Mr. Donovan was surprised to see the three of them return together. "How did you all end up coming back together?"
"Serena and I went out to eat and happened to run into Eloise, so we all came back together."
Mr. Donovan wanted to ask more, but he caught a look from his wife and had to swallow the words on the tip of his tongue.
"Serena, you haven't met your second older brother yet, have you?" Mrs. Donovan quickly changed the subject, leading Arabella Donovan to the young man sitting on the sofa. "This is your second older brother, Hector. He's been busy filming out of town for a while. The signal there was terrible, so we only managed to contact him yesterday. He rushed back first thing today."
Arabella Donovan had been sneaking glances at her second older brother ever since she walked in. She had to admit, besides undeniable talent, god-tier looks were essential for an international superstar.
Unlike her eldest brother, Justin Donovan, who resembled Mr. Donovan, Hector Donovan took more after Mrs. Donovan. His well-defined face and perfect features struck a balance between refined and dashing, a perfect amalgamation of his parents' best attributes.
Compared to the dazzling, eye-catching persona in his online videos and photos, at home, he was far more languid and relaxed—like a fluffy Persian cat, both bewitching and adorable, making one want to reach out and pet him.
But if one were to actually reach out, what awaited them wouldn't be a soft, fluffy belly, but sharp claws ready to scratch their face to ribbons at a moment's notice!
"Even though we've never met, I've seen my second brother's movies. I'm practically a fan."
This wasn't just an empty pleasantry from Arabella Donovan; she really had seen one of Hector Donovan's movies.
In that film, Hector Donovan played an idiot. His acting was so good that for a long time afterward, Arabella Donovan was convinced he was a real idiot.
And now, that idiot was her actual, biological second older brother.
Hector Donovan, who thought he was well-dressed and had made a wonderful first impression on his sister: "???"
Of course, he knew which movie Arabella was talking about. It was his debut film, one of his signature works, and the first movie that ever won him an award.
Thanks to that movie, despite being a newcomer with no formal training, he had won the Best Actor award right out of the gate. You could say he peaked at his debut.
For this reason, haters from rival fanbases used to mock him, claiming he could only play idiots. He eventually shut them all up by winning one Best Actor award after another and taking on numerous classic roles, but he'd never taken those negative comments to heart. None of that was the point, however.
The point was, of all his many films, why did Arabella have to see *that* one?!
The rest of the Donovans had felt a twinge of jealousy when Arabella said she was Hector's fan. But upon hearing the reason, they nearly died from laughter. They couldn't actually laugh and arouse suspicion, though, so they all began to tremble from the effort of holding it in.
Hector Donovan was trembling, too. He felt like he was about to fall apart.
If he could, he would go back in time and stop his "young and ignorant" self from ever taking that role!
Arabella, however, wasn't thinking about all that. She stared at the suddenly rigid Hector Donovan, his expression shifting rapidly like a traffic light, and felt a knot of anxiety.
'Why does he look so serious? Does he not like me? Does he think I'm just faking being a fan to suck up to him, that I'm too calculating?'
Hector Donovan: !
"Serena!"
"Hm?"
'What's wrong? What's wrong? Why are you suddenly yelling so loud? You scared me!'
Accusing glares from the rest of the family shot his way. Hector Donovan felt that all his preparations for the day had been ruined in an instant. In a voice as faint as a dying breath, he said, "I got you a present. See if you like it."
Only then did Arabella notice a rather large gift box on the table. Spurred on by everyone's encouraging gazes, she opened it and was nearly blinded on the spot.
Hector's gift was a complete jewelry set. The most striking piece was the necklace, which featured a large, teardrop-shaped emerald-green diamond at its center. The setting was encrusted with hundreds of diamond chips, along with eight smaller diamonds of the same emerald hue.
The set also included a matching pair of earrings, a ring, and a bracelet, all in the same color. It looked incredibly expensive.
"This... must be very expensive."
Feeling he had redeemed himself, Hector Donovan said, "It's fine. It's only about a year's worth of endorsement fees."
Arabella: "..."
'Got it. This set is probably worth several of my little run-down Sacred Temples!'
"This is too valuable. I can't accept it."
The smile vanished from Hector's face. He frowned in thought. "You don't like the color? What color do you prefer? I'll have another set custom-made. On second thought, I'll have them make a set in every color."
Arabella's face paled as she threw her hand out desperately. "Don't!"
'Oh, my dear brother, do you think jewelry grows on trees? A set in every color? Are you trying to collect all seven to summon the dragon?'
Hector Donovan: "..."
"No, no, that's not necessary! I love this color."
"Then take it. You're Hector Donovan's sister. Any jewelry you wear should be honored to be on you."
The corner of Arabella's mouth twitched. Her second brother was definitely giving off some serious overbearing-CEO vibes.
'I would never dare to actually wear this out. I'd be a walking target.'
But since Hector had put it that way, Arabella had no choice but to accept it. As for where to store it...
"Mom, maybe you can keep it safe for me?"
"It's a gift from your brother. Why would I need to keep it for you? Besides, you'll be getting more and more things like this in the future. You can't expect me to store all of them for you, can you?"
Eloise Donovan, however, had some experience with this. "You could buy a large safe for your walk-in closet. It's a secure place for valuables and makes organizing easy."
Arabella's eyes lit up. She clearly thought it was a great idea and immediately started asking Eloise for recommendations on what kind of safe to get.
Mrs. Donovan was filled with relief to see her two daughters getting along so harmoniously. Mr. Donovan and Hector looked surprised but knew this wasn't the right time for questions.
After the gift-opening, Mrs. Donovan used the excuse of being tired from their outing to pull Mr. Donovan upstairs for a nap.
Hector, having taken an early flight back, also went upstairs to catch up on sleep. Eloise wheeled her suitcase upstairs to unpack in her room.
With the living room now empty, Arabella carried the gift back to her room and started shopping for a safe online.
What she didn't know, however, was that the moment her door clicked shut, everyone else poked their heads back out.
Even Justin Donovan, who should have been on his lunch break at the office, had made time to come home. He froze for a second upon entering when he saw Eloise was there too.
Mrs. Donovan knew the three men were confused, so she quickly recounted everything that had happened at the restaurant, leaving out no detail.
Her story left Mr. Donovan and Justin reeling, to say nothing of Hector, who hadn't even been present yesterday.
"So, Arabella is our family's child, Eloise is the Lynch family's child, and the girl currently with the Lynch family is the biological daughter of that kidnapper, Holly Wagner? You couldn't make this stuff up for a TV show. Are you guys sure all of this is true?"
After speaking, Hector looked to Justin as if for confirmation. "Eldest Brother, do you believe it?"
Justin's response was to pull out a file folder and slide it in front of everyone. "We have no choice but to believe it."