Unloved Unwanted Unstoppable (Seraphina and Dominic) novel Chapter 74

Gideon picked up his teacup and took a slow sip. "It was an oversight on my part," he replied mildly.

Julian chuckled. "What a coincidence, Seraphina. You work at his company, and he's the sponsor for our project. It really is a small world."

Seraphina forced a polite, strained smile.

A small world indeed.

She quickly ran the mental math. Given the complicated web of elite families, Gideon was technically tied to the Lockwood family tree as a distant relative. As Dominic's soon-to-be ex-wife, she was uncomfortably close to being in his extended social circle.

But she had absolutely no desire to acknowledge those ties right now.

Gideon set his cup down, his gaze drifting back to Seraphina. This time, there was a hint of calculation in his dark eyes.

"You're a jewelry designer. How did you end up in scientific research?"

Under the weight of that intense stare, the muscles in Seraphina's back tightened.

She parted her lips to answer, but Victor spoke up for her.

"Don't underestimate my girl, Gideon," the older man said, his voice brimming with undeniable pride. "She was my student back in college. She did research with me for years, and she was the only one in the entire lab who could build data models completely from scratch."

"When she graduated, I wrote her a letter of recommendation for an advanced program abroad. It's a shame..."

He paused, glancing at Seraphina, and swallowed the rest of his sentence.

It was a shame she had gotten pregnant, gotten married, and thrown it all away.

Seraphina lowered her head, her thumb absentmindedly tracing the rim of her teacup.

The room fell into a heavy silence.

Gideon's eyes lingered on her for a moment longer before he looked away, picking up his tea for another sip.

"How do you plan to manage things now that you're joining Professor Vane's project?" he asked, his tone as cool as ever. "Will you still be able to keep up with your hours at the company?"

Seraphina's thumb stalled on the porcelain.

She had already mapped out her future. Research would take center stage, and whenever she had spare time, she could still design jewelry on a freelance basis, selling her sketches to private clients for extra cash just like she used to.

It was a shame to lose the prestigious backing of The Cole Group, but she couldn't be greedy. A person only had so much energy, and trying to juggle everything would only guarantee she failed at it all.

Victor watched her, a proud smile on his face.

Gideon tapped his long, elegant fingers against the tabletop.

After a long moment, he finally spoke.

"There's no need to resign."

Seraphina looked up, caught completely off guard.

"Excuse me?"

Gideon met her gaze, his voice perfectly calm. "We'll keep your position open. Drop by whenever you have the time, and take on whatever tasks you see fit. You'll still get your full salary."