Never Mistake a Queen for a Lapdog novel Chapter 107

Back when Noreen was Seth’s assistant, she had occasionally been lucky enough to attend these business dinners.

But she’d never been important enough to sit at the table. Most of the time, her job was to stand by Seth’s side and turn down drinks for him.

When there wasn’t any drinking to do, she’d simply wait outside the door.

After all, these gatherings of power players were always about business secrets that regular people could only dream of hearing.

Yet now, Seth was bringing Bianca along openly, personally introducing her to his network, paving the way for her and handing her opportunities on a silver platter.

Noreen couldn’t help but wonder: Just how much did Seth love Bianca, to go to such lengths for her?

CEO Joyner seemed interested in Noreen’s project, but he was, at heart, a businessman–profit was always his bottom line.

He closed the proposal and got right to the point, skipping the pleasantries.

“I’ll be honest, I think your project has real potential. But as you know, the economy’s been rough these past couple of years, and the investment landscape is full of risks. Most people are choosing to stick together for safety, pooling resources to minimize exposure. You know what I mean, don’t you?”

“I understand.”

“So,” CEO Joyner continued, “have you thought about showing this proposal to Mr. Harcourt?”

“If Mr. Harcourt’s in, I’ll be happy to come onboard as well.”

He spoke earnestly. “Miss Gilmore, you know as well as I do: it’s always easier to weather the storm when you’ve got someone powerful behind

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Chapter 107

you. Frankly, I’m leaning toward Director Lowell’s project–she has Mr. Harcourt’s support, after all.”

But Noreen? She stood alone, with no one backing her.

Who would be willing to take a chance on her?

When Noreen stepped out of Evergain Capital, she was surprised to find it

had started to rain.

Not a downpour, but cold enough to chill her to the bone.

Winters in Rivercrest were always like this–a little rain, and suddenly the damp cold crept right into your bones.

Her phone buzzed with a message from Claire: It was snowing in Brenton, the first snowfall of the year. Claire wanted to know if Noreen wanted to come and see it with her.

Both of them had grown up in Rivercrest, where snow was rare, and so they’d always had a special fondness for it.

Noreen was tempted.

But in the end, she replied, “Next time, honey. I’ve got a project that isn’t finalized yet, and I wouldn’t be able to relax if I left now.”

Claire, exasperated by her workaholic friend, could only sigh and remind her, “Don’t push yourself too hard. Take care of yourself, okay?”

“I know.”

“It’s not enough to know, you actually have to do it.”

That little bit of care from a friend was enough to chase away the chill that came with the rain.

Just as Noreen was about to leave Evergain Capital, her phone

rang–Mina was calling.

“Noreen! My brother’s sick–can you come to the hospital? He refuses to

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