The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 1547 Whose Decision

Letting Leila stay in their house with Melissa was the last thing on earth that Sheryl could accept in her lifetime. The scar that Leila had left behind in her mind, as well as her kids', was far from being healed. And moreover, it was a known fact that if Leila put up with them under the same roof, there wouldn't be a single moment of peace left for them in this house. It had happened so many times before that she needn't take another chance with it.

Leila couldn't resist curling her lips when she marked the complicated expression on Sheryl's face. Casting a triumphing glance at her, Leila held Melissa's arm and helped her sit down. "Please don't be mad. It's not the first day you are meeting her, right?" She was fanning the flames inside Melissa.

"Sher, Clark and Shirley are upstairs in their room. They must be eager to see their mother!" Nancy hurriedly interrupted. She came to help Sheryl out of the mess. It was useless to shout at the two insane

women.

"Right, I'd better go upstairs right away. Thank you, Nancy." Sheryl cast an appreciating glance at Nancy and turned away from Melissa and Leila.

However, Melissa could not restrain from making provocative remarks on Sheryl. It was as if she were not satisfied by pushing her into the well that she even had to throw stones at her. "Don't be so confident that my son will take your side forever. I am his mother. My words carry more power than you can imagine. Let's wait and see how long you can hang on to be the hostess of this house!"

Sheryl halted at the stairs. She clutched her hands and wanted to turn around to give her mother-in-law a piece of her mind.

Nancy stopped her by tugging on Sheryl's clothes. As Sheryl turned towards her, she shook her head. Apprehensive of things getting out of control, Nancy applied her mind and gestured for Sheryl not to meddle with Melissa and Leila.

Sheryl got her and gave her a reassuring smile. She patted Nancy's hand and went directly upstairs, trying hard to control her temper.

She took several deep breaths to calm down before entering the kids' room and smiled heartily when she saw that Clark was helping Shirley with her homework. She thanked God inside for giving her two adorable kids, who gave her the power to ride over the biggest problems in her life.

"Mommy, you're back finally!" the kids shouted unanimously.

"Mommy, did you see that woman in the living room with Grandma? I don't like her! Can you please ask her to leave?" Shirley requested as she ran to their mother.

Sheryl held the little girl closely in her arms. She could feel her little heart throbbing. She looked into her eyes and marked a certain fear in her bright, innocent eyes. Sheryl touched her hair, thinking of what to say. Even these kids knew what a disaster it would be to allow Leila to stay in their house. But now that Charles had given his consent to it, there was little for her to do. She had to consider Charles' feeling as well, but she would have a word with him later.

"I don't like her either. Look, she's going to stay here for a couple of days. We owe her a big favor because she rescued your grandma. As a gesture of gratitude, we shall have to take care of her because she was injured. Be a good girl, Shirley." Although Sheryl tried to talk Shirley out of her discomfort regarding Leila, she was unable to accept it herself. Thus, when she thought about it, her heart was swelling up with anger and frustration at such a mindless decision made by Charles.

"Shirley, please don't be upset. I'll protect you from her and we'll avoid seeing her as much as we can." Clark also put in a word to pacify his little sister. Apparently, it was easier for him to accept the current situation.

"Okay, I'll try. I wish she leaves us alone as soon as possible!" Shirley nodded reluctantly, still unable to shrug off the bad feeling in her mind.

Clark and Sheryl switched an understanding glance, glad that their words worked on Shirley.

The kids kept at their homework. Sheryl stayed in the kids' room for a while to give them company. Later, she bathed them before putting them to bed.

After the kids had fallen asleep, Sheryl went back to her room. The first thing she had to do was recharge her phone. Nancy said she called her when she saw Melissa bringing Leila home, but she could not get through because Sheryl's phone was out of charge. Sheryl then shook her head with a bitter smile. She understood that she couldn't have stopped Melissa even if she was home then.

In fact, now as she reflected on the whole thing, she supposed that she should be delighted that she was not home at that time. Otherwise, she would have to confront them, which definitely would have led to unnecessary provocation and wastage of time.

"Sher, please drink some milk. It'll help you to get good sleep. Take it easy. There is ample time ahead, and you need to keep your chin in front of them. Your life is yours, and their life is theirs, right?" Sheryl looked up to find Nancy standing with a cup of warm milk. Engrossed in her thoughts, she might not have heard Nancy knocking at the door.

