James's POV
That afternoon, Emma eagerly moved her belongings to Sarah's former desk.
As I watched her placing her things one by one on Sarah's desk, I felt an inexplicable irritation.

"Emma, take a different desk. Not this one."
She paused, then broke into a delighted smile. "I get it! You want me in your office, right?
"Perfect! Now we can work together!"
I remained silent, letting her assume what she wanted.
What no one knew was that I didn’t care where Emma sat, as long as it wasn’t Sarah’s desk.
Every time I saw Sarah's empty workstation, I couldn't help but hope that one day she might return and sit there again.

Emma wasted no time ordering my assistant, Calvin,set up a desk in my office.
"James, what does this number mean?
"James, I don't understand this report. Can you explain it?
"James, how do I calculate this economic indicator?"

Emma bombarded me with questions all afternoon, and my irritation grew.
If it were Sarah, she wouldn’t ask me meaningless questions like these.
If it were Sarah, she’d have already organized the reports and placed them neatly on my desk.
The more I tried to push thoughts of Sarah out of my mind, the more they consumed me.
"James," Emma said during dinner, serving me food, "we're officially dating now, right?"
"What about it?" I scrolled through my phone absently, thinking about visiting Sarah's apartment after dinner.
I needed to search again - maybe I'd find some clue she left behind.
Besides, being in a place with traces of her always helped me relax.
"So when are we getting married?"
I froze mid-air. "What did you say?"
"Marriage, of course,“ Emma said matter-of-factly. "We'll need to invite lots of people, and I want a beach wedding..."
I cut her off impatiently, "I'm not thinking about that right now. Drop it."
Marriage? I suddenly felt confused.
Before, I had always thought of Emma as my only true love.
In my mind, she was the only one I'd ever marry.
But now I found myself instinctively resisting the idea.
"Why?" Emma jumped up, face filled with displeasure. "James, didn't you always say you'd only marry me? Why have you changed your mind now? Are you going back on your word?"
My irritation peaked, and I slammed my hands on the table. "I said no means no! Why are you so desperate?"
She stared at me steadily and asked, "James, have you really fallen in love with Sarah?"
Love Sarah? Memories of our time together flooded my mind.
Back then, Sarah had asked me the same question.
Like Emma, she'd hoped to marry me, and I'd rejected her too.
But why had I always felt secretly pleased whenever she asked?
Seeing my silence, Emma took it as confirmation. She rushed toward me, her voice trembling with urgency.
"James, why aren't you saying anything? Say something! Tell me I'm still the one you love most, right?"
Looking at her tear-filled face, I spoke slowly, "You're right. All this time, it was Sarah I loved."
The moment those words left my mouth, it felt like a weight had been lifted, as if all the confusion that had been plaguing me suddenly cleared.
Every moment with Sarah had already soaked deep into my heart.
I'd grown so used to her presence that only after she left did I realize my true feelings.
I needed to find her, find Sarah, tell her she was the one I truly loved.
The thought made me urgent. I pushed Emma aside and headed for the door.
I had to go to her apartment. I had to find her!
"James!" Emma pursued me desperately, clutching my arm,”Where are you going? James Carter, you can't go!"
"Let go!"
I shoved her away just as my phone rang. I turned to answer, “Hello? What is it?"
"Mr. Carter, we've found Miss Garnett!”
My whole body tensed, my heart racing. "Where is she? Arrange my trip immediately!"
"We found traces of Miss Garnett in the neighboring city."
Several photos arrived on my phone. In them, Sarah looked serene, wearing a faint smile, walking down a street with an unfamiliar man.
The lighting was too dark for me to see the man's face clearly.
Who was he? Who was Sarah with now?
Urgency and anger surged through me. Ignoring Emma's calls behind me, I rushed out the door.
Sarah, wait for me. I'll bring you back to my side!