time.
In the end, she put the phone away. Some things couldn't be rushed. He had to come to his own conclusions.
—
The next morning, as the Nexus Prime Aerospace Institute came to life, Danielle walked into the lobby, briefcase in hand.
She had just reached her office when River Atwood stepped in her path.
He held out a neatly packaged breakfast. "Good morning, Chief Engineer Crawford! I know you like the sandwiches from the cafe downstairs, so I brought you one."
Danielle stopped, politely holding up a hand. "Thank you, but I already ate at home. You should have it."
River's hand froze mid-air, the smile on his face faltering slightly. "Are you avoiding me, Chief Engineer Crawford?" he asked, his tone probing. "Is this because President Davidson spoke to you after the meeting?"
Danielle met his questioning gaze and offered a small, cool smile. "You're overthinking it. I really have eaten. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to do."
With that, she moved past him, entered her office, and gently closed the door.
Outside, a few colleagues huddled together, their voices low.
"Did you see that? Engineer Atwood brought her breakfast again, and got shot down again."
River sat down but didn't immediately open the file. Instead, he changed the subject. "Chief Engineer Crawford, I overheard some colleagues yesterday… They said you and President Davidson used to be married?"
Danielle's hand, holding a pen, paused. She looked up at him, her tone calm but distant. "That's a personal matter I'd rather not discuss."
"If you're here to talk about work, let's talk about work. If this is a casual chat, then I'm afraid I'm very busy."
Her demeanor was strictly professional, leaving no room for argument.
River saw her impassive expression and knew pushing further would be useless, but he couldn't resist one last attempt.
"Chief Engineer Crawford, I know you might be hesitant about relationships, but the past is the past. You should give people a chance, people like…"
"Engineer Atwood," Danielle interrupted. She pulled a thick stack of project calculations from a filing cabinet and handed it to him. "These are the parameter calculations for next week's field test, specifically concerning the compatibility of the infrared modules and composite materials. I need the results by the end of the day. Thank you."

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