Eleanor turned to look at him. "What do you want to talk about?"

lan didn't answer. Instead, he gripped her wrist and led her down the corridor to a lounge at the far end.

He pulled her inside, and she resisted, emotions running high.

"Ian, let go of me," Eleanor said through gritted teeth.

"So, just because Dr. Langley kicked you off the research team, you're already eager to find someone else to work with?" lan's voice was low, laced with scorn.

Eleanor lifted her head, meeting his inscrutable gaze. The confrontation calmed her, sharpening her resolve. "I have my own plans. You don't need to worry about me."

"I told you, I'll ask Dr. Langley to reconsider," lan said, his brow furrowed.

"I don't need your connections. I can stand on my own," Eleanor replied. She reached for the door handle, intent on leaving.

lan's voice cut through the air, cold and commanding. "In any case, I won't allow you to join Juliette's team."

She turned back to face him. The man who'd just been charming and polite in public now looked like a predator in the dark, untouchable and ferocious.

Eleanor didn't answer. She pulled the door open and walked out without looking back.

She found Jude Vaughn, exchanged a few words, and then left the building. When lan finally emerged from the lounge, he ran straight into Vanessa. "Ian, where did you go? Mr. Will is looking for you."

lan took a steadying breath, smoothed his expression into a smile, and made his way over to a man in his early fifties. After a few pleasantries, the client got to the point.

"Mr. Goodwin, could I ask a favor? I have a friend in the medical field-he's quite interested in meeting a certain researcher from your country."

"Anyone Mr. Will introduces must be remarkable," Vanessa chimed in with a pleasant smile.

"My friend won the Nobel Prize over a decade ago. He's done outstanding work in medicine," Mr. Will boasted with obvious pride.

lan smiled. "Who exactly does your friend want to meet?"

Mr. Will pulled out a newspaper clipping. "He's hoping to connect with the author of this article."

lan took the clipping, his eyes widening in surprise-it was the same research paper he'd pored over during his last flight.

"My friend will be coming here for a research exchange next month," Mr. Will explained. "He'd like to get in touch with the author in advance."

"Ian has an extensive network in the medical community. I'm sure he can help you find this author," Vanessa said, her tone reassuring.

Mr. Will nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Mr. Goodwin. I appreciate your help."

Not long after, lan excused himself to deal with another matter. Henry came over to keep Vanessa company. She felt a pang of disappointment but soon relaxed, enjoying Henry's considerate attention.

Later, lan sat in his car, staring at the newspaper clipping Mr. Will had handed him. His eyes locked onto the name printed below the article.

Eleanor S.

He lingered on the name for several seconds, then reached for a pack of cigarettes from the console. Lighting one, he let the smoke curl around him, his face flickering in the shifting light.

He took a picture of the article with his phone and sent it to Jude Vaughn, along with a short message: "Mr. Vaughn, could you help me look into the identity of the author of this article?"

At that moment, Jude Vaughn was driving back to the lab. When the alert sounded, he glanced at his phone and saw the message was from lan-he didn't dare ignore it.

Pulling over to the side of the road, Jude zoomed in on the image. The instant he recognized the paper, he burst out laughing. Wasn't this the very article Eleanor had published in the international journal just last month?

Instead of replying by text, Jude dialed lan's number.

The phone's ringtone jolted lan out of his thoughts, dragging him back to reality.