The Cherished Wife

"I don't know. I just..."

Annie was at a loss. She had only wanted to teach that mean girl a lesson. How did Charles get involved?

"Okay, you should rest for now. I'll find out more about this. Charles isn't the type to act without reason. If you haven't really crossed him, he won't bother you. But if you're hiding something from me, remember, even I won't be able to protect you."

After Cody left, Annie felt like her whole world was spinning. She could not figure out what she had done to upset Charles. However, she knew she had to look out for herself first. Her thoughts flew to Winter, and how Winter's fiance, Xavier, was connected to Charles. Without wasting a moment, she dialed Winter's number.

Winter was busy trying on dresses. Emilia had sent a bunch of them a few days back. Two were really pretty, but they did not fit quite right, so Emilia had taken them back to be altered.

Checking herself out in the mirror, Winter could not help but smile. Just then, her maid Rose came in with her phone. "Miss, you've got a call!" With a nod, Winter took the phone, her good mood shining through. However, when she saw it was Annie calling, her smile faded a bit, and she sounded a bit annoyed as she picked up. "Hey, Annie, everything okay?"

"I... I'm okay. My brother got me out," Annie replied, a little relieved to hear Winter's voice. "Winter, about what happened last night..."Property © of NôvelDrama.Org.

"I'm so sorry, Annie. I couldn't get to you in time last night, and those people..." Winter's voice wavered as if she was holding back tears. "I'm really sorry, Annie!"

"It's alright, I'm safe now," Annie reassured her. "Winter, could you help me with something?"

"What do you need?" Winter asked, though she did not sound too eager to help.

Annie's ears perked up at the hint of a solution, She quickly said, "Isn't Charles your fiancé Xavier's uncle? Can you get Xavier to talk to him? Maybe Charles could cut me some slack this time!"

"Charles? Why should I bother Charles with this, Annie? Besides, you know as well as I do that even though Charles is Xavier's uncle, he's not the easiest person to talk to." Winter shot the idea down without hesitation. "It's not that I don't want techelp you, Annie, but my hands are tied."

"Winter, you..."

"Look, Annie, I've got things to do. I'll catch up with you later when I'm free!" Winter ended the call and narrowed her eyes.

Just then, Jade walked by, opened the door, and seeing Winter's sour face, asked, "What's up, Winter? Who's got you in a bad mood? Shouldn't you be all smiles, since you're about to get married?"

"It's nothing!" Winter put her phone away and managed a smile. "Mom, how do you like this outfit?"

"Oh, it's lovely!" Jade beamed, admiring Winter from head to toe. "Our Winter is just gorgeous!"

On the other end, Annie stared at her phone in shock. She could not believe Winter had actually turned her down. "Winter!" she muttered through gritted teeth, her grip on the phone tight.