The Substitute Bride

"Sher, I got too emotional. I didn't mean to do that! You don't blame me, do you?" Isla realized she shouldn't have talked so much, but at the time, she had no other choice. She had felt obliged to defend Sheryl.

With a faint smile, Sheryl shook her head and said, "Of course not, Isla. I know that you care about me. You were trying to speak on my behalf. How could I blame you?"

Sheryl, overwhelmed with sorrow, tried to keep her emotions in check as she responded to Isla. Her face, however, betrayed her. Intense sadness was reflected in her eyes. This did not escape Isla's attention. It broke her heart. In Isla's eyes, Sheryl was weak and needed care. To get Sheryl back to the present, Isla pulled her close and embraced her. "It's okay, Sher. Don't be sad. You have me. I will stand by your side no matter what happens."

"I am fine, really. I can do this alone. You don't have to worry about me!" Even though Sheryl was in a lot of pain, she didn't want to cause Isla any trouble. Nonetheless, Isla was a close friend. She had known how Sheryl really felt just by looking at her face.

After a while, Sheryl returned to her office. Upon checking her phone, she noticed several missed calls from the same number. She chose to ignore these, but her heart felt heavy.

Sheryl felt conflicted. On the one hand, she didn't want to divorce Charles, but on the other hand, she dreaded the humiliation that came with becoming Ferry's lover just in order to make a deal. There was no third option.

Aside from that, the news must have reached Charles by now, and he must be very disappointed in her.

'Are you going to give up on our marriage, Charles?'

Sheryl thought, as tears started flowing down her cheeks.

In Dream Garden, Leila and Melissa talked in hushed tones.

"Leila, who's this man? Is he the same person who was in the video that you showed me? The one filmed in the shopping mall?" Melissa asked, her eyes fixed on the news. She couldn't help but grow suspicious about how Leila had gotten so many pictures.

"These pictures were taken by my friend, quite unintentionally. Sheryl had been supposed to be with a man at that spot, Aunt Melissa. Someone must have photo-shopped the pictures to blur the man's face," Leila patiently explained to Melissa.

At last, Melissa finally knew the truth.

They exchanged smirks as they looked at each other.

Moments later, Charles returned to Dream Garden wearing a gloomy expression. When he stepped into the dining room, he saw Melissa and Leila sitting on the sofa, happily talking with each other.

Charles' return immediately caught Leila's attention.

She jumped to her feet and walked over to him. She greeted him by remarking, "Charles, are you okay? You look awful today." Leila, showing much concern, grabbed Charles by the arm.

Charles was watchful of Leila's apparent care. He treated everything she did with a sense of misgiving. In an instant, he remembered what Isla had told him. For him, it

ake care of our own issues as soon as possible. This is our top priority. Remember to call me if you need any help. Goodbye!"

"I will. Thanks. Goodbye!" Sheryl's tone still sounded blank when she hung up.

Lewis stared at his phone. After a moment's contemplation, he dialed a strange phone number. Quickly, the call was put through.

"Have your guys found anything? Who released the video to the public? Tell me what you have so far!" Lewis demanded in a stern voice. Seeing the video so early in the morning had both disturbed and infuriated him.

"It was a woman called Leila Zhang." The voice on the other end of the line promptly gave Lewis a detailed report.

Lewis, in turn, grew more and more furious as the truth was gradually revealed. He clenched his fists and furrowed his brows. He was overcome with hatred. It was almost as though he was ready to kill this Leila Zhang.

After hanging up, Lewis looked straight ahead. He gritted his teeth as he swore, "Leila Zhang, you did this to Sheryl. I will make you pay for this!"

The fire in Lewis' eyes burned brightly.

If looks could kill, his eyes would have caused a bloodbath.

When Sheryl returned home, she immediately headed for the bedroom, desperate for some rest. But no matter how hard she tried to go to sleep, she failed. Initially, she had thought that it was because of the change in environment. She always had difficulty sleeping whenever she was staying in a new room. Was her insomnia because of that, or because Charles was not by her side this time?

The kids had fallen asleep much earlier. Sheryl felt exhausted, but she was not drowsy at all. It was the exhaustion in her heart which kept her from sleeping.

Confused, sad, and feeling alone, she whispered, "Charles, is this marriage coming to an end?"

After a whole day of thinking things through, Sheryl had come up with a decision, one that she believed would set them both free. That night, she suffered through sleepless agony though.