The Night I Left, He Turned Grey

Brian Shepherd had seen Leila Jennings in a large group photo in his grandfather’s study.

The photo was filled with a group of leading experts, all over fifty. There were only three young people among them, and only one girl, which was why he remembered her so clearly.

Besides, his grandfather mentioned Leila Jennings all the time. He felt it was impossible that he was mistaken, so he immediately put down his wine glass, walked over, and shouted, "Dr. Jennings!"

Everyone nearby heard him.

Leila Jennings froze. She didn’t recognize the voice, and she certainly didn’t dare turn her head to look.

’Wouldn’t turning my head be the same as acknowledging him?’

Just two days ago, she had told the Cole siblings that she only had a master’s degree.

"Dr. Jennings! Hello, Dr. Jennings!" Brian Shepherd walked up to Leila Jennings and eagerly extended his hand. "My name is Brian Shepherd. I hear my grandfather mention you all the time."

Leila Jennings knew this was bad.

This was the grandson of a senior figure she deeply respected.

To make matters worse, Sean Sinclair, Cecilia Sinclair, and Sarah Lynch were also walking over.

Sean Sinclair looked puzzled.

Sarah Lynch, however, was frowning.

"You’ve got the wrong person, Mr. Shepherd," Leila Jennings said with a slight nod.

"Mr. Shepherd, you must have the wrong person. She’s no doctor." Cecilia Sinclair’s face was a mask of contempt. "As if she has that kind of talent. She used to be just a junior administrative clerk at The Cole Group. Who knows what kind of dumb luck she stumbled into to get President Cole to promote her to secretary. She’s usually such a slob; today’s the first time she’s actually cleaned up and looked presentable."

Sean Sinclair’s expression darkened. "Cecilia."

Cecilia pouted. "Am I not allowed to state the facts?"

Cherry Cole rolled her eyes. "At least she’s better than you. All you know is how to sponge off your brother at home. If you actually went looking for a job, no one would even hire you to clean toilets."

"You!" Seeing who she was talking to—the young lady of the Cole family—Cecilia was furious but didn’t dare say more. With a huff, she hid behind her brother.

"Huh?" Brian Shepherd said, looking at Leila Jennings again. "You’re really not Dr. Jennings?"

’Was I mistaken?’

’That can’t be right. The woman in front of me isn’t even wearing heavy makeup. She looks almost exactly the same as in the photo, just without such a beautiful dress.’

’Her eyes, especially, are a perfect match—they have that same cool, resilient spirit.’

Leila Jennings shook her head. "I’m not."

"Have you met Dr. Jennings before, Mr. Shepherd?" Sarah Lynch asked, still a bit skeptical.

Brian Shepherd shook his head. "Not in person. I’ve only seen her in a photograph."

"Then it’s perfectly normal to make a mistake," Sarah Lynch said, breathing a sigh of relief. Brian Shepherd’s cry of "Dr. Jennings" had nearly given her a heart attack.

Sean Sinclair also chimed in, "Mr. Shepherd, you’re mistaken. She isn’t the Dr. Jennings you’re referring to."

It slowly dawned on Brian Shepherd. "You all know each other?"

Sean Sinclair nodded.

Cecilia Sinclair shook her head.

Brian Shepherd turned to Cecilia Sinclair. "Then how did you know just now, Miss Sinclair, that this Miss Jennings used to be a junior clerk at The Cole Group and is now President Cole’s secretary?"

Cecilia Sinclair froze.

Cherry Cole laughed. "A bit of a hole in your logic, isn’t there? You don’t want to be associated with us, and believe me, the feeling is mutual. You’re lowering the collective IQ."

Cecilia Sinclair ground her teeth in fury, but she didn’t dare cross the young lady of the Cole family.

’What kind of dumb luck did Leila Jennings stumble into? First, she gets a great guy like my brother! Now she has a big-shot like Cherry Cole sticking up for her!’

"Brother, Sarah, let’s go!" Cecilia Sinclair said, turning to leave.

Sarah Lynch didn’t want to be around Leila a moment longer, either, because Sean Sinclair’s gaze kept drifting to Leila’s face.

"Sean, I want to go over there and sit for a while."

Sean Sinclair agreed, but his eyes never left Leila Jennings.

