Everything was a deal until divorce novel Chapter 60

Chapter 60 Not Even Sharing Lunch

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She grabbed his arm, flustered. “I can’t have people at the office see me getting out of your car.”

If that happens, the gossip alone could bury me alive.

Dorian’s face tightened. “Stop the car. Let her out.”

The second they pulled over, Arden hopped out. But before leaving, she leaned toward the window. “My lunch.”

She wasn’t about to give him an excuse to drag her into his office at noon. Dorian shoved the lunchbox through the window, clearly annoyed.

She took it and smiled sweetly at Lucien. “Thanks, Lucien.”

He smiled back. “No problem.”

In the backseat, Dorian’s expression was like thunder. “Drive.”

Lucien took off.

From the rearview mirror, Dorian watched her straighten her hair, smooth out her skirt, then slowly walk toward the office building, clutching the heavy lunchbox.

She clocked in right on time, settled at her desk, and spent the morning going through orientation files and internal docs.

At exactly 11:30, Talia leaned over Arden’s desk and grinned. “Lunchtime?”

Arden smiled and pulled out the thermal lunchbox. “My grandma packed me lunch today. She knew I’d be meeting a new friend, so she told me to share it with you.”

Talia’s eyes widened like Christmas came early. “Arden, your grandma is the cutest human alive.”

Arden was still polite about it. “If you’re not used to homemade food, I totally understand. We can go to the cafeteria instead.”

Talia waved her off. “Are you kidding me? Of course I want to try it!”

Arden opened the box. Inside were garlic butter shrimp, slow–cooked brisket, barbecue ribs, green beans, sautéed mushrooms, and a container of creamy soup. The two of them grabbed utensils and headed for the microwave like they were about to devour a five–star meal.

Up on the 28th floor, in the CEO’s office, Dorian’s phone buzzed.

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A message from Grandma. “Had Arden bring lunch for both of you. Tell her to eat with your office.”

you in

Dorian’s mood instantly improved. He texted her, “Arden, bring lunch to the 28th floor, we’ll eat in my office.”

Meanwhile, downstairs, Arden and Talia were already seated together, happily going at the food.

Arden saw the message and quickly typed back, “Oh! I already started eating at my desk.”

Dorian asked, “Where’s my portion?”

Arden replied, “Huh? I think Grandma only packed one… didn’t see anything for you.”

Dorian’s face turned dark instantly. He hit the intercom. “Lucien. Go downstairs and check what Arden’s doing.”

Lucien headed down. He didn’t even need to get close. From halfway down the hallway, Lucien could already see Arden and Talia chatting over lunch–the one Eugenia had clearly made for two people.

He went back upstairs and reported, “They are eating the lunch Mrs. Vale prepared.”

Dorian didn’t reply. Lucien suddenly felt… a little bad for his boss.

He returned to the office, paused at the door, and asked carefully, “Do you want to head to the cafeteria? Or should I order something for you?”

Dorian shot him a look.

Lucien was stunned. What the hell was that look supposed to mean?I’m just asking. Out of basic decency. Why does it feel like he’s… sulking?Oh, right. Mrs. Vale didn’t even bring him lunch. She’s down there eating like nothing happened. Of course he’s not going to the cafeteria now.

Lucien pulled out his phone and silently placed an order. “They, uh… looked pretty happy eating together.”

Dorian stared at him. “Shut up.”

“Right.”

Honestly? Lucien thought his boss kind of had it coming.

Not long after lunch ended, the office was back in motion. First thing, Bonnie walked over an dropped a thick stack of documents on Arden’s desk.

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“Make copies of these.”

Arden glanced down, nodded, and stood up without a word. She headed for the copier.

On her way back, she ran into Talia, who had just stepped out of Warren’s office. Talia saw the papers in her arms and raised a brow. “Warren gave you work already? Did they assign you a mentor?”

The department had more than thirty people. New hires always got paired with someone.

Arden shook her head. “No, Bonnie just told me to copy these.”

Talia let out a short, annoyed breath. “She’s acting up again.”

She looked like she was about to speak up, but Arden gently tugged her sleeve. “It’s fine. I had time anyway.”

She didn’t want to be the type to stir up trouble on day one. She’d rather stay

invisible.

She returned the copies to Bonnie, who was still busy typing. Not even a glance up. No thanks. Nothing. Like Arden was just supposed to do this.

Just as Arden sat back down, she heard the crisp clack of high heels approaching. She looked up. A stunning woman was striding into the office. Loose waves, perfect makeup, sharp heels, confident walk–she had presence.

Around the office, voices perked up.

“Well, well, look who’s back! Sienna, did you land the deal?”

“Of course I did,” she said with a smirk. “Come on. You really think I’d miss?”

She had just reached her desk when Warren stepped out of his office.

“Sienna, we’ve got a new hire who started a couple days ago. Name’s Arden. She’s seated next to Talia. You’ll be training her.”

Sienna Frost paused and let out a theatrical groan.

“Warren, come on. You know how busy I am. And I’m not good with newbies. Zero patience.”

“That’s exactly why I picked you,” Warren said. “You’ve got projects lined up. She’ll learn fast under pressure. Her seat’s right by Talia.”

Sienna glanced over toward Arden’s desk, spotted her, and let out a small tsk. “Fresh out of college?”

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Arden stood up right away. “Yes. I’m really looking forward to learning from you.”

Sienna gave her a once–over, then raised an eyebrow. “Am I old?”

Arden shook her head fast. “No, not at all. You look really young.”

From across the office, Clark Benson called out, “Warren, seriously? You said the new hire was cute. Why’d you give her to Sienna?”

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