Ch. 1486..1490
Chapter 1486
John swiped a look at her. “What, are you going to keep
staying here forever?”
Sherry was bewildered.
What was the meaning of this?
Was he suggesting that she pack up and move to his place?
However... Their marriage was only a formality done for Caprice’s sake. Was there ever a need for them to live together? (Cc
John noted her reluctance and stated dispassionately, Sherry, if you want to see Caprice every day from here on, ‘you better pack up and come down here in ten minutes.”
Sherry was still reeling back from the shock.
Upon noticing how she was frozen stiff, Caprice, who was in the arms of John, suddenly urged her on, “Mommy, go and pack up. We'll wait for you here, then we can go home together.”
Her cheeks were radiantly red, an expectant and excited look loomed in her eyes.
How could Sherry ever refuse her? She got out of the car at last and walked into the hotel. After reaching her room in the hotel, she proceeded to stuff all her belongings into suitcases. It did not take long for her to finish packing up.
She lugged the suitcase behind her and left the hotel.
There was another car behind the silver car they arrived at the hotel in. A crew of bodyguards stepped out of the car and helped her with her suitcases.
Sherry returned to the silver car. Caprice crawled out of John’s arms and threw herself into Sherry’s. Sherry wrapped her arms tightly around Caprice and cast a shifting glance at the man next to her.
He was laid back against the seat and stared forward as if “his attention was fixed on something in front. He wore an indifferent look. He would hardly bother to spare a glance in Sherry’s direction if not for Caprice.
Sherry asked, “Where are we going next?”
“Home.”
“And which home is that supposed to be?”
John ignored her as these questions were annoying him. Sherry shot a look at him, then turned to Caprice.
The girl was yawning, she was probably getting sleepy. Even when she was sleepy, she still looked adorable as ever.
Sherry gently brushed the top of her head and said softly, “Caprice, go to sleep if you’re sleepy.” “Okay.” Caprice closed her eyes and fell asleep in no time. It was very quiet in the car.
Sherry glanced out the car window.
She noticed that they were getting closer to the Stockton Villa. An uncomfortable look began to surface in her eyes,, and her brows tightened.
This was the place she wanted nothing more than to escape from three years back. Why was she back here?
She felt a looming sense of doom.
The only thing that calmed her was the sight of Caprice sleeping soundly in her arms, her rhythmic breathing against her chest as she slept.
There was nothing to worry about, she told herself. They only got married for Caprice. Circumstances were
different now and John no longer had any feelings for her. The past was the past and he would no longer hold it against her so he would not make her suffer again.
All she needed to do now was to strengthen her bond with Caprice, then she could take Caprice away when the time was ripe. She was not going to be stuck here for the rest of her life.
Once the car made a turn and entered the property, she could feel John’s eyes beating on her.
John observed the subtle change in Sherry’s expression.
There was first a sour look as if she would rebel against her fate, but what followed after was perfect compliance. It surprised him how quickly she gave in.
He was expecting her to cuss up a storm.
There were many separate houses on the property and he, owned plenty of property throughout the city as well. If Sherry did not want to live with him, he could consider her letting her stay somewhere else with Caprice.
The car drove down the familiar main road and passed through the main gate.
John withdrew his gaze from Sherry and looked forward.
Sherry observed the driveway.
The courtyard and garden looked just the same as they did two years ago, hardly anything changed at all. She took a deep breath and hugged Caprice tighter, her eyes fixed in front of her.
Several minutes later, the car stopped by the entrance to a courtyard.
Chapter 1487
Sherry frowned instinctively.
This was the same courtyard complex where she had to spend a year as a prisoner and hostage.
Why were they stopping here?
The bodyguard stepped out of the car and opened the door on John’s side.
John peered at Sherry before getting out of the car.
Sherry was just about to get out of the car with Caprice still sleeping soundly in her arms when she heard approaching footsteps. From inside the car, she quickly identified Madam Stockton and Julie.
Madam Stockton was wearing a cashmere shawl, dressed as extravagant as ever.
Julie had changed a little from how Sherry remembered her. She wore a light pink long coat and rested her hair over her shoulders. On the whole, she seemed more fashionable and younger compared to her previous style.
Madam Stockton walked up to John and asked, “John, where’s Caprice?”
John answered with a frown.
Madam Stockton did not wait for an answer and leaned inside the car to find Caprice.
She immediately met Sherry’s gaze.
For a moment, it was as if time had stopped.
