His Adopted Brother Turned To Be A Girl !

16 Acton Moore

Early the next day, the housekeeper knocked at Laraine’s door.

“Miss Laurence, Mr. Andrew is waiting for you.”

“Yeah…okay,” Laraine mumbled sleepily. Gosh, he never let her sleep in she thought as she stood up from her bed and slowly shuffled to the bathroom. She splashed her face with water and looked at her reflection.

She really was getting into liking her eighteen-year-old body! She was getting another chance to experience her early 20s again; who would not want that?! ‘Laurence’s’ face was creamy smooth with no signs of acne that most kids experiences at this age (Thank God, she thought!). Thankfully, she had no acne as Laraine White and had no desire to experience that either!

After washing up, she grabbed her phone and checked the entertainment news online. She found that the hot search was gone and so were the news and articles about her. She then came to understand what Andrew meant. He indeed had great power to magically make everything disappear. He must have paid a lot of money for that, she thought embarrassedly.

Dare not delaying any further, Laraine quickly prepared herself and went downstairs to the living room. When she saw Andrew, she was stunned.

He was dressed in his usual crisp, tight-fitting suit. This time, ash grey in color, the suit matched his eyes perfectly. The black silk tie made him look yummy and scary at the same time. He was holding his phone in his hand typing something. Gosh, she thought. How did the girls at his office work around him? She knew she would not get anything done if he was around dressed like that!

Although the aura around him indicated that she should stay away, she could not suppress her curiosity.

She gulped hard as if to swallow the fear and sat gingerly across from Andrew.

“Are you going to meet someone, Andrew?”

“A director.”

Everyone around them was stunned. Because Andrew usually ignored such questions, they did not expect him to answer.

They looked at Laurence with wide eyes. Why did Andrew answer her?

“Oh,” Laraine replied, did not realizing that her status in the family had grown. She had met many directors when she was Laraine White, so she was not interested in them and thought no big deal.

Andrew frowned at Laurence’s lackluster response. He had arranged the meeting at home so the Director could meet Laurence to expand her network. A good director had far more connections than a company president. But it seemed that Laurence had little interest.

Just then, a spirited middle-aged man walked in. Laraine unconsciously looked up at him and then was dazed. She felt fear run through her but remembered she was not Laraine White but Laurence Jones. She knew this man, Acton Moore, the director she had most contact with when she was Laraine White.

She quickly swallowed her surprise and tried to act normally in order to not arouse any suspicion.

Acton came over to meet Andrew and did not pay any attention to Laurence.

“Thanks for inviting me here, Mr. Andrew. I’m so honored.” With a smile, Acton politely spoke up while shaking Andrew’s hand.

Usually no one outside would be allowed in the dining room. However, Acton’s father and the Jones’ were close friends, so he could be less formal than other guests. He came here looking for an actress. Since Laraine White’s mysterious death, he had not found a suitable actress for his movie. And his reputation had fallen sharply due to the delays in making of his movie.

Recently, Acton had received another well written script. But it was an interesting story about love, and perhaps few people wanted to invest in it. However, it seemed like God listened to his plight and right then, Andrew had called him about the investment, which was a timely help for him.

“Sit down, please.” Andrew gestured to Acton.

Andrew’s cold face made Acton feel embarrassed. He even dared not to look into Andrew’s eyes. He had dealt with Andrew Jones many times before and not once did this man smile. It seemed like he was a perpetual robot.

Laraine had always been grateful to Acton for his help in advancing her career. He had always given her great advice and support so she tried to defuse his embarrassment and the awkward environment in the room. She quickly stood up and warmly held out her hand towards Acton.

“Hi! I’m Laurence!”

Acton looked up at Laurence. He stilled as he stared into this girl’s bright vibrant eyes. He had not heard much of Laurence Jones apart from the fact that she was an adopted child and not worth much. However, her eyes told another story. They were full of life and ideas. Acton frowned when he felt a feeling of déjà vu fall over him. Had he met Laurence Jones before? No, he thought. That could not be. He would have remembered her, that is for sure.

Hurriedly, he stood up and grabbed Laurence’s hand, looking quite excited.

“Hi Miss Jones. How are you? It is very lovely to meet you!” Acton replied excitedly.

Suddenly, Acton had an epiphany. Laurence Jones would be his actress! He had been looking for the right person for the number two heroine for his movie. When he saw Laurence, he realized that he found her. Now, he just forgot about Andrew and why he had invited him in the first place.

“Say Miss. Laurence. Would you be interested to play a main part in my next movie?” Acton asked.

After hearing Acton’s question, Laraine froze for a moment, then she pulled away from Acton and took a step back, pretending to be shocked since she was supposed to be Laurence Jones, the shy submissive adopted child of the Jones family and not Laraine White, the well-established actress who had already worked with Acton Moore.

“This is Miss Laurence, Mr. Acton. She is the youngest…um…child of the family.” The housekeeper spoke up thinking Acton must have asked her by mistake. Surely, he would want to ask Marge instead of her.

Acton’s eyes lit up. As far as he knew, Laurence had been neglected in the Jones family. So, he had a chance to get her and convert her to a shining star! 

Talking of negligence, Andrew was unhappy he was being left out from the conversation. If it was one thing he hated, that was being ignored. Even the air around him became cold. Acton noticed the change in Andrew’s posture and quickly came to himself and sat down beside him.

Laraine also took a seat. She had been thinking about Acton’s words. She loved acting, and she had worked with him before, so she was seriously interested in his proposal. Plus, it would give her something to do instead of pawning off Andrew and the family’s money.

“Ten million,” Andrew said in a cold voice, knocking at the table.

Acton knew that was the money Andrew would invest in his movie and was quite happy.

“Thanks so much, Mr. Andrew,” Acton gushed. It was much more than what he was expecting!

“Then, that’s it. I’m looking forward to our next meeting.”

Still, Andrew’s voice was cold. Somehow, he thought of Acton touching Laurence’s hand and felt uncomfortable.

But Acton did not want to leave yet. Reluctantly, he stood up, took a card out of his pocket, and handed it to Laraine.

“I think the role I have is perfect for you. I wish to see you at the audition.”

He wanted to say more but the housekeeper led him out.

Quietly, Laraine stared at the card which had Acton’s contact information and timings and locations for the auditions.

“Give it to me.” Andrew reached out and obediently Laraine handed him the card. Seeing that he put the card in his pocket, she felt a sense of loss wash over her. Did Andrew not agree to her working with Acton?

Andrew noticed Laurence’s sadness, thought about it, and gently asked.

“You want to go to audition?”

“Um…Yeah? I would…have liked to…that is if you…” Laraine trailed off.

The housekeeper who was cleaning off the table stood up in shock when she heard this!  

“No way. No Jones has ever acted, never!” Hale thought hurriedly in her mind. Of course, she could not say anything out loud; however, she had a feeling nothing good would come out of this!

Hearing Andrew’s lack of response, Laraine became depressed. She knew Andrew would never let her act. No Jones had ever acted in anything so she would not either.  

“I am going upstairs,” she glumly announced and hurried to her room wanting to be alone. She just wanted to lie on her bed and wallow in self-pity.

Andrew’s eyes darkened as Laurence walked away.

When Laraine got to her room, she took out her cellphone and stared at a photo of her sister Tiffany and her ex-boyfriend Nathan. She remembered how she had been killed. 

She clenched her fists in anger, “I’ll make you pay!”

At this moment, her door opened. It was Andrew. Hastily, Laraine put her phone under her quilt and tried to smooth her expressions.

Andrew squinted at her. Then he took the card out of his pocket and threw it towards her.

“Don’t embarrass me.”