No longer a pushover

Cedric's words obviously carried a hidden meaning, and it was hard to ignore the way people were interpreting them.

On the other side, Laura's expression nearly cracked. She had not expected Cedric to bring Noelle to this dinner, let alone act so close to her in front of everyone.

She could not help but think he did not care about her dignity at all. After all, everyone here had assumed she and Cedric were an item.

Noelle glanced back at him, wondering if he had any idea how misleading his words sounded. She was annoyed that he claimed she was his woman.

Without saying a word, Cedric pulled out a chair for Noelle and motioned for her to sit. Then, he sat down right next to her.

Noelle hesitated for a second. If she remembered correctly, that had been Laura's seat earlier. She questioned whether this man really could not see what he was doing.

The looks around the room shifted subtly. Word had it that Cedric was incredibly protective of a girl outside of work. Seeing this, they started speculating if that mysterious gaming streamer, SweetNelly, was actually Noelle.

Laura was clearly sidelined now, and she could not keep quiet any longer. "Ced, tonight we're discussing a new Al project. Ms. Liddell doesn't really have the background for this, so she might find it a little boring."

right after. "Yeah, I mean, what would a gaming streamer even understand about

in his voice had that unmistakable mix of snobbery and

to offer her a seat, giving her the respect she was used to. Just then, someone tried to steer the conversation back to

huge. They've got the best tech and the deepest pockets-once

thanks to Mr. Greene's sharp instincts. My family initially didn't believe in the project, but

discussed the future of the Al project. Once it launched, Maple Enterprise's value would skyrocket—and so

faint smile. "If you're bored, feel free to leave anytime. No one here will hold

replied calmly,

Ms. SweetNelly is really into the Al project, then. Do you have anything you want

about it for a moment and shook her

talking

held a mocking glint. "Ms. SweetNelly, if you don't get it, you can just ask. No need