Chapter 4:
1238 Words
“Yes! Chuppie misses mommy and hopes you come back soon.”
“Mommy also wants to come back to you soon.” Nancy bit her lip, finding it hard to be away from Chuppie, but...
After talking for a while, Yuri, who was taking care of Chuppie, took the phone: “Miss Lesli, is something the matter?”
Nancy nodded: “Yuri, please take care of Chuppie for me. I’ll visit her as soon as I can...”
Yuri could see Nancy’s discomfort: “Miss Lesli, is something wrong at home? You take care of your things, I’ll take care of Chuppie! You helped my family a lot in the past, and I love Chuppie, having watched her grow up. Don’t worry.”
“Thank you, Yuri.”
“Miss Lesli, there’s no need to be so formal with me.”
After hanging up, Nancy sighed, looking at Chuppie’s picture on her phone with tears in her eyes, feeling deeply troubled about not being able to be with her daughter.
Nancy visited the cemetery the following day.
Her mother’s grave had been moved to the Sherwood family cemetery.
“Mom, I know you’ve always missed Norman. I... agreed with Sandra. Actually, being Mrs. Atcentret isn’t so bad. You don’t need to worry about me anymore. I won’t have to worry about daily necessities and will be a noble madam of the Atcentret family.”
“Chuppie is being taken care of by a kind lady who Chuppie calls grandma.”
“I haven’t been able to contact Ryo... He’s still angry with me...”
Nancy spoke with tears flowing: “Mom, please don’t worry about me. Everything is fine.”
She resigned from her job in Rohota City and then went to the Sherwood residence. The servants were surprised to see her: “Miss Lesli has returned.” At the Sherwood house, all the servants knew Nancy was the real eldest daughter, but because of Sandra, they could only call her Miss Lesli.
Nancy walked in.
Norman was sitting on the sofa drinking tea. Seeing Nancy and thinking about the upcoming engagement, he smiled: “Nancy, you’re back!”
Nancy directly asked Norman for $1.3 million. Norman refused, giving various excuses about the company not having the funds.
Nancy sneered: “Dad, I’m your beloved Wendy, right? You can’t even give me a little money? Should I ask the Atcentret family instead? The wedding is just days away...”
Norman’s face changed color, and fearing she would change her mind, he relented: “I’ll give it to you, but it’ll take a few days. Come to the company, and I’ll have the finance department settle it.”
A week later.
Mrs. Sherwood contacted her again. On the wedding day of Wendy and the third son of the Atcentret family, Nancy moved out of the hotel and into the Sherwood house, a place completely unfamiliar to her.
Once Mrs. Sherwood finished the paperwork, Nancy was now “Wendy.”
A Wendy who had returned from abroad.
The unfamiliar name felt humiliating.
Enjoying the so-called love and care of parents.
All of it seemed ridiculous.
Sandra even arrogantly organized a grand party for her. Many rich kids attended because she was about to become Mrs. Atcentret, so they all had to show respect.
The organizers chose a yacht to host the party.
Nancy wore a light pink evening dress, “enjoying” the attention and conversations among friends.
“Sister Wendy, we envy you getting to marry the third son.”
Nancy smiled faintly, not saying anything, a mocking look in her eyes.
A young man approached, offering her a bouquet, but Nancy didn’t accept it: “Gifts of flowers are just romantic gestures. How about giving money instead?”
“Wendy, you’re about to marry into the Atcentret family. Do you still care about money?”
“If he didn’t have money, would you still like him?” Looking at their stunned faces, Nancy laughed mockingly: “So, it’s all about the money?”
With that, she added: “The party has started, please enjoy yourselves.”
At ten p.m., Nancy returned to her room, exhausted.
She covered her face with the blanket.
Late at night, in a subtly luxurious study.
In front of the wine cabinet, Louis poured a glass of wine, his pale skin stressed by the deep red liquid. He downed the glass, walked to his desk, and picked up an earring he had found on the carpet four years ago.
The earring looked cheap, not something Irene would usually wear.
He stared at the earring before placing it in the drawer.
His phone rang, and he glanced at the number before answering: “Grandma...”
“Are you trying to give me a heart attack? Who allowed you to cancel the engagement? You must marry the Sherwood girl. Forget about Irene!”
“Grandma, I just want to marry Irene. Please understand.”
“No way. As long as I live, you will marry the Sherwood girl.”
His grandmother hung up, fuming.
Louis gripped the phone tightly, his eyes turning cold. The Sherwood girl must be something to have his grandmother so enthralled.
A message notification sounded: “Boss, here’s Wendy. She’s hosting a yacht party tonight, many people attended. A friend sent me this.”
It was a video.
The girl in the video wore a light pink dress, looking gentle and beautiful, her hands on a young man’s waist as they danced, smiling all the while.
And then her words: “Flowers are just romantic gestures. How about giving money instead?”
“If the Atcentret’s third son didn’t have money, would you still like him?”
“So, it’s all about the money?”
Louis sneered. Another woman consumed by wealth and appearance.
He turned off his phone and tossed it aside.
Because of pressure from his grandparents, Louis had no choice but to agree to marry Wendy.
Nancy heard the butler knocking, and he said: “Miss Sherwood, Mr. Atcentret is outside. Please come down.”
Outside, why not come in?
Nancy changed her clothes. It was her first time meeting Atcentret family’s third son. After such a long time, they would finally meet at registration. Nancy shook her head.
Thinking he probably didn’t like this marriage either. He didn’t like her, and she didn’t like him.
Perfect.
They would spend long, uneventful days together, neither loving nor hating.
She just wanted to be with Chuppie.
A high-end black SUV was waiting outside. Nancy reached the door, and Sandra held her hand, sharing some mother-daughter sentiment. Nancy coldly withdrew her hand: “I know.”
A young man in a suit opened the car door for her: “Please, Miss Sherwood.”
Nancy got in the car and saw the man beside her resting with his eyes closed. Her body shook, and her voice trembled in disbelief: “You are... Louis...”
It was him...
Nancy clenched her fingers, seeing his handsome face, her blood boiling uncontrollably. Without hearing a reply, she asked again, needing him to confirm.
“You are... Louis?”
The man impatiently grunted in affirmation.
Nancy was unsure of her next move.
The man before her was her daughter’s father.
The man who had taken her virginity.
The man who had given her one billion USD...
The car stopped in front of the registration office.
- Writer
