Chapter 82

They talked for a few more hours after lunch. Both businesses had provisionally formed a cooperation by the afternoon. Two days later, Charlene and Stewart went to Neural Nexus Tech, Thorne's tech company, to talk about the specifics of the deal. They would meet Quincy and Mr. Ferrell, a significant company executive, when they arrived at Neural Nexus Tech. However, Mr. Ferrell was a little late. He apologized to Charlene and Stewart as soon as he entered the meeting room. "I was delayed in an upstairs meeting with Mr. Henderson. I apologize for the wait. As Charlene shook hands with Mr. Thorne, she wondered, "So, Thorne is also at Neural Nexus Tech?" Alongside Stewart, Ferrell said, "No worries."

They talked about the contract with Mr. Ferrell present. After a while, someone walked in. Presuming it was another employee of Neural Nexus Tech, Charlene and Stewart paid little heed. Charlene hesitated, but Quincy and Mr. Ferrell called her "Ms. Hawkins." Glancing up, Vesta was indeed there. Stewart also scowled. Vesta looked at Charlene and said, "I'm here to look," to Quincy and Mr. Ferrell. Continue. Please don't mind me. Mr. Ferrell and Quincy promptly reassured Vesta and gave their secretary the order to give her coffee without hesitation. They treated her with such warmth and respect that it was obvious they thought highly of her—almost as if she were the boss's partner. Vesta greeted Stewart as well.

Stewart said, "Mr. Ferguson," and nodded. "Ms. Hawkins," Vesta accepted a chair that had been brought over for her after Mr. Ferrell's assistant had poured her coffee. "May I have a look?" Vesta said, taking a sip of her coffee, setting the cup down, and noticing the contract on the table. "Of course," Mr. Ferrell laughed. Mr. Ferrell grinned and clarified, "Ms. Hawkins is Mr. Henderson's girlfriend," as he noticed Stewart and Charlene glancing over. She is welcome to be there when contracts are being signed, according to Mr. Henderson. "There was no worry about private leaks because it was obvious that Vesta was one of their own. Stewart grinned. "All right, Mr. Ferrell, we're comfortable with your assurance.

But Charlene kept her head down and said nothing. Because of sensitive business information, Thorne had prohibited her from entering his home office. From the day she moved in, he had communicated this to the housekeeping. So, over the years, she had never once gone into that home office. Vesta, however, was a well-known person at Neural Nexus Tech and had unrestricted access to Thorne's private papers. That demonstrated the extent of her bond with Thorne. Vesta was aware of the reactions Charlene and Stewart had when they saw her working with these materials. They were shocked by how close Vesta and Thorne had become and concerned about possible information breaches. Vesta put the paper down and turned to face Charlene, who kept her head down as though she were frightened to look her in the eye. Like the boss's wife, Vesta sipped her coffee and smiled.

Stewart questioned Mr. Ferrell as he was changing a provision in the contract: "Ms. Hawkins, have you thought about working at Neural Nexus Tech at 08:38?" Vesta put down her cup and met his gaze. "Thorne asked me the same, but I prefer to stand on my own two feet, not wanting to take shortcuts, so I declined." Mr. Ferrell laughed and cut Stewart off before he could reply. I admire your modesty, Ms. Hawkins. Even if you are closely related to Mr. Henderson, none of us would assume that you are taking a shortcut because we all know that you are an AI prodigy. On the contrary, our work would surely go more smoothly if Ms. Hawkins could join us at Neural Nexus Tech. Could you perhaps change your mind, Ms. Hawkins? Vesta smiled nonchalantly. "We'll see about that."