Chapter 498

Damien was meant to join them too, but a last-minute issue kept him away.

That evening, Gabriel was technically the host.

But when he reached the bar, he only exchanged brief pleasantries before excusing himself, citing another engagement.

Caleb, who had several close friends in Calderwick, was quickly pulled away when they came looking for him.

Camille, unfamiliar with Caleb's circle, followed him to say hello but didn't linger in their private booth.

She returned to the NovaSight Labs staff and others, dancing for over half an hour before finally settling back into her seat to chat.

She was undeniably striking.

Once seated, men kept approaching, asking her to drink with them.

She declined each one without hesitation.

Most took the hint and left quietly.

A couple proved more persistent.

One, a slick man with a shy yet arrogant air, frowned.

"Pretty lady, you're not local, are you? Don't you know who I am? Won't you just have a little drink with me?"

Another chimed in, sneering.

"Exactly. Don't you bother to ask around about who Mr. Sloane is? He personally comes over to invite you, and you just snub him? Are you sure you want to offend him?"

Camille's brows knit together.

Though Gabriel hadn't spent time with his staff or the NovaSight Labs crowd since arriving, he was still in a VIP room upstairs.

His booth had a clear view of the main floor.

Camille's beauty was impossible to overlook.

Even the two executives speaking with Gabriel had noticed her, and the scene unfolding below.

One remarked, "Quite a view down there."

The other gave a short laugh.

"Plenty of eyesores in that view, too. And..."

He trailed off, but the meaning was clear—trouble was brewing.

They knew Rhett Sloane.

In Calderwick, his family name carried weight.

While Camille had her group around her, that might not be enough.

Damien glanced toward the floor, then turned his head slightly in Colin's direction.

Colin instantly understood.

Back when Camille worked at Harrington Group, Damien had paid her little mind.

But over the past two years, he had doted on their daughter Chloe.

Colin knew well that while divorce papers might be looming, Damien had never interfered with Chloe's bond with her mother.

In other words, even if Damien didn't care for Camille, even if he was cold to her, even if he could ignore her entanglements with Caleb, he would never sit by and watch some shady man harass the mother of his child.

With that thought, Colin gave a nearly imperceptible nod and slipped downstairs before the situation escalated.

"Mr. Sloane, isn't it?" he said smoothly once he arrived. "I'm Colin Keaton, secretary to Mr. Harrington of Harrington Group."

Harrington Group was one of the country's most powerful conglomerates.

Even if Damien wasn't an Calderwick native, Rhett could hardly claim ignorance of the name.

At Colin's words, Rhett glanced up toward the VIP rooms.

Spotting Damien and his companions watching from above, his expression shifted.

A moment later, though clearly reluctant, he backed down and stalked off.

With the crisis averted, Colin cast Camille a brief look, then turned and left just as quietly as he had come.

The NovaSight Labs group all exhaled in relief.

"Good thing Mr. Harrington had someone step in. Otherwise..."

Camille listened in silence, her expression cool and unreadable.