Forbidden Passion
Chapter 328 You Can Beg Me

Theodore came out after his shower and heard some noise in the walk-in closet. He stepped over and saw Phoebe crouched by the suitcase, organizing her luggage. Leaning against the door frame, drying his hair, he looked at her back. "What are you doing?"

Phoebe's back stiffened slightly, but she didn't stop packing. She said, "I have a business trip and don't know when I'll be back."

"where are you going?" Theodore asked.

Phoebe pressed her lips together, skipping the question. She closed the suitcase and went to the drawer to get her passport and ID, putting them into her bag.

"I won't be home for a few days. You can have Jenna cook for you, or you can come back after eating out," she said.

Theodore's face darkened. It seemed she wasn't planning to tell him that her brother was in trouble. "Where are you going?"

"Starfall City, to see Donovan." Phoebe knew she couldn't avoid it, so she downplayed the situation to keep him from worrying.

She paused, feeling a bit self-mocking. Theodore couldn't possibly care about her.

In his eyes, she was just a bed warmer. She should stop being delusional.

Theodore yanked the towel off and walked towards her with an imposing aura. He looked down at her, his dark eyes unfathomable. "Donovan is fine. Why are you going to see him?" Phoebe avoided his gaze, speaking with difficulty, "He's been gone for over six months. My mom is worried, so she asked me to go check on him."

'Liar!' Theodore gritted his teeth internally, looking at her with a deep, meaningful gaze. "You can just tell me if you need any help."

If she told him, she wouldn't even need to go to Starfall City. He would have someone bring Donovan back safely.

Phoebe lowered her head, staring silently at their toes.

She wasn't used to asking for help, especially not from him.

Over the years, no matter how big the trouble, she insisted on solving it herself because she didn't want to owe him.

She feared that if she owed too much, she wouldn't be able to repay it when she left someday.

Theodore looked at the two cowlicks on her head. After waiting half a minute without her speaking, he sneered, "I really am delusional." With that, he left in a huff.

Phoebe breathed a sigh of relief. She found her bank card and put it in her bag. Once everything was ready, she carried her suitcase out the door.

The apartment was empty. A pair of shoes was missing by the door.

Theodore's slippers were messily thrown around.

Phoebe sat on the steps to change her shoes. When standing up, she picked up the slippers and neatly placed them by the shoe cabinet, then carried her suitcase out the door.

In the study, Theodore stood by the floor-to-ceiling window. He took out a cigarette and lighter from his pocket, lit it, and took a puff.

Amid the swirling smoke, he looked down at the street below, his gaze deep and unreadable.

A small figure appeared in his view. Phoebe pushed her suitcase and walked out of the apartment without looking back, slowly disappearing from his sight.

The study was filled with choking smoke. After a long while, Theodore took out his phone and made a call. "Lawton, apply for a private flight route to Starfall City.,"

The people in those foreign gambling dens were ruthless. If Donovan really owed money to loan sharks, Phoebe would need help to solve the problem.

He could have ignored her, but he couldn't be heartless to her. Especially now, he quite liked her and didn't want to lose her just yet.

Theodore found enough excuses for his soft heart, then stubbed out his cigarette and went to the walk-in closet to pack his luggage.

John picked up Phoebe and drove to the airport.

Phoebe sat in the back seat, trying to call Donovan, but his phone was off. She then called one of his friends.

The call was quickly answered, and the voice sounded quite surprised. "Phoebe, why are you calling me?" "Nova, has Donovan contacted you recently?" Phoebe asked.

Nova and Donovan were classmates and had a good relationship. Donovan went to Starfall City for a business trip Nova had arranged.

Nova was taken aback. "No, has something happened to him?"

Phoebe pressed her lips together. "No, I'm going to Starfall City for a business trip and want to check on him. Could you send me the address of the Adams Group's office in Starfall City?" "Sure, I'll send it right away. But Donovan hasn't been in touch with me much since he went to Starfall City. I don't know how he's doing. If you see him, say hi to me," Nova said. Phoebe agreed and hung up.

She didn't know if Nova genuinely didn't know about Donovan or was pretending not to, but either way, he clearly wasn't planning to tell her.

Soon, Nova sent her the address of their office in Starfall City, and she saved it on her phone.

Clutching her phone, she felt a wave of anxiety.

She rarely traveled abroad. Whenever she did, it was with Theodore. Now, going alone to a strange city to find someone and dealing with loan sharks made her inexplicably nervous. John said, "Phoebe, I've arranged everything at the company. I'm not comfortable with you going to Starfall City alone. I'll go with you." Phoebe was taken aback. "I can handle it myself."

John looked into the rearview mirror. Her eyes were full of anxiety, but she was still pretending to be strong. He didn't expose her, saying, "I also want to see Starfall City." Phoebe knew John was going to Starfall City because of her. She sighed. "Am I not as strong as you thought?"

John smiled. "No, Phoebe, you've always been strong in my eyes."

If another girl faced her brother's disappearance, she would have been at a loss and only knew how to cry. But Phoebe could methodically arrange everything and then went to another city alone to find him. "Thank you!" Phoebe forced a smile.

They completed the check-in procedures at the airport. After waiting for less than half an hour, the announcement called them to board.

They had bought their tickets too late, so only economy class seats in the last row were left. The plane shook a lot when it hit turbulence. Phoebe got airsick for the first time.

After three transfers and feeling dizzy, she finally arrived in Starfall City two days later.

It was pouring rain in Starfall City. Phoebe's head was splitting as she followed John out of the airport and got into a waiting cab.

She sat groggily in the back seat, hearing John speak fluently with the driver in a foreign language. She realized that John had excellent language skills.

'No wonder he's a top graduate from a prestigious university. It's a waste for him to be my assistant,' thought Phoebe.

When the car headed to the hotel, Phoebe's phone vibrated. Glancing at the caller ID, she felt even more of a headache.

She answered, holding the phone to her ear, "I just got off the plane, heading to the hotel now."

"You're still going to the hotel? Donovan has been missing for three days. Instead of looking for him, you're thinking about your comfort. Don't forget, I sent you to Starfall City to find Donovan, not for a vacation!" Evelyn shouted.