The Substitute Bride

"You don't understand the whys and wherefores of this matter." Mildly scolding her friend Sue for doubting her side of the story, Sheryl continued,"It was really Anthony who got mad with me, I swear!"

"It's impossible! Are you sure it's not the other way around?" How could she believe Sheryl? She had never seen Anthony lose his temper.

"I've never known a man as mild tempered as Anthony. Besides, he dotes on you, so how could you condemn him like this?" Sue asked, perplexed. What her friend said was true. Anthony doted on Sheryl.

"Nevertheless, I'm telling the truth." There was no use convincing Sue. What Anthony did was so out of character that even Sheryl was stunned. It was the first time she saw this side of him.

Anyway, it was too late to change her mind about the job, so she decided to face the music.

"Give me the full account right now," Sue urged Sheryl. Eyeing her friend thoughtfully, she could not wait to hear the full story.

'It might be that there is more to this than meet the eye. What blunder did Sheryl commit that made the normally calm Anthony lose his temper?' Sue thought curiously.

"You remember we had a job interview with BM Corporation and they gave us the offer? The offer is very generous enough to cover my daughter's school fees and one year rent for my apartment. I thought he would be happy for me but instead, he got mad and tried to talk me out of taking the job." Fixing her glance at her friend, she continued,"I have my daughter to think of, shouldn't I seize every opportunity to earn money while I can? It's not easy being a single mother and I'm not getting any younger."

"Your argument makes sense," said Sue, nodding her head in approval. Despite the many hardships she had been through, Sheryl never gave up. Her tenacity and persistence were qualities that Sue admired in her friend.

"It's a dem

nstinctively, Sheryl was averse to the man Sue was referring to.

She believed that she got away from that man by the grace of the Almighty.

"How could that man be lost?" Sue asked indignantly. 'Is it possible that he has never even tried to look for Sheryl and his child?

Though Sheryl has lost her memory, it is probable that her subconscious still retains a memory of that significant man, ' Sue thought to herself.

"Sheryl, how can you remember that you lived in Y City before and forget everything else?" Sue was bent on learning more about Sheryl's past.

"It's also a mystery to me. All I know is that I used to live in Y City before migrating to America," said Sheryl. "What I remember distinctly is my American life with Anthony."

"How about your family? Do you remember them?" Sue pressed her. 'It's all unbelievable. Could it be that Sheryl has forgotten everything except her daughter and Anthony?' Sue asked herself.

"It's hard to recall even my family!" Shaking slightly, Sheryl pressed her index fingers to her temple.

She used to try her best to recall her past, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't remember anything. And Anthony had even scolded her that time after knowing what she was doing.