New beginning: Billionaire love story novel Chapter 309

Claire was surrounded by the buzz of activity in the robotics lab, where the team was working tirelessly. She moved around, checking on each member and occasionally rolling up her sleeves to help out. The team was small, and with Abigail absent, they were stretched thin. Still, Claire couldn’t help but feel proud as they showed her a demo of the robot.

“This is amazing,” she said, her eyes lighting up as the robot performed its programmed tasks flawlessly. “You guys have done incredible work, especially with such a small team.”

One of the engineers grinned. “Thanks, Ms. Peterson! We really pushed hard to get this ready. Abigail’s absence was tough, but we managed.”

Claire nodded. “You really did. She’ll be impressed when she sees this.”

After a few more words of encouragement, Claire left the lab and headed to her office to meet with her lawyers. It was time to deal with Lisa’s case. She’d asked Matthew to compile all the evidence of Lisa’s wrongdoings into one neat folder, and he’d done an excellent job. The lawyer, a sharp-eyed man named David, flipped through the documents.

“So, Claire, do you want us to send her a notification or an email?” David asked, glancing up.

Claire shook her head, a mischievous smile playing on her lips. “No, I want it to be a surprise. She won’t know what’s coming.”

David chuckled. “I like your style. We’ll take care of it. Everything’s in order, so it shouldn’t take long.”

They discussed a few more details before David left. Claire returned to her desk, where a mountain of paperwork waited for her. She let out a dramatic sigh, staring at the piles with a frown.

“Seriously, what’s with this workload?” she muttered to herself. “I take one day off, and it’s like the paper fairy had a party on my desk.”

Just as she was about to dive in, there was a knock on her office door. It was Sandra, her secretary, holding another file.

“Ms. Peterson, this is for tomorrow’s meeting,” Sandra said, placing the folder on the already crowded desk.

Claire picked up the file and flipped through it. “Thanks, Sandra. Looks like I’ll be pulling an all-nighter.”

Sandra gave her a sympathetic smile. “Don’t work too hard. I’m heading home now. Try to get some rest, okay?”

“I’ll try,” Claire replied, though she wasn’t too hopeful.

As Sandra left, the office started to empty out. Soon, it was just Claire, her desk lamp, and the endless sea of paperwork. She stretched, feeling the tension in her back and shoulders, and took a short break to watch the robot demo video again. It was a good distraction.

Before she knew it, it was 1:30 AM. Claire leaned back in her chair, exhausted but satisfied that she’d made a dent in the pile. She decided it was finally time to call it a night. Grabbing her things, she headed down to the lobby, only to realize she’d forgotten to call her driver.

“Ugh, seriously, Claire?” she groaned, rubbing her temples. “How can I be so forgetful?”

With no other option, she pulled out her phone to call a cab. But just as she was about to dial, a sleek black car pulled up in front of the building. Claire frowned, wondering who could possibly be visiting at this hour. The car door opened, and out stepped Alexander, looking as polished and confident as ever.

“Alexander?” Claire asked, folding her arms. “What are you doing here?”

Alexander smiled, that annoyingly charming smile that always seemed to annoy and intrigue her in equal measure. “I wanted to see how the robot’s development is going. I figured I’d catch you before you left.”

Claire narrowed her eyes. “You know you can come by tomorrow during normal hours, right? It’s almost 2 AM.”

He shrugged. “I’ll be busy tomorrow. And you only have a week left to finalize this project.”

His tone was all business, and it made Claire’s annoyance spike. “I’ll send you the video if you’re so worried about it.”

Alexander ignored her irritation. “Why aren’t you home yet, anyway?”

Claire sighed, feeling her frustration grow. “I had work to finish. What’s it to you?”

He glanced around the empty lobby. “Where’s your driver?”

She rolled her eyes. “I forgot to call him, okay? I was about to get a cab.”

Alexander’s expression softened a little. “Let me give you a ride.”