Ch. 1716..1720
Chapter 1716
Chapter 1716 Sherry glared at John. If her eyes could fire lasers, John would have been punctured with numerous holes by now.
She swallowed the rage in her breath and went back to coaxing Caprice, “No, that’s not what this is, Mommy only wants to go to them to talk about something.”
“What do you guys want to talk about?” John asked sharply.
Caprice was still sobbing.
Sherry was running out of options She took a deep breath and confessed, “I was never with Carl. Our
engagement was a ruse this entire time.”
John seemed intrigued by this.
Caprice suddenly stopped sobbing. She caught her breath and asked in a tone of complete naivety, “What's a ruse?”
Sherry heaved a sigh of relief and answered, “It means that you’re putting on an act for others. We want people to think that I’m with Uncle Carl when in reality, nothing is happening between us at all.”
Caprice only heard the part where they were not together and immediately lit up. “Why are you two acting?” Sherry answered softly, “It’s all very complicated. You wouldn’t understand at your age.” “Explain it anyway. | can understand,” John said with a brilliant glow shining in his eyes.
Sherry shot him an icy look before continuing, “Right now, Lisa is the one who holds the rights to Sager Corporation. Even though Carl is recognized as the heir, he’s not very popular amongst the inner circle, especially since Ron and the others want the corporation for themselves. They're in cahoots with the shareholder to bar Carl from taking over.
“The catch is that | have an esteemed position in the corporation and some of the shareholders are on my side. If | marry Carl, it can strengthen his case for taking over.”
She confessed to everything in one breath, knowing that John was going to leverage Caprice against her and refuse to let her go if she did not reveal the full circumstances.
Upon hearing this, John smiled satisfactorily and asked, “Whose idea is this?”
Sherry answered, “Aunt Lisa’s. Carl and | agreed to the plan.”
John nodded.
Caprice sighed, “Adults are so complicated.” She barely understood what was happening.
Sherry patted her head and then turned to John. “Thanks to you ruining the engagement today, this plan that we came up with is not going to work anymore. I'll have to meet with them again to discuss what we are going to have to do after this to salvage the situation.”
With that, she asked crossly, “So, will you move?”
John held his ground.
Sherry glared at him. “What else do you want?”
John smirked. A gentle glow appeared in his eyes as he proposed, “I’ll go with you.”
“Why would you do that?” Sherry was baffled. “I don’t need you to come with me. Just look after Caprice.”
Before John could even voice his objections, Caprice spoke up, “We’re going with you, Mommy.” She was still worried about Sherry abandoning them.
John reassured her, “Don’t worry, | won’t get in your way. We're just going to follow you there, then we'll wait for you outside while you take care of business.”
Caprice gave her word as well. “Yeap.”
Sherry grimaced. She gave in and carried Caprice, then she went outside.
John followed. He was standing closely behind her when they stepped out of the elevator. Sherry snarled grumpily, “Get away from me.”
Everything she had done, she had done for Caprice. Her daughter was the sole reason she had not divorced John and even went as far as to confess the truth of her engagement with Carl.
Even though she was not divorced from John yet, they were only husband and wife in name John frowned and kept his distance. He made sure to keep a wider gap between them. The traffic was relatively mild at this hour of the day.
Shortly after that, Sherry arrived outside Lisa’s villa with John and Caprice in her car Sherry turned to Caprice, “Caprice, stay in the car with your father. I'll be back in a minute.”
Chapter 1717
Caprice was feeling much better by now except her eyes were still swollen from crying just now. She spoke out, “Mommy, | want to go with you.”
It was impossible to refuse her when she pleaded so sincerely.
Sherry smiled and gave in. “Okay.”
Besides, Lisa and Carl were not dangerous.
With that, she got out of the car and went to the other side to get Caprice, taking her into her arms.
Caprice made sure to turn to her father who was waiting inside the car, “Bye-bye, Daddy.”
John leaned lazily against the seat of the car and smiled. “See you.”
Then, he cast a gentle gaze toward Sherry. “Go on, I'll wait for you here.”
Sherry merely shot a look at him, then he ignored him. She promptly took Caprice into Lisa’s house with her
As soon as they stepped past the entrance, Carl came rushing out toward them from the living. room. He went toward Sherry and looked at her from head to toe to ensure she was fine. Only then did he manage to calm himself. Then, he turned to Caprice and greeted her warmly, “Caprice, do you remember me?”
