Chapter 465: Chapter 465: Are You Sure You Didn’t Get the Wrong Person?
That being said, since she had taken the job, she had to maintain some professional integrity.
Arabella Donovan painstakingly dug up the relevant plot points concerning the Lockhart family’s younger brother, wanting to see just how this Logan Lockhart’s brain had turned to mush from being in love.
’According to the original plot’s description, Logan Lockhart and Guinevere Rhodes were... in an online relationship?!’
Eloise Donovan was also shocked. ’Are young people these days all so trendy? Getting into online relationships at the drop of a hat.’
’Oho! Not only were they in an online relationship, it was puppy love.’
Calling it puppy love wasn’t entirely accurate. The two had indeed met in high school, but back then, they had just been playing an online game together. To run more dungeons, they’d each casually found someone in-game to form a "couple bond" with, and it just so happened they ended up with each other.
But a game was just a game, and reality was reality; back then, the two of them knew how to keep them separate.
Thus, their feelings for each other truly deepened when Logan Lockhart was a sophomore in college. At that time, the head of the Lockhart family—Logan’s father—had suffered a business failure. The company’s capital chain had snapped, leaving it on the verge of bankruptcy.
Overnight, his family’s situation underwent a seismic shift. The wealthy kids who had once fawned all over Logan Lockhart suddenly showed their true colors. It was a good day if they merely avoided him like the plague; some even went so far as to kick him while he was down, taking advantage of the chaos.
This dealt a massive blow to Young Master Lockhart, who had been the center of attention his whole life and had rarely known hardship. He even began to develop self-destructive and self-loathing thoughts.
These feelings peaked after his father fell ill from overwork and eventually died from depression.
’If only I had been more competent and stepped up, Dad could have retired sooner, and maybe none of this would have happened. The company wouldn’t have fallen into a financial crisis because of a poor decision; Dad wouldn’t have been unable to face reality, dying full of guilt and sorrow; and my sister wouldn’t have had to run around everywhere, groveling and begging for help, enduring endless humiliation just to save the company.’
Devastated, Logan Lockhart even contemplated suicide. But it was precisely at this time that his online friend, who had been little more than a casual acquaintance, unexpectedly became the lifeline that pulled him back from the depths of despair. Through countless nights when he wanted to end his life, she silently stayed by his side, and they supported each other through the most difficult period of his life.
Reading this, Arabella Donovan was completely baffled.
’Guinevere Rhodes, who accompanied the young master with his bruised ego through the hardest time of his life, thus became the indelible Lover in his heart?’
’That black-hearted lotus—the one who never lifts a finger unless there’s a profit in it, who schemes in everything she does, who wants to have it all while playing the victim—is secretly this kind of benevolent soul? Acting as a confidante and big sister to a misguided youth in her spare time?’
’Dude, are you sure you’ve got the right person?’
The moment Arabella said this, Eloise Donovan instinctively shuddered. ’See? Online relationships are so unreliable! Why do so many people insist on learning the hard way?’
Jessica Lockhart, unaware of the convoluted thoughts running through Arabella’s mind, grew suspicious when she saw Arabella call out her brother’s name upon their very first meeting.
"Ahem... I don’t know him. It was just a random guess."
Jessica Lockhart was speechless. ’What kind of random guess gets a name exactly right? Do I look like an idiot?’
Fortunately, the tense atmosphere didn’t last long. Gregory Sherwood was the first to break the silence, reminding everyone, "It’s getting late. Let’s order first. We can talk while we eat."
As he spoke, Gregory Sherwood took the initiative to push a menu toward the Donovan sisters. "We ordered some of the restaurant’s specialties before you arrived. Please take a look and see if there’s anything else you’d like. You can add to the order anytime. The service here is quite fast, so we won’t have to wait long."
With his interruption, the group mercifully moved on from the previous topic.
As the dishes they had ordered earlier began to arrive at the table, Arabella took the initiative to get down to business. The main reason was that she was now rather curious. ’Just how far have things progressed between this top-tier backup boyfriend and Guinevere Rhodes?’
"Regarding Mr. Lockhart’s situation, I was only given a general overview before our meeting. I heard vaguely that he started a relationship and had a drastic change in personality, which has made you quite worried, Miss Lockhart. Could you please elaborate on the specifics?"
Although Jessica Lockhart still had her doubts, her concern for her brother ultimately took precedence. She sighed. "It’s pretty much as you’ve heard. My brother used to be a very dutiful and sensible kid. He always listened to my father and me. I don’t know what happened. He started dating, and he became a completely different person—unreasonable, stubborn, and utterly irrational!"
In fact, Jessica Lockhart hadn’t been opposed to her brother dating at first. She even felt a sense of gratified relief—the kind a farmer feels when their prize pig finally learns how to root for someone else’s cabbage.
However, as time went on, Jessica Lockhart gradually sensed that something was off.
"At first, he would just giggle foolishly at his phone from time to time, looking completely smitten. I understood; it’s normal for a young man to get a little carried away with his first love and lose some self-control. And my brother’s not a kid anymore. There’s nothing wrong with him finding someone he likes and starting a relationship. But as time went on, the more I watched, the more something felt wrong..."
Jessica Lockhart had been in love before herself, so she knew what it looked like. And she could tell that her brother’s behavior was completely off.
"That woman rarely asks my brother out, but whenever she does, it’s always because she needs his help with something. She’s either asking him to introduce her to a potential business partner or getting him to invest in a project she’s eyeing..."
’No matter how I look at it, she’s treating my brother like an ATM and a fool. She’s getting everything for nothing, and on top of that, she’s probably calling him an idiot behind his back.’
Jessica Lockhart paused, her tone laced with resignation. "My brother... for all his usual antics, he was always very good at keeping his work and his personal life separate..."
"Are you sure? Has he ever been in a relationship before?"
Jessica Lockhart was speechless. ’My brother really has never been in love before, has he? Don’t tell me he’s the type who turns into a complete moron the second he starts dating?’
Upon this realization, Jessica Lockhart, a woman who was naturally career-minded, felt her whole world collapse.
Arabella hadn’t expected her offhand comment to completely shatter the woman’s composure. Prompting a light cough from Eloise, she continued the conversation: "So, how exactly is he mixing his work and personal life now?"
At her words, Jessica Lockhart struggled to regain her composure. She said grimly, "The projects that woman has him investing in are, at a single glance, garbage with no future. And the ’business partners’ she’s introduced to him are even..."
Jessica Lockhart’s expression was a complicated mix of resentment and indignation. "It’s not that I’m looking down on anyone, and forgive me for being blunt, but with their qualifications and abilities? On a normal day, they wouldn’t even get past the front door of our company. Now, they’re all clustered around my brother. If that’s not treating him like a public garbage dump, then what is?"