The Wife He Forgot to Marry (Winona and Yule) novel Chapter 297

Dean Ziegler smiled warmly, singing her praises. "When Mr. Harper first recommended you to me, I honestly thought you were a bit too young. It's only now I realize how terribly shortsighted I was."

Winona offered a humble, polite smile.

The Dean continued, "We have a lot of upcoming collaborations with Mr. Harper. I assume you'll be actively involved in those projects?"

"That will depend entirely on Mr. Harper's arrangements," Winona replied smoothly.

"If he dares to leave you out of the loop, I'll have a word with him myself. I won't stand for it."

The Dean was incredibly impressed by her and couldn't resist prying a little. "I'm curious, Ms. Jowett—are you married? My son is around your age, and he works at the institute too. He's got a solid master's degree, he's tall, and he's not bad-looking. He was actually at your lecture today, sitting in the second row, first seat on the left. He's a bit on the shy side, so he didn't have the guts to ask for your number. Would you be open to me setting up a proper introduction?"

Winona didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She quickly declined. "I'm really not looking to date anyone right now."

Because Zack was used to being the golden boy of the institute, he had absolutely no reverence for authority. He chimed in without missing a beat, "Dean Ziegler, back off the matchmaking, will you? I've been chasing Winona for a while now. I'm just waiting for her to give me the green light."

The Dean laughed good-naturedly. "Who can predict fate? Maybe Winona happens to prefer my son's type."

Not wanting her romantic life to be the main course of a business lunch, Winona deftly pivoted the conversation to a recent article in a top medical journal, successfully redirecting the two men's attention.

*

Meanwhile, Tallulah, feeling utterly miserable, had asked her cousin Shirley Maddox out for lunch.

Shirley also worked at the Riverton Medical Research Institute.

As fate would have it, they were seated in the private dining room right next to Winona and the Dean's party.

Hearing the Dean's booming voice through the wall, Shirley whispered to Tallulah, "Sounds like Dean Ziegler is hosting a VIP lunch today."

Tallulah couldn't have cared less, but she asked casually, "Who's he hosting?"

"This really young female researcher named Winona Jowett. She's Jericho Harper's protégé," Shirley explained. "She came to give a lecture at our institute today, and it was absolutely packed. Half the R&D department couldn't even get a seat! Even the Dean and senior directors showed up."

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