Caprice bobbed her head up and down and greeted him cheerfully, “You're Uncle Carl.”
Carl smiled and turned to Sherry. “Sherry, don’t just stand here. Come on, let’s go inside.”
Sherry entered the living room with Caprice.
Lisa rose from the couch. She seemed startled to see Caprice here as well.
Caprice stared intently at Lisa.
Sherry turned to Caprice. “Caprice, this is Aunt Lisa. Say hello to her.”
Caprice did as she was told. “Hello, Aunt Lisa,” she greeted Lisa in an endearing and polite voice. Lisa smiled lovingly. “Oh, hello there, what is your name?”
Caprice answered, “My name is Caprice.”
“How do you spell that, darling?”
Caprice tilted her head to her side and seemed visibly confused.
Sherry answered for her, “C-a-p-r-i-c-e.”
Lisa considered for a moment before asking, “Who named her?”
Sherry answered proudly, “I did.”
She came up with the name as soon as she realized she was pregnant as she thought it was a wonderful name for a cheerful and sweet child.
Lisa remarked kindly, “I see, it’s a wonderful name for her.”
Sherry smiled. She began apologizing for the disastrous engagement ceremony, “Aunt Lisa, | am very sorry for what happened today.”
“It's not your fault. Why are you apologizing?” Lisa forgave her immediately. “Oh, your daughter is such a cutie. Mayl hug her?” Sherry turned to Caprice, but Caprice had already stretched her arms out without needing to be told to do so.
Lisa was enamored by her cheerful and adorable attitude and immediately took Caprice into her arms and went to the couch. Sherry sat next to them while Carl sat on another chair nearby.
Lisa was quickly obsessed with Caprice, especially when she observed how Caprice settled onto her lap without a single note of complaint. She took her time getting to know her before turning to Sherry “Sherry, even if your engagement with Carl doesn’t work out, I’m still not going to let Ron take Sager Corporation away. Worst-case scenario, Carl will have to wait several years longer before he takes over, so don’t blame yourself for what happened.”
Sherry grimaced. “Okay.”
The reason everything turned out so disastrously was that Aiden and Caden managed to get in touch with John to devise their underhanded scheme. However, Sherry felt like she was to be blamed as well, but there was no use lamenting about it anymore. Right now, they should focus on what was to come next.
Chapter 1718
Lisa glanced at Carl who had been staring at Sherry silently the entire time. After a momentary silence, she asked Sherry, “What's the situation between you and Master Stockton right now? Since you're divorced, why did he come all the way here to Coastrock to meet you?”
Sherry turned to Caprice.
The child was getting sleepy by now and was beginning to doze off in Lisa’s arms. She would be drifting off to sleep soon. Sherry whispered, “I haven't divorced him yet.”
Lisa was shocked by this.
Carl was just as taken aback, and he was visibly disturbed by this.
Astagnant silence fell upon them, until Lisa expressed somberly, “So, that’s why...”
That explained John’s antics during the engagement ceremony and why he had taken advantage of Aiden to further his agenda. The two were not divorced yet.
Lisa recalled the pictures of Sherry and John that Aiden had cast on the screen during the engagement ceremony and asked suspiciously, “If you two are not divorced, why does it look like you two don’t get along in those pictures back there?”
Caprice was already soundly asleep by this point.
Sherry swiped a cautious look at Caprice before confessing. “The situation between us is very tense. | don’t plan to be with him much longer.”
Lisa recalled how Sherry had turned into a different person ever since her trip to Glanchester, and this new revelation immediately shed new light on the full picture. A thoughtful look appeared in her eyes as she nodded with great understanding, “Alright, no matter what you decide, just know I’m on your side.”
Sherry smiled. “Aunt Lisa, don’t worry about a thing. | will come up with something to help Carl take over Sager Corporation as soon as possible.”
Lisa smiled and said, “Okay, | believe you. Sherry rose, “Caprice is getting tired. I'll take her back home for now. Just call me if anything. comes up, alright?”
Lisa handed Caprice back to Sherry reluctantly “Alright, just take Caprice home, and don’t stress yourself over what happened. Also, you can bring her around here to visit me if you have time in the future.”
She was always busy overseeing things at the company, so this was the first time in years that she had a chance to spend time with a child. The fact that Caprice was adorable and endearing certainly contributed to her immediate obsession with the child.
Sherry smiled and gave her word before leaving with Caprice in her arms.
