The Substitute Bride

Charles pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. Patiently, he elaborated, "Mother, for one thing, I never asked Leila to take care of me. For another, no matter how much she helped me while I was unconscious, she had no right to hurt Sheryl on purpose. Helping me and harming Sheryl are two different things. She has to pay for what she did to Sheryl!"

As soon as he was done speaking, Charles stared at Melissa in silence.

"Pay? What does she need to pay for? You didn't give Leila a chance to explain herself. Was that fair to her?" Melissa was determined to defend Leila. She remembered every little thing that Leila had done for her son. Every one of Leila's efforts to look after Charles vividly remained in Melissa's memory. She couldn't allow Charles to take everything Leila had done for granted.

Charles frowned and fell silent. After a short pause, he said, "Let Leila in. I want to talk to her."

Upon hearing what Charles had said, Melissa felt elated. Without delay, she took out her phone and hurriedly dialed Leila's number.

At that moment, Leila had just arrived at the hospital's entrance. She felt the vibration coming from her handbag and almost immediately recognized her phone's ringtone. She fished it out of her bag and saw Melissa's name on the screen. Leila felt mild panic set in. 'Why is Melissa calling now? Is there anything wrong?' She took a deep breath to try to calm herself down. She didn't want to overthink things.

"Leila, I'm in Charles' room. Come here, quick! He wants to see you in person!"

Melissa said abruptly and ended the call before Leila could even respond. Leila tensed. She wondered, 'Could this really be happening? That's odd. What's going on with Charles?'

Leila shook her head in an attempt to prevent herself from thinking too much. Remembering what Melissa had just said, she quickened her pace. To some of the people around the hospital halls, it looked as though she was almost running.

In a couple of minutes, Leila made it into Charles' hospital room. She leaned against the frame of the door and tried to catch her breath.

"Leila, look at you! You must have been running this whole time. Sorry if my call has alarmed you, but there is really no need to be in such a hurry!" Melissa softly greeted her, as she quickly took Leila's arm. She put on an inexplicable smile.

Leila didn't understand what Melissa's smile meant, but she managed to smile back. Then, still panting, she turned her gaze upon Charles. She thought, 'Charles asked me to come. He said he wanted to talk to me. It must be important.'

"Leila, I have to make this clear to you. Before you took up a position in my company, you should have asked for my approval!" Charles blurted out.

Taken aback, Leila couldn't fully comprehend what Charles meant. Melissa was equally astonished. Leila shot her an anxious look.

'Does Charles intend to bring this up again?

how much Clark resembled his father. Amazement, gratefulness, and delight escaped her lips in the form of a chuckle.

"Has Dad ever lied to you? Once I'm allowed to leave the hospital, I'll take you and Shirley to the amusement park, okay?" Charles then turned to Shirley and caressed her hair. The little girl was overjoyed to hear the good news. She nodded and offered her little finger, an invitation for Charles to make a pinky-promise. Charles happily accepted.

For the next hour, the ward, despite its drab walls, lack of furniture, and various hospital smells, felt like home. Sheryl, realizing that Charles might need his rest, called Joan to take the kids.

After the kids had left, it felt as though the world belonged to Sheryl and Charles alone. It had become much quieter like they were the only two people on Earth. Sheryl approached her husband and held his hand. "How are you feeling?" she asked, her voice heavy with concern.

"I'm fine! The doctor just run some tests earlier. He suggested that I stay several more days. Once I'm stronger, I'm allowed to go!"

Charles regarded Sheryl with a huge grin. He noticed the concern in her eyes, and he immediately felt sorry. With a frown, he gently pulled her closer to him. She lay lightly against his chest as he continued to say, "Sher, don't leave me ever again. I can't live without you."

"I won't! I promise!" Sheryl replied without hesitation. Charles, in his happiness, failed to notice the sadness in Sheryl's eyes.

Sheryl thought about Ferry. A part of her knew he would be coming for her. He would be back to threaten her and her family again. She just didn't know when. But as long as Charles was by her side, she convinced herself that she had nothing to fear. She felt like she could defeat anything that came her way.

As the night deepened, Charles fell asleep once more. Sheryl took a good, long look at him and then quietly made her way out of his ward.