The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 2000 Can't Forget Him

"My Lady, Mr. Lu asked me where you've been," Nancy said, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Don't worry, I didn't tell him you went to Sher. But I think he knows you're up to something." Nancy was biting her lip, her eyes inadvertently shifting as she frowned, not at all liking what was happening.

Melissa, however, remained passive. Understanding the tone of Nancy's voice, she walked to the study, and her heels scraped the floor. She'd handle this.

"Charles, what can I do for you?" Melissa steadied her gaze, arms lying casually on her sides as if the earlier interaction hadn't occurred.

"Mother, have you been busy these days?" If Melissa was an expert at keeping a straight face, Charles was equally great. In fact, he might even be better. As he stared her down, suddenly, a part of her found i difficult to lie.

"No. Why?" She furrowed her eyebrows, tilting her head as she crossed her arms.

"Nothing. You weren't having dinner here these days, so I had to ask." He shrugged. Charles smiled, trying to redirect her attention, in the hopes that she'd slip up.

Melissa grinned back. "Oh, I went out with my friends for dinner. Sometimes, we'd even play cards and lose track of the time. That would explain my absence." She relaxed, feeling the lie slip out her lips effortlessly.

Slightly annoyed that she didn't fall for it, Charles decided to take another route. He took a step back, and bluntly asked, "Did you go see Sheryl?"

There was silence, as Melissa processed what he had just said. 'How could he have known?'

"Ah, I..." Melissa hesitated, but one look at her son's eyes made her speak. It was pointless now anyway, and it seemed as if he had already found his confirmation. She sighed. "I just went to see my grandchildren. Am I not allowed to?"

"Are you sure you just went to see the kids?" Charles raised his eyebrows skeptically, not the slightest bit convinced by her words.

"Yes," Melissa emphasized. "I just went to see the kids. I didn't disturb Sheryl." Melissa looked firmly at Charles, daring him to respond. Knowing that was all she was going to say, Charles nodded, changing the topic by saying, "Well, who did you have lunch with?"

"W-why? Have you sent someone to spy on me?" she sputtered out.

"I'm not stupid, Mother. Now, what the hell did you do?" He gritted his teeth. He wasn't planning to lose his temper, but all these re-directions were already making him frustrated.

"I didn't do anything. I just had dinner with...Henry. Am I not allowed to now?" Melissa was hesitating now, refusing the look her son in the eye. Though she had brought up Henry, she decided to keep Jackson to herself, not wanting to cause any more trouble.

"Enough. Stop lying! Someone saw you beat up a man in a western restaurant. Do you know about that?" Charles didn't want to put a finger on his mother, but this time, she was being impulsive. It wasn't like her.

Knowing that lies or hidden truths were getting her nowhere, Melissa couldn't help but sigh dejectedly and sat down across from Charles. She gave him a pointed look, giving herself a minute to compose herself.

Melissa told her son everything that she had known or at least guessed at.

"Do you think I wanted to do that? Jackson was continuing to win Sher's heart. I was, I was getting worried. If you don't win her back, she will become somebody else's bride!" Melissa snapped back, feeling her face heat up from the entire ordeal.

A part of her wondered if her son had already given up on Sheryl for Vicky.

That woman was no good, but after her suicide attempt. Could she have won Charles over?

It was something that Melissa couldn't piece together as much as she tried.

Hearing Melissa's words, Charles wore a straight face and remained silent.

At his silence, she took it as another chance to air out her thoughts. Sheryl was the only right woman for her son, and there was absolutely no one else that Melissa would've wanted as her daughter-in-law. And she was definitely not going to allow her son to just change his mind without actually thinking it through.

After quite a while, Charles finally said, "This is my own business, not yours."

"Do you think I'm just saying these things to annoy you?" Melissa was crestfallen, frustrated that Charles couldn't see things from her perspective. Did he not see Sheryl was perfect for him?