Carl had not said a word the entire time. When he saw Sherry preparing to leave, he rose and looked at her with a gloomy expression.
When Sherry turned to him, he immediately formed a smile, assuming his usual nonchalance and grace. Sherry informed him, “I'll be leaving with Caprice for now. Take care of your mother.”
Carl grimaced.
Before he could speak, Lisa spoke up, “I don’t need the brat to keep me company.”
With that, she turned to him. “Carl, send Sherry off for me.”
Carl merely grunted.
Sherry happened to have something to say to Carl, so she let him walk her out of the house.
Once they were past the gate, she stopped and turned to him. Her voice was rather grave as she spoke to him, “Carl, there is something | want to tell you.”
Carl met her eyes with a casual smile. “What’s the matter?”
“It's about the fire back in Glanchester. It wasn’t John. He never intended to harm me this entire time...”
After that, Sherry gave a summary of the situation, going over how Julie attempted to use Madam Stockton against her to drive a wedge between her and John.
Carl frowned after hearing the full story. “She was the perpetrator this entire time? Why did she do it?” “She had a thing for John.”
Carl nodded, then he suddenly asked with a knowing smile, “So, you’re saying that he came here to look for you and explain things to you so that you will take him back?”
Sherry scowled the moment she heard this and declared adamantly, “I’m never going to take him back.”
Carl seemed pleased to hear this though he made sure to hide it. He followed up with another question, “Are you going to divorce him?”
“| want to,” Sherry said as she looked at Caprice who was sleeping soundly in her arms, and told Carl truthfully. “But Caprice won’t let me. | don’t want to hurt her feelings.”
Carl's eyes darkened. He chuckled softly before presenting another question, “Are you going to sacrifice your happiness for the rest of your life for Caprice?”
Chapter 1719
Sherry only needed to gaze at Caprice’s peacefully asleep expression to reaffirm her decision, “As long as Caprice is happy, I’m happy.”
Something darkened in Carl’s eyes, and he found his fists clenching subconsciously. “But even if you divorced John, you could still be Caprice’s mother, nothing is stopping you from visiting her-” Bang!
Suddenly, they heard the loud thud of a car door being slammed shut. Carl was jolted by this and began tensing up.
Sherry turned around warily, only to meet the man who had originally promised to sit still in the car and wait for her and Caprice. The man was now walking over with a faint smile hanging on his lips.
He approached Sherry and shot a look at Carl. “Young Master Sager, you're trying to persuade a mother to get divorced from her husband right in the presence of their daughter. That doesn’t seem very appropriate to me.”
Carl had an adverse reaction to this and stated crossly, “Sherry is a close friend of mine. Of course, | would suggest whatever is best for her.”
John wore the same stoic smile. “No need to worry about her. I’ll take care of her well enough from here on.” Carl remained silent.
Sherry was stunned in silence for a moment as well. She made a look and turned to Carl. “Carl, I'll be leaving with Caprice for now. Don’t worry about me. Make sure you get some rest.”
She was not interested in the men’s bickering and made the wise choice of marching toward the car with Caprice still sleeping soundly in her arms.
John smiled at Carl and followed her.
As Sherry was settling Caprice into the car, she heard Carl's voice from a distance behind her.” Sherry, Coastrock is my territory. If anyone gives you a hard time again, remember that you can. call me, and | promise you that I'll take care of him. I'll make him regret ever coming to Coastrock!”
Sherry shuddered upon hearing this.
Before she could answer, John retorted, “She has me by her side now. Nobody is going to give her a hard time. Thanks for the concern, Young Master Sager.”
Sherry remained silent while Carl only chuckled dryly.
An awkward silence fell over them, then Sherry turned to meet Carl's eye and acknowledged him,” | understand, don’t worry.” With that, she burrowed into the car with Caprice and shot a look at John. “You, drive.”
John merely smiled and said, “Okay.”
With that, he got into the driver’s seat and started the engine.
Shortly after that, they arrived at Sherry’s apartment. Sherry hurried into the house, Caprice still sleeping soundly in her arms. John followed behind them.
While Sherry settled Caprice on the bed, John just stood by the doorway and observed her quietly.
As usual, Sherry took off Caprice’s shoes and jacket in a practiced fashion. After ensuring that. Caprice was comfy in bed, she threw a blanket over the child and left the room.
John stood by the door like a fixed statue.
