Chapter 832

Thorne Henderson didn’t spare them a glance. He handed his wine glass to a passing waiter and hurried after Jasmine.

Charlene noticed Jasmine’s emotional state and considered going after her. Seeing Thorne already on it, she hesitated and ultimately stayed put.

Stewart Ferguson had been worried about the girl too, but seeing Thorne take charge put his mind at ease. He turned to Dr. Lucas. “Dr. Lucas, we’ll be taking our leave.”

Dr. Lucas nodded. “Alright. Let’s catch up when you’re free.”

Charlene snapped out of her daze, gave a polite nod, and turned to leave with Stewart.

The crowd had fully expected a fiery confrontation between Charlene and Thorne. Instead, the two didn’t exchange a single word, parting ways as if nothing had happened.

It wasn’t just the onlookers. York, Gaylord, Granger, and Moran were equally surprised.

Shaking off his shock, Gaylord set his drink down and hurried after them. “Heading back to the office? Mind if I tag along?”

Stewart and Charlene both nodded.

Gaylord trailed behind them, his mind racing with the evening’s explosive events. Ultimately, he kept his thoughts to himself. Once inside Stewart’s car, he effortlessly shifted the conversation to business.

Charlene and Thorne had left the building, but the crowd was still buzzing from the sheer scale of the drama. No one was in a rush to head home.

Besides, the Hawkins family and the Spencers were still there.

With Charlene gone, all eyes naturally gravitated toward Vesta and Maureen.

Vesta felt the crushing weight of their stares. Forcing a tight smile, she tried to maintain a shred of dignity as she looked at the institute director. “Dr. Lucas, we will take our leave as well.”

Dr. Lucas remained silent.

He studied her. Despite her desperate attempt to save face, the older man easily saw through her profound humiliation and brittle facade.

He gave a curt, indifferent nod.

Without sparing a glance at Corinne Lancaster or Raleigh, Vesta turned on her heel and walked away.

Maureen and the rest of her family silently fell into step behind her.

Disgust rippled through the crowd as they departed. As they walked past, someone spat out “Homewrecker. Have you no shame?”

“Exactly. The whole family is shameless. It’s disgusting!”

Vesta and her family kept their eyes locked straight ahead, ignoring the insults, but vesta gripped her dress so hard her knuckles turned white.

Watching the scene unfold, Dalton Ramirez gripped his glass, his emotions a tangled mess.

In the end, he did nothing. He simply looked away, refusing to spare Vesta another glance.

Kelvin Scott noticed his foul mood and kept his mouth shut, turning his attention to York instead.

York had initially wanted to follow Charlene out, but knowing she had business to handle, he decided against intruding.

He had only shown up tonight for Charlene anyway. Since she was gone…

He glanced over at Kelvin and Dalton. “Want to grab a drink?”

Dalton paused, then met his gaze. “…Sure.”

Across the room, Granger and Moran were wrestling with their own complicated feelings.

They stood rooted to the spot, staring at the doors Vesta had just exited through. Moran was still reeling. “Granger…”

“Yeah,” Granger muttered.

“So, should we head out too?”

“Yeah,” Granger replied. “Let’s say goodbye to Dr. Lucas first.”

“Alright.” Moran hesitated for a

second before his curiosity won out. “By the way, do you think. Thorne knew about everything between Charlene and the Hawkins family?”