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Granger sent another text before disappearing for the night.
“I’m at a work dinner, you guys go ahead and chat.”
After that, he was off the grid.
Once Granger got into his car, he didn’t pay much
attention to the ongoing conversation and replied, “I’m busy too, catch you later.”
Then he closed the messaging app.
Seeing both Thorne and Granger were out of the loop, Vesta chimed in, “Time for dinner, talk later.”
Moran was totally speechless.
That afternoon, Charlene headed to the R&D department for a meeting. Gaylord was there too.
As Charlene skillfully identified issues and quickly offered solutions, Gaylord watched her without interrupting.
After the meeting wrapped up, Charlene was about to leave when she noticed Gaylord looking her way. She paused and, out of courtesy, asked, “Is your first day at the company going well?”
Gaylord replied, “I’m settling in fine, thanks for asking.”
Charlene nodded, said no more, and left the conference room with her laptop.
In the following days, Charlene juggled her work while negotiating a copyright agreement with an Al journal.
On Friday, after reviewing the R&D department’s work report, Charlene asked Chester to send Gaylord to her office.
Three minutes later, Gaylord knocked and entered.
Once he was seated, Charlene began, “Your algorithm does enhance the efficiency and performance of the existing model to a degree, but it still isn’t quite living up to my expectations.”
With that, she began discussing the issues with his algorithm.
Gaylord listened intently. He had been at PrimeStar for three or four days now. He had interacted with Charlene several times.
Her demeanor seemed vastly different from the day of his interview, yet Charlene didn’t seem curious or surprised by this change.
Moreover, on his first day, he sent her a bouquet of yellow roses as an apology.
Yet, days had passed, and Charlene never mentioned the flowers.
It was as if she never received them, and she didn’t seem curious about his reason for apologizing.
Charlene’s professional prowess was apparent to him during the interview.
However, after joining PrimeStar and witnessing her work firsthand, he realized she was far more competent than he had initially perceived.
In the Al field, Gaylord was considered a prodigy.
But after working with Charlene, he felt he hadn’t even scratched the surface of her expertise.
She seemed more innovative and skilled than the big names he had encountered at Goldland.
More importantly, she-
Charlene finished speaking, and seeing that Gaylord
didn’t leave immediately, she looked up, “Any other questions?”
Gaylord tore his gaze away from her, stood up, and said, “No, that’s all.”
Charlene nodded and said nothing further.
Gaylord returned to work.
Shortly after, his phone rang.
Upon answering, the voice on the other end asked, “So,
how’s it going with that Charlene girl? Do you think she’d choose you over Stewart?”
Choose between him or Stewart?
In Charlene’s eyes, he was probably just another researcher in the department.
“No progress,” he said while continuing to analyze data. “Gotta go.”
He hung up, and almost immediately, Vesta called him.
He glanced at the phone but didn’t answer, focusing on his work instead.
Meanwhile, across town…
“Mommy!”
As soon as Sally spotted her mom outside the kindergarten, she ran joyfully into her arms.
Sally’s mom hugged her tightly, then noticed Jasmine nearby and greeted her with a warm smile, “Hey there, Minnie.”
Jasmine nodded at Sally’s mom, “Hello, ma’am.”
Sally glanced around and asked Jasmine, “Minnie, is your driver here yet?”
Jasmine looked around but didn’t spot her family’s driver. Instead, she noticed many classmates being picked up by their moms, although she was usually picked up by the driver.
Initially, she didn’t mind.
She thought having her mom pick her up wasn’t cool at all,
So whether her mom came to pick her up or not didn’t matter.
But…
Seeing Jasmine’s driver hadn’t arrived yet, Sally’s mom noticed Jasmine seemed a bit off and asked with concern, “Is everything okay? You seem a little down.”
Jasmine remained silent.
Just then, her driver finally arrived.
She waved goodbye to Sally and her mom before getting into the car.
Once inside, she watched Sally bounce along with her mom as they walked to their car. Jasmine turned away and told her driver, “I’m not going home. Take me to my great-grandmother’s house.”
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A little while later, Thorne Henderson picked up the phone. “School’s out?”