Madam Stockton’s pupils immediately became dilated, she howled, “Sherry! Why are you here?” This caught Julie’s attention. She spied a look inside as well.
Sherry knew there was no way out of this so she decided, to step out of the car, Caprice still sleeping soundly in her arms. Madam Stockton glared at her with stark hostility.
Julie had gone pale at the sight of Sherry as she regarded Sherry warily as well.
Sherry ignored them.
Their marriage did not mean anything to them, she only moved here because of Caprice. She was not interested in interacting with Madam Stockton and Julie in any shape or form, so she would not try to appeal to them.
It was this indifference and pompousness that struck a nerve in Madam Stockton.
She first glared at Sherry, then at John.
Julie turned to John as well and asked in a cordial voice mixed with confusion, “What’s going on? Why is Miss Sherry here?” John turned to the bodyguards. “Bring her luggage inside.”
The bodyguard immediately stepped to the task. They took Sherry’s suitcase out of the trunk and brought them into the courtyard.
John turned to Sherry. “Go inside.” Sherry was relieved to have been offered a path of escape.
She hugged Caprice tightly and passed between John, Madam Stockton, and Julie. She followed the bodyguards into the courtyard.
After she was out of sight, she could hear Madam
Stockton’s blood—curdling howl. “What did you say?! A marriage certificate?!”
Fortunately, Caprice was sleeping like a log and was not awakened by the sharp cry.
Sherry took a deep breath, coddled’ Caprice in her arms, and continued walking.
She quickly noticed that something had changed.
The complex had been renovated entirely, except for the exterior walls that seemed the same as before. The interior of the courtyard had been completely transformed.
The wall connected to the courtyard complex where John resided was torn down, thus connecting the two complexes into a singular giant courtyard.
The garden and the large tree she used for shade when she would work on her embroidery remained intact.
Everything else apart from those had been transformed.
The living areas were all built in the center of the space.
For some reason, the courtyard along with the building she used to stay in had been razed to the ground and turned into a large garden.
They had done a good job of transforming the place, but she still could not figure out why John had decided to tear everything down.
She could not stifle her curiosity and decided to ask the bodyguard, “Hey, Jason, didn’t there used to be two separate courtyards back then?”
Jason answered, “Ma’am, it was Master Stockton who ordered the renovation.” Sherry asked again, “Then do you know why he did it?” She doubted that it was because he wanted to transform the space into a garden.
There were countless gardens in the villa as was, and the garden by the entrance was easily several folds larger than the courtyard complex.
Jason seemed troubled by Sherry’s questions, he did not know how to answer these questions she had put to him. Sherry noticed his hesitation and told him, “You can tell me, | promise | won’t let anyone know.”
Jason grimaced and spoke at last, “I don’t know if these are just rumors, but they say that Master Stockton decided to have it torn down because his ex-wife who he hated used to live here.”
Chapter 1488
Chapter 1488 By ex-wife, was he referring to Shannon? Sherry frowned.
Jason continued, “Madan, it all happened shortly after you escaped three years ago. Right after the previous wife was also taken away by the police, Master Stockton ordered to have the entire courtyard razed to the ground.”
Sherry seemed intrigued by this.
Shannon’s vile actions must have left a deep impression on John. It made sense that he would want the place torn down to purge the place of its bad memories.
Certainly, it had nothing to do with Sherry. She had nothing further to add and proceeded to bring Caprice into the house.
Meanwhile, outside the courtyard was an agitated Madam Stockton who was nearly hyperventilating. She was trying to steady her breathing with a palm against her chest while Julie tried to calm her down as well. The two of them were staring red-faced at John, waiting for an explanation.
“You... why did you get engaged with her without telling us? Don’t you think these are things that you should inform your mother about?”
Her skin was drained of any color, it seemed like she would faint at any given moment. John frowned and turned to Julie. “Julie, please take my mother back to her room.” Julie hesitated briefly, then she nodded.
However, Madam Stockton roared in protest the very next second, “No! Don’t you try to wave over this matter! | want you to take her back to the city hall and get a divorce, or else you'll see!”
John frowned, a sharp gleam flashed in his eyes. “Mom, if you continue causing a scene for no reason, I’m going to get upset.” Madam Stockton seemed alarmed by this. She realized she no longer had her son under her palms as she did in the past.
She understood that the only reason she was widely respected by members of other branches of the family and the general public was due to the direct proximity of her relationship with John. Not only was he the successor to the Stockton Corporation, but he was also the wealthiest man in Glanchester who wielded great power and influence in his hands.
