The Cherished Wife

Jade had always tried to win Samuel's affection, but no matter what she did, Samuel's responses were tepid at best. She would bend over backward to make him happy back in her youth, but she stopped caring so much with age. Julian left Jade and headed straight for Samuel's room. Samuel was engrossed in a book but looked up and set it aside when Julian walked in. "Something on your mind?" he asked.

"Father, I wanted to talk to you about Winter," Julian said.

"Winter?" Samuel nodded in recognition. "I've kept up with what she's been up to lately. I may be old, but I'm not out of the loop. She..."

"Father, Winter might be a little spoiled, but she's not a bad person. She's married to Xavier now, so there's no way she'd have anything going on with Charles!" Julian interjected, eager to clear her name.

Samuel watched Julian's frantic defense and shook his head gently. "I haven't even finished, and you're already jumping to her defense. Jule, did you ever stop to wonder why I show Noelle more affection than Winter, even though they're both my granddaughters?" Julian was at a loss for words.

"You know exactly why. I don't need to spell it out. I'm not interested in whether Winter is wrong or not. But since you're here, why don't you tell me what you want me to do?"

you know perfectly well why I need to treat Winter well and why I have

came with that decision. If you weren't up for it, why did you bring her into

You're close to Charles, right? Could you get him to clear up this mess? It's been hanging over Winter's head for ages, and Charles could fix it with just a word. Winter's still showbiz, and it's not just her career that's taking a hit from the rumors. City Ring Corp is feeling it too,

Samuel cut Julian off, raising his hand. "I get why you're here. Charles and I

Julian responded quickly.

left, Samuel picked up the phone

television with Noelle, when his eyes flickered over to his phone, and he noticed's

and picked up the phone. "Grandpa? What's up? Why are you calling this

have you and Noelle turned in for the