“Yeah…”
Thorne chuckled, “Missing your mom?”
“Yeah…”
“Haven’t called her?”
“Yeah.”
Thorne let out a small laugh, “Go ahead, today your mom should have time to pick up.”
Jasmine Henderson’s eyes lit up at his words, “Really?”
“Really, give her a call.”
“Okay!”
As soon as she hung up with Thorne, Jasmine quickly dialed Charlene Ross.
Charlene paused when she saw Jasmine’s call. Although they had seen each other recently when Jasmine had an accident and ended up in the
hospital, those meetings weren’t part of the planned monthly visits.
Putting those aside, it had actually been over a month since they last met according to their arrangement.
With that in mind, Charlene answered, “Hey, Minnie, just got out of school-“
Before Charlene could finish, Jasmine, thrilled that Charlene had picked up, exclaimed, “Mom!”
Jasmine’s voice was full of delight.
Charlene paused, her hand still over the computer mouse. It took her a moment to respond, softly saying, “Yes, I’m here. You finished school?”
“Yeah!” Jasmine replied excitedly. “Mom, where are you? I wanted to call you before, but I was afraid you’d be too busy. But Dad said you’d definitely have time today, so are you coming home?”
“Not quite-” Charlene began, then paused before continuing, “I’m still at the office, but later I’ll head over to your great-grandma’s. Do you want to meet there, or-“
“Wherever you go, Mom, I want to go!” Jasmine interrupted.
Charlene smiled to herself, “Alright. Then you head to your great-grandma’s, and I’ll join you after work.”
“Okay!”
After wrapping up her tasks at the office, Charlene left and headed to the Ross family home. She barely made it to the door when Jasmine, hearing the sound of the car, dashed out and leaped into her arms. “Mom!”
“Yes,” Charlene said, lifting her up. Inside, Helena Ross greeted them with a warm smile, “Charlene, you’re back just in time! Dinner’s ready. Come on in.”
Charlene nodded, “Alright.”
Jasmine sat next to Charlene at the table. It had been ages since she’d had a meal cooked by her mom.
Unable to contain her longing, Jasmine turned to Charlene and said, “Mom, it’s been so long since you cooked for me. Could you make dinner tomorrow? I miss the food you cook.”
Ever since she decided to divorce Thorne, Charlene hadn’t cooked much for Jasmine. And even when Jasmine visited the Ross family, Charlene had been too busy to whip up anything special.
Thinking about it, she agreed, “Sure.”
The ongoing situation with Vesta wasn’t much of a concern to outsiders. So, the close bond between Charlene and Jasmine hadn’t reached the ears of Irma or Vernon.
They had suspected, even before Jasmine returned, that she might grow attached to Vesta.
Naturally, this made them uneasy. But they also understood that Jasmine was young and unaware of the complicated history between the Ross and
Hawkins families. She couldn’t be blamed for what she didn’t know.
Charlene hadn’t been able to secure custody of
Jasmine, and Irma, and Vernon had worried that long separations might drive a wedge between mother and daughter.
Seeing Jasmine so attached to Charlene now, they were pleasantly surprised and quietly relieved.
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After dinner, Jasmine casually mentioned that Thorne was out of town for business, which came as news to Charlene.
Around nine in the evening, Charlene was taking a shower when her phone, left on the bed, started ringing.
Jasmine glanced at the screen and saw it was
Granger Harden calling. She picked up the phone and answered, “Granger.”
Hearing Jasmine’s voice, Granger paused for a
moment before responding, “Minnie.”
Before Jasmine could say anything else, Charlene
walked out of the bathroom. Jasmine handed her the phone, saying, “Mom, it’s Granger.”
“Okay,” Charlene said, taking the phone. Before she could speak, Granger said, “Am I interrupting?”
Charlene replied, “Not at all.”
Granger continued, “I’m out of town right now. We’ll have to reschedule our dinner for another time.”
Charlene responded, “That’s fine.”
After hanging up, Charlene was about to blow dry her hair when she caught Jasmine giving her a curious look.
Charlene asked, “What’s up?”
“Mom, you know Granger too?”
Charlene nodded, “Yeah.”
“Oh…”
The next morning, Charlene went downstairs to make breakfast.