She tried to plead her case. “But John, this woman doesn’t deserve you, can’t you see that? How is she better than any other ladies you can find in Glanchester?
Besides, you know about the scandalous nature of her relationship with that Sager boy, why would you marry her?”
The thought of her son the most important man in Glanchester reduced to marrying a vile woman like Sherry sickened Madam Stockton. She even began to shed tears when confronted with this reality.
John grimaced. Any other lady in Glanchester was better than Sherry?
She snored like a pig in her sleep and was disgusting enough to fart right in front of him. She certainly was lacking in decency and grace that was to be expected in a lady.
The counterpoint was she was as bright as she was beautiful. Thanks to her capable hands, the crumbling Sager empire was restored, not many women could claim to have done something as impressive as that.
However, these were not the reasons he married her.
He married her for Caprice.
All to ensure... that she would never leave him again!
His eyes darkened. After a while, the gentleness and calmness in his voice were restored and he explained calmly, “This is my choice. If you truly cannot stand the sight of her, | can have her relocated somewhere else with Caprice.”
With that, he turned around and walked into the courtyard.
Madam Stockton’s eyes widened, her legs gave out and she slumped over the floor..
Julie kept her from falling. “Mom, Mom, calm down.”
Madam Stockton expressed indignantly, “He... He’d choose her over his mother, | cannot believe this!”
She was furious!
Julie seemed to sense something, she calmed Madam Stockton in a supportive voice. “Don’t worry, he just made a rash decision in the heat of the moment. You're his mother, why would he ever abandon you?”
“Arash decision in the heat of the moment? He was seduced by that fox again!” How many years had it been?! Ever since he met Sherry, the sly fox had dug her claws into him and refused to let go! Julie grimaced, a deep color of jealousy swelled in her eyes.
Madam Stockton stared helplessly at the courtyard John had just stepped through. She took a deep breath and steadied herself as best as she could.
Chapter 1489
“No, | can’t let this woman ruin his reputation. | have to figure something out,” Madam Stockton said defiantly and marched back to her room.
Julie was left all by herself, cold and harsh wind beat against her.
She clenched her teeth and looked venomously in the direction of the courtyard before walking away. Meanwhile, Sherry had just walked into the house and
met Aunt Wanda.
“Miss Sherry?” Aunt Wanda exclaimed and did not hide her surprise at seeing her.
Sherry was just as excited to see her, she smiled radiantly and greeted her.
Sylvia informed her that John employed Aunt Wanda and brought her to Glanchester with him after he took Caprice. She must have contributed greatly to Caprice’s current healthy state.
Sherry greeted her kindly and followed her into Caprice’s room.
The child’s room was painted bright pink, it looked like something out of a fairy tale.
It was decorated with all varieties of adorable plush toys of all kinds of sizes.
Her bed was pink-colored as well, positioned in the middle of the room. Tiny sparkling lights dangled over her bed like stars in the night sky.
Sherry settled Caprice into her bed.
Aunt Wanda helped her take off the child’s coat, all done in one swift and practiced motion. Then, they covered her with a large blanket.
After they were done, Sherry expressed in a heartfelt voice, “Aunt Wanda, thank you for helping me take care of Caprice these last two years.”
Aunt Wanda smiled radiantly, beaming with pride. “No need to be so formal with me. Besides, Master Stockton pays me a handsome wage, | don’t think there’s any other confinement nurse in the country making as much as | do. It’s only right that | take care of Caprice as best as | can.”
Unaware that Sherry had already caught up with recent developments, Aunt Wanda shed some light on the situation. “Caprice is with Master Stockton pretty much all the time so he’s the one caring for her the majority of the time. | only help out with Caprice when he’s busy. He treats Caprice like a prized jewel and brings her with him everywhere he goes. He wouldn’t trust anyone else with Caprice for an extended time, not even Madam Stockton!”
Sherry smiled. John might be a complete scumbag with her, but nobody could accuse him of being a poor father.
Aunt Wanda was a chatterbox. She had always been this way even back then when Sylvia had arranged for her to take care of Sherry who was still pregnant with Caprice. They would spend all their time gossiping about everything under the sun.
After they were done talking about Caprice, Aunt Wanda moved on to another topic. “Miss Sherry, where have you been for the past two years?”
“| went to Coastrock.” Aunt Wanda was surprised to hear this. “Why did you go somewhere so far away?” Sherry answered matter-of-factly, “I just felt like going there at the time.”
