SWNOVELS Chapter 14
Chapter 14
Aged but full of spirit, Jerry greeted Charlotte with a warm smile and put down his teacup. However, a single glimpse of him brought tears to her eyes.
“Charlotte?” Hearing her name, Charlotte raced to him, dropped to her knees before his chair, and buried her face in his lap. “Grandpa Jerry.”
“So it’s really you.”
“Yes, it’s me,” she managed to choke out amidst the surge of emotions.
This teary reunion mirrored the moment she was first taken under Jerry’s wing, left with nothing in her own life. She had relied on him back then, and even now, it felt as if he was the only constant in her world.
“I’m so glad you’re back,” Jerry comforted her, gently brushing her hair. His reassuring touch seemed to patch up her broken heart.
Standing nearby, Mark was deeply moved. “It’s so good to have you back,” he told her. “You can’t imagine how Mr. Sullivan got by these last few years.” He reminisced about how Jerry would sit in front of the window every night, with a pained expression on his face, wondering when Charlotte would return.
Charlotte spoke sadly. “I’m sorry, Grandpa Jerry.”
“No, I should be the one to apologize. I let you and your grandmother down by not protecting you,” Jerry responded. Jerry, who had set up Charlotte and Zachary’s union, thinking Zachary would look after her under his declining health, never anticipated the whirlwind of heartache it brought. Throughout the three years Charlotte was absent, Jerry had barred Zachary from entering the Sullivan residence.
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“That’s not true, Grandpa Jerry. I was the one who made you worry.” Charlotte’s voice was barely audible, her eyes brimming with remorse. Resting her head on Jerry’s lap, she noted his shaky body, his trembling hands from earlier which had signaled his deteriorating health.
Jerry sighed out loud, saying, “I’m just relieved you’re alive.”
Despite being Zachary’s grandfather, a promise to her own grandmother had bound Charlotte closer to Jerry than Zachary ever was. Ever since her adoption into the Sullivan family, Jerry had held a special place in his heart for her.
This favoritism had sparked both envy and resentment amongst the younger generation of the Sullivan family.
Inside Supreme International Group, Zachary had been tied up in meetings all morning. When he finally emerged, a visibly worried Leo awaited him.
– J J M BBB B B
Chapter 14
“What’s going on?” Zachary inquired, sensing Leo’s anxiety.
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“Charlotte was called to the Sullivan residence. I’m not sure what kind of situation she’s getting into there!”
Upon hearing this news, Zachary tensed up. He fully grasped Leo’s concern. After all, not many at the Sullivan residence bore any warmth for Charlotte, especially his own mother.
All of a sudden, a pounding headache hit him. He checked his watch. “Reschedule the rest of my appointments,” he ordered.
“But you have dinner planned with Ms. Lopez tonight…”
Zachary silenced Leo with an icy stare. Wisely, Leo swallowed his remaining words. With his day- to–day tasks delegated, Zachary rushed off to the Sullivan residence.
As soon as he arrived, Zachary noticed the servants bustling about, ferrying dishes to the dining table. It had been a good three years since he last walked through these doors. Even the annual Christmas family gatherings didn’t warrant his inclusion. Upon catching sight of Zachary, Mary’s face scrunched up in a displeased frown. “Why are you here?” she challenged.
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Zachary was speechless. His exclusion wasn’t solely because of Jerry’s resentment–his mother forbade his return as well.
Just then, he spied Charlotte helping the elderly Jerry tread down the staircase. She came to a halt, taken aback at the sight of Zachary there. ‘And I thought he hadn’t come home for three years, she mused.
“You get out of this house!” Jerry snapped.
Frozen in place, Charlotte bit her lip, at a loss for words.
Throughout this family strife, Zachary remained silent.