About half an hour later, as she was heading back upstairs, she saw Jasmine on the phone. Jasmine ran over to her and handed her the phone, “Mom, it’s Dad.”
Charlene took the phone and asked, “What’s up?”
Thorne said, “I won’t be back until Wednesday at the earliest. Minnie will probably want to stay with the Ross family until then, so I appreciate you looking after her these next few days.”
Charlene listened quietly, then hung up the phone after the call.
On Monday, after dropping Jasmine off at school, Charlene headed to work.
With a project deadline looming, she was incredibly busy that week, often staying late into the night to finish her work. Because of this, even though Jasmine was staying with the Rosses, Charlene only had time to chat with her briefly in the mornings.
By Thursday afternoon, Jasmine called to let her know Thorne was back.
After school that day, Jasmine went straight back to the Henderson family.
On Saturday, Charlene met up with Granger and Daisy at the amusement park.
Upon seeing Charlene, Granger remarked, “It’s been a while since we last saw each other.”
“Has it?” Charlene replied, not having noticed the time passing.
Granger looked like he had something on his mind, but he didn’t say anything until it was nearly lunchtime. Hesitantly, he said, “You know Neural Nexus Tech has several shareholders, right?”
Charlene nodded, “Yeah.”
“Thorne plans to buy out the shares from me and Moran and give them too.
Granger didn’t finish his sentence, but Charlene knew he was referring to Vesta.
She was well aware of how indulgent Thorne had been towards Vesta at Neural Nexus Tech.
She had once joked that she wouldn’t be surprised if Thorne let Vesta take over the company entirely.
But she never thought he’d actually do it…
Even as a new company, Neural Nexus Tech was worth billions, and Thorne was just handing it over so easily.
Granger then added, “Moran and I agreed to it.”
Charlene simply said, “I see.”
Granger, Moran, and Thorne had been close friends since they were kids, practically inseparable. Given their bond, Charlene understood why they would agree when Thorne asked.
Granger wanted to give Charlene the heads up that things were shaking up at Neural Nexus Tech, even though they were still teamed up with PrimeStar Technologies…
Granger knew how much she loved Thorne.
Before understanding her connection with Stewart Ferguson, he genuinely thought she’d moved on from Thorne.
Now, however, he wasn’t sure if she’d truly let go.
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Over the years, the Hawkins family’s tech company had been struggling, bleeding money due to a lack of cutting-edge technology and high-caliber talent.
To help turn things around, Thorne embarked on a business trip, spending considerable effort to recruit some tech whizzes from overseas for the Hawkins family’s tech venture.
With Thorne’s assistance, the Hawkins family’s company was expected to make a comeback soon.
However, none of this really concerned Charlene. If she still liked Thorne, finding out he was involved would just make her feel even worse. So, Granger decided to keep it to himself.
After lunch, Granger had some matters to attend to, and they went their separate ways.
By Monday, the transfer of shares in Neural Nexus Tech to Vesta was finalized.
Charlene and Stewart found out about it because Quincy shared the news in the group chat as soon as he heard.
Thorne’s gift of a mansion worth over six million to Maureen Spencer or his decision to give part of his shares to Vesta on Valentine’s Day. Charlene hadn’t mentioned any of this to Stewart.
Although Stewart was aware that Thorne treated Vesta well, he wasn’t fully clued in on just how generous Thorne could be.
So, when the news hit, he was caught off guard for a moment.
Once he processed it, he muttered through gritted teeth, “Man, he’s really pulling out all the stops, huh?”
Charlene, having already heard about it, was unfazed.
“Let’s focus on work first,” she said.
The following evening, they had a dinner party to attend.
By the time Charlene and Stewart arrived, the place was bustling with guests.
Not long after, Granger and Moran made an entrance as well.
Just as Granger was about to greet them, Thorne and Vesta walked into the banquet hall, escorted by the hosts.
As always, Vesta was decked out in designer clothes and dazzling jewelry.
Neural Nexus Tech was well-known in their circles, and the news of Thorne handing over the entire company to Vesta had spread like wildfire.
Their arrival immediately drew the attention of nearly everyone at the party.
