No More Mrs. Nice Wife (Eleanor) novel Chapter 752

This man had a knack for reading people; he knew perfectly well that she cared about Joel.

Eleanor dialed the office extension and told Joel that they’d meet at her place tonight to talk. Joel agreed without hesitation.

At five o’clock, Eleanor left work early to pick up her daughter. On the drive home, she explained that Joel and Ian would be coming over for dinner.

“Really? That’s great—I get to see Dad!” Evelyn beamed with excitement.

Just after they arrived home, the clock barely past six, the doorbell rang. Joel was the first to show up.

A moment later, the bell chimed again. Evelyn dashed to the door, grinning. “That must be Dad!”

She swung open the door, and there he was—who else could it be but Ian?

“Dad!” Evelyn flung herself into his arms. Ian scooped her up and stepped into the living room. Joel rose from the sofa. “Mr. Goodwin, glad you could make it.”

Eleanor had already told her daughter that tonight’s dinner was for work, so Evelyn obediently went off to watch TV.

“Let’s talk in the study upstairs,” Eleanor said, giving the two men a brief, appraising look. She led the way up the stairs.

Ian hadn’t really had a chance to take in Eleanor’s new place before. He glanced around with genuine interest; the previous owner had impeccable taste, and the décor was quietly elegant.

In the second-floor study, Eleanor closed the door behind them. The two men settled onto opposite ends of the sofa.

Joel spoke first. “Mr. Goodwin, I’ve identified three major risks in the civilian projects. Rushing to market too soon could—”

Ian cut him off. “I understand Dr. Kingsley’s concerns, but international competitors will be releasing similar products next month. The market won’t wait for us.”

Eleanor sat across from them, pouring two cups of tea and passing them over. She shot a worried glance at Joel.

Ian nodded, stood, and headed downstairs to spend time with Evelyn.

Eleanor turned to Joel. “Joel, have some tea first.”

Joel took a sip, then set the cup down. “Eleanor, just say what’s on your mind.”

“The neural interface project requires enormous investment. A lot of the board members are unhappy about it. Ian promised them he’d push forward with civilian applications as quickly as possible—that’s the only reason they backed off.”

“So Mr. Goodwin is pushing the civilian projects just to keep the board off his back?” Joel frowned.

“When the Neural Interface Project got suspended overseas, it was because the costs were overwhelming. Ian went ahead anyway—despite opposition on the board. Some wanted to cut the budget entirely, but Ian fought to keep the project alive.”

There were things Eleanor couldn’t say—not out loud. Like how the project was tied up with the defense department, or that the military was waiting for the core breakthroughs. And all of it depended not just on massive investment, but also on the cooperation of York Windsor’s Rhine Laboratories and the power behind the scenes at Starnova Group.