When Eleanor woke up from her nap, she found herself covered by a suit jacket that definitely didn''t belong to her.


    Frowning, she sat up and examined the jacket. For a moment, she wondered if it was Joel''s, but the fabric was clearly bespoke, and the sapphire cufflinks gave it away. Eleanor wrinkled her nose in distaste and tossed it aside.


    It wasn''s.


    Had hee by?


    Rubbing her forehead, Eleanor got up and went to wash her face. On her way back, she ran into Gwenda, who sidled up with a knowing look. "Eleanor, Mr. Goodwin was in your office for over an hour just now. He didn''t... do anything, did he?"


    Eleanor''s face darkened immediately. "Over an hour?"


    "Yeah! He came in right after you fell asleep, and didn''t leave until almost two," Gwenda said.


    So, he''d been there the whole time she was napping?


    Back in her office, Eleanor found nothing missing-just the extra suit jacket draped over a chair. She sat at her desk and awoke herptop; her project schedule still filled the screen. Exhaling, she picked up her coffee, feeling a wave of irritation.


    Just then, Gwenda came in with some files. Spotting the coffee cup, she asked, "Is it cold? I brought it for you, but you fell asleep right after."


    A thought struck Eleanor. She grabbed the cup and realized that at least two- thirds of it was gone.


    Someone had drunk her coffee.


    Her expression changed instantly. She bolted to the trash can, doubled over, and gagged as if she''d just swallowed something vile.


    “Uh—was it that bad? Isn''t this your usual order?" Gwenda asked, baffled.


    "Pass me a tissue, please,” Eleanor croaked, tears stinging her eyes as she retched.


    After Gwenda handed her a few tissues, Eleanor wiped her mouth, then staggered to the water cooler and gulped down a full ss. Her face was still pale.


    "What happened? Was there something wrong with the coffee?" Gwenda pressed, genuinely concerned.


    "No," Eleanor muttered, shaking her head. It wasn''t the coffee-it was the fact thatn had drunk from it. Just the thought made her want to throw up.


    "Oh..." Gwenda was still at a loss.


    For the next two days, Eleanor buried herself in her proposal. Byron sent an email: tomorrow, the Goodwin & Co. shareholders'' meeting would be held at Meridian Dynamics.


    So,n was bringing all the shareholders here to listen to her presentation. That was just like him.


    The shareholders weren''t happy when they got the notice. Rumor had itn was going to announce a new three-year n-something none of them expected.


    Still, they were curious. They wanted to see what kind of reportn could present to persuade them.


    Marcus, however, was unbothered. His recent performance in the Goodwin & Co. project division had won over a majority of the shareholders, and they rated him highly.


    As far as Marcus was concerned, ifn insisted on pushing the neural interface project, he could wait another three years. He was certain the whole thing was doomed-there was no way it''d make a ssh in that time.


    The next morning, Meridian Dynamics'' parking lot looked like a luxury car show, with every kind of high-end vehicle on disy. All of Goodwin & Co.''s shareholders, major and minor, had arrived. Security was tight, and bodyguards kept reporters at bay.


    Inside, the staff at Meridian Dynamics were on edge. With so many powerful shareholders in the building, everyone was on high alert, ready to spring into action at a moment''s notice.


    Meanwhile, Faye received a call from Vanessa, who told her to keep her updated on everything happening.


    Faye was puzzled-why was the Goodwin & Co. shareholders'' meeting being held at Meridian Dynamics, of all ces? Lately, Eleanor hadn''t shown up for meetings, and Byron had made it clear that nobody was to disturb her work. Faye couldn''t make sense of it.


    She was justing out of the restroom when she sawn walking toward her. Her heart skipped a beat. "Mr. Goodwin, you''re here."


    "Morning,"n replied coolly, brushing past her without a second nce.


    Faye stared after him, taken aback. Then she remembered how stressedn had beentely; maybe nobody was getting a warm reception from him these days.


    A momentter, she spotted Gwenda heading toward the conference room and called out, "Gwenda, where are you off to?"