Chapter 441
It wasn’t just them-every other bidder, after spotting Charlene and Stewart, had more or less realized their own efforts had been for nothing.
And that’s exactly how things turned out.
While everyone waited, the results of the bid were announced surprisingly quickly. The winner of the Starfall smart transportation project was none other than PrimeStar.
Charlene and Stewart weren’t the least bit surprised. They had more important things to do and had no intention of lingering here.
As Charlene and Stewart walked past, not even sparing them a glance, Henley and Vesta’s faces, already sour, grew even darker.
Since relocating to Starfall, the Hawkins Group had managed to stay afloat thanks to Thorne’s connections. Because of Thorne and Vesta, plenty of people in local business circles knew about their company.
But that was pretty much where it ended-inside the circle. They still hadn’t managed to build any real recognition outside of it.
Previously, the problem had always been their lack of competitive technology. Now, after finally making a breakthrough, this smart city transportation project had seemed like their ticket to broader recognition. If Hawkins Technology could land this contract, their reputation and standing would skyrocket.
Everyone at their company had poured over a month of hard work and resources into this bid, convinced the project was as good as theirs. But now-
After Charlene and Stewart left, Henley and Vesta just sat there, unmoving for a long while.
The Hawkins and Spencer families were both following the bidding closely.
It wasn’t long before Leah couldn’t hold back and called Vesta. “Sis, did they announce the results yet? Did we win?”
Vesta’s voice was cool. “No.”
“No?” Leah frowned. “How is that possible? I mean, sure, there were a few strong contenders, but we ”
“PrimeStar got it.”
“What?!” Leah’s face fell. “PrimeStar? I thought they weren’t even bidding! How—”
As she pieced it together, Leah’s
tone turned venomous. “It must be that witch, Charlene. She can’t stand seeing how much Thorne cares about you, so she’s always trying to trip us up!”
She snorted. “The more she acts like this, the more Thorne will hate her! I’m
calling him right now to tell him what she did!”
Vesta cut her off, voice flat. “PrimeStar and the Henderson Group are working closely these days, Even if Thorne wanted to get involved, there’s nothing he can do about her right now.”
Leah hesitated. “So… what now? Are we just supposed to let this go?”
Vesta said nothing.
They might not be able to touch Charlene now, but that didn’t mean it would always be that way.
Back home, when Georgina Spencer, Katie Hawkins, and the rest of the family heard the news, their frustration boiled over.
After all, this was about the future of the Hawkins Group. It was no small matter.
They couldn’t just let Charlene run wild.
“It was bad enough when shenoveldrama
sabotaged Vesta with Mr. Wagner and Stewart, but now she’s
interfering with our company’s future. If she keeps targeting us like this”
“I know,” Henley interrupted. “I’ll find a chance to talk to her.”
This was too important to ignore.
In fact, when Charlene and Stewart had been about to leave, he’d almost called out to her-but with so many people around, he’d held back.
The next day, Charlene arrived at PrimeStar for work. She’d just stepped out of her car in the parking lot when Henley got out of his own and called her name.
“Charlene.”