Semua Bab The Cherished Wife: Bab 201 - Bab 210

"What? The second female lead?" Winter's mood plummeted. "Why can’t I be the leading lady?"Winter was an ambitious woman and had been eagerly waiting for Xavier to bring her good news. However, the second female lead? That was not what she had in mind. "Didn't you tell me you were related to Charles? Why can't he help out just this once?"Upset, Winter spoke without thinking, almost ready to toss her script away in frustration.Xavier grabbed the script from her, annoyance written all over his face. "Be grateful! I don't have to prove my connection to Charles to you. Look at where you stand right now. You should be thankful they're even considering you for a role, and you're practically guaranteed to be the second female lead. What more could you want?"Xavier remembered Ronald's words about the complexities of showbiz and how rumors often had some truth to them. Charles had helped him even though he was not obliged to, which was a big favor to Xavier.Xavier did not understand t

"Really? What did you write in that note?" Charles asked with a light laugh, teasing her because he was in a good mood. "Tell me!""Uh, do I have to say it?" Noelle's cheeks turned pink as she thought about the name she had written down. It was one thing for her to look at it, but the idea of Charles seeing it made her squirm."If you won't say it, then you didn't write anything!" Charles said, sounding let down. "You don't even want to lie to me now?""I..." Noelle felt like crying, but no tears came. She had not expected Charles to be so difficult. "I really did write something down. Oh, please, can we drop this? Don't you have work to do? And... just because you're the boss, it doesn't mean you can slack off! How are you supposed to be a good role model for your employees like this?"Charles laughed. He could almost picture Noelle's flustered face, but he knew she got embarrassed easily, so he decided to let it go. "Okay, we won't talk about that anymore."Noelle let out a reli

Now that she understood Charles's reasons, Noelle felt her frustration fade away.Charles then sat down beside her, gently holding her hand on his knee. He cupped her face in his hands, and they looked into each other's eyes, understanding each other without words.Noelle's heart raced a little. She looked away, but Charles gently turned her face back to him. "Trust me, okay?"She nodded. "I trust you!"Charles gave a small smile. "Time to eat!"They both enjoyed their meal. When it was over, Noelle got up to clear the dishes, but Charles stopped her. "I'll take care of it. We're in this together, right?"Feeling a warm glow, Noelle did not argue and stepped aside to watch Charles clean up the table and start washing the dishes.Then, her phone rang. It was Jade. "Noelle, you need to come to the hospital right now!"Noelle's brow furrowed. She did not want to deal with Jade, but she could not ignore family. Jade's mention of the hospital made her anxious. "What's wrong?""You

"You..." Jade stumbled, nearly falling, but Xavier was quick to catch her. "Madam Shaw, are you okay?"Xavier shot a worried look at Jade, then glared at Noelle. "Noelle, that was too much. Apologize to Madam Shaw now!""Apologize?" Noelle's mouth twisted into a half-smile. "Is this really the time? Grandpa's still in surgery, and you're all blaming me? We'll see who's really at fault when Grandpa wakes up."Noelle did not want to deal with them, so she quietly walked to the other side.Winter bit her lip and gently pulled on Jade's hand. "Mom, Noelle's worried about Grandpa too. Please don't be mad. And Xavier, Noelle didn't mean to do that." Winter walked up to Noelle and asked, "Noelle, are you okay?" Noelle squinted her eyes. She had to admit that Winter was pretty bold. This was why Charles always said she could not beat Winter—Winter was a much better actor. When Noelle did not respond, Winter reached out and tugged at Noelle's hand with a sad look. "I know you're still u

"Jerk! Noelle, you...""That's enough!" Julian shot Jade a fierce look. "Aren't you embarrassed enough? I sure am!" Julian clenched his fists. "Break it up, everyone. We'll come back tomorrow to check on Grandpa."Xavier kept his gaze on where Noelle had vanished, his fists tightening at his sides.If Noelle really did have some of Samuel's shares, then... Could he still have a chance with her?"Xavier?"Winter shook Xavier's hand. "Time to go!"Xavier snapped out of it and gave Winter a reassuring smile. "Grandpa will be okay. Don't worry too much."Winter tried to smile, but she could not hide her sadness when she looked at Xavier. She knew he was not really paying attention to her. "I'm sure Grandpa will be okay," she said. "But why can't we talk things out? We're family. Grandpa gave all his shares to Noelle without telling anyone. No wonder Mom and Dad are upset. They think Noelle did something wrong, but she...""Don't worry," Xavier said, giving Winter's hand a gentle sq