
Joanne was susceptible to colds, so she had hated winter since childhood.
The central heating was on 24 hours at home and she would feel warm the moment she arrived home. That being said, she still liked to trail behind Brian.
Though looking cold all the time, Brian had warm hands and feet. She used to seriously tell Brian, "You're natural central heating in winter."
The result was Brian greatly "heated" her.
Nevertheless, Brian had been busy lately, because Chris dropped Scott Group's acquisition soon after sending the signal, so Lambert Group had to carry on by itself. However, the original plan wouldn't be applicable anymore, so Brian had to work overtime to make a new plan. When he got off work, he would always look exhausted, just like today.
As soon as he entered the house, he dived on the sofa, leaning against her. "Honey."
Brian was not a talkative person who could do sweet talk like Gavin. He seldom called Joanne like this except when he was really tired. There was a hint of dependence and trust in his tone. Joanne watched him and when she was about to laugh at him, his strong and long arms circled around her waist. Then, he leaned toward her.
"It's all your brother's fault."
He was complaining. The cold and proud CEO of Lambert Group was complaining.
Joanne stroked his head and his short hair. "Because Freya left the city. You have to understand him."
"..." Brian raised his brow in confusion as if he couldn't justify Chris.
Joanne had to picture it for him. "Think about if I leave you, what will you feel?"
Brian narrowed her eyes and was giving dangerous signs through his eyes. Joanne knew she was about to get bombarded. Luckily, the phone rang in time, and it was Captain Turner calling.
After the call, Joanne shook her phone and smiled, "I'm really leaving. Captain Turner called to tell me we'd be on a business trip to Glasgow."
As expected, Brian raised his brow in displeasure. "How long?"
"Don't know," said Joanne, "I'll be back when we crack the case. Hey, are you hungry?"
Brian stared at Joanne. "Very hungry."
Joanne said innocently, "Then I'll make you some food!"
She got up but was pulled back and trapped in Brian's arms. He sniffed at her neck. "You've taken a shower?"
"..." Joanne seemed to have realized it now. She blankly looked nodded to Brian.
"Very nice." He kissed her eyes and carried her upstairs.
Joanne buried her face in her hands.
In work, she would dissect a body from time to time and was more familiar with the human body than most people in the world. But she couldn't figure out why Brian always had the energy for her no matter how tired he was.
When Brian rummaged in the bedside table's drawer, what Freya said before she left echoed in Joanne's mind.
-"You and Brian be good. Greet me with good news when I come back!"
"Good news" meant her getting pregnant.
Thinking about it now, she found it seemed... nice if Brian and she could have a baby.
Soon, she wasn't able to think about anything anymore.
The next day, Joanne woke up early to pack for the trip and then prepared matching clothes for Brian. However, at some point, Brian woke as well and circled his arms around her waist from behind.
He felt warm to Joanne so she couldn't help rubbed herself against his chest. "I'll be back as soon as possible."
Brian felt slightly satisfied, so he then released her and helped her zip the suitcase. Moreover, he put pieces of heating pads into her purse.
Before she could use it, Joanne's heart was already warm through and through.
Brian didn't use this kind of stuff, but he bought a box of them when it was just winter because he knew she was afraid of the cold. Then, she could use them when she needed to be on the crime scene.
Sometimes, when she rushed out of home in a hurry, she would inevitably forget to bring them. Therefore, Brian didn't remind her to take them, because he would just check her purse every two days. If he found she had used them, he would put more pieces into her bag.
When colleagues found she was using that, she casually blurted that Brian prepared them for her and was then greeted with a chorus of boos. Then, she realized that she was hurting those single dogs, but at the same time, she felt somewhat satisfied.
Joanne's flight was at 9 o'clock. Now, she was saying goodbye to Brian in front of their home.
"You really don't want me to send you?" Brian asked for another time.
"You'll be late for work, and you'll work overtime once you do that." Joanne stood tiptoe to kiss Brian. "You don't have to do that. I'm leaving."
Their cars took the same route for a while and then still separated. One headed downtown, while the other to the airport.
Joanne arrived at the airport where she joined Captain Turner and others. After going through security, it was right the time for boarding. They were holding economy class tickets, but the flight attendant led them to the first-class cabin.
Hannah thought they got a bargain, but before she could exclaim, the flight attendant told them in a sweet voice. "Mr. Lambert has upgraded your class. Have a nice trip."
It turned out they had benefited from Joanne.
Anyway, flying first-class was always better than in the economy class cabin. They ate and drank through the about two-hour trip, talking from unsettled cases to recent ones. Before they realized it, the plane had landed in Glasgow.
Joanne initially thought she would have time to visit Granny Wallace and Yuna, but was caught up in things after leaving the airport.
She was busy testing and analyzing, while Captain Turner and the team was combing through case records, trying to find a clue. When it was three pm did they had the time for lunch, and finally, she had time to text Brian back.
Just when Joanne buried herself in typing, Hannah tut-tutted. "It's easy to tell if someone is single or not at times like this! Those who have men at home are engaged in getting sweet with their husbands, while single dogs are staring at waiters for their dishes."
