Charlene, Stewart, and Quincy from Neural Nexus Tech had this little group chat going on.

Today’s events were just too juicy to keep to himself, so Quincy couldn’t resist spilling the tea to his friends at the first opportunity.

Charlene and Stewart honestly didn’t care much about how many admirers Vesta Hawkins had or how crazy those admirers got over her.

In the afternoon, when Quincy mentioned, “Hey, Mr. Henderson’s daughter showed up at the office today to see Director Hawkins. Remember when Director Hawkins said she got along really well with Mr. Henderson’s daughter, and we all kind of doubted it? Well, seeing Mr. Henderson’s daughter around made us realize she genuinely likes her,” Charlene paused her furious typing.

It wasn’t that the news of Jasmine Henderson being close to Vesta bothered her.

It was just that she suddenly realized if the word got out about Vesta and Jasmine being chummy, her uncle and grandma might not be kept in the dark for long.

Sure, she knew this day would come eventually, but still- Seeing the look on her face, Stewart could guess what was on her mind.

With a dismissive chuckle, he said, “The buzz about Jasmine is only spreading because Thorne Henderson has that kind of clout. But who is Vesta, really? At most, she’s like a sidekick to Thorne. Besides the folks at Neural Nexus Tech and her legion of admirers, who in the wider circle would care about how she’s getting along with Thorne’s daughter?”

As he mused, Stewart suddenly laughed, “If people discovered that you were also the professor’s student, that you masterminded the company’s CUAP and our latest projects, and that you’re actually Jasmine’s biological mom, that would really blow their minds. The fact that Vesta is playing stepmom? That’s nothing in comparison!”

Charlene felt surprisingly calm inside. But still…

She paused for a moment and said, “I think my uncle and grandma have already figured out about Jasmine cozying up to Vesta.”

They probably just pretended not to know to spare her feelings.

Stewart agreed.

He lightly patted her shoulder in reassurance “It’s a good thing they’re prepared. By not saying

anything, they’re showing that inet

their hearts, you’re more important than Jasmine. Your happiness is what matters most.”

Charlene smiled, “Yeah, I know.”

Talking about this made Charlene think about the progress of her divorce from Thorne.

Honestly, when she’d signed the divorce papers Thorne had given her, she thought it would be finalized quickly. But it’s been dragging on for months.

She’d asked Thorne countless times, and he kept saying it was nearly done, but…

Knowing Thorne was even more eager to wrap up the divorce than she was, she felt at ease waiting for his notice. But now…

Thinking about it, she called up Padgett to ask about the divorce proceedings.

Padgett checked in with her every week about the divorce status, and when Charlene brought it up, he said, “Tomorrow’s my day to touch base with Thorne’s lawyer. I’ll get back to you once I hear from them?”

“Alright,” Charlene replied, pausing briefly before continuing calmly, “If they come back with the same vague answers, tell their lawyer I’m willing to walk away with nothing: I don’t need anything Thorne offered me just have them draft a new agreement for me to sign as soon as possible.”