Chapter 445
That night, when Charlene got home, she found Jasmine already fast asleep in her room.
After her shower, Charlene slipped under the covers. Almost immediately, Jasmine instinctively rolled over, nestling into her arms, and mumbled sleepily, “Mommy, you’re back?”
“I’m here. Go back to sleep,” Charlene whispered.
There was no reply.
Charlene glanced down and realized Jasmine had already drifted off again.
The next morning, Stewart headed out for a business meeting, while Charlene joined a group of engineers for a trip to The Henderson Group.
Charlene spent most of the morning deep in conversation about technical matters. When the discussion finally wound down, she glanced back and noticed Thorne standing nearby, quietly listening to her.
She paused, drew her attention back to the group, and said, “There are actually a few outstanding papers in academia on what I just mentioned. Would you like me to recommend some titles?”
“Yes, please!” came the enthusiastic response.
Charlene rattled off the names and authors of the papers, then turned to gather her things-only to meet Vesta’s gaze.
Thorne noticed her arrival and walked over. “When did you get here?”
Charlene looked away, leaving Vesta to answer.
With a small smile, Vesta replied, “Just now.”
In reality, she’d been there two or three minutes already.
She’d arrived just in time to catch Thorne and his technical team listening intently as Charlene explained some complex concepts. She only saw Thorne in profile, and though the angle wasn’t perfect, it was clear that as he watched Charlene, there was a look of genuine admiration in his eyes.
The realization made her smile falter for a moment.
It was the first time she’d ever seen Thorne look at Charlene that way.
But… that didn’t necessarily mean anything. Or so she told herself.
Later that afternoon, Vesta had more business at The Henderson Group and stopped by again.
This time, she went straight to Thorne’s office.
He wasn’t there yet.
She was about to sit down when she noticed several books stacked neatly on his desk. Curious, she picked one up and saw it was an Al journal. Flipping through, she found an article that had been carefully marked.
When she saw the title, she froze.
It was one of the very papers Charlene had recommended that morning.
Vesta’s mind flashed back to Thorne listening quietly as Charlene spoke, his expression attentive and engaged. She pressed her lips
together, a flicker of something
unspoken in her eyes.
Driven by a sudden need to know, she checked the other journals. Sure enough, they’d all been marked up as well.
And she recognized the markings immediately-they were Thorne’s, his usual style whenever he read.
Just then, the office door swung open.
Vesta’s heart jumped. She looked up and met Josh’s gaze.
He smiled in greeting. “Ms. Hawkins! The CEO’s still in a meeting. He should be
done in about half an hour—”
“That’s fine, I know,” Vesta said quickly.
Josh glanced at the books she was holding “Oh, those? The boss had
me
Are y
sh-order them this order
you interested in this stuff too?”
“Rush-order?” Vesta echoed, her voice barely above a whisper.
“Yep,” Josh replied cheerfully.
He was only there to grab a file and didn’t seem to notice her sudden stillness.
“Ms. Hawkins, I’ve got to run-”
“Go ahead, don’t worry about me,” she said.
“I’ll have someone bring you a coffee,” Josh added as he left, file in hand.
Vesta set the journal down with deliberate care and moved to the sofa to wait.
Josh had said Thorne’s meeting would last half an hour; in the end, it was barely five minutes before Thorne walked in.
Seeing him, Vesta managed a smile. “That was quick.”
“Josh told me you were here,” Thornlied. “There wasn’t
anything urgent left in the moal net
sol came back.”
He glanced at the journals on his desk, but only briefly, before turning away and
settling into the seat beside her.noveldrama
Vesta caught the gesture, and her smile faded just a little.
She’d thought, at first, that he’d rushed back just for her.
Now it seemed…