Sheryl heaved a deep sigh and took the cup by her hands. "Thank you, Nancy. We all know what kind of person Leila is. After all her misdeeds, Melissa still thinks she's a friend. I don't know how to respond. Melissa is stubborn and even Charles can't get through to her. It's obvious that Leila is taking advantage of her, but there is nothing I can do."

Nancy also let out a sigh. She understood Sheryl's situation. The relationship between a mother-in-law and a daughter-in-law has always been complicated ever since ancient times. And it is still like that even at present.

"Stop thinking about it and go to bed, Sher. Put all your attention on the kids and Mr. Lu. There must be a way out. As time passes, Mrs. Lu will see her through and everything will be fine. And the most important thing is that all four of you are together!" Nancy said earnestly trying her best to make Sheryl feel better.

Sheryl put the cup down to hold Nancy's hands, shaking them with a bright smile. And then Nancy left with her heart relieved.

Sheryl picked up her phone and turned it on to call Charles, but she dropped the idea before finding his number. He must be busy now, and it wouldn't help even if she argued with him. Whatever she said, it couldn't help change the fact that Leila had moved in. She would never leave this house that easily as long as Melissa took her side.

Sheryl put the phone on the table again and collapsed on the bed, rubbing her temples.

Another hour had passed before Charles got home.

There was pin-drop silence in the entire house when he entered the living room. He guessed that his wife, his kids, and his mother must have long gone to sleep. He tiptoed upstairs trying not to make noise. He opened the door of their bedroom. Sheryl was lying in the bed motionlessly with her back to the door. He cracked a smile and moved to the bed, but stopped when he smelled himself stinking of whiskey. He remembered once Sheryl complained about it to him and asked him to take a shower before going to bed whenever he attended a business dinner.

"I'm home, honey," he said in a low voice. But there was no response from Sheryl. It seemed that she was in a deep slumber.

Charles chuckled and went directly to the bathroom.

Refreshed from a quick shower, Charles got on the bed and lay beside Sheryl, wrapping his arms around her from the behind. But he didn't get the response he expected. "Hey, honey," he whispered into her ears and kissed her on her neck.

As a matter of fact, Sheryl was awake now, but she didn't want to talk with Charles. It was annoying that Charles had something else in mind. He then began running his hand down her back. Unable to tolerate the intimacy any further, Sheryl moved a little away from him, which left Charles in a bewildered state.

Sheryl was not sleeping. Yet, she was pretending not to hear him at all! What could be the matter with her?

"What's this all about, Sher? Are you mad at me because I'm late?" Charles couldn't help but ask. The last thing he wanted after a hard day's work was the cold shoulder given by his wife. He liked to make things easier and straightforward. Thus he was a little angry at his wife.

At the same time, Sheryl felt that she was the one who should blame him. It was ridiculous of this man not to explain anything to her, but instead blame her for her silence.

"Don't you know why I turned my back to you? You should have expected this when you gave your consent to your mother to bring Leila home. This is all I'm about! Do you think I can manage to accept her living under the same roof after what she did to us before?" Sheryl shouted. Then she sat up on the bed abruptly.

Charles was completely taken aback. He gazed at Sheryl with his mouth wide opened, and it took a few seconds before he figured exactly what had happened.

His mother brought Leila back here in this house.

Charles then knitted his brows. He was the last person to learn the news. His mother kept it from him deliberately because she knew it very well that if she had asked for his approval, he would have turned her down without any hesitation.

No wonder Sheryl was provoked. She must have thought that he was aware of it and had given his approval. Though she was wrong in her assumption, he couldn't tell her the truth at the moment. The relationship between his wife and his mother was tense, and it would definitely add fuel on the flames if Sheryl learned that it was his mother's idea alone.

Charles then decided to keep quiet, although he would have a word with his mother the next day for sure.

But on the other hand, Sheryl had no idea what was going on in his mind. She firmly believed that both the mother and son joined up to force her into accepting Leila's co-living with them under the same roof. "You have got nothing to say to me? Fine! She saved your mother's life, and so you offered her your house to live in, right?" she sneered.

"No, I didn't offer anything!" Charles protested.

"Then, why did she show up with your mother? Was that entirely your mother's decision?" Sheryl speculated as she stared at Charles with knitted brows.

Charles became silent again, which drove Sheryl crazy.