Hearing her voice start to quiver and seeing her eyes redden, Charles realized that he had taken everything out of proportion. Even then, as the mother of the Shining Company's CEO, she still shouldn't have done what she did.

"Mom...Look, I didn't mean that. I'll handle what's between me and Sheryl. Just don't interfere again." After heaving a sigh, Charles opened the door and motioned her to leave. He was tired, exhausted from their banter, and all he needed was time to think things through.

Melissa narrowed her eyes, still not satisfied with their exchange. "You want me to leave? Fine." She stomped out of the room, her heels clicking loudly at the tiled floor before she slammed the door behind her as loud as she could.

Charles cringed.

Though he didn't like what was happening, he still didn't agree with his mother's actions. Even if Jackson was pursuing Sheryl, Charles wouldn't intervene this way.

Melissa, now outside the study, didn't think so. She just believed that Charles was being absolutely ridiculous. She would not stand by and do nothing while Jackson tried to court Sheryl.

"You can be so...oblivious, my boy. I won't allow Sheryl and my grandchildren to leave with another man." Melissa stared at Charles' study determinedly. She was going to do everything she could to keep them together, even if it meant for her to go through millions of obstacles. Shaking her head, she headed back to her bedroom.

She decided to lay out a plan to organize herself as well as to make sure that the events that had unfolded wouldn't happen again.

In the study, Charles tapped on the table rhythmically. A part of him wanted to call David to do a background check on Jackson. 'Would it even be right?' he thought before deciding against it. No, that was something his mother would've done. And he was definitely not his mother.

It would be great if the investigation led to a dead end, but if it didn't, Charles wouldn't know what to do, or at least where to turn to after that.

At this point in time, he had finally reached a conclusion, setting the pen that he had been twisting over, back on the table. He'd deal with the problem between him and Vicky, and after that, he'd win Sheryl back. Unlike his mother, he'd want to win her fair and square, without beating that man up.

Charles quickly sent David a text to intensify the investigations into Vicky as soon as possible. He was going to get to the bottom of this now.

At the beep of his phone, David glanced at the screen before rolling his head back helplessly. After reading over the words, he thought, 'Another case.'

Though he was confident in his ability, a part of him knew that Vicky wasn't an easy person to track down, but she'd definitely be a very interesting case, that was for sure.

"Okay, Mr. Lu. I understand," David texted back. Looking at his perfectly tucked bed, he frowned. 'There goes my sleep.' He turned on his lamp and double-clicked on a folder on his laptop. Given the urgency, he was going to replace out everything he could within the next few hours, working with the little information he had gathered till now. Cracking his knuckles, he began.

In Sheryl's apartment

After coming out of the bathroom, Isla teased Sheryl, caressing her arms as she whispered seductively, "Girl, hurry up in the shower, yeah?" She winked. "I'll be waiting for you in bed." "Fuck off, Isla." Sheryl laughed. "Aron will be pissed that you have found someone else." "Who's Aron? All I want for Christmas is you, babe." Isla grinned wolfishly, unaffected by Sheryl's words.

In times like these, Sheryl admired Isla and her ability to take everything lightly. Though the world was pushing her down, Isla always found a way to keep a smile on her face and bring a smile to everyone else's.

Sheryl, on the other hand, was different. Though she appeared passive and unattached at the mention of Charles, his mere name could send her retreating back into the room. He was her weakness, and she knew that very well.

The two lay on the bed, chatting. It had been a long time since they did that, back when both of them were single and free. Sheryl couldn't help but chuckle at the thought. Things were different now, but in a way, the thought was comforting.

That comfort, however, lasted only a few minutes. Soon, Isla was like a cannon, shooting Charles down in every direction, and as much as Sheryl wanted to zip her friend's lips closed, she just found herself avoiding the topic at every turn. Annoyed, Isla stared directly into Sheryl's eyes before pointing accusingly at her. "You still can't forget him, can you?" Though a question, Isla voiced it out as a statement, and silently, Sheryl agreed.