The Substitute Bride

Nancy knew what her absence would do to Sheryl once she left the Lu family. Melissa would surely bully Sheryl, who couldn't even find anymore a friend whom she could share her personal dilemmas with.

Just by thinking about this, Nancy couldn't help feeling sorry for Sheryl. So after a moment's silence, she didn't protest anymore. Instead, she started sweeping the floor.

For Melissa, she was glad to see Nancy not contradicting her any more. It made her feel as if Sheryl was groveling before her.

Putting down her teacup, Leila took Melissa's hand and examined it. She saw there was no swelling, but only a little red spot on the skin.

"Aunt Melissa, save your breath. She's not worth it. Instead, let's run your burn under the cold water in the washroom. Then, I'll apply burn ointment. I don't want to see your burn untreated. It might turn worse!" When Leila raised her head to look at Melissa, her eyes were red, tears ready to flow. She looked as if she wished she had been burnt instead of Melissa.

In the washroom, Leila did first aid on Melissa's burnt hand. She ran it under the cold water and applied the ointment. She even blew her breath on the affected area as she treated it so that Melissa wouldn't feel the pain it caused.

Looking at Leila attending to her, Melissa felt her heart warm and light, like there was a breeze. She felt so comfortable and moved, like being on the clouds.

"Aunt Melissa, are you feeling better?" Leila asked.

"Thank you, dear. I feel much better now. You're so sweet!" Melissa looked at Leila with satisfaction.

'She's such a nice lady! Oh, I don't understand why my son doesn't like her and insists on being with Sheryl. What does Sheryl have that Leila doesn't have?' With each passing day, Melissa grew fonder of Leila. She couldn't help sighing inwardly as she thought of the situation.

She gently removed her hand from Leila's touch and said, "Thank you, Leila. Wait here for a moment. I'll go upstairs to check why Charles hasn't come down yet."

Melissa was trying so hard to manipulate the situation, preventing Sheryl from finding a chance to win Charles ba

en she saw her son's poker face. But being his mother, she knew that Charles wouldn't do anything bad to her. So she kept up her arrogant facade.

"What is it, Mom?" Charles asked briefly. Looking at his mother, he knew that Melissa would not speak first especially after he caught her. Moreover, he wished that whatever agenda Melissa had would be finished soon. He wanted her to leave as soon as possible.

Not detecting any impatience in Charles' voice, Melissa still felt that Charles was questioning her.

"What is that supposed to mean?! I am your mother. Don't I have any right to call on you even if there's nothing special?" counter-attacked Melissa. This time, she stared at Charles. She was looking on his face for clues to confirm her suspicions.

"Mom, what exactly do you want from me?" After hearing his mother's excuse, Charles felt suddenly tired. He chose to ignore her question, and asked her what she wanted instead.

"I... I..."

Not knowing what to reply, she stammered. She couldn't tell him the truth—that she came up to check if he was making out with Sheryl.

"I just want to check if you are finished with your business engagement. And, I am inviting you to join me downstairs for some snacks. If you're not done yet, at least have a quick bite before you continue with your business." Melissa invited Charles pretending that she came up because she was concerned for his well-being.