The Contracted Ever After (Cordelia and Ronan) novel Chapter 412

"Understood. Speak." Ronan nodded as he usually did, signing the paperwork in front of him. "Also, write up a report on yesterday's meeting."

"A report? That's already done. I'll send it to you soon." Emerson waved dismissively, as if reports were beneath him.

"She's now an independent director at Empower Operations." Emerson returned to their previous conversation.

"She has a Ph.D., so it's not surprising."

"Don't you care about her at all?" Emerson asked, his voice filled with surprise and a hint of indignation.

"Just an old flame, why should I care?"

Although Ronan’s face was calm, he remembered how Petra had chased after him. She almost gave her life away for him. She had shown a determination that was astonishing, as if her life would be meaningless without him.

He still remembered Petra's tear-streaked face at Yale, her unrequited love for him evident.

"Ronan, sooner or later, I'll make you come back to me!" Petra had declared.

But after that, Petra disappeared from his life. He would've completely forgotten about her if it hadn't been for the reunion.

"But she's still Callum's mother!" Emerson reminded.

Ronan's pen halted in his hand. His fingers curled into a hollow shape. After a moment, he looked up at Emerson. "Her?"

"Yeah, who else?"

Ronan fell silent for a moment before resuming his signing. It didn't surprise him how high she had climbed the corporate ladder. She was ruthless enough to abandon her family in pursuit of her own ambitions. But he didn't expect her to be an independent director at Empower Operations.

It was a small world indeed.

"At the meeting, I mentioned that you might attend the next one in person; it's unlikely Cordelia won't attend as she’s now a part of the company," Emerson added.

Seeing this book reminded Cordelia of this well-educated and refined old man. He had been a great help to her when she was studying for her CPA.

Cordelia's eyes began to moisten. She flipped open the book and found a photo of the author along with a brief bio.

Barney, a Harvard graduate, was a renowned expert in civil and commercial law in the country, particularly in the areas of trust law and maritime law. The book only stated his birth date, not the date of his death.

It had been several years since Barney passed away.

Reading Barney's bio, Cordelia couldn't help but remember his voice and laughter. If he were still alive, they would've had so much to talk about.

Cordelia missed him dearly.

With that thought, she decided to borrow all the books written by him.