Thorne and Charlene had known each other for years and had been married for just as long, yet Thorne had never truly liked her. So even if there was a child involved, the very idea of Thorne and Charlene going out to dinner alone wouldn''t raise any rms-neither the Spencers nor the Hawkins would ever suspect that anything romantic could happen between them.


    Leah''s overreaction was purely because she just couldn''t stand Charlene.


    Maureen and Georgina, on the other hand, barely batted an eye.


    Maureen had no intention of disturbing Thorne in the private dining room. She gave Leah a gentle pat, signaling her to stop talking, then turned to the manager. "Could you show us the way, please?"


    With that, she didn''t spare Charlene another nce. Linking arms with Katie Hawkins, she followed the manager into another private room.


    Charlene might have real talent in the Al field, and the fact that she''d managed to win over Stewart Ferguson-and keep his unwavering loyalty was no small feat.


    But when it came to Thorne, Charlene meant absolutely nothing.


    So Maureen and Georgina genuinely didn''t care about Thorne having dinner with Charlene. They couldn''t even be bothered to tell Vesta about it.


    Leah, on the other hand, got annoyed the moment she saw Charlene. She didn''t actually believe Charlene could steal Thorne away from her cousin, but she was convinced that Charlene, finally getting a rare chance to see Thorne one-on-one, would try anything toe between Thorne and Vesta.


    The moment Leah sat down in their own private room, she fired off a message to Vesta:


    *Sis, you won''t believe who we just saw at the hotel-her, that witch, having dinner with your husband! And of course, she brought her daughter along too.*


    Vesta rarely replied to Leah''s texts.


    But this message was about Thorne, so she responded right away:


    *I know. Thorne told me.*


    Leah rxed as soon as she read it.<fn605b> Original content can be found at find?novel</fn605b>


    *Good. I was worried she''d try to stir up trouble, but if he''s telling you everything, then I''m not worried.*


    Vesta didn''t reply again.


    When she''d first heard about


    ???


    Charlene''s impressive skills in Al Vesta had felt a pang of anxiety, but truthfully, she hadn''t let it getto fer too much.  s


    But then came the bombshells: Charlene was Kenton''s protégé, and a major shareholder in PrimeStar These revtions had rattled Vesta shaking her confidence for days.  s


    Now, though, she''d made her peace with it. Aside from professional ability, she


    was on equal footing with Charlene in every other way.


    So seeing Thorne and Charlene meet up didn''t bother her anymore.


    Still...


    She had to admit, even the best of the Sanderson girls couldn''tpare to Charlene''s capabilities.


    If Thorne ever found out that


    Charlene was Kenton''s student, and


    that thestar projects he


    so


    admired were actually her work, would he really be able to stay indifferent?  s


    Meanwhile


    Charlene was on the phone for several minutes before finally returning to their dining room.


    When she came in, Thorne looked up. "Was it something urgent?"


    Charlene had no interest in engaging with him. But when she saw Jasmine watching her eagerly, she just shook her head.


    Jasmine rushed up and grabbed her hand. "Mom, hurry! We need to order."


    Charlene sat down. "You haven''t ordered yet?"


    Jasmine shook her head. "Nope. Dad said we should wait for you."


    Thorne was being considerate, but Charlene didn''t feel a thing. Sitting down beside Jasmine, she took the menu and began to order.