Evelyn's moods always came and went in a flash. Puffing out her cheeks, she grumbled, "But Daddy never comes to be with me."

Joslyn came upstairs with her phone in hand and explained to Eleanor, "Ma'am, on the way home just now, Evelyn used my phone to call Mr. Goodwin, but he said he's working over in Kingston."

Eleanor paused, glancing at the calendar-Friday.

lan was definitely in Kingston this weekend, playing the doting boyfriend at Vanessa's concert. Spending time with his daughter wasn't on his agenda.

"It's alright, sweetheart. Mommy's here with you," Eleanor said softly, her heart aching as she looked at her little girl.

This wouldn't be the last time lan missed out on his daughter's life. Evelyn would have to start getting used to days without her father around.

With that thought, Eleanor pressed a kiss to her daughter's forehead. "Didn't you say you wanted to hear stories about when Mommy was little? Let me tell you one."

"Okay!" Evelyn finally brightened, climbing into her mother's lap, eager for her bedtime story.

...

By Monday, Eleanor's ankle had healed. As she pulled into the parking lot, she noticed a familiar silver Bentley-Xavier's car.

Eleanor helped Evelyn out of the car and walked her toward the school gates. Xavier was nearby, finishing up a phone call. When he spotted Eleanor, he quickly hung up and came over.

"Eleanor," he called.

Eleanor gave him a polite nod. "Good morning, Mr. Vaughn."

"Vivian just got back from overseas. I'm dropping her off for her first day," Xavier explained.

Eleanor looked up at him, noticing he seemed a bit thinner than before. Was it true, as lan had hinted, that there was a power struggle brewing in Xavier's family?

"How have you been lately?" Xavier asked, genuine concern in his voice.

"I'm alright—just keeping very busy," Eleanor replied.

He smiled, a little tired around the eyes. "Same here. Once this busy spell is over, let me take you out for dinner."

Eleanor nodded out of courtesy. "Sure, let's plan for when things settle down."

After watching Eleanor drive off, Xavier's phone rang. He glanced at the screen and answered, "Hello?"

"Mr. Vaughn, Mr. Curtis just left for Fairhaven."

"Book me a flight to Fairhaven right now."

"Sir, are you sure? He's already made up his mind to back your uncle at the board meeting. You've asked him three times now-he's never even tried to hide his disdain."

"His vote is crucial. I have to secure control of the company," Xavier said, determination hardening his features.

He rubbed at his temples. His father had barely passed, and already his uncle was rallying the board to push him out.

He couldn't afford to lose this family war.

Xavier stared after Eleanor's car as it disappeared down the road, resolve burning even brighter in his eyes.

No matter how desperate he looked while chasing support behind the scenes, he would reclaim the Vaughn Group empire.

Because he wasn't just fighting for the company anymore-he was serious about pursuing Eleanor.

She was the reason he needed to be strong.

The atmosphere in the Meridian Dynamics conference room was tense.

"Dr. Bradley wants the final testing wrapped up in three days," Byron said, mopping sweat from his brow. "But our Al simulation module is still being debugged "

Faye cut in sharply, "The real problem is Eleanor's theory. She insisted on pushing this unproven new method, and now it's set us all back."

Everyone turned to look at Eleanor.

She kept her eyes fixed on her laptop, calm and composed. Even as the team grew visibly anxious, knowing this was the last thing they needed before the big test, she stayed focused.

Joel leaned in to quietly discuss something with her.

Faye got up to grab a coffee, but as she turned, she spotted lan standing quietly outside the glass wall.

She quickly sat back down. This was Eleanor's moment of reckoning-she wasn't about to miss the show if Eleanor failed.

Eleanor rose and strode to the projector, pulling up the latest test results. She didn't even notice the people gathering outside the conference room.

Arms folded, she studied the data, and lan stepped in through the door.

"Mr. Goodwin," Faye greeted him, standing up quickly. "We were just discussing the flaws in Eleanor's proposal-"

lan pulled out a chair and sat down. "Give her time."

"But our meeting with Dr. Bradley is in just thirty minutes," Faye pressed, her tone laced with anxiety.

Eleanor's lashes fluttered as she focused on the screen, her bright eyes reflecting confidence and intelligence.

The room fell utterly silent, everyone holding their breath to give her space.

Even lan silenced his phone and set it aside, his hand resting thoughtfully against his chin as he waited for her to solve the problem.

At last, Eleanor turned to Joel. "Joel, set up the environment."

Joel's eyes lit up. He grabbed his laptop and entered a string of numbers. Instantly, the stalled data on the screen began to scroll like lines of code coming to life.

"It's unlocked," Joel breathed, relief in his voice as he shared a grin with Eleanor. Having such a perfectly in-sync partner made Eleanor genuinely happy.

While the two exchanged a small, triumphant smile, lan tapped his long fingers on the table and asked, in his usual calm tone, "So, the issue's resolved?"

"Resolved perfectly," Joel replied.

Faye bit her lip and said nothing more.

Eleanor returned to her seat, laptop in hand, quietly tweaking her proposal as Byron resumed the meeting.

Before long, Garrison joined them by video conference, and the joint testing passed without a hitch.

Afterward, lan stopped by Byron's office, then walked over to Eleanor's desk. "You did well today."

"Don't bother me I'm busy," Eleanor replied, not even glancing up, her tone making it clear she wanted to be left alone.

"Alright." lan took it in stride, having grown used to Eleanor's cool indifference.