The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 1610 Melissa's Shameless Reproach

"Stop it! Isla, stop talking nonsense! I know you want to defend me and I know you resent the fact that Charles once betrayed me, but he's my husband. Can I ask you to stop nursing a grudge against him?" Sheryl felt annoyed. In the past, she had successfully avoided lashing out at her best friend. This time, however, she failed to put up with Isla's tone and had to ask her to put Charles' and Leila's offense in the past.

When Isla saw that she had upset Sheryl, she immediately covered her mouth with her hand. With an apologetic smile, she softly said, "Ah, I was only kidding. Why are you mad? All I meant to say was that you don't have to worry. The doctor hasn't reported anything bad about Charles' condition. Right?"

Sheryl relaxed her shoulders and dropped her head. After a moment of silence, she said, "I'm not mad. I just didn't want to lie to Nancy. But I didn't want to worry her."

"Then you just have to keep it from her. What she doesn't know won't worry her. You should take it easy as well. Don't worry too much about Charles. I remember you telling me about the promise that he made that he would never leave you. Remember?" Isla reminded Sheryl in an attempt to cheer her up.

Sheryl stared into Isla's eyes. Despite her confusion, she gently nodded, letting her friend know that she was going to be fine and that she was staying optimistic and hopeful.

Isla decided to respectfully change the subject. She said, "Oh, Sheryl, I think it's time for you to call the kids. They might be asleep if you call any later."

"That's right! I would've forgotten if you hadn't reminded me!" Sheryl was immediately brought back to her senses. She shifted her weight, took out the phone from her pocket, and dialed Joan's number. Joan was putting the kids to bed when she received Sheryl's call. She beamed and said to the kids, "Hey, sweeties! Guess who's calling! It's your mom!"

"Oh! Let me talk to her!"

Shirley shrieked in excitement. She leaped, attempting to grab the phone from Joan's hand. The latter gently handed it to her. In a sweet voice, she asked, "Mom, when are you coming home?"

The question rendered Sheryl speechless. In a hurry, she thought up an excuse. "Mom still has a lot of work to do with your auntie Isla. I can't make it tonight. You have to behave and listen to your brother while Mom's away. Understood?"

"No! I want to see you. I miss you so much!"

Shirley hadn't seen her mother the whole day. As a result, she felt uneasy and had some trouble sleeping.

But Sheryl had no choice. All she could do was to make up excuses to shield her children from terrible truths.

In the middle of the conversation, Shirley, seemingly recalled something, and burst into laughter. After pausing to compose herself, she started narrating a story. "Mom, today at school, a little girl said she liked Clark. But Clark turned her down. The poor girl was hurt and cried on the spot!"

When he heard what his sister had said, Clark lost his composure. He snatched the phone away from Shirley's grasp and explained, in a hurry, "Mom, that's not true! I didn't make that girl cry!" "Take it easy, Clark. Mom believes you! Our Clark is a good boy. You're not running around school making girls unhappy. Right?" Sheryl both comforted Clark and pretended to scold him, all in an attempt to make him smile.

They talked for a few more minutes, and then Sheryl instructed her kids to get some sleep as it was getting late.

After hanging up, Sheryl shot Isla a look of helplessness. She asked, with a tinge of disbelief, "Now, even kids in kindergarten know what love is. How do they get to be that smart at that age?" "Don't underestimate kids these days! My sweet girl had told me that she had found a boyfriend!" Isla confirmed.

Sheryl couldn't take Isla seriously. She quietly pondered about what little kids were capable of understanding. Could they possibly understand love? Romance? She didn't think so. She thought they were just too young to understand affection. Sheryl knew it was the way kids made friends and had fun with each other. But she was also aware of a serious, inescapable truth of life. She knew that Shirley and Clark were going to get older. When that time came, it would be important to have a proper talk with them about love. She didn't, and wouldn't, allow them to behave as casually as the youth of today often did. Isla noticed Sheryl's silence and decided to turn things down a notch. "Take it easy! They're just kids. Don't take their ideas so seriously. Besides, you know your own kids well. They'll be fine. By the way, I have to say, Clark seems to be taking after his father. He's a decisive boy, just like Charles! I bet he'll be a man in the blink of an eye!" Isla stopped talking. She immediately tensed when she realized she had unintentionally and carelessly mentioned Charles.

She feared that hearing his name might upset Sheryl. Pressing her lips tightly she cautiously stole a glance at Sheryl. To Isla's relief, Sheryl seemed like she hadn't heard a thing.

Isla's face was contorted with concern. It was impossible for Sheryl to ignore. With a helpless shake of her head, Sheryl said, "Why are you so cautious all of a sudden? Don't worry about me. Hearing his name won't hurt me. I can take it! There's no need to avoid Charles when we talk. I am not that sensitive!"

Sheryl was so convincing that Isla had to believe her.

"Okay. That's good. I was probably overthinking things. I should get going now. You'd better get some rest. Aron must be waiting for me at the hospital's entrance. I'm going to show myself out and head there. I'll pick you up tomorrow morning!" Isla raised her arm to check her watch. She was right. It was late and it was time to leave. She had kept her husband waiting for too long.

"Sure. You should go. You must be exhausted having taken care of me all day. Rest assured I'm fine now." Sheryl flashed Isla a thankful smile as a farewell gesture.

When Isla left, the room grew silent. The atmosphere immediately turned frightening. Feeling uncomfortable, Sheryl jumped out of bed. She put some clothes on and headed to the intensive care unit where Charles was.

She expected that Melissa and Leila were long gone. It was late. To her surprise, before she even got to Charles' room, she ran into the two women.

Melissa had asked for a private room for her son. After Leila and Melissa had transferred all of Charles' things into his new VIP sickroom, they decided to check on him for one last time for the day before heading back home. To their surprise and annoyance, here came the uninvited Sheryl, making her way to Charles' room.

Melissa blocked Sheryl's way as she looked at her coldly. It was already past midnight, and there were few people around the hallway. With Melissa in the way, it was not easy for Sheryl to pass. Sheryl had turned back and was ready to give up when she suddenly felt someone grab her by the arm.

"What are you doing here?" Melissa grumbled. A look of irritation clouded her face.

Sheryl didn't know how to respond. She didn't want a public altercation with Melissa. At that point, she just had to wonder, 'Why does Melissa treat me like an enemy every time we run into each other? Am I not Charles' wife? Not her daughter-in-law? Why does she have to treat me this way all the time?'

When Sheryl was younger, she had learned that one day, she would have to get married. And when she did, she could come across a terrible mother-in-law. She had heard that this was a nightmare for most women. In her youth and innocence, Sheryl had simply hoped that kindness could solve any misunderstanding. This notion did not seem to work on Melissa.

"Obviously, I'm here to see my husband." Sheryl no longer backed down. She had done nothing wrong, but Melissa's anger seemed not to need any reason.

"Is that right, Sheryl? You always say that you love my son, but look at him now! Is this how you show your love for him? Since you two got married, how many bad things have happened to him, to this family? Do you know how much damage you've caused this family? Don't you feel even just a little guilty?" As shameless as she could be, Melissa started to criticize Sheryl with her own, twisted truths.