Chapter 349
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 had 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
meeting room, she overheard a female colleague gushing, “I just
bumped into Thorne, the boss omet
The Henderson Group, in the
elevator. He’s incredibly handsome!”
“With that kind of money and those looks, and I’ve heard he’s super
sweet to his girlfriend. A col
he even gifted her an entire company, Neural Nexus Tech, a
while back. I can’t even imagine how lucky she must feel!”