Semua Bab The Cherished Wife: Bab 1011 - Bab 1020

Charles's brow creased, and he lapsed into a thoughtful silence."Something is going on, isn't it?""That's none of your business," Charles snapped, his lips tightening. "If you're not going to help, just get out!"Sean was not amused, but he could not leave without throwing in his two cents. "Don't say I didn't warn you. Your secrets will come back to bite you. You and Noelle are close now, but if you truly care about her, there are things she ought to know. Just imagine the mess if she finds out on her own!"Once Sean left, Charles was uncharacteristically silent.Kelly...He squinted slightly. He might not have loved her, but he had to admit he had taken advantage of her when she was by his side back then. That was not all…Charles's eyes darkened for a moment, and he sighed. He figured as long as she did not go overboard, he would be paying back an old debt of gratitude.He glanced out of the corner of his eye at Noelle, who was chatting with Bob just outside the living roo

"Whoa, Noelle, you're here!" Sean snapped out of his daze, giving Noelle an awkward chuckle. "I was just kidding around with Charles. Bob has left, so I guess I'll head out too." Sean shot Charles a conspiratorial glance and bolted.Noelle eyed Sean's hasty exit and then turned to Charles, puzzled. "What's up with Mr. Smith?""What a nutcase!" Charles spat out, then shifted his attention to Noelle. "Did you come here for something?""Oh, nothing. I just noticed Mr. Smith heading out, so I thought I'd pop in and check on you guys!" Noelle said, her smile lighting up the room as she peered into the study. "What were you guys chatting about? Did Mr. Smith have a message for me?"Charles's eyes briefly darted away, and his usually charming smile seemed a bit forced as he let out a sigh. "Well, there's not much to it, but..." he hesitated. "There's something I need to give you a heads up about.""Hmm?" Noelle's eyebrow arched playfully as she gazed at Charles. "What's up? You're being

"Absolutely!" Charles nodded with a grin. "I'm all yours!"Noelle finally cracked a smile. "That's more like it." She was not about to worry about whatever schemes the Hoffman family patriarch was cooking up. Charles was hers, and they were a married couple with the full backing of the law. Nobody was going to mess with that.She was pretty sure about how Charles felt about her, too. She playfully pinched his cheek. "If I couldn't handle a little jealousy, I wouldn't deserve to be by your side, would I?"Charles let out a real, joyful laugh this time, reaching out to gently touch her cheek in return. "Hmm...""But make sure things are under control. I might not make a big deal out of it, but I'm not exactly thrilled about that woman shadowing you.""Please, I've got a ton of secretaries. When have you ever seen me give any of them the time of day?""Becky!" Noelle's eyebrow arched. "You've definitely noticed Becky."Charles gave a resigned shake of his head. "Relax. I've already

However, the two women involved bore an uncanny resemblance to each other.Noelle was the talk of the town as she walked through the halls, catching everyone's eyes. It was not that people were usually nosy, but when it came to Charles, nobody could help but get a little curious.The big question on everyone's mind was what the deal was between Noelle and Kelly was and how Charles fit into the picture.Noelle overheard the whispers without a ripple of concern, but deep down, she was puzzled. Why was everyone reacting differently than she had expected?She had just reached the project department when Arya called out to her. "Noelle, you're finally here!""What's up?" Noelle asked, eyeing Arya, who seemed all over the place. "What's going on with you?""Oh, you're out of the loop. A new girl dropped in at the company yesterday!""I'm aware." Noelle grinned. Charles had filled her in the night before, so she was not exactly shocked. "What's the big deal?"Arya bit her lip, looking

The corners of Noelle's mouth lifted in a small, knowing smile as she glanced at her simple wedding band. "That's right. You've got sharp eyes, Ms. Anderson. I've been married for ages, and nobody's even noticed!" Noelle watched as Kelly's face lost color once more and added with a hint of concern, "You sure you're okay, Ms. Anderson? You look pretty pale. It wouldn't be great to get sick on your first day, especially not for Collosus Group's image!""You..." Kelly was taken aback. Noelle's way with words was unexpectedly sharp, totally not what her profile suggested. According to the gossip, Noelle was the Shaw family's doormat, and to top it off, her own sister had swooped in and snagged her boyfriend. She was supposed to be..."Oops, silly me." Noelle chuckled, cutting herself off. "I got so caught up talking to you that I almost forgot I had to see Mr. Hoffman about something!" With that, she breezed past Kelly and made a beeline for Charles's office door. She tapped lightly and