She sat back down. The servers had begun bringing out dessert, placing a small bowl of mango pomelo sago in front of each person. It looked quite appetizing.

lan didn't touch his; instead, he gently slid it over in front of Eleanor. "You can have mine," he said in a low, slightly pleading voice.

Eleanor looked at him for a moment before picking up her spoon and taking a bite. A sudden thought popped into her mind.

Had she been a bit too harsh on him just now?

After all, he was one of the guests of honor at today's celebration and the CEO of Goodwin Biotech. And when it came down to it, his subtle mood swings were probably just because

Eleanor stopped herself from dwelling on it. She picked up her spoon and polished off her own dessert in a few bites.

Then, she pulled lan's bowl closer and started eating that, too.

lan watched her, the gloomy shadow in his eyes seeming to dissipate, and the corners of his lips curved up ever so slightly.

As the meal went on, some of the male colleagues started toasting each other. Naturally, some saw this as the perfect opportunity to network with lan, mustering the courage to walk over and raise a glass to him.

Joel, on the other hand, was spared by his coworkers after someone pointed out that he shouldn't be drinking while recovering from his injury.

lan, however, acted entirely out of character. He clinked glasses with several senior executives and core technicians, downing his drinks one after another.

"Mr. Goodwin, you really know how to hold your liquor!"

lan merely gave a faint nod and reached up to loosen his tie. A thin mist seemed to cloud his eyes behind his gold-rimmed glasses, replacing his usual sharp restraint with a hint of... indulgence.

Eleanor watched from the sidelines. At first, she thought lan was just mingling with the staff, but in the blink of an eye, he had already downed four or five glasses of beer. He never used to drink much beer because it always upset his stomach. Why wasn't he pacing himself now?

A grinning sales manager walked over next. "Mr. Goodwin, a toast to you! With the product selling this well, our whole department is fired up!"

lan said nothing and reached for his glass, but this time, a slender hand clamped down on the rim before he could grab it.

"Manager Webb, Mr. Goodwin has a meeting this afternoon, so he shouldn't drink anymore. I'll take this one for him!" Eleanor said, smiling at the man.

Manager Webb looked surprised for a second but quickly masked it with an agreeable smile, "Oh! My apologies i completely forgot busy man like Mr. Goodwin needs to focus on business. Dr. Sutton, a

toast to you! Take as much as you

like; I'll finish mine."

With that, Manager Webb heartily downed his drink and walked away with a smile. Eleanor picked up the glass and took a small sip.

It was only when she set it down that she realized she had been drinking from lan's glass.

lan's eyes followed her every move from picking it up to taking a sip and setting it back down-never once looking away. A smirk played on his lips.

"I'm fine," lan chuckled, his voice raspy from the alcohol.

"You know damn well if you're fine or not," Eleanor replied without looking at him.

lan choked slightly, his Adam's apple bobbing. In truth, his stomach was burning with a mild ache since he wasn't used to drinking beer.

het

But he completely ignored the discomfort because of Eleanor, stepping in to intercept his drink. It' was as if he had been waiting all along for her to pay attention to him.

lan picked up his water glass and took a sip, then reached up to rub his temples: His glasses were pushed up slightly, revealing the red corners of his eyes and making him look even more undeniably attractive.

No one else came over to toast him after that, and the lunch soon drew to a close.

Joel turned to Eleanor. "Ellie, Mr. Goodwin looks drunk. Do you want to take him back to rest first?"