Betrayed I Upgraded to His Billionaire Brother novel Chapter 190

If Gavin had done something like this, I wouldn’t have batted an eye.

But Zane… I’d never really thought of him as the type to drive someone into a corner. Unless, of course, Amelia had done something truly unforgivable.

Elias smiled, about to say something else, but I continued, “But honestly, it’s none of my business anymore.”

How Zane chose to deal with Amelia was his affair. It was between the two of them.

“Mhm.” I could almost feel the tension leave Elias’s shoulders, a tightly wound cord suddenly going slack. He chuckled softly. “You finished up here? Let’s grab lunch. My car’s in the shop for maintenance, so I need to hitch a ride with you to the lab.”

“Sure.” I stood up, shrugging off my lab coat, and grabbed my bag to leave with him.

With the New Year break over, we needed to pick up the pace on the R&D project. We both independently suggested a place near the lab.

After a quick lunch, we headed straight for the Windsor Group’s research institute.

The best thing about Windsor Group’s R&D division was how insanely well–funded it was. The facilities were state–of–the–art, every piece of equipment and material you could possibly need was on hand. It saved us from wasting time on logistics.

When it came to the work itself, Elias and I clicked perfectly.

Out of the other three people in the R&D group, only Daniel occasionally lent a hand. The other two, the ones who’d mocked me before, just put on a big show of being busy every day without making any actual progress.

Deep down, they looked down on me–just some young woman, and they were convinced I’d been put in the team lead position as a token. They were certain I wouldn’t produce any real results.

So why would they bother putting in the real work? Just to have their breakthroughs snatched away by me? Not a chance.

In the cutthroat world of research, having your work stolen was far too common. They weren’t about to be that stupid.

I was deep in my work when Abbott suddenly knocked on the lab door and addressed the team. “Wrap up what you’re doing as best you can. Meeting in the third–floor conference room in thirty minutes.”

I looked up. “What’s the meeting about?”

Our project had always operated on the understanding that meetings were scheduled at least a day in advance, so we didn’t have to break our flow. A last–minute meeting like this was unprecedented.

Abbott didn’t beat around the bush.

“It’s a collaboration the government is facilitating. Apparently, another company is working on a new project very similar to ours. They want us to explore a joint R&D effort to see if we can speed things up.”

“Alright, got it.” I wasn’t opposed to the idea.

After all, if we could get this drug to market even a day sooner, it could save countless lives.

Elias and I tidied up our workstations and headed downstairs with the rest of the team.

We got there first. The other company’s team hadn’t arrived yet.

Chapter 190

We waited about fifteen minutes before the sharp, distinct sound of high heels clicking on the tile floor approached from the hallway.

As the team lead, I stood up with Abbott, ready to make a good, cooperative first impression.

After all, we were supposed to be working together.

Amelia strode into the conference room, leading a team of a dozen people. Dressed in a sharp white pantsuit, she made a grand, high–profile entrance.

I felt my brow furrow. She walked right up to Abbott. “Dr. Abbott, it’s an honor. When my team heard you were leading the project here at Windsor Group, they were all eager to learn from you.”

“You’re too kind,” Abbott nodded, clearly racking his brain to place her in the research community.

“And you are…?”

“I’m Amelia. The general manager of my team.” After introducing herself, she turned a saccharine smile toward me. “Your team lead, Elara, and I are old friends.”

Abbott looked surprised. “Really? If you’re close with Elara, your medical expertise must be considerable. It’s no wonder someone so young holds such a senior position.”

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