Marrying the Lockwood\'s Son (Part 5)

Staggering out of the hotel, Adeline fell to the ground at the entrance. She lifted her head to see a few couples amongst the passersby. They were holding hands, whispering sweet nothings to each other. Seeing such a scene, Adeline was in a mess. Sebastian was her boyfriend. They had been dating in secret for almost two years. Their second anniversary would be in only another month. But Adeline didn't understand how Sebastian got involved with Zoey. "What should I do?" Adeline cried. She buried her head in her arms as tears welled up in her eyes. Although she didn't like Zoey that much, Sebastian was her boyfriend, and he was one of the influential figures in Caulford City. If she had gone up and confronted him, their relationship would be over. Plus, she couldn't do such a thing. Meanwhile, a black limousine was parked on the opposite road. No one could see into the car through the tinted window, but a low voice could be heard through the lowered car window. "This is Adeline?" "Yes, she is Adeline Simpson, the eldest daughter of Ronald Simpson from the Simpson Group." "I choose her." "Sir, aren't you going to have a look at her information?" The person spoke with a hint of surprise. "There's no need for that. She will do." "Alright!" The man in the car looked deeply at Adeline for one last time, and then put up the window. The limousine quickly disappeared into the street. It was already seven in the evening when Adeline reached home. Ronald, who was originally sitting on the couch, stood up immediately when he saw that Adeline came back. "Adeline, where have you been? Why didn't you answer your phone?" The corners of Adeline's lips twitched. She masked herself with enthusiasm and answered, "I'm sorry, Dad. I went hiking with my friends earlier. I must have missed your calls since the signal was bad on the mountain. Also, I fell asleep on the way back." Adeline kept her head lowered after she had answered Ronald. She felt guilty because she lied to Ronald. "Adeline, come meet our guests," Ronald said, and he pulled Adeline to the front of an old lady. It was only then that Adeline realized that other than Ronald and Helen, there were four more people in the living room, which were the old lady, a middle-aged couple, and the lawyer who came to their house earlier that day. Adeline had a bad feeling about this. "This is Madam Vallerie of the Lockwood family; Mr. Lockwood, the chairman of the Lockwood Group, and his wife, Martha Lane," Roland introduced to Adeline. "It's nice to meet all of you," Adeline greeted, but her fingers curled in anxiety and her heart palpitating wildly. "Why is the Lockwood family here?" her mind raced. "Surely it couldn't be—" Before Adeline could finish her thought, Vallerie smiled at Adeline and said, "Adeline, come over and let me have a look." Adeline was slightly taken aback at the request. She stared at Vallerie for a while and then went towards her under the smiling eyes of Ronald's. Just by looking at Adeline in a much closer direction, Vallerie was satisfied with her. Hence, Vallerie turned to express her fondness to Nicholas, Loraine's father and the chairman of Lockwood Group, "Adeline seems like a good girl. She's pretty, and she's docile." Nicholas smiled and said to Vallerie, "Indeed, she is. Mom, you have sharp eyes. We'll listen to you on this." Adeline's heart sank. She turned around and stared at Ronald. Before she could say anything, Helen spoke, "Madam Vallerie, Adeline has been a very good girl growing up. She hasn't even dated before!" "Really?" Vallerie said as she gently patted the back of Adeline's hand. She nodded before she spoke again, "That's even better. Well, everything's settled then." "Settled? What's settled?" The words were blurted out from her mouth as Adeline glanced at everyone present.