“That’s Thorne and his girlfriend. You’ve heard about the Neural Nexus Tech thing, right? Thorne’s quite the catch, but even he couldn’t resist her charms. Handing over such a promising company just like that is such a grand gesture!”
“Totally! If I were Vesta, I’d be over the moon. My boyfriend treats me like that, and I’d be on cloud nine.”
Someone else chimed in, “Wasn’t Thorne married
before? How come he never showed such generosity to his ex-wife?”
“I heard he wasn’t really in love with his ex. The marriage was more of a forced affair.”
“That makes sense. Otherwise, why would he keep his marriage so hush-hush? If it weren’t for that birthday party incident with Irma Henderson, nobody would’ve known he was ever married.”
“Exactly.”
Hearing this, Stewart and Granger glanced at Charlene. Her expression remained unchanged.
Leah had also shown up. She hadn’t seen Granger in ages and had specifically come over with Vesta.
As soon as she spotted Granger, she headed straight for him. “Granger.”
Granger didn’t respond.
Seeing him brush her off, Leah’s face fell slightly. Spotting Charlene nearby, she pursed her lips, let out a small huff, then forced a smile as she said to Granger, “Granger, my sister and her group are over there. Let’s head over.”
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Granger still didn’t pay any attention.
Just then, someone happened to come over and greet him.
The newcomer also knew Charlene and Stewart.
The four of them started chatting.
Leah was left standing awkwardly on the sidelines, feeling increasingly embarrassed until she had no choice but to make her exit.
Meanwhile, across the room, Moran looked over at Granger and said, “Granger seems to be hitting it off more and more with them.” By “them,” it was clear Moran meant Charlene and Stewart.
Vesta nodded in agreement.
After all, if Granger and Stewart were merely business partners, a quick hello and some polite small talk would have sufficed at such an event.
But here Granger was, engrossed in conversation with Stewart and Charlene, suggesting they were on the brink of friendship.
To Vesta, it made sense that Granger would befriend Stewart, as Stewart was certainly the kind of person worth getting to know.
Charlene was just a part of the package.
Thorne glanced over at Charlene and Stewart but didn’t seem too fazed.
Vesta turned her gaze away from them and noticed Gaylord Hearst making his entrance into the banquet hall.
Thorne followed her gaze and spotted Gaylord too.
Dressed formally, Gaylord looked even more striking and aloof than usual.
When Gaylord noticed Vesta and Thorne, he briefly met Vesta’s eyes before turning away to join his friends, entering the hall from the side.
Vesta watched him go, sighing with a helpless smile. “I guess he’s still mad at me for tipping off his family about his whereabouts. He hasn’t been taking my calls, and now he’s ignoring me even in person.”
Thorne remarked, “Mr. Hearst is still young. It’s only natural for him to be a bit hot-headed.”
Vesta couldn’t disagree.
Unaware of what Vesta and Thorne thought, Gaylord had just stepped into the room and was about to greet the host when he caught sight of Charlene and Stewart.
His grip on his wine glass tightened momentarily.
He hadn’t expected Charlene and Stewart to attend the party night.
Charlene was decked out in a pale blue gown with fancy embroidery that really showed off her calm and classy vibe. She looked absolutely breathtaking.
It was the first time Gaylord had seen Charlene in such attire. He found it hard to tear his eyes away.
Noticing Gaylord’s distraction, his friend followed his gaze and, upon seeing Charlene, exclaimed, “Wow, she’s gorgeous! Who is she?”
Gaylord snapped back to reality, replying, “Charlene.”
“Charlene?! That’s Charlene? She’s that beautiful?”
Gaylord didn’t respond, setting down his wine glass and making his way over to Charlene and Stewart. “Mr. Ferguson, Ms. Ross.”
Charlene and Stewart turned, surprised to see Gaylord.
They hadn’t expected him at the event either.
They nodded in acknowledgment.
Granger turned to see Gaylord and asked, “And who might this be?”
Stewart introduced him, “This is Mr. Hearst.”
He briefly explained Gaylord’s background and then introduced Granger, “This is Mr. Harden.”
