Chapter 134
The maids were off for the holiday, so it fell to Ross to carry Ruth back to her room. He did it quickly and without complaint.
When he came back downstairs, he saw Janice sitting on the sofa, staring at the festival gala on TV. It was supposed to be a comedy sketch, but she kept sighing, unable to laugh.
Meanwhile, Shermaine was peeling an orange.
How could Jameson be so heartless to Ruth? Had he completely forgotten what Ruth had done for him? If not for her, would he ever have reached where he was now? Even if there was no love left between them, Ruth was still the mother of his children. She had once loved him deeply, and that had to mean something. How could he be so cruel?
Shermaine looked at her and said gently, “Grandma, try not to overthink it.” She handed her a sweet, peeled orange.
Janice accepted the orange and murmured, “Your father wasn’t like this before. Ever since he got involved with that mistress, he’s changed.”
People loved to blame the other woman, but if Jameson had any conscience at all, if he had any sense of duty as a husband and father, he wouldn’t be like this, no matter what that woman had done.
Ross sat down beside them. “Grandma, it’s been years. If he wanted to come back, he would’ve done it already. You’ve pulled him out of the water more times than I can count. Has he ever really made it back to shore?”
No, he hadn’t. Janice was finally beginning to see that.
She had grandchildren now. She didn’t need to keep wasting her heart on someone like Jameson. Slowly, she let her attention return to the television, and for the first time that night, a soft smile began to form on her face.
Shermaine finally took out her phone from her pocket. WhatsApp was still flooded with unread messages. She scrolled through and responded one by one. When she reached Joshua’s message, she typed back: [No problem. Go ahead and book the tickets.]
The moment the message was sent, his side showed “typing,” and seconds later, a new reply popped up. [Got it. Happy holiday.]
Shermaine sent him some money, more than enough for the plane ticket. She didn’t say anything about it. If she told him it was for the ticket, he would just send it back.
Joshua felt a novel sensation as he received it.
He couldn’t help but think, ‘And the amount she sent was surprisingly generous.’
Honestly, that was unexpected.
He started fiddling with his phone, thinking of sending the money back. Just then, Owen saw the transfer record on Joshua’s phone. He teased, “Oh, now you’re taking Sheary’s money? That’s new. Are you that broke?”
Joshua couldn’t help but laugh at Owen’s remark. He replied seriously, “Well, it’s not illegal to take my woman’s money. Are you jealous because she didn’t give a cent to you?”
Owen would never admit that Joshua had seen right through him. He huffed, “Rather than money, I’d much rather see some progress in your relationship with Sheary. “But it’s been two months, and nothing’s changed! Can’t you put a little more effort into this, or do you really plan to remain single forever?”
Of course, Joshua didn’t want to stay single. He couldn’t be more devoted and had put his heart into every little trick, but all his carefully planned moves just go unnoticed by Shermaine.
“If you’re really set on staying single forever, I’ll make sure Sheary dumps you soon. No need for you to hold her back from finding a real boyfriend,” Owen grumbled.
He’d always known exactly why he arranged the engagement between Joshua and Shermaine in the first place; otherwise, he wouldn’t have pushed them to live together.
He’d hoped for some sparks to fly, but it had all been a letdown. Now that Shermaine had nearly cured his illness and he could look forward to a few more good years, Joshua just got more and more on his nerves.
So, naturally, Owen seized the opportunity to lecture him at length.
Seeing that Joshua offered no rebuttal, Owen felt desperate. With a heavy sigh, he thought, ‘Looks like my grandson is destined to stay celibate for life.’
But then, Joshua finally spoke.
“Only I can be Sheary’s man,” he declared.