Never Mistake a Queen for a Lapdog novel Chapter 350

Padgett Novak knew Henry all too well—once he set his mind to something, there was no talking him out of it. There was no point in arguing, so Padgett let it go.

After the dinner party wrapped up, Henry said his goodbyes and made his way to Halley Joyner’s house.

Halley was in the thick of drafting questions for the upcoming National Computer Olympiad. When Henry arrived, she barely looked up, scribbling a problem on a notepad and sliding it over to him. “Try this one.”

It took Henry fifteen minutes to finish.

Halley didn’t bother to hide her disappointment. “That’s all it took for you to get through such a simple question?”

Henry knew better than to protest at times like these. He accepted her criticism in silence, head slightly bowed.

“Did you know,” Halley continued, her voice tinged with regret, “someone solved this exact question in three minutes, years ago? She was only fourteen. Such a prodigy… It’s a real shame.”

Henry spoke up, but quietly. “Are you talking about my senior? The one you never let anyone mention?”

As always, just bringing her up seemed to flip a switch in Halley. She reached for her wooden ruler and tapped Henry lightly on the head. “Did I give you permission to speak?”

That was answer enough. Henry’s suspicions were confirmed.

His brilliant senior had to be Bianca Lowell. No doubt about it.

He wondered when—if ever—they’d meet. He found himself hoping that day would come soon.

…

After parting ways with Padgett Novak, Noreen took a detour to a famous dessert shop. She didn’t have much choice—her blind date had flopped, and she knew Mrs. Rosalind Gilmore would be waiting at home, ready to lecture her about it.

Yvonne didn’t have much interest in business, so after a few sips of fruit tea, she moved on to the real reason for their meeting. “By the way, Mrs. Naylor, I heard Mr. Naylor’s been spending time with a new woman lately. Have you or your husband heard anything about it?”

“Oh, him?” Mrs. Naylor waved a hand dismissively. “He changes girlfriends like most people change shirts. I don’t even bother keeping track anymore.”

“Then you probably haven’t heard who she is, have you?”

“No idea.”

“Well, she doesn’t have the best reputation. I really think you should let Mr. Naylor know he can have his fun, but he shouldn’t take her too seriously.”

Mrs. Naylor just shrugged. “Honestly, I wish he would. He’s getting older—I had him at his age already.”

“Even so, you should care about what kind of person she is, right? With your family’s standing, you could easily find someone from the right background.” Yvonne pressed on, lowering her voice. “The main issue is, this woman’s character is questionable.”