Joanne slowly looked up to Captain Turner. "Captain, it looks like Hannah is done with being single. Who do you think in our office is suitable? Find someone for her."
Other members smiled unanimously, while Captain Turner and Hannah both looked unnatural at the same time.
Right at that time, Brian replied, and Joanne got to go back to her texts, pretending she had noticed nothing.
After the meal, they had to go back to work again. Joanne buried herself in the lab, and Captain Turner, as well as the team, didn't go back to the local police station until 9 pm. The moment they took their seats, someone came up to ask about Joanne.
"Does she have a boyfriend?"
"Give us her Wechat number."
"I want to treat her to some food later. Do you think I have a shot? A meal for your advice!"
Captain Turner shook her head and sighed, and Joanne happened to walk out of the lab at that time. He signaled the young men to check what was on Joanne's hand.
They saw a delicate diamond ring gripping Joanne's white and slender finger.
Those young men dejectedly dispersed.
Little did Joanne know what had happened. She just walked to Captain Turner and handed him a folder. "Autopsy report."
Captain Turner put it into his briefcase. "Let's call it day and eat something."
There was a saying called "eating in Glasgow", therefore, one could know that food was the only thing you could find everywhere in this city. It was 10 pm, the time when the night market began. The aroma of barbecue and beer flooded the street, and people crowded into all the restaurants.
After discussing, they agreed to have delicious barbecue. The group of people didn't return to the hostel until they were completely full.
Joanne took a shower, but the little bathroom was not equipped with heating, so she walked out with her teeth chattering. Even worse, the heating was not good either, and it was still cold in the room.
She asked Hannah and others. It was the same with their rooms.
Thus, she had to tear open two pieces of heating pads to stick them onto the quilt. Then, she filled the foldable basin she bought with hot water for a foot bath. Just when her teeth were chattering from the cold, Brian called. To keep him from noticing, she grounded her teeth and then picked up the call.
"How are you doing?" Brian asked.
"A bit busy, but we're getting closer to the truth." Joanne put her free hand into the hot water as well. "Have you gone home?"
"Just got back."
"Sleep, then." After warming up her hands and feet, Joanne readily slid between the sheets. "I'll go to sleep too."
"..." A long pause spread from the other end of the phone. The pause was so long that Joanne thought Brian had slept and was about to hang up, he suddenly said, "I can't sleep."
She paused. "What?"
"I miss you."
Joanne couldn't suppress the corner of her lips. "I miss you too!"
After comforting him for a long while, Brian finally agreed to sleep. She hung up the phone, and the screen light died down, but she could still her smiling face reflected on her phone.
She saw how sweet her smile was, and how much she looked like a young girl in mad love.
She did not know if it was because of the heating pads or Brian's "I miss you", she suddenly got warm. The room didn't feel so cold anymore, and Joanne soon peacefully fell into a deep sleep.
On the next day, they still worked nonstop, but they had made huge progress about the case. Leaders in the local police station especially asked them to get off work early, saying, "In addition to food, you can also see a lot of interesting places in our Glasgow. You've been busy with work all the time. Today, you should go see places and eat great food while you're at it!"
However, the problem was where.
Because of their identity, they couldn't go to restaurants that cost too much, and they would need to book early as well if they wanted to such places. The group of people searched for quite a while on their phones but came up with no destination at all. In the end, Joanne suggested. "Let's go to the old city area to have hotpot. After that, we can also hang on the streets there."
If Joanne hadn't led them there, Captain Turner and his team couldn't have imagined the arcade to be a hotpot restaurant because there wasn't even a sign hanging on it.
Hannah tut-tutted. "They all say really good food in Glasgow hides in places most people can't find. It's true."
As expected, they all found Wesley's family receipt very satisfying. After the meal, Joanne went to foot the bill, but the restaurant staff recognized her and wouldn't take the money no matter how she tried. Thus, she had to give up, knowing Wesley had instructed them to do so. Finally, she just asked, "Where's Yuna?"
"That gal." When talking about Yuna, the elder auntie in the restaurant grinned from ear to ear. "She went to do things for Mr. Mu last month. To be honest, we really didn't want to let her go. She's such a hilarious kid, almost like a walking joke book."
Today, Joanne didn't seem to have a chance to see Yuna, so she had to give up the idea. Then, she led Captain Turner and the team to hang out in the streets of the old city area. In the end, they returned to the hostel after taking a walk for some time.
It was still cold, so she took a quick shower and wrapped herself in the quilt on the bed. Suddenly, he thought of Brian.
She really missed him.
However, she didn't miss him like she used to, missing him in pain. Instead, now, she was missing him with a subtle and indescribable sweetness.
Maybe they were connected in some way because Brian just called at that time. She flopped onto the bed to pick up the phone; her lazy voice sounded a little muffled. "Hello?"
"You've caught a cold?" Brian discerned the strangeness in her voice.
Joanne lifted the quilt. "No. I miss you!"
Brian paused for a while. "Open the door. I've had people send you something."
"What is it?" Joanne got up in doubt and curiously opened the door...


