Noon.


    Two pairs of mothers and daughters sat together in an upscale restaurant.


    Vanessa''s mother, lona Shannon, was in her early fifties, still graceful and striking. Once a minor actress, she''d left the country pregnant, scraping by for eighteen hard years. Then, on Vanessa''s eighteenth birthday, everything changed overnight.


    From washing dishes in diners, lona became the mother of an internationally acimed pianist. Suddenly, she found herself the subject of admiration and envy, ushered into a world of privilege.


    Eight years had passed since then, and lona had perfected the polished mannerisms of a society matron-every gesture radiated the confidence of someone used to luxury.


    Mrs. Yeaton was fuming. “That homewrecker finally quieted down these past couple of days, but honestly, she''s been driving me up the wall."


    "Don''t worry, sis. I''ll handle Rnd. You just make sure to show that woman exactly who''s in charge," Iona replied, her own frustration simmering.


    Vanessa and Faye stayed silent, ufortable as their mothers rehashed their fathers''test indiscretions.


    Before long, the conversation shifted, as it always did, to the daughters'' love lives. Mrs. Yeaton brightened. "Vanessa, I heard Mr. Goodwin is officially divorced now. Looks like we''ll be celebrating your wedding soon!"


    lona shot her daughter a look of thinly veiled irritation. "If only she''d shown a little more backbone, she''d have been Mrs. Goodwin eight years ago."


    "Vanessa''s still young, only twenty-six," Mrs. Yeaton offered. "This is the perfect age to settle down."


    Vanessa smiled politely. "I''m not in any rush."


    "Well, I am! You''ve been with him for eight years. It''s time to make things official,” lona said, shooting her a sidelong nce. She''d dreamed of being the Goodwin family''s inw for years. With a son-inw liken, what more could she possibly want?


    Faye looked at Vanessa with a trace of envy. At leastn was willing to divorce for her. The man she secretly loved was still hopelessly devoted to Eleanor.


    Mrs. Yeaton was also eager for Vanessa to marry into the Goodwin family-her husband''s business would flourish, and her daughter would open doors to countless new opportunities.


    Meanwhile, in the research building, Eleanor ran into Jude Vaughn hurrying down the hall. He looked even thinner than before, and Eleanor couldn''t help but ask, "Jude, how have you beentely?"


    Jude let out a weary sigh. "Don''t even get me started. I called in specialists to inspect the equipment, and it turns out a third of it is faulty. I''ve filed a report and I''m pushing to switch suppliers and open a new round of bids."


    "Has the paperwork gone through yet?" Eleanor asked.


    "Still winding its way through the red tape, but I think it''ll get approved. I already briefed Mr. Goodwin, and he agreed to the change," Jude replied. Then he paused, suddenly remembering something. "Wait-Ellie, what''s going on between you and Mr. Goodwin?"


    "We''re divorced," Eleanor said simply.


    Jude looked genuinely surprised. He''d worked withn recently and found him to be both decent and attractive—he couldn''t imagine why Eleanor would leave him.


    "Well... you''re still young. You''ll have no trouble finding someone else," Jude said, managing a smile.


    After they parted ways, Eleanor and Joel headed into theb, where they dove into simting analyses between real and Al-modeled cells.


    Eleanor and Joel worked seamlessly together, often anticipating each other''s thoughts. They were a perfectly matched team.


    "This weekend there''s a conference in Kingston," Joel told her as they prepped the next round of experiments. "It''s all about integrating biology, Al, and physics— multi-disciplinary approaches. Any chance you can make it?"