Rejected Heiress, Reigning Queen novel Chapter 58

Logan arranged to meet Emma.

This time, he at least remembered to bring her a gift.

"Did you invite me out to discuss business, or is this a personal matter?"

Emma tossed the gift aside casually. The icy distance in her voice made Logan's chest tighten uncomfortably.

He pressed his lips together. "Let's order food first. There's no rush to talk about the rest."

"If you have something to say, just say it. I really can't be bothered with empty pleasantries."

Emma crossed her arms. She highly doubted Logan had sought her out to reminisce about their long-lost sibling bond.

"I know about the fifteen thousand dollars." Logan looked deeply guilty. "I had no idea Mom only sent you that much during those two years."

Back then, to ensure Emma was 'worthy' of Percy and to prevent the Harringtons from looking down on their family, they had enrolled her in a prestigious business school where tuition alone was tens of thousands a year.

They had sent Emma abroad without even covering her tuition, yet no one in the family had ever checked on her.

Emma smiled without a word. During her first two years overseas, she had worked herself to the bone and pinched every penny just to survive and finish her degree, which ultimately tanked her grades.

It was a deeply buried scar.

"But you seem to be doing very well for yourself now," Logan pivoted suddenly.

Emma instantly realized his true intention. "I never thought I'd see the day when my arrogant brother would learn how to be diplomatic, just because he's coveting someone else's money."

Logan's face drained of color. Her words violently pierced through his self-proclaimed noble pride.

But thinking of his mother and sister, he could only clench his fists and silently endure the humiliation.

"Grandmother hit Mom yesterday."

Emma's hand faltered slightly as she reached for her glass of water, but she quickly recovered, taking a sip as if she hadn't cared.

Logan continued, "Mom cried all night. Dad was forcing her to come beg you for help, but she said she was too ashamed to face you after what happened with the bank statements. She'd rather sit at home and be beaten than cause you any trouble."

"Playing the guilt card? Unfortunately, that doesn't work on me anymore." Emma maintained her utter indifference. This involved millions of dollars in debt; she wasn't an idiot.

Logan shook his head. "I just want to say, you can resent us and hate us all you want, but don't blame Mom. She really did care about you, ever since you were little."

Emma pressed her lips together, flashing back to her middle school days when she stayed up late studying high school material.

Violet had stayed up with her, burning the midnight oil just to keep her company. Whenever Emma was hungry, there was always a hot meal waiting. Worried the nanny's cooking wouldn't be good enough, Violet would cook for her personally.

When Emma lost her appetite in the summer heat, Violet would constantly invent new dishes just to coax her into eating.

Since Emma had a weak constitution, Violet meticulously managed every aspect of her clothing, food, and daily routine.

Once, Violet slipped and fell on a rainy day. Despite her injured leg, she insisted on cooking Emma's meals, terrified the nanny would make something she disliked or that would upset her stomach.

"Logan, I'm calling you my brother for the very last time today. You got your wish. From now on, your only sister is Gillian. No one will ever be caught in the middle again."

Logan stood up, his eyes filled with sheer confusion. "Emma, do you really have to be this cold-blooded?"

He couldn't comprehend it. Emma had lived as the cherished princess of their family for seventeen years. Why couldn't she just be a little more tolerant of Gillian?

"You're the cold-blooded ones."

Emma settled the bill, turned on her heel, and walked away.

Logan knew everything. He knew perfectly well that the baby swap wasn't her fault, and he knew Gillian's suffering had absolutely nothing to do with Emma.

Yet, he still chose to side with Gillian.

From this moment on, their seventeen years of sibling bonds were officially dead and buried.

Emma pulled out her phone, her eyes entirely devoid of warmth.

"Moving forward, CFT will not invest in any projects considered by the Lockwood Group. Also, pull all our funding from that new laboratory immediately. If we have that much cash lying around, I'd rather dump it into a nightclub."

With Julian around, she had unlimited access to world-class labs anyway.

Investing in a nightclub would at least get her a VIP membership she could play around with.