Yes-MAN 328

One of the company owners here was none other than Zane.

It was clear Castle was using her as a way to put pressure on Zane,

Noreen felt a wave of awkwardness,

But Zane took the initiative, offering to exchange contact information. “If you have any questions about the gaming project, Miss Gilmore, just let me know. I’ll do my best to help.”

“Thank you, Zane. I might have to trouble you in the future,” Noreen replied politely.

“Of course, not a problem at all.” Zane was genuinely humble.

At the edge of the room, Bianca was watching the whole exchange, her glare so intense it was a wonder sparks didn’t fly out of her eyes.

Every time she saw Noreen chatting warmly with others–especially getting such friendly treatment from Castle–she felt a twist of jealousy.

The only comfort she could find was that Seth hadn’t paid Noreen any attention the entire time. Hel hadn’t even glanced in her direction.

At least in this, Seth was still firmly on Bianca’s side.

The moment the conference ended, Bianca sprang to her feet and made a beeline for Castle, determined to finally catch his eye.

“Mr. Joyner, hello, I’m Bianca. We had dinner together once, do you remember?” she said, trying to sound poised and gracious,

Castle nodded, but there was a thinly veiled impatience in his eyes. Good manners kept it from showing in his tone, and he replied politely, “Yes, I remember. You’re Mr. Harcourt’s…”

He hesitated, as if he couldn’t recall, or perhaps he was just being coy.

“Fiancée,” Bianca supplied quickly.

“Ah, right. Fiancée.” Castle had almost said ‘girlfriend‘, but wasn’t quite sure.

That invitation card she’d been saving for the right moment finally found its use.

“Seth and I are getting engaged soon. Mr. Joyner, if you have the time, we’d love for you to join us at our engagement party.”

“Of course.” Castle gestured for his assistant to accept the invitation.

Then, turning to Noreen, he said, “Miss Gilmore, if you’re free later, I’d like to continue our

conversation from earlier.”

“Absolutely,” Noreen replied with a smile–she had all the time in the world.

Bianca didn’t even get the chance to mention the new game project she’d been working on before Castle moved on.

A wave of disappointment washed over her, but she couldn’t exactly force him to listen.

20:17

Seth seemed to sense her mood and offered a reassuring word. “Mr. Joyner’s just busy. I’ll make sure you get a proper introduction next time.”

“Alright.”

His reassurance soothed her a little, but seeing how warmly Castle treated Noreen still left a bitter

taste.

She couldn’t help but wonder–what could Noreen possibly have to discuss with Castle? With her limited credentials, what could she contribute? Probably just a lot of flattery.

After all, flattery always works, no matter the situation.

Still, she hadn’t expected someone like Castle to actually enjoy being buttered up.

Or maybe, Castle’s interest in Noreen had nothing to do with her talents at all.

Beauty, after all, was a woman’s greatest weapon. Even someone as distinguished as Castle wasn’t

immune.

Healy arrived halfway through the conference, delayed by an important morning meeting.

As soon as he hurried into the room, his eyes instinctively searched for Noreen.

Once he spotted her, he headed straight toward her, not even noticing that Bianca and Seth were closer. Discover more novels at finḑnovel.net

It was Bianca who saw him first. Surprised, she waved. “Healy!”

Healy grinned at her as he approached.

Bianca was about to ask what brought him here when he breezed right past her, his smile growing even wider.

He walked straight up to Noreen, his tone cheerful and direct: “There you are, Noreen–I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

Bianca’s smile froze the instant she heard Healy call out Noreen’s name.