CHAPTER 21: CHAPTER 21: IS THIS THE TREATMENT MRS. SHEFFIELD GETS?

The sky was darkening, and the corridor lights were bright.

Silas Sheffield’s eyes were tinged with a deep ink color, his voice clear and cool, "No need."

Sophie Sheffield pouted and muttered softly, "I knew you’d refuse. Thea Tate is nice, but it’s been years since you two broke up. You should let go."

Clara Sterling had just pushed open the door to go to the bathroom and was caught off guard hearing this sentence, her steps came to an abrupt halt.

Seeing her come out, Silas Sheffield’s gaze turned towards her.

Sophie Sheffield also looked over, "Clara, coming out so soon? Not chatting with Auntie a bit more?"

Clara Sterling avoided Silas Sheffield’s gaze, feeling a bit guilty as if she’d accidentally overheard someone else’s conversation, even though she hadn’t done it on purpose.

"I’m going to the bathroom."

Sophie Sheffield: "Oh, okay."

Clara Sterling walked past Silas Sheffield without looking at him.

Silas Sheffield watched as the girl’s slender silhouette disappeared into the corridor, his gaze deep.

...

Clara chatted with her mom for a bit longer and left the hospital when it was already past nine o’clock in the evening.

Veridian’s winter was colder than Crestwood’s, with outdoor temperatures around minus ten degrees.

The biting cold wind swept the tiny snow particles past her, making Clara shiver, pulling the collar of her down jacket tight.

A Cullinan stopped in front of her, and the driver opened the car door to the back seat.

Sophie Sheffield said, "Clara, get in the car first. My brother will take you to where you’re staying. I’ve got something to handle."

"Okay."

Clara got in the car, followed closely by Silas Sheffield.

The Cullinan drove through the night, neon lights flashing on both sides of the street.

The back of the car had two independent seats.

Silas Sheffield leaned back against his seat, resting with his eyes closed.

Clara Sterling spoke softly, "Silas, thank you for providing such good medical resources for my mom."

The man slowly opened his eyes without turning to look at her, simply said, "It’s the right thing to do."

Clara Sterling opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but didn’t know what to say.

In the quiet air, only their breathing was left, with silence spreading between them.

Clara could smell a faint scent of oud.

It was Silas Sheffield’s scent.

Clara really liked this fragrance.

She vaguely remembered visiting the Sheffield Family before, and Sophie led her to tour a room where perfumes were collected.

The room was large, filled with several transparent glass cabinets divided into numerous small compartments, each holding a bottle of perfume.

Clara knew nothing about perfumes.

Sophie chose a few of her favorites to introduce.

The perfume sprayed onto a card wafted a sweet fragrance.

At that time, Sophie liked floral and fruity scents the most, a sweet aroma that suited girls their age.

But Clara only preferred the scent of oud.

After a while, Clara heard Silas Sheffield speak softly, "I’m not holding on."

His voice in the quiet space was like a cold, distant mountain spring.

Clara paused, realizing he was explaining the matter of what Sophie had said about him not letting go of Thea earlier at the hospital.

Why suddenly mention this?

Is it because he’s worried about her misunderstanding?

Clara didn’t quite understand, they were just in an agreement marriage, even if Silas truly hadn’t let go of Thea, she wouldn’t say anything.

The man’s few simple words dropped like a small stone into the lake of Clara’s heart, creating ring after ring of ripples.

Clara turned her head slightly to look over, Silas Sheffield’s face was calm and indifferent, as if he were an outsider.

Hadn’t he admitted before that he hadn’t dated anyone these past years because he held his first love in his heart? Why now claim he wasn’t holding on to Thea?

Could there be someone else who was his first love?

Clara’s thoughts were a bit jumbled, unsure of what to say, only softly uttering, "Mm."

Silas Sheffield said nothing more.

After driving for more than ten minutes, the car stopped at the entrance of a restaurant with a quaint and tasteful décor.

For her first meal in Veridian, Silas Sheffield brought Clara to eat the local specialties.

The private dining room’s décor was simple yet elegant, with ink paintings by renowned artists on the walls, bamboo shadows swaying outside the carved windows.

The two sat facing each other.

This was Clara’s first time sitting alone with Silas Sheffield for a meal.

Silas Sheffield slid the menu over to Clara, recommending a few signature dishes from the restaurant.

Clara picked two of them, leaving the rest for Silas to choose.