Sherry walked straight out of the room and walked past the man without even sparing a second to look at him. She found her laptop and proceeded to prop herself by a window in the living room, making herself comfy on the floor.
She wanted to have a look to what extent the news of the disastrous engagement ceremony had spread.
She dug through several major media outlets in Coastrock, and to her surprise, it seemed like nearly none of the media outlets had picked up on the news. It seemed like it mostly stayed within. Sager Corporation.
It struck her as very odd. Would it not make sense for Ron and his family to spread the news far and wide to sabotage Lisa and Carl's reputation?
She grew suspicious. It was around this point that she realized that her phone had been ringing.
She pulled it out of her pocket and found that while she was focused on digging up news online, she had been bombarded by texts. Most of the texts were from the shareholders at Sager Corporation. Even Ron had sent her a text.
Chapter 1720
Although it may seem like the shareholders were concerned about her, it was clear as day that they were probing for information about John.
Ron was the most suspicious of them all, evident by his message that read, “President Sherry, Aiden and Caden have done something terrible today. If they had come to me and told me about their plan, | would have shut it down immediately. | would like to apologize for what happened.
“Also, forgive my mom for being so stubborn in her traditional ideals. She’s our elder after all. What’s wrong with being married before? As long as you have something to offer to the table, | won’t mind you wedding into the family even if you have been divorced thrice in the past.
“It's truly a shame that things were ruined by Aiden and Cade. | have already lectured them just now. When you come in to work on Monday, | will have them apologize to you.
“By the way, say hello to Master Stockton for me, if you would.” Sherry chuckled. The final sentence was the one that spelled his intention; the rest were nothing but filler.
Upon reading the message, she understood the reason Ron and his family were afraid of stirring up drama and spreading the news. They were afraid of her using John against them.
She took a deep breath and looked across the living room. John was seated on the couch on the other edge of the room facing her with a book in hand.
The book was part of a collection of business materials that Lisa had given to her as a gift after she arrived in Coastrock. Lisa had given them to her to help her build her knowledge and expertise in the industry.
It did not take long at all for John to get halfway through the book. It was not surprising since he was made for business since the day he was born. The contents of the book must be completely. amateurish to his genius mind.
Sherry found herself overwhelmed with a sudden rush of irritability. That was when John suddenly raised his eyes and looked at her. Sherry caught his gaze. She suddenly grew defensive and asked snappily, “What are you looking at me for?”
John remained silent. He formed a coy smile and said, “No reason. | just felt like looking at you.” Sherry shot him a look, then she turned her attention back to her laptop to avoid looking at John altogether.
John suddenly asked her, “Have you finished this book?”
Sherry answered snappily, “I finished it a long time ago.”
John remarked casually, “Well, the contents are okay, it’s just a bit dated.”
Sherry was visibly annoyed by this. She continued to stare at her the display and said without bothering to turn to John, “I know, | finished the book two years ago.”
John made a look and did his best to suppress a smile as he said, “I would say this book was only relevant around three years ago.”
Sherry stayed silent. Her cheeks grew red as she glared at John viciously. John smiled condescendingly and brushed her off, “Still, you could learn a lot from this, I’m sure.”
Sherry took a breath and ignored him. She may not be as experienced as John, but she did manage to extract a lot of helpful information from the book. She was aware that books did not offer as much as real-world practical experiences, but they still helped her considerably.
That was why she had read the books, to prepare herself for when she stepped into the business field. She knew that she had relied on nothing but her abilities and determination to ascend the ranks inside Sager Corporation.
John suddenly remarked, “You do have a talent for business. | know a couple of books that can be very helpful. Do you want me to source them for you?”
She refused without even considering it, “No thanks.”
He paused for a moment before saying, “Well, at least let me tell you the names of these books.”
She grimaced and ignored him entirely.
He smiled and took out his phone.
Shortly after that, Sherry’s phone began chiming.
John had sent the titles of the books he mentioned to her.
She merely glanced at the phone before putting it away.
She spied John from the corner of her eye and noticed he had picked up the book and resumed reading. She sneakily reached for her phone again and went through the list of books John had sent her, then she went to an online bookstore and ordered each one of them.
Unbeknownst to her, John was hardly paying attention to the book at all and was spying on her the entire time. He observed how she seemed to scurry about and was very amused. A subtle smile formed on his lips.
The day passed quickly.
Sherry remained by the window all day while John sat on the couch.