Love Burned, She Rose Unscathed

Chapter 728

Roseanne chuckled to herself, a wry smile tugging at her lips.

Owen Reynolds found his breath catching unexpectedly at that smile. It was as if he was on the brink of missing something profoundly important.

By the time they left the factory, dusk had already settled in.

The security guard had changed shifts; the jovial, witty older man had gone home, replaced by a young guy who seemed a bit shy. He silently took their keys, put them away, and opened the gate for them.

The evening sky was a tapestry of darkening hues, with bare branches lining the road adding to the scene's quiet solitude.

Roseanne and Owen Reynolds walked side by side, an unspoken silence enveloping them.

Owen Reynolds opened his mouth to speak but hesitated, unsure of how to address the shift in her mood that he sensed but couldn't quite understand. So he kept quiet, cautious not to disturb the peace.

Suddenly, Roseanne looked up with a smile, "Thank you, Professor, for the thoughtful birthday gift. It was meaningful, and I loved it. As a token of

appreciation, how about I treat you to dinner? What would you like?"

Owen Reynolds watched as she transformed from introspective to cheerful in the blink of an eye.

He paused, momentarily taken aback.

Roseanne asked again, "Have you decided?"

about some spicy Mexican food?

"Sure, sounds great!"

the Mexican restaurant, Roseanne breathed into her hands and adjusted her

remove his own scarf to offer it to her as a

with a smile,

looked puzzled, but before he could say

and the cold wind bit at them gently. The streetlights cast

along the banks of the Thames

at a bridge, hands tucked in her coat pockets, and turned to Owen Reynolds, "Professor, haven't we walked this

"Yes," Owen Reynolds nodded.

"When was it?"

when I bought

laughed, "You've always had

wanted to say that he only remembered the important things, the things that mattered. But Roseanne had already dashed forward to a nearby

said, scanning her

him a roasted chestnut. "In the summer, you treated me to ice cream.

accepted it with a smile,

apartment building,

high in the

Owen Reynolds called out suddenly, stopping

turned back, "What

asked why I gave you that necklace. I'd