Never Mistake a Queen for a Lapdog novel Chapter 495

Just as Henry was about to make his point more obvious, Carman’s phone rang. He gave Henry an apologetic nod and stepped aside to take the call. His expression immediately turned serious. “I’ll be right back.”

Before leaving, he quickly found Padgett Novak. “Something urgent came up at work.”

Padgett was understanding. “Work is important. I’ll have Landon send a copy of the meeting minutes to Ms. Gilmore.”

Bianca was the last to arrive. The moment she entered, the chatter in the conference hall died down as people flocked to greet her. Henry considered going over, but seeing the crowd, he decided against it. He found a seat with a good view and let his gaze drift toward her. She had come alone today; Seth wasn’t with her, which made Henry feel a bit bolder in his observation.

Sitting next to him was Healy Naylor. Healy, however, wasn’t looking at Bianca. His eyes were fixed on the entrance. He kept watching until Padgett entered the room and officially started the meeting.

Healy finally frowned and turned to Yves Elwyn beside him. “Is Ms. Gilmore not coming?”

“I don’t know,” Yves replied. “I was looking for her too.”

He waited with her, and in less than two minutes, Seth’s car pulled up. Henry stood rooted to the spot, watching Bianca get in, watching the car drive away. It was so late, and Seth had come to pick her up… they were going home together, weren’t they? They must be living together. It was perfectly normal for an engaged couple, but a sour, indescribable feeling churned in Henry’s gut.

Bianca was in high spirits and chattered on to Seth about her successes that day. She paused when she noticed the car was heading toward her family’s home. Just as she was about to say something, her phone buzzed. It was a WhatsApp message from Jude Wilder, reminding everyone about his birthday party the next day. The group chat quickly filled with confirmations. After a bit of banter, the car pulled up in front of the Lowell estate.

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