Chapter 23
Emilia’s interest in Autumn only lasted a few seconds before she looked away and resumed chatting with the tall man standing on her other side. That was when Autumn saw Jayden.
Jayden was the youngest son of Howard, the wealthiest man in Havenmoor.
Unlike Barry and Emilia, who had known Damien since high school, Jayden had met Damien through business connections within the same social circle.
Damien had never once brought Autumn into his social world.
Aside from Barry occasionally visiting their home, she had barely interacted with anyone.”
As for someone like Jayden, she had only seen him in passing.
Yet, Emilia had only been back for a week and was already on familiar terms with him.
Autumn looked away and turned to Barry. Before she could say anything, Barry gestured to the file in her hand and said, “Then I won’t keep you.”
Autumn was relieved he’d said that. It gave her a graceful out. “Thanks.”
With that, she left without lingering.
Barry’s gaze lingered briefly on her upright figure before he turned toward Damien. “Damien.”
Damien knew what he wanted to say, but didn’t care. Turning his head, he said to Emilia, “Shall we go check out the other side?”
Emilia nodded. “Sure.”
After taking a few steps, she paused, looking back at Barry with a smile. “Didn’t expect you to be so familiar with Autumn:”
Barry replied, “You mean because I helped her up? Honestly, I didn’t realize it was her at first.”
Then he added smugly, “Guess I really am a good guy.”
Emilia smiled without commenting and then followed Damien and walked away.
Jayden, on the other hand, stayed where he was, looking at Barry as he bluntly exposed the lie. “You knew it was her from the start.”
Barry threw an arm over his shoulder. “You saw Damien’s attitude too. With all of us here, and a girl like that lying on the ground, if I hadn’t helped her up, how embarrassing would that have been for her?”
Jayden knew Autumn had schemed her way into marrying Damien. Surrounded by the rich and powerful, he’d seen plenty of ambitious social climbers. That was why he had never thought highly of Autumn.
“Her dignity isn’t your concern.”
Barry frowned for a second but quickly let it go, flashing a careless grin. “Right. I overstepped. Next time I’ll keep out of it, alright, Mr. Jayden? Are you satisfied now?”
Even as he said it, the hand on Jayden’s shoulder shifted to
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chokehold, pulling him in and locking him at the neck.
Jayden was about the same height as Barry, but Barry was more physically built. He was a flirt, after all, always keeping fit to attract attention. They might look similar fully dressed, but once the shirts came off, the difference was clear.
Jayden couldn’t overpower him. Struggling in vain, he ended up patting Barry’s head. “I’m here for something serious.”
Barry asked, “You’re not looking for your dad?”
Howard was at the event too, with his eyes set on Faulkner Group. If Jayden followed him around, he might catch a glimpse of Faulkner’s top executives. Barry figured Jayden was tagging along for that.
Jayden shook his head. “I’m now in charge of the family’s tech division. We’re developing a new large language model and are in urgent need of AI talent. I’m here to scout–nothing to do with my dad.”
Emilia was one of those talents. If he could bring her on board, he could offer a salary in the tens of millions of dollars. She was not only skilled but also had a wide range of interests
Jayden had never met a woman so exceptional before. He admired her. Still, whether she’d be willing to join his modest company was another matter. Even if she was willing, Damien would never allow it. The resources Damien provided her with were top–tier. She had no reason to look elsewhere. Barry said, “Ordinary talents probably won’t impress you. You might come away empty–handed.”
Jayden replied, “Emilia mentioned Lugi–X to me. That model was released three years ago. I’m planning to track down its developer.”
If he could recruit them, it would anchor the company’s new project. Once the project launched, the return would be massive. Jayden was determined to make it happen.
Barry, working in venture capital, didn’t press for more. But something unrelated suddenly came to mind–he’d once asked Autumn about her background, and she had told him she graduated with a computer science degree from Averpark University.
Averpark produced some of the country’s top students. Yet Damien seemed unaware of this.
Chapter 23
Autumn pushed aside the earlier commotion and finally found the banquet hall.
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