Granger recalled hearing about the Hearst family from Starfall City before. After Stewart’s introduction, he greeted Gaylord, “Mr. Hearst.”
After exchanging pleasantries, the group began to chat.
Throughout the conversation, Gaylord’s gaze frequently drifted back to Charlene.
Moreover, the way he looked at Charlene-
Noticing this, Granger’s grip on his wine glass tightened, and he glanced over at Gaylord.
Gaylord caught his look and returned it.
As their eyes met, an understanding passed between them. They both realized each other’s feelings for Charlene.
With that recognition, they fell into a tense silence.
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But neither of them said a word about it.
Charlene and Stewart were busy chatting with others, completely oblivious to the silent exchange of glances happening between them.
Charlene, having skipped dinner, soon slipped away from the crowd and headed toward the buffet to grab a bite.
Gaylord followed her, striking up a conversation as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
Moran happened to be at the buffet too. He noticed them and whatever he saw made him pause, letting out a low whistle before turning back to Thorne and Vesta. “Looks like Gaylord’s taken a shine to Charlene,” he said, smirking. “Did you see the way he was looking at her? Classic puppy eyes.”
Thorne, curious, looked where Moran was staring. Sure enough, there was Charlene, busy chatting away with Gaylord.
Gaylord’s eyes, as he looked down at Charlene, were full of that soft, intense gaze men sometimes have when they’re truly interested in a woman.
Not to mention, he was being quite the gentleman, taking her empty glass and setting it aside, then reaching up to get a slice of cake from the top tier and handing it to her.
Thorne raised an eyebrow, clearly entertained by Gaylord’s attentive demeanor.
As soon as Moran finished speaking, Vesta had already turned her attention to Charlene and Gaylord. Gaylord was indeed very considerate of Charlene.
Seeing this scene unfold, if she didn’t already know the truth, even she might have believed that Gaylord was genuinely smitten with Charlene.
But-
“Gaylord’s plan is to pretend he’s into Charlene, and once she’s fallen for him, he’ll drop her like a hot potato-“
Recalling what Gaylord’s friends had said, Vesta glanced at Charlene again, noticing how animated she seemed while chatting with Gaylord.
Was she really falling for Gaylord’s act? Or did Charlene truly believe Gaylord was interested in her?
With all these thoughts running through her head, Vesta cracked a little, knowing smile. She glanced at Thorne, watching his nonchalant reaction to another man seemingly courting Charlene. The smile on her lips widened.
Moran suddenly remembered something and nudged Thorne. “By the way, isn’t The Henderson Group looking to partner with PrimeStar Technologies? Shouldn’t you go have a word with Stewart?”
Thorne took a sip of his drink, replying, “There’s a crowd over there. I’ll catch up with him later.”
If The Henderson Group were to partner with PrimeStar, it would certainly increase the frequency of meetings between Charlene and Thorne.
Some might try to sabotage such a partnership to prevent any lingering connections between Thorne and Charlene, but as far as Vesta was concerned…
She simply chuckled, unconcerned.
Meanwhile, Granger had been caught up in a conversation with someone else. When he finally managed to break away, he saw that Charlene was still deep in conversation with Gaylord. Judging by Charlene’s expression, they seemed to be having a great time.
He’d known Charlene for quite a while now, and although their relationship had improved recently, given their rocky past, he’d never seen her smile so genuinely during their conversations. And she was certainly more talkative…
Granger wasn’t entirely familiar with Gaylord yet. But based on appearances alone, Gaylord was undeniably impressive.
With that thought, Granger’s eyes darkened slightly. He turned to his business associate, “Sorry, something’s come up. Let’s catch up later.”
And with that, he made his way toward Charlene and Gaylord.
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Gaylord spotted him the moment he approached. His thin lips pursed in displeasure, and his eyes quickly turned icy as they landed on Granger.
Granger acted as if he hadn’t seen a thing and continued his stride towards them without the slightest pause.
He stopped in front of Charlene, turning to her with a composed demeanor, “What’s the chat about?”
Charlene, completely clueless about the tension between the two men, just said, “Work stuff.”
For Charlene to be chatting so happily with Gaylord, suggested that Gaylord was quite skilled in his profession. This meant, compared to him, Charlene and Gaylord probably had more in common to talk about.
