Chapter 737 - 733: You’re My Younger Brother, How Could I Not Understand You?

Randall Jennings froze when Ivy Winters suddenly mentioned Jasmine Sterling’s name.

"Jasmine?" Randall said. "Ivy, where did you see her?"

"At her company. I made a special trip."

Randall looked from his older brother to his sister-in-law, a confused expression on his face. "You said you needed to talk to me. Does this have to do with Jasmine?"

"It’s about the two of you," Matthew Jennings said. "Randall, ever since I found you and her alone together at your apartment, I knew something was off. That’s highly unusual for you."

"Matthew, I..."

"Don’t be so quick to deny it!" Matthew Jennings cut him off. "I’ve known you your whole life, I know exactly who you are. You went on a few blind dates just to appease Dad, even tried dating those women. But be honest with yourself—have you ever brought a single one of them home?"

"You won’t even let us hire a housekeeper for you, yet you let her come over to your place. You two even cook and eat together. Does that seem normal to you?"

"I was sick that day!" Randall explained.

But Matthew Jennings snorted coldly, "Is this the only time you’ve ever been sick in your entire life?"

"Randall, you don’t have to be so guarded with Matthew and me," Ivy Winters said. "No matter what, we’re on your side. We know you’ve been under so much pressure from Dad for so many years, and it’s been hard on you. So, if you’ve found someone you like, we’re truly happy for you."

"It’s natural for people to fall in love!" Matthew continued. "You never dated or got married, so Dad started to think there was something wrong with you. But now we get it. It wasn’t that you weren’t interested; you just hadn’t met the right person."

"Matthew, Jasmine and I..."

"What? Are you going to tell me you don’t like her?" Matthew asked bluntly, clearly trying to force an admission out of him.

Randall’s mouth opened, but he didn’t admit it. Then again, he didn’t deny it either.

Seeing his reaction, Matthew and Ivy exchanged a look. Randall was known for being decisive and resolute; it was rare to see him this conflicted.

His hesitation was telling. If there was nothing to it, he would have simply denied it.

They both knew they were on the right track.

"Randall, Jasmine has three children," Ivy said softly, testing the waters. "I’m afraid Dad will never agree."

Matthew watched his brother’s reaction, but Randall just turned his head away without a word.

"Ivy went to meet her because we wanted to see what the woman you’ve fallen for is like. We both just want you to be happy."

Ivy added, "I’ve only met her once, but I can see she’s a very charismatic woman. Still, considering the reality of the situation, Matthew and I hope you’ll think this through carefully."

Randall turned his head back, only to be met with his brother’s serious expression. "Don’t even think you’ll get this past Dad. Just drop the idea. Forget everything else for a moment—she’s several years older than you and already has three kids. Can she even have more children for you?"

Randall’s brow knitted, his expression darkening instantly. "Is having children the only reason for me to get married? Jasmine isn’t some baby-making machine. Why does she have to keep popping out kids?"

"But you don’t have any children, and Dad wants..."

"If he wants grandchildren, the Jennings family already has Kael! And Reginald will get married and have kids eventually. Is it so wrong for me not to have any?"

Randall was getting angry, especially at the mention of Jasmine being too old to have more children.

’He did like Jasmine. He’d first realized it after that time Megan Nash got drunk and spelled it out for him. But he’d kept these feelings to himself, with no intention of ever bringing them to light.’

’He thought things were perfect as they were. He could see her whenever he wanted, watch her smile, chat with her, and eat the delicious meals she cooked.’

’He’d never considered anything more, and he certainly hadn’t thought about asking Jasmine to have a child for him!’

"Randall, don’t get upset," Ivy soothed him gently. "Matthew didn’t mean anything by it. We want you to be with the person you love, but there has to be a solution that works for everyone."

"I’m not trying to get together with Jasmine," Randall said, looking at Ivy with a serious tone. "Everything in Jasmine’s life is perfectly balanced right now. She doesn’t need me to be a part of it, at least not now. I think our current relationship is fine as it is. There’s no need to take it any further."

"So you don’t want to marry her?" Matthew asked.

Randall replied, "It’s not that I don’t want to. It’s that it’s unnecessary. Things are good as they are."

Matthew was rendered speechless. "What do you mean, ’unnecessary’? You have to get married eventually, don’t you? If you say marrying her is unnecessary, and you won’t marry anyone else, then what’s the plan? Are you ever going to get married?"

"Is marriage something you can just do whenever you feel like it?"

"Then what if Jasmine Sterling agreed to marry you? Would you do it or not!"

Randall was silent.

"Answer me! Yes or no!" Matthew demanded.

Randall turned his head away and let out a deep breath.

Seeing his evasiveness, Matthew shook his head in disappointment. "Still arguing with me? You can be a titan in the business world, but to me, you’ll always be my little brother. You think I don’t know you? You think I can’t see right through you?"

"All this talk about ’unnecessary’ and ’things are good now’... let’s be blunt, it’s just because you’re scared, isn’t it?"

"You know Jasmine is a very level-headed woman. She’s more aware of her own situation than you are. It wouldn’t even matter what you wanted; she would never agree to be with you. You’re afraid that if you confess your feelings, you’ll lose her as a friend. That’s why you keep saying things are ’good now’—because you know it’s not destined to get any better. You’re destined to go nowhere!"

As the eldest brother, Matthew’s tirade was like a thunderclap, each word a piercing truth that ripped Randall’s innermost thoughts apart and laid them bare, leaving him utterly exposed.

Ivy fell silent as well. As the eldest, Matthew knew his brother all too well. He had predicted Randall’s reaction perfectly before they had even arrived.

And he had been spot-on.

Randall was speechless. After a long moment, he finally recovered, looked at his brother, and nodded. "Yeah. You’re right about everything. I’m too scared to say anything, alright? I’m allowed to be scared, aren’t I?"

"Of course you are. But do you really plan to let things stay this way forever? How long do you think you two can keep this up?"

Ivy chose this moment to speak. "Randall, Matthew is being a little aggressive, but he just wants you to be clear about where you stand. Now that you’ve admitted you like her, we of course want you to be happy. But you can’t just stick your head in the sand. Jasmine has another suitor, and he’s persistent and very aggressive with his advances. If you just keep coasting along, you might actually lose her for good."

Hearing this, Randall’s brow furrowed. "A suitor?"

"Finn Vance. You know him," Ivy reminded him. "A rival with his credentials is not to be underestimated."

Randall’s expression relaxed when he heard Finn Vance’s name. "Ivy, your information is way out of date. That business between Jasmine and Finn Vance happened six months ago. It’s long over."