Chapter 2 Not Man Enough

The two security guards looked at each other in surprise.

"Who is this man? He's here without an appointment and he looks like a bumpkin. But why did Miss Morrison let him in?" one security guard asked in confusion.

"You two are so ignorant. That young man is the future husband of our president."

"What? That guy is Lyndon? The loser who has lived in the Collins family's villa for nine years without doing anything serious with his life?"

"This is unbelievable! How could a handsome man like him be a sponger? Has he no shame? Look at the way he's dressed. From the look of things, he's not treated right in the Collins' household."

"You don't understand. People do anything for survival. Lazy people don't mind getting insulted as long as they are catered for. I'm dead sure he is one of them. Alas! I wonder if the president is really going to get married to such a person. She deserves someone better."

Hush whispers filled the entire hall as soon as Lyndon was ushered in. Although the security guards didn't know him, the other employees had heard a lot about him.

"Shut up!" Tess screamed and walked back to where the crowd stood. She looked at them with her eyes blazing with anger. They couldn't help lowering their heads in fright.

"Don't you have work to do? You are paid to work for this company, not to gossip and laze about.

Go back to your respective duty posts now. If you continue gossiping, you'll face severe consequences!"

The employees quickly ran back to their various offices. Tess couldn't stand the employees gossiping about Elena.

Elena had been a goal-getter right from when she was a little girl. She was not only beautiful, but also smart and extremely outstanding. Thus, countless excellent men fancied her.

Being engaged to Lyndon was the only imperfection Elena had.

Tess led Lyndon to Elena's office. He knocked on the door and walked in without waiting for a go-ahead.

"What are you doing here?"

Elena, who had a worried look on her face, was taken aback by his sudden appearance. She had been busy sorting out some documents all day.

"Well, your mother called you countlessly, but you didn't pick up her calls. She asked me to come get you," Lyndon answered. Compared to the other members of the Collins family, Elena treated him much better.

"I can't go home now. As you can see, I have a lot on my hands. You can go back now," Elena said lightly.

The look on her face indicated that she was having trouble with work and she needed to solve it immediately.

Tess suddenly knocked on the door and walked in.

"I just received a call from the receptionist downstairs that Garry Nixon is on his way to see you." She revealed after hesitating for a while. But she didn't even spare Lyndon a glance.

"Tell him I am not on seat," Elena replied, rubbing her temples tiredly.

But the next second, someone pushed open the door of the office from outside. A man in his early twenties strode in majestically.

He was dressed in an expensive suit. His hair and beards were properly trimmed. The bouquet of roses in his hand seemed to complement his handsomeness. He smiled brightly once he saw Elena.

"Hey, Elena. I knew you were around today."

Garry ignored the two people who were standing and walked to Elena's desk. He put down the bouquet and stared at Elena. "It's lunchtime now. You haven't had lunch, have you? I made a reservation at the Royal Hotel. Let's go there to eat."

"I'll have to pass on that. Lyndon is here to pick me up. I have to go home now," Elena replied without mincing words.

Garry was one of her many wooers.

He was nice and thoughtful, unlike some arrogant sons of rich families. However, Elena didn't like him.

"Oh, this guy?"

Garry turned around and looked at Lyndon, who he had been ignoring. A distasteful frown appeared on his face the next second.

"Come on, Elena. Don't tell me you really want to settle down with him?" Garry asked, still smiling at her.

"Elena, you are a beautiful and exceptional woman. You deserve the very best. And I think the best man for you is me. I love you so much. Even if you don't feel the same way, you don't have to use this loser as an excuse."

Garry walked to Elena's side and added, "Besides, we both know that he's a good-for-nothing.

He even doesn't deserve to be your servant. Let alone, your husband."

Lyndon didn't react despite the jabs that Garry threw at him calmly. He just stood aside and looked at Garry calmly. He had learned to be more tolerant of people in the past nine years.

"More so, I heard that your company is currently facing some difficulties. You need a man that can help you solve such things. This loser is not up to the task."

Since Elena didn't utter a word, Garry felt that she was seeing reasons with him. He stretched out his hand to her and said, "I can help you. Let's go out and discuss the company's problems over lunch."

Elena took a deep breath. She glanced at Lyndon, who was still silent, before looking at Garry.

It was true that the company had encountered some difficulties lately.

More than anything, Elena needed help to get out of this mess. Her grandfather, Wilbert Collins had founded Hytai Industries. Under his watch, the company became the biggest supplier of construction materials in Antpelle. It was stable for so many years.

After Wilbert suddenly fell ill, he could no longer oversee the company's affairs. Elena was put in charge. She worked very hard and was able to increase the profits at first.

But things took a turn for the worse recently. Some of the old clients decided not to renew their contracts after the previous ones expired. Elena tried to set up meetings with them, but they all avoided her like a plague.

The company produced tons of construction materials daily. With little or no buyers to purchase these materials, production was abruptly placed on hold. Hundreds of employees were waiting to get paid. This was a big blow to the company.

Elena had tried her best to solve the problem. Unfortunately, all her efforts proved abortive. She was in a dilemma.

Garry's offer to help ignited a glimmer of hope in her heart.

As Elena thought of how the shareholders had expressed displeasure in her leadership at the meeting this morning, she decided to give Garry a chance. She took a deep breath and looked at Lyndon.

"How about you go back home first?"

Elena got up from her seat. The light blue suit she had on accentuated her curvaceous figure. She yawned and stretched tiredly before grabbing her bag.

"No, we have to go home together."

Lyndon insisted as he stared at her with a resolute look.

"What? What makes you think you have the right to tell Elena what to do? Are you deaf or blind? Can't you see that I'm about to take her out for lunch? Get lost this minute!"

Garry got short with Lyndon and gave him a threatening stare.

"Well, I can't go home with you now."

Elena didn't spare Lyndon the time to say anything more. She just walked out of the office. Garry grimaced at Lyndon tauntingly before he followed Elena out.

"Gosh! You aren't man enough. In fact, you don't deserve to be called a man at all!"

Disappointment was written all over Tess's face as she looked at Lyndon. She shook her head and walked out of the office.

What happened had hurt Lyndon's manly ego. However, he restrained himself from reacting. He shrugged it off and left the office.

He was going to become an adult in a few days. Nothing could change the fact that Elena was his wife-to-be, not even her parents' disapproval.

Tess's earlier warning had scared the employees so much that they didn't gossip about Lyndon as he walked out of the company.

Just when he was about to mount his bicycle, his phone rang.

The sight of the caller ID made him frown slightly. He reluctantly answered the call.

"Hello, sir. I have good news for you. Mr. Moran Brooks has agreed to your condition."

Jax's throaty voice came from the other end of the line. The frown on Lyndon's face was instantly replaced with a smile.

"I'll be leaving Antpelle in a few days. Feel free to contact me if you need anything.

Also, there's something I must tell you."

Jax hesitated for a while and continued, "Please take my friendly advice. As you well know, your relatives are currently at war with each other. They have suffered great losses due to their quest for fame and fortune. But that doesn't change the fact that their foundation is still there.

You need to keep a low profile until you are strong enough to defend yourself from them. If you attract their attention, you may end up getting hurt."

The genuine concern in Jax's tone made Lyndon's smile brighter. It was nice to know that someone had his interest at heart.

"Don't worry about me. I'm just a loser. Nobody will pay attention to me," Lyndon said with self-mockery.

A bitter smile appeared on Jax's face when he heard these words. He felt pity for Lyndon.

"After all, I'm just a backup," Lyndon added softly.