Chapter 347

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Upon hearing this , Arnav and Gloria’s expressions darkened .
Gloria narrowed her eyes , her tone laced with reproach and resignation . “ Derek , we can tolerate your usual fooling around – after all , we’re young , it’s a big deal .
“ But your Grandma is already in her eighties . How could you have the heart to drag her through all this trouble ? ”
Derek sneered , “ I already warned him the room was booked , but he chose not to believe me . ”
Lennox took the blame and said , “ This is my fault . I only told Derek after I was already on my way . Honestly , I didn’t think it’d be such a coincidence . “
Arnav looked at his son with an inscrutable gaze . “ If you’d been more dependable , Lennox wouldn’t have doubted you . ”
Derek scoffed , “ Oh , so now it’s my fault he didn’t believe me ? ”
“ Since you failed to handle things properly and ended up shouldering all the blame yourself , whose fault could it be if not yours ? ” Arnav retorted .
‘ That sounds a bit off , Lennox thought .
Lennox’s heart skipped a beat as he shot a quick glance at Arnav .
Seeing the tension , Alice quickly stepped in to smooth things over . “ We’re all family . Why don’t we just share this room ? ”
Suppressing the unease in his heart , Lennox forced a polite smile and asked , “ Derek , you wouldn’t mind , would you ? ”
Aria turned her face aside and said , “ I booked the room . Why are you asking him if he minds ? If he says yes , he’ll offend you guys ; if he says no , he’ll offend me . What’s your game , Mr. Fletcher ? ”
Lennox hurriedly waved his hands in denial and said , “ Aria , you’ve got me all wrong . I really thought the room was booked in Derek’s name . ”
He paused , his smile growing more fervent . “ Aria , since we’re all here , how about we get together ? Let’s celebrate Derek getting into Mandino University’s Pharmaceutical Analysis program . ”
He made a point of stressing the words ‘ getting into , ‘ his tone unmistakably pointed .
Aria smirked . “ Celebrating together isn’t out of the question , but … ”
She leveled her gaze at Lennox . “ They can stay . You can’t . ”
Lennox’s polite smile almost slipped off his face as his expression darkened . “ Aria , why are you targeting me ? Is it because … ”
He cast a meaningful glance at Derek , trying to sound tactful . “ Could there be some misunderstanding ? ”
Aria said bluntly , “ You’re so fake . I don’t like you . ”
At these words , the private room fell into an awkward silence .
Lennox and Alice’s faces darkened .
Lexie glanced at Derek , noticing the faint smile tugging at the corners of his lips . A flicker of amusement flashed in her eyes .
‘ Looks like this rascal finally has someone standing up for him , ‘ she thought .
Lexie was well aware of the discord between her two grandsons , Derek and Lennox , but she knew better than to step in .
When Lennox was young , Lexie noticed , he had a bit of a scheming nature and tactfully mentioned it to her second daughter – in – law . Unfortunately ,
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Lennox overheard the conversation .
From that moment on , an estrangement grew between Lennox and his grandmother .
Lexie was the most respected figure in the family . Even though Lennox harbored resentment , there was nothing he could do about it
Since Lexie favored Defek , Lennox took out his frustration on him , constantly comparing himself to Derek and picking on him at every turn .
Lexie witnessed all this and personally mentored Lennox for two years , to little avail .
Lennox was practically flawless in everything – except when it came to Derek , his sole target .
Derek was straightforward , completely clueless about mind games – no match for Lennox’s scheming ways .
The more Lexie tried to shield Derek , the more relentless Lennox became in targeting him .
In the end , Lexie had no choice but to step back and let her two grandsons , Derek and Lennox , work out their issues between themselves .
At this thought , Lexie sighed inwardly .
Arnav never imagined someone could be so blunt , putting people on the spot like that .
Arnav looked utterly astonished , leaned closer to his wife , and whispered , “ Is she always like this ? ”
Gloria , long accustomed to this , gave a calm nod . “ Yeah , that’s just how she is . ”