Plus, Gaylord still worked at PrimeStar. This gave him more opportunities to interact with Charlene than Granger had. The thought made the smile on Granger’s face fade a bit.
He was about to speak when Stewart approached.
Seeing both Gaylord and Granger by Charlene’s side puzzled him a bit. But he didn’t dwell on it, simply saying, “Well, look who’s all here.”
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Thorne and Vesta joined them, “Mr. Ferguson.”
Stewart’s smile didn’t quite reach his eyes, “Mr. Henderson, is there something you need?”
Thorne replied, “There’s a project I’d like to discuss with Mr. Ferguson, to see if he’s interested.”
The Henderson Group’s tech company was one of the leading giants in the national tech arena, boasting countless core technologies and patents.
Their upcoming product had already made waves internationally.
As soon as Thorne mentioned wanting to collaborate, Stewart knew exactly what Thorne was pitching.
Honestly, Stewart found it quite appealing.
Especially since, as one of the top companies in their industry domestically, they bore the responsibility of pushing domestic products onto the world stage to enhance their international influence.
To truly bring their innovative products to the forefront globally, it couldn’t be done by a single company alone.
It required mutual support among companies, collaborating for mutual benefits in technology.
So, even though Stewart had personal reservations about Thorne and didn’t particularly want to work with him, on this matter-
He didn’t need to consult Charlene; he already knew what the answer would be in his heart.
Because he knew Charlene’s answer would align with his.
He said casually, “Now’s not the time for collaboration talks. If you want to discuss it, Mr. Henderson, come by PrimeStar tomorrow.”
Thorne wasn’t surprised by Stewart’s response. He chuckled, saying, “Consider it settled then.”
Stewart, clearly annoyed, kept his tone even and asked, “Anything else, Mr. Henderson?”
Thorne replied, “That’s all,” and then said, “Sorry for the interruption.”
With that, he didn’t spare a glance at Charlene, turning to leave with Vesta.
Before Vesta left, she glanced over at Gaylord and Granger. Gaylord, noticing her gaze, turned his face away.
Granger stayed silent.
The next day.
Charlene drove to the office and had just stepped out of her car when she ran right into Thorne and Coy, who were also just exiting their vehicle.
She paused slightly as she shut her car door.
She knew Thorne was scheduled to come by for a meeting about the collaboration that morning, but she hadn’t expected him to arrive so early.
Seeing her, Thorne said, “Morning.”
Charlene didn’t respond, instead turning and heading straight for the office entrance.
Since Charlene had left The Henderson Group, Coy hadn’t seen much of her. In his mind, she was still the Charlene who used to be eager to stick by Thorne.
He wasn’t used to seeing her treat Thorne with such indifference. It felt odd.
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Charlene ignored him, so Thorne simply kept his silence.
From the other side of the parking lot, Gaylord emerged, spotting them and making his way over to Charlene.
“Morning!”
Charlene nodded, “Morning.”
Gaylord paused, then turned to Thorne with a casual nod, “Morning.”
Thorne grinned, “Morning.”
Thorne was at PrimeStar Technologies to discuss a potential partnership.
Charlene, being a key figure in the company, was expected to warmly greet any business partners visiting for collaboration talks. But after Gaylord exchanged pleasantries with both Charlene and Thorne, he noticed that Charlene hadn’t even bothered to turn towards Thorne, let alone engage him in conversation. She just walked straight ahead, showing no intention of playing the gracious host.
Was Charlene’s chilly demeanor towards Thorne because of his connection with Vesta?
Gaylord considered this as he glanced back at Thorne.
Charlene’s standoffishness didn’t seem to faze Thorne in the slightest; there wasn’t a hint of irritation on his face.
Gaylord decided to remain silent.
The four of them entered the elevator in silence.
Inside, Gaylord stood beside Charlene. She was wearing high heels, and even with just a touch of makeup, she looked stunning and composed. Gaylord found himself captivated by Charlene’s elegant profile, unable to tear his gaze away.
He kept staring until he noticed Thorne seemed to be watching him, prompting him to quickly divert his eyes back to Thorne.