The two ordered three meat dishes, one vegetarian dish, and one soup.

The dishes were delicious, with tender and not oily meat, and the vegetarian dish was crisp and refreshing.

The two demonstrated excellent dining etiquette, and no one spoke during the meal.

After dinner, Silas Sheffield asked, "Are you full?"

"Yes, I’m full," Clara nodded.

"Then let’s go back and rest."

"Okay."

The car drove into a villa district and finally stopped in front of a villa.

Silas Sheffield led Clara inside.

As soon as they entered, the butler and maid greeted them with a smile, saying in unison, "Good evening, sir."

"Good evening," Silas said, "This is my wife."

Clara didn’t expect him to introduce her like that, and her heart skipped a beat.

"Good evening, ma’am," the butler and maid greeted Clara in unison.

"Hello."

Silas Sheffield continued, "This is Uncle Adler and Ms. Cheney. You can go to them for anything you need."

"Okay."

The butler and maid took the suitcase from the driver’s hand and followed them inside.

Silas Sheffield led Clara into the elevator and explained, "The first floor is the living room, kitchen, dining room, and tea room. The second floor has the bedrooms and study. The third floor is a gym, and there’s a cinema on the fourth floor. Below, the backyard has a pool and a garden."

Clara nodded, "Okay."

Silas Sheffield took Clara to her bedroom, "This will be your room from now on. My room is across from yours."

The maid placed Clara’s suitcase inside.

Silas Sheffield said, "If you need anything, you can tell Uncle Adler and Ms. Cheney," then turned and went back to his room.

Clara opened her suitcase to take out her clothes and toiletries.

Ms. Cheney stepped forward and said warmly, "Ma’am, let me help."

Clara shook her head, "No, it’s fine. I’ll do it myself. You can go about your business."

"Alright," the maid said, "The clothes in the wardrobe are new and prepared in your size, and the skincare products on the dressing table are also new arrivals that just came today, prepared at sir’s request."

Upon hearing this, Clara glanced at the dressing table. It was indeed filled with skincare products, all from luxury brands she had never used before.

She was surprised that Silas had prepared all this and nodded, "Okay, I understand. Thank you for your hard work."

Ms. Cheney smiled and said, "You’re welcome, ma’am. I’ll go about my work now. Just call me if you need anything."

"Alright."

Clara’s room was very spacious, with wallpaper, curtains, and a bed all in light blue, her favorite color.

The bedroom had an en-suite bathroom, and outside was a balcony overlooking the back garden.

The room’s decoration clearly indicated it was meant for a girl. Clara Sterling speculated that it might have been Sophie Sheffield’s room before.

She opened her suitcase and took out her clothes, ready to hang them in the wardrobe.

When she opened the wardrobe, Clara was stunned.

Although the maid had mentioned there were new clothes prepared for her in the wardrobe, she hadn’t expected there to be so many, almost filling the wardrobe.

Each piece of clothing was covered with a transparent dust bag.

There were coats, inner layers, loungewear, and even intimate apparel in various colors and styles, each looking very nice.

Clara casually pulled out a coat and recognized the label as belonging to a luxury brand from abroad.

The price tags had been cut off, but the material and texture of the clothes were excellent. The designs were also very stylish, suitable for a girl her age.

Is this the treatment received by Mrs. Sheffield?

After bathing, Clara saw a message from Sophie Sheffield.

[Sweetie, are you home yet?]

Home?

Although this wasn’t her home, Clara didn’t correct Sophie’s wording.

[Yes, just finished bathing.]

[So how is it? Do you like the room?]

[I really like it, thanks for your effort.]

[Why are you thanking me? We’re so close, just treat it like your own home.]

[Okay.]

[I was going to have dinner with you and then go back together, but my jewelry store’s Veridian branch suddenly had an issue I needed to deal with. Sorry.]

Sophie had a talent for design from a young age, winning jewelry design awards in middle school. When she turned eighteen, her family opened a jewelry store for her, with the headquarters in Crestwood. A couple of years ago, they opened a branch in Veridian.

Just as Clara was about to reply, Sophie sent another message.

[It’s puzzling. Nothing has ever come up that needed my personal attention. Why did something crop up today right when I was about to come over?]

Clara’s hands paused over the keyboard, a thought flashing through her mind.

Her breath hitched slightly.

It shouldn’t be possible...

It must be a coincidence!