Chapter 834
Even if she completely ignored him.
Vincent was speechless.
Is this really the Mr. Harcourt I know? I didn’t realize he had a lovesick twin. Ultimately, however, Seth couldn’t maintain his distant observation.
He spotted a familiar face in the crowd.
Perry.
The very same Perry who had tried to take advantage of Noreen years ago, failed when she escaped, and ended up getting physically crippled by Seth in retaliation.
The moment Perry approached Noreen, Seth slammed his glass down and strode straight toward them.
Noreen’s back was turned, entirely unaware of Seth’s approach.
Perry, having just arrived, hadn’t noticed the man lurking in the corner either.
The only reason Perry had approached Noreen was that he heard about Centribo’s potential partnership with Regaluxe Group, and he wanted a piece of the pie.
A deal between two corporate giants like them was worth billions.
Just the crumbs would be enough to secure a very comfortable future for guys like him.
High risk, high reward.
So, even though seeing Noreen brought him out in a cold sweat, he forced himself to walk over and greet her.
“Ms. Gilmore, hello! Wonderful to see you again.”
Perry’s demeanor was incredibly polite.
Given the setting, Noreen had to maintain professional courtesy, so she exchanged basic pleasantries with him.
Taking advantage of the opening, Perry brought up the partnership. “I heard Centribo and Regaluxe are planning to jointly develop a brain-computer interface project. I’m actually quite interested. I’ve invested in similar ventures before and have a bit of experience. Maybe I could offer you some advice, Ms. Gilmore.”
It was all standard networking talk, and Noreen handled it with ease.
Internally, though, she couldn’t help but marvel at Perry’s sharp business instincts.
Seeing that Noreen didn’t immediately shoot him down, Perry decided to strike while the iron was hot.
However, since they were discussing corporate secrets, he took a step closer to lower his voice.
Before he could even close the distance, a hand shoved him hard from behind. Caught completely off guard, he stumbled and nearly fell flat on his face. Thankfully, someone reached out to steady him.
Once he regained his balance, he snapped instinctively, “Hey! Watch where you’re go—”
The rest of the insult died in his throat, replaced by a terrified yelp. “S-Seth Harcourt!”
The sheer panic in his voice caught even Noreen’s attention.
After his initial shriek, Perry was instantly drenched in a cold sweat.
His body reacted honestly as he scrambled two huge steps backward, stammering uncontrollably.
Despite his terror, he desperately
tried to explain himself, “I-I-I wasn’t
disrespecting Ms Gilmore! I w
just talking b-business. Honest to God, just business! I swear!”
Seth glared at him with pure skepticism.
His eyes practically shot daggers.
Perry’s face drained of all color as he waved his hands frantically. “I-It’s truel Mr Harcourt, p please don’t misunderstand! I would never dare offend her again!” fo
Finally, unable to watch the pathetic display any longer, Noreen intervened. “He
really was just here to discuss a project.”
Only then did Seth retract the icy
hostility from his gaze. Without asking, he snatched the wine glass from Noreen’s hand. “You have
bad stomach: Don’t drink too much.”
“My stomach issues were cured a long time ago,” Noreen instinctively shot back.
She narrowly stopped herself from adding the words *by you*.
Good thing she caught herself in time and swallowed it down.
“Even so, you shouldn’t overdo it,” Seth insisted, his tone authoritative. “I’ll finish this for you.”
Noreen frowned again.
She had already made her stance crystal clear, but nothing seemed to deter his stubborn wishful thinking.
Playing the protective partner taking her drinks…
Wasn’t it a bit too late for that?
And what was that expression on his face?
Regret?
He was the one who had thrown her away in the first place.
What right did he have to stand there and look regretful?