Thorne caught his eye and smiled, but said nothing.
The elevator soon arrived at PrimeStar’s floor.
Without so much as a glance at Thorne, Charlene exited the elevator. Gaylord, needing to discuss work matters with Charlene, followed her.
As they headed off, Thorne swung back around to follow the receptionist to PrimeStar’s meeting room.
After waiting for over ten minutes, Stewart finally arrived at the office.
Upon entering the meeting room and seeing Thorne, Stewart said, “Apologies, Mr. Henderson, for keeping you waiting.”
His words suggested regret, but his tone was indifferent, his expression lacking any sincere apology.
Coy, who had been by Thorne’s side for years, had seen all sorts of influential people. But he’d never seen anyone snub Thorne like that before. This thought made Coy frown.
Thorne, however, appeared unfazed, shook Stewart’s hand, and said, “I’m not in a hurry, so it’s fine.”
Stewart wasn’t fond of Thorne, but given the decision to collaborate, he just wanted to get it over with.
So, once seated, he dove straight into the business at hand.
Though PrimeStar already had a partnership with Neural Nexus Tech, it was previously negotiated by someone else Thorne had sent to PrimeStar.
In fact, this was Stewart’s first formal meeting with Thorne.
At Helena’s birthday party last year, Thorne had a brief chat with Kenton, and Stewart had gotten a sense of Thorne’s depth of knowledge in the Al field.
However, that conversation had been brief.
Today, as they discussed the requirements for PrimeStar’s next-generation chip’s computing and reasoning capabilities for nearly three hours, Stewart realized Thorne’s expertise in Al was even more profound than he had initially perceived.
No matter the topic, Thorne was never at a loss, his breadth of knowledge impressively vast.
Stewart even felt that Thorne’s competence in this area rivaled his own.
This realization left him feeling a bit on edge.
Thorne glanced at his watch, “It’s almost noon. Shall we continue this after lunch?”
Stewart replied, “Sure, whatever works for you.”
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Thorne suggested, “How about grabbing a bite together? My treat.”
Stewart wasn’t exactly thrilled about the idea of dining out with Thorne. “Thanks for the offer, Mr. Henderson, but I’m feeling a bit worn out today. I think I’ll just hit the cafeteria for something quick. You go ahead and enjoy your meal.”
Thorne chuckled, “The cafeteria is definitely the easiest option. How about you let us tag along, Mr. Ferguson?”
Stewart found himself at a loss for words.
A few minutes later, they found themselves at the PrimeStar Technologies cafeteria.
Being the company’s CEO, Stewart naturally attracted attention, and with Thorne by his side, both looking exceptionally sharp, they were hard to miss.
Charlene was already there, enjoying her meal.
Across from her sat Gaylord, engaged in conversation. Charlene hadn’t noticed Stewart until someone greeted him with a “Mr. Ferguson.” She looked up, surprised to see not only Stewart but Thorne as well.
Gaylord followed her gaze, looking over in their direction.
As Charlene and Gaylord glanced up, Stewart, Thorne, and Coy noticed them.
Charlene appeared to be on friendly terms with Gaylord, but Thorne didn’t seem fazed by it at all.
Stewart caught Charlene’s eye and gave her a reassuring nod, silently telling her to focus on her meal. He would handle Thorne.
Charlene nodded back and returned to her lunch.
After deciding to team up with Thorne, Stewart intended to take full responsibility for managing this partnership. He instructed Charlene to maintain a safe distance from Thorne throughout the collaboration.
After ordering their food, Stewart led Thorne to a table far from Charlene’s.
Thorne didn’t object to this arrangement.
Throughout the meal, Thorne never glanced in Charlene’s direction, though Coy sneaked several looks her way.
Coy had heard bits and pieces about Charlene and Stewart but wasn’t sure what was true.
That morning, Charlene had been quite cold when she saw Thorne and her indifference remained in the cafeteria. It seemed she really had moved on from Thorne.
Coy also noticed that even though Charlene and Gaylord seemed close, Thorne, not yet married to her, didn’t seem concerned.
But Coy wasn’t surprised. He knew how much Thorne had despised Charlene over the years and how deeply he loved Vesta Hawkins.
