The Cherished Wife



The story of Charles leaving the Hoffman family's old house had become the talk of the town, and everyone knew about his cold treatment of J that night. It was obvious that Charles would never marry J, which meant the Hoffmans and the Bakers would not be uniting their families through marriage anytime soon.

With that realization, everyone was walking on eggshells around the Baker family, handling any partnerships with utmost caution.

Charles was a calm man, but once he decided to act, you could bet it would not be a simple affair.

Clarisse heard alarm bells ringing too. She was no stranger to family drama, having grown up in the Baker household where backstabbing was as common as breakfast cereal. However, Clarisse was not just clinging to the Baker name because of her marriage ties to the Hoffmans. She had her own bag of tricks. Over the years, she had woven a web of connections within the Baker family. However, she never seemed to find her footing with the Hoffmans, which was partly why she never liked the idea of returning.

Clarisse was a bundle of nerves, haunted by the events of the gathering that night. Charles, her own flesh and blood, had turned on her like she was some villain. That was a bitter pill she could not swallow.All content is property © NôvelDrama.Org.

"Clary, are you even listening to me?"

Meanwhile, miles away in Capiton, Milo got the lowdown on the drama from the Hoffman family's gathering. Charles's cold shoulder at the feast was a direct insult to the Bakers, and that got Milo's gears turning. "What's Charles really up to?"

After stewing over it, Clarisse said, "Milo, maybe we should just drop the whole J thing." She figured Charles had no real reason to go after her unless it was related to J.

Clarisse had been in denial for the

longest time, but being back with the Hoffmans opened her eyes to how ruthless they could be. Sure, they had always given her the cold

shoulder, but it was never as in-your-face as it was then. The Hoffmans were giving her the full freeze-out, and it was not just her-they were icing out the whole Baker family. It all traced back to J and Charles's messy engagement.

She knew she was not exactly unbiased. After all, she had been trying to patch things up with Charles for ages. However, J was always the wrench in the works.

"What are you talking about?" Milo sucked in a breath, shocked. "Are you out of your mind? J and Charles's Wedding was set in stone ages ago, and you were on board with it then. Not to mention that Charles messed up big time with J back then. Isn't it about time he owned up to it?"

"Milo!" Clarisse rubbed her temples, feeling a migraine coming on. "No one really knows the whole story from back then. Charles and J tell it differently. Do you honestly think Charles is the type to ditch a woman after sleeping with her?" Despite her rocky relationship with Charles, he was her kid, and she knew his character better than anyone.

Nobody actually caught Charles and J in the act back then, but everyone knew about the day Charles stormed out of the Baker mansion with all the servants watching. No one had ever actually seen him lay a finger on J, though.

J insisted they had been together, and the bruises that covered her that night seemed to back up her story. Everyone was quick to point fingers at Charles, J included.