At that time, all she wanted was to get away from John. Coastrock stood out as the best option since it was a very modern city and leagues away from Glanchester, so she went there.
“How was life in Coastrock?”
“Well, it’s pretty fine.”
“Then what brought you back here?” Aunt Wanda expressed with a sigh, “I thought you should know this. Ever since Caprice understood the concept of parents, she’s been asking day and night about why she didn’t have a mother. It pains my heart to see her innocence and | didn’t know how to explain things to her.”
Sherry frowned and said, “Things didn’t go very well when | first got to Coastrock, things only got better in the past six months.” Aunt Wanda asked concernedly, “Was it some difficulties you ran into?”
Outside the bedroom door, the man who was just about to step into the room quickly halted. He lurked in the shadow, beside the doorway where he was out in sight, and listened.
Sherry said in a hushed voice, “I did’run into some
problems, but it’s all settled now. I’m pretty much over it now.”
It was apparent that she did not want to recount those tales.
Aunt Wanda understood and smiled. “It’s alright, it’s all in the past now. I’m just glad you came back to us.” Sherry smiled. “Yeah.”
“Are you going to leave again later on?”
Chapter 1490
Sherry’s eyes flickered and she said with determination, ” | came back for Caprice so I'll go wherever she goes.” Aunt Wanda admired her love for her daughter, then she asked, “You and Master Stockton...”
“We got engaged, we just got the marriage certificate today.”
Aunt Wanda seemed thrilled by this.
Sherry quickly added, “We only got engaged for Caprice’s sake. The marriage is nothing more than a formality and it would have never happened if not for Caprice. Please don’t think that anything is going on between us.”
Aunt Wanda seemed confused by this queer arrangement.
Standing stealthily by the doorway, the man’s expression darkened, and a crook smile formed on his lips.
A formality? Nothing going on between the two of them?
What nonsense!
Sherry chatted with Aunt Wanda for quite a while.
At one point, Caprice woke up. She slowly pried her sleepy eyes open and muttered sleepily, “I want to poop.”
“Okay, let me take you to the toilet alright?” Aunt Wanda said and prepared to take Caprice.
Sherry reached Caprice one step ahead of her and said, ” Aunt Wanda, let me handle this.”
Aunt Wanda was surprised by this preposition and asked, “Miss Sherry, are you sure you want to do this? | can handle this.” Sherry offered. “You can teach me.‘
If she were to take Caprice and run away, she would have to do these things by herself so this was a good chance for her to learn.
Aunt Wanda smiled kindly. “Alright.”
They went to the bathroom together.
There was a children -size toilet specifically built for her.
Following Aunt Wanda’s meticulous instructions, Sherry let Caprice sit on the toilet. The child was very easy to take care of.
The only thing she needed help with was in taking her pants off. After that, Sherry and Aunt Wanda turned away to give her some privacy and she was done in no time.
They helped her wash her hands and tied her hair into two adorable buns before heading back into the room. She looked around the room, freshly energized after the rest she got.
Sherry asked, “Caprice, where do you want to go?”
Caprice did not answer and walked out on her own.
Aunt Wanda smiled and informed Sherry, “I think she’s looking for Master Stockton.”
Sherry felt a spike of jealousy.
She did not hold it against Caprice. After all, she had spent two years by her father’s side.
Sherry took a deep breath and followed her.
Just as Aunt Wanda said, the girl walked down the corridor and quickly found her way toward the study. She pressed her entire weight against the door and flung it open.
John was staring at his phone with a focused look.
He must be working again.
The moment he noticed Caprice entering, a gentle and doting smile took over his previously stern expression. The little girl walked up to him and crawled into his arms.
John wrapped up his call without a second thought. Let’s continue this discussion tomorrow.”
With that, he hung up and set the phone aside.
He wrapped one arm around Caprice and picked up a sheet of document with another hand.
Attending to Caprice while working was apparently a part of his daily routine.
Caprice did not utter a word, she rested quietly in John’s arms.
Sherry stood outside and observed their interaction through the crack of the door, a bitter sensation rose inside her. Caprice was so attached to John.
She wondered when she would receive the same kind of attention from Caprice.
“Sherry! It’s really you!”
Suddenly, a deafening cry sounded from behind her.
Sherry nearly got a heart attack. She spun around and met Queenie’s bewildered eyes, she seemed like she was about to burst into tears.
Sherry was delighted to see her and greeted her with a smile, “If it isn’t you, | haven’t seen you for a few years! What's with that peacock voice of yours?”