Chapter 1590: Why am I the only one who received two gifts from Father?
Pampered by my three brothers: the return of the neglected heiress
Hayley and Teddy were like two sides of the same coin. The only difference was that Hayley had a strange side to her. While Teddy seemed perpetually unhappy with everything in the world, Hayley could light up just by catching a glimpse of Slaterâher so-called male god.
To Patricia, it was strange. She had known Slater since they were kids. Sure, he had always had that angelic face, but Patricia knew too much about him to understand the girls who were willing to carry his children just for a smile.
But who wouldâve thought Hayley wasnât just like that with Slater?
Was she like this with every prospective love interest?
"Come on, Patricia\~" Hayley clung to her arm, letting herself get dragged toward their office. "Just once. I swear it wonât affect our friendship. Donât you want me to become your sister?"
Patriciaâs expression remained deadpan as she kept her eyes on the hallway ahead.
*I donât think my brother is ugly,* she thought. *But at the same time, Iâve never understood the girls who dated him.*
Maybe it was just a sibling thing. In her eyes, Theo looked average. Very average.
She glanced at Hayley, who was still practically begging.
"Iâll think about it, okay?" Patricia relented as they reached the department entrance. "But let me warn youâmy brother is busy, so donât play with his heart. Heâs kind, and people sometimes take advantage of that. And heâs very important to me. So, if you break his heart, Iâll break you."
Hayley straightened up and nodded enthusiastically.
"I promise," she said, raising a hand in a mock oath. "If I play games, you may break me as many times as you want."
Patricia scrunched up her nose and shrugged, choosing not to dwell on it. It was just a casual date. Nothing to worry about. Besides, she liked Hayleyâthough she wasnât sure if she and Theo would even click.
Her thoughts halted as they arrived at the department entrance, and Patriciaâs eyes immediately landed on Teddy and Shawn.
Both men were standing beside a massive stack of delivery boxes that took up nearly an entire wall.
Hayley turned her head, and her face twitched at the sight. This was exactly why she always came in last minuteâshe didnât want to get roped into singing for deliveries or carrying heavy packages. Some of hers were quite heavy, after all.
Patricia walked over and stopped beside Teddy.
"You guys..." she whispered, staring at the towering stack of packages. "I thought I was a shopaholic, but donât tell me youâre getting ten times more than I do! How can you even afford all of this?!"
Her eyes scanned the two men, landing on the watch wrapped around Shawnâs wrist.
She scoffed, grabbing his hand for a better look. Suspicion flashed in her eyes.
"Is it rude to ask how much youâre getting paid?" she asked. "Because this is *very* expensive."
Unless Shawn had major savings, that watch alone would cost a yearâs salary. And Patricia knew that brand didnât allow installment paymentsâit was a limited-edition luxury model.
Shawn gave a nervous laugh. "Ah, itâs not real. I got it in one of the deliveries. Itâs a counterfeit."
"A counterfeit?" Patricia narrowed her eyes, inspecting the watch again. She wasnât a watch expertâshe preferred luxury bags and shoesâbut her brother Theo collected watches. His newest favorite was the exact same model.
So, she was sure.
"No, itâs not," she replied, snapping her eyes to Shawn. "You donât have to lie if you donât want to tell me how much you earn."
"But I *am* telling the truth!" Shawn said, raising his hands. "I received it a few days ago. It came in one of the mystery packages."
"I can vouch for that," Hayley added, arms crossed. "He got it the other day. Along with *a lot* of other things. Itâs not real."
"Why would you wear something when you donât even know where it came from?" Teddy chimed in, as flat and distant as ever.
Shawn scratched the back of his neck. "I had it checked to make sure it wasnât bugged or anything. They said it was clean."
"Are you *sure* itâs counterfeit?" Patricia asked again. "It looks exactly like my brotherâs. Iâd knowâhe wears it all the time."
"Patricia, sis," Hayley said knowingly, "who would gift a real watch worth our entire salary?"
"If that thing is real," she continued, "then that means all the other stuff weâve gotten is legit too, right?"
She eyed the packages. "Who in their right mind would send out random luxury goods for free? Either theyâre insane, or theyâre filthy rich."
"Either way," Teddy cut in, "we should report this now. We gave this âFatherâ a few days to stop. He hasnât. Iâm seriously concerned."
Shawn and Hayley nodded. As much as they liked receiving gifts, the sheer number of deliveries was starting to become unsettling.
Patricia blinked at them, innocent and confused. "Waitâwhat do you mean, itâs getting out of hand?"
All three turned to her with furrowed brows.
"Donât tell me..." she trailed off, eyes widening. "All *these* are from Father?"
"Why do you sound surprised? Havenât you been getting them too?" Teddy asked coldly.
Patricia shook her head. "I only received two packages from Father. I thought *you* guys were online shopping."
Teddy: "..."
Shawn: "..."
Hayley: "We seriously need to work on our communication. Otherwise, this team is doomed."
***
Still in the Prime Group building, Yugi heard a knock on the door. Furrowing his brows, he said, "Come in," and watched the door open.
When he saw the people coming into his office, his face contorted. Yugi, for some reason, already guessed what Pennyâs assistantâs concerns were.
He forced a smile as the four stood before his desk.
"Let me guess," he hummed. "Itâs about the influx of deliveries, isnât it?"
Teddy, Shawn, and Hayley nodded in unison. Patricia, on the other hand, frowned.
"I have a different concern!" Patricia huffed. "Why am I the only one who received two gifts from Father?"
Yugi let out a weak laugh. "Well, maybe because youâre the least favorite child?"