"Mr. Shepherd, this way, please." Sean Sinclair and Brian Shepherd had just met, but they were now acquainted, so he motioned for him to come along.

But Brian Shepherd wasn’t convinced. He asked Leila Jennings earnestly one more time, "Are you sure you’re not Dr. Jennings?"

"She really isn’t," Sean Sinclair answered.

Brian Shepherd turned to him. "How would you know, President Sinclair? Are you two close? Good friends?"

Leila Jennings suddenly looked at Sean Sinclair. Cherry Cole also stared fixedly at him, waiting to see what he would say.

Sean Sinclair felt as if he were on pins and needles.

’Cecilia had just told Mr. Shepherd that Sarah Lynch was his girlfriend. If he now told Mr. Shepherd that Leila Jennings was his wife, what would the man think of him? And what would eventually get back to Elder Shepherd?’

’Elder Shepherd holds the patents for several cutting-edge technologies that are crucial for me. I need a major project to solidify my position.’

’I’ll just have to let Leila down.’

’I hope she can understand.’

"Yes," Sean Sinclair said with a nod.

Brian Shepherd was confused. ’Does it really take that much thought to answer whether you’re good friends?’

Surprised, Sarah Lynch seized the opportunity, slipping her hand into Sean Sinclair’s right in front of Leila.

Leila saw this. She turned to Brian Shepherd and said, "Yes, friends."

Hearing Leila say that, Sean Sinclair didn’t feel the slightest bit of relief. Instead, his heart suddenly felt hollow.

"Cherry, you said you were bored and wanted to go, right? Let’s go." Leila looked toward the exit, her lowered gaze hiding the turmoil in her eyes.

Sean Sinclair’s heart clenched again.

He subconsciously reached for Leila, but Sarah Lynch, whose hand he was holding, pulled him back. Cecilia also grabbed his arm, dragging him away.

"Brother, let’s go over there!"

"Mr. Shepherd, come on."

Sean Sinclair watched as Leila walked past him without a single glance.

Finally, he chased after her.

At the entrance, Leila Jennings was bending down to get into Cherry Cole’s car. The red Ferrari was dazzling, making her skin appear even fairer in contrast.

"Leila Jennings!"

Sean Sinclair reached her side, breathing hard.

For a moment, Leila was reminded of the early days of their relationship. Sean had once run to her from across the street just like this, slightly out of breath, smiling as he looked at her.

It was that very afternoon that she had accepted his proposal.

"President Sinclair, to what do we owe the pleasure?" Cherry Cole slammed the car door with a BANG and glared at him.

Sean Sinclair gave her a single glance before turning to Leila, hurriedly explaining, "I didn’t acknowledge our relationship to Mr. Shepherd just now—I only said we were friends. It’s because his impression of me is very important, which affects Elder Shepherd’s impression of me. Elder Shepherd holds a patent, and Stellaxis has been working nonstop to secure a partnership. I’ve told you about this before."

"I know." Leila Jennings nodded.

’It was because he’d told me about it that I mentioned Stellaxis and Sean to Elder Shepherd in the first place. Otherwise, how would Sean have ever gotten a meeting with the incredibly busy Elder Shepherd?’

’Even his own grandson, Brian Shepherd, had to wait until he had free time.’

"You knew?" Sean asked. He meant, did she understand his difficult position?

Leila Jennings nodded.

’She knew everything.’

"You’re not angry with me?" Faced with her understanding, Sean felt a surge of guilt.

Leila said, "It doesn’t matter."

It wasn’t that she didn’t blame him. It was that it no longer mattered.

’After all, they were getting a divorce.’

’Whatever happened between him and Sarah Lynch, whether he acknowledged her in public or not, it didn’t matter anymore.’

"You should get back to it. These kinds of receptions aren’t really my scene anyway. I’m going to head home," Leila said, opening the car door and getting in. Cherry Cole pursed her lips and sped away.

"Leila, why did you tell him it didn’t matter?"

"Because it doesn’t matter anymore," Leila said, looking out the window. "We’ve already signed the divorce papers. We’re just waiting for it to be processed."

The car screeched to a halt.

Cherry Cole’s face lit up. "For real? Are you serious?"

Leila knew Cherry was happy for her. She nodded. "It’s true."

’Doesn’t that mean she could become my sister-in-law!’ Cherry thought excitedly.