Reflecting on this, Coy shifted his attention back to his meal.
By the time Stewart and Thorne finished eating, Charlene had already left the cafeteria.
Later that afternoon, Thorne had to attend to other matters and left PrimeStar around three, with their partnership still up in the air.
In the following days, Thorne visited PrimeStar several more times, but Charlene managed to avoid running into him after that first encounter. For all intents and purposes, they had no interaction.
To everyone else, aside from Stewart who was in the know, it was unimaginable that Charlene and Thorne were actually married.
After several visits, it became common knowledge at PrimeStar that The Henderson Group and PrimeStar were working on a joint project.
One day, as Charlene entered a meeting room, she overheard a female colleague gushing, “I just bumped into Thorne, the boss of The Henderson Group, in the elevator. He’s incredibly handsome!”
“With that kind of money and those looks, I’ve heard he’s super sweet to his girlfriend. Apparently, he even gifted her an entire company, Neural Nexus Tech, a while back. I can’t even imagine how lucky she must feel!”
Chapter 350
Helena Ross was expecting some family from Portland to visit her in Starfall City.
That morning, Charlene had just wrapped up a meeting when Helena, the charming old lady, called, inviting her to join them for lunch.
Standing by the elevator, Charlene waited patiently. Just then, Livingston, the newly appointed general manager of PrimeStar, approached alongside Thorne, Coy, and their colleagues.
“Ms. Ross,” Livingston greeted with a nod as he spotted her.
Charlene returned the nod, acknowledging him.
Livingston wasn’t certain if Thorne and Charlene knew each other. To his knowledge, even though Thorne had been to PrimeStar to discuss partnering, Charlene and Thorne had never met.
Seeing that Charlene didn’t acknowledge Thorne, Livingston assumed she didn’t know him and took it upon himself to introduce them. “Ms. Ross, this is Mr. Henderson from The Henderson Group.”
Then turning to Thorne, he added, “And this is Ms. Ross from our R&D department.”
Charlene didn’t look at Thorne but simply said, “I know.”
Thorne glanced at her, then told Livingston, “No need for introductions, we’re quite familiar with each other.” Livingston paused, glancing between Thorne and Charlene.
“Quite familiar?” he thought. He couldn’t tell at all.
He didn’t voice his bewilderment, just gave a sheepish smile and said, “Oh, I see…”
Charlene remained silent. Thorne chuckled but didn’t say more.
Livingston was left speechless. It was clear to him now-Charlene just wasn’t interested in engaging with Thorne.
This was similar to Stewart’s attitude too.
Livingston wasn’t sure if there was some history or misunderstanding among Thorne, Charlene, and Stewart. But…
Thorne wasn’t just anyone; he was a key player in the company’s current collaboration plans. Charlene and Stewart both seemed indifferent towards him, yet Thorne didn’t seem to mind their chilly reception…
Realizing this, Livingston was unsure if he should feel relieved or anxious.
Just as he was about to break the silence, Thorne’s phone rang. “You’ve arrived? I’ll be right down,” Thorne said, answering the call.
After hanging up, as they stepped into the elevator, Livingston chuckled, “Ms. Hawkins picking you up lunch again? You and Ms. Hawkins have a great bond.”
Thorne smiled, about to reply when his phone buzzed again, signaling it was important. Livingston decided not to interrupt further.
As the elevator reached the ground floor, Charlene walked out without looking back.
Outside, in the parking lot, she spotted Vesta standing by a car, waiting. Their eyes met.
Vesta’s gaze was cold and detached as she looked at Charlene.
Charlene quickly looked away, heading towards her own car.
Vesta’s demeanor softened only when she noticed Thorne walking a short distance behind Charlene.
Charlene got into her car and prepared to leave. She caught a glimpse of Vesta handing her car keys to Coy and then climbing into Thorne’s car with him.
Charlene shifted her focus back to the road and drove off, leaving thoughts of Thorne and Vesta behind her.
After lunch at the restaurant, Charlene saw Helena and her family off, watching their car disappear down the street. Just as she was about to head back to her own car to return to work, she spotted Dalton exiting the restaurant.
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