Thorne was intently focused on the stage, oblivious to Vesta''s gaze.
Vesta pressed her lips together, forcing herself to look away.
The Axiom Flux Technologiesunch event had been a resounding sess.
When Charlene and Mr. Ashcroft stepped down from the stage, they were met
with another wave of enthusiastic apuse.
The CEOs and executives in attendance immediately got up to congratte Mr.
Ashcroft and Charlene as they made their way off the stage.
Stewart was among the first to approach Charlene.
It was already clear that Axiom Flux Technologies'' self-driving car was about to
make waves both at home and abroad.
Charlene''s value was about to soar to new heights.
Having known Charlene for years, Stewart felt genuinely happy for her. As he
walked up, unable to resist, he pulled her into a hug and said, "Congrattions."
Charlene smiled. "Thank you, Stewart."
Her voice was soft, and no one else caught the way she addressed him.
Everyone here was in the tech business; they all understood how vital talent was
to sess.
At this moment, they were eyeing Charlene with even more interest than Mr.
Ashcroft himself.
After all, someone like her was a walking goldmine. If anyone could recruit her to
theirpany-
These business moguls were running the calctions in their minds, but none
dared make a move before Mr. Ashcroft. This was, after all, Axiom Flux
Technologies'' big day, and it wouldn''t do to disrespect him.
So, they all offered their congrattions to Mr. Ashcroft first.
Once that was done, they were eager to approach Charlene-only to find Stewart
had beaten them to it.
Over the past several months, Charlene and Stewart had often attended events
and parties together. Many of the executives present had already met her.
Back then, she''d just been Stewart''s girlfriend in their eyes, hardly attracting any
real attention.
But when Charlene''s research paper made headlines, her reputation changed-
suddenly she wasn''t just Stewart''s plus-one, but a talented scientist in her own
right.
Stewart was a genius, and now it seemed his partner was just as impressive.
People started to see how well-matched they were.
But today''s Axiom Flux Technologiesunch had upended those perceptions.
Charlene wasn''t just talented-she was a technological prodigy.
It was enough that Stewart was a genius, but to find a partner who matched him
step for step? It seemed almost unfair!
Plenty of the executives couldn''t help feeling a pang of jealousy.
After Stewart let go of Charlene, someone teased, "Mr. Ferguson, to think you''ve
been keeping Ms. Ross''s talents under wraps all this time. That''s just cruel."
"Isn''t that the truth?"
Stewart raised an eyebrow. "Keeping her under wraps? Maybe you just don''t have
the eye for talent that I do."
The focus had already shifted to Charlene.
After a few more jokes with Stewart, everyone turned to Charlene, making sure to
be extra polite. "Ms. Ross, congrattions."
Charlene replied, "Thank you."
"Ourpany is working on some
rted tech projects. Ms. Ross, do
you think you might have time to
meet soon? I''d love to discuss them
with you in detail."
She hadn''t even answered before another executive cut in, "His project hardly
counts as cutting-edge. Now, at mypany-"
Soon, Charlene and Stewart were surrounded by a lively, jostling crowd.
Thorne, meanwhile, remained seated where he was, watching the scene unfold
without moving.
Vesta sat beside him, hands clenched tightly in herp, equally motionless.
She nced at Thorne again.
He still didn''t seem to notice her-in
fact, it was as if he''d forgotten she
was there at all. He hadn''t so much
as nced in her direction for what
felt like ages.
Her face had grown pale, and her grip tightened further as she looked toward
Charlene in the distance.
She knew exactly what this sessfulunch meant.
There was only so much of the self-driving car market to go around. Axiom Flux
Technologies'' triumph would inevitably squeeze outpetitors.
If, before today, Neural Nexus Tech''s recent breakthroughs had promised them a
billion-dor share of the market-well, now...
The realization made Vesta''s chest tighten painfully.
And Charlene?
If even half of what she''d presented
on stage was her own work, just the
patent royalties alone would make
her a fortune. Never mind the
bonuses from other technologies.
Lost in these thoughts, Vesta was jolted back to reality by Thorne''s voice.
She turned to see him checking his watch. "Don''t we have another appointment
soon? It''s about time. Let''s get going."
Despite all her previous ruminations, her mind was suddenly nk.
Nodding, she stood and followed him as they made their way over to bid Mr.
Ashcroft farewell.
Mr. Ashcroft, still surrounded by well-wishers, was standing with Charlene and
Stewart.
Noticing them approach, Mr. Ashcroft greeted Thorne warmly. "Mr. Henderson."
Thorne shook his hand. "Congrattions."
Mr. Ashcroft smiled. "Thank you. To you as well."
Thorne turned to Charlene. "Congrattions."
Charlene''s expression was calm. "Thank you."
Thorne then said to Mr. Ashcroft, "We have another engagement, so we''ll be
heading out. Mr. Ashcroft, everyone-let''s catch up again soon."
Mr. Ashcroft and the other executives all nodded their farewells.
As they exchanged polite goodbyes with Thorne, several of them couldn''t help
ncing over at Vesta.