Novel Full Chapter 99: Is That Something You Can Say?
Chapter 99: Chapter 99: Is That Something You Can Say?
Poor Rochelle had no clue what all this new slang meant, so she could only look to Mrs. Donovan for help.
Mrs. Donovan was also dumbfounded by this bombshell and, for a moment, had no idea how to explain it to Rochelle.
The worst part was, she could feel the relatives who had reacted to Arabella’s thoughts earlier now stopping what they were doing, all of them secretly listening in on the drama!
Arabella Donovan was always quick to jump on the latest gossip. As soon as she learned about Rochelle Rowland’s two children, she immediately pulled up the novel about them—a romance filled with tropes like love between adoptive siblings, a runaway pregnancy, and cute kids.
It was called a "sweet-and-angsty" romance because it was incredibly sweet when it was sweet, gut-wrenchingly angsty when it was angsty, and unbelievably doting when it was doting. Its main feature was its unpredictability, with constant tonal whiplash.
’So that’s how it is. When he was young, Rochelle’s grandfather had a secret crush on the wife of a close family friend. After she rejected his confession, he was so embarrassed that he cut off all contact with their family. It wasn’t until years later that he learned the family had met with tragedy, leaving behind only a son and a daughter. His guilt toward his good friend, along with those unmentionable feelings for his friend’s wife, were all transferred onto the two children. He took great care of them, even entertaining the idea of marrying them to his own son and daughter.’
The Donovans were floored. ’Can you really talk about things like that out loud?’
The eavesdropping relatives: ’Ooh!’
The color drained from Rochelle Rowland’s face. She wanted to deny it, but a small voice in the back of her mind whispered that it might just be true.
’The son and daughter of that family friend had visited their home before. Although she’d been young at the time, she could still sense that the woman always deliberately kept her distance whenever she was alone with my dad, acting cold and aloof. My dad wasn’t very warm toward her either, as if he were purposefully avoiding her.’
Now, with Arabella’s reminder, Rochelle suddenly understood as she replayed the scene in her mind.
’Her grandfather must have tried to set the two of them up when they were young. He probably pulled some underhanded tricks that ended up backfiring spectacularly.’
Sure enough, the next second, she heard Arabella’s snarky internal commentary.
’Rochelle’s grandfather was a real piece of work. To force two people who already couldn’t stand each other together, he stooped to locking them in the same room. Luckily, Rochelle’s dad was an honorable man, and the girl had self-respect, so they didn’t lay a finger on each other. After getting out, she promptly moved away from their family home, escaping that den of wolves.’
Rochelle Rowland breathed a sigh of relief. ’Thank goodness. Her dad really was a good apple from a bad tree. At least he saved her some face. Otherwise, she’d be too ashamed to show her face anywhere after today.’
’His plan to marry off his children failed, and his grandchildren slipped out of his control, but that old coot still didn’t give up. On his deathbed, he learned that his friend’s grandson had tragically passed away, leaving a daughter under six years old. He immediately hatched another scheme, leaving a will that instructed his own granddaughter to adopt the child.’
Rochelle Rowland was stunned.
’That shameless old bastard! No wonder he insisted she adopt that child for no good reason. So that was his plan all along!’
’But at that point, he was too old and weak to do much more. He just wanted to make his friend’s descendant part of their family to satisfy his own obsession. He never imagined it would be a classic case of "the planned flower never blooms, but the carelessly planted willow grows into a forest." He only wanted the girl and Rochelle’s son to be like brother and sister, but they ended up actually falling for each other.’
"What?!" Rochelle Rowland couldn’t help but exclaim, which instantly drew Arabella’s attention. Just like that, the stream of juicy gossip was cut off.
In an instant, Rochelle Rowland felt gazes from all directions boring into her, sharp enough to turn her into a human pincushion.
Rochelle Rowland was speechless.
’Hold on, you’re all feasting on my family’s drama, and now you have the nerve to get mad at *me*? This is bullying!’
But alas, she was dying of curiosity herself. Her face flushed red as she proactively grasped Mrs. Donovan’s hand, forcing the conversation back to the topic from before Arabella’s revelations. "You mentioned your daughter grew up in a Sacred Temple."
Mrs. Donovan caught on immediately and played along. "That’s right. Her master found her when she was just a child and took her in. She lived in the Sacred Temple this whole time and only came down the mountain recently."
’Oh, so that’s what they’re talking about. That gave me a start.’
Rochelle Rowland also breathed a sigh of relief, thinking, ’You’re the one who gave *me* a scare!’
Unlike cannon fodder characters with minor roles, like Justin Donovan and Hector Donovan, Hugh Donovan and Sabrina Donovan were the main hero and heroine of the book. The author naturally dedicated a great deal of ink to describing their daily interactions, emotional development, romantic push-and-pull, misunderstandings, and conflicts.
Arabella Donovan speed-read through the entire book, finally summarizing it in a single sentence.
’Great. Another romance between two stubborn fools who can’t be bothered to communicate.’
Rochelle Rowland: ’???’
The story of Hugh Donovan and Sabrina Donovan was actually quite simple. When Sabrina was six, her father died in an accident. Her relatives, unwilling to take on another burden, avoided her like the plague.
Just as she was about to be sent to an orphanage, Rochelle Rowland’s grandfather found her. He brought her to the Rowland family home for a while before sending her to Rochelle to be adopted.
Since she was old enough to remember things when she was adopted, they both knew they weren’t related by blood—that the other was not a biological sibling. So, after living together so closely for more than a decade, they inevitably developed romantic feelings for each other.
But neither of them dared to confess. She believed he only saw her as a true sister; if he discovered her true feelings, she might not be able to stay with the Donovan family.
He, in turn, believed she only saw him as her true brother. He felt it was despicable for a brother to harbor such feelings for his sister. If he confessed, he was afraid he would scare her, possibly even make her despise him. So he, too, dared not make a rash move.
And so, the two romantic cowards were stuck at a stalemate. The turning point came after Sabrina Donovan went to college, and the story’s true villainess made her debut.
This villainess’s name was Rowena Churchill, a younger student from Hugh Donovan’s university club. On the surface, she was gentle, considerate, and empathetic, but in reality, she was a manipulative bitch.
She used a club dinner as an opportunity to get Hugh Donovan drunk. To be safe, she even drugged his drink, hoping to force a situation that would make him take responsibility for her.
However, Hugh Donovan’s thoughts were solely on his sister at home. With formidable self-control, he managed to break free from Rowena Churchill’s clutches, call a taxi, and flee home by himself.
As it happened, Rochelle and her husband had gone to the Rowland estate for business that night and hadn’t returned, leaving Sabrina Donovan all alone at home. Under the influence of the drug, the emotions the two had suppressed for so many years came rushing forth, and one thing naturally led to another.
But due to the effects of the drug, when Hugh Donovan woke up the next day, he had no memory of what had transpired.
He thought that after escaping Rowena Churchill’s entanglement, he had simply taken a cab home, slept by himself, and had a strange dream. With that, he put the whole incident out of his mind.
Hearing this, Rochelle Rowland nearly crushed the wine glass in her hand. ’He could forget something so important? Is there any hope for this idiot son of mine?’