The Apple of My Eye novel Chapter 1852

"Sorry, Mr. Zhou, it's all my fault." Charles looked at Franklin, guilt plastered all over his face. Although he realized that those people must have been sent by Leila, Mr. Zhou wouldn't have been injured if it weren't for him.

The thought of how Leila had taken advantage of his leniency, triggered strong feelings of regret within Charles. If he had just been a little more thoughtful, that unscrupulous woman wouldn't have gotten so far.

Franklin steadied himself when he heard Charles' voice. He looked embarrassed, but somehow he managed to doff a smile and shake his head at Charles. "Mr. Lu, don't worry about me. I'm alright."

This, however, made Charles feel even more terrible.

The fact that a stranger would readily sacrifice his own safety for someone else seemed like a completely outlandish concept to Charles.

Infuriated, his fists clenched and unclenched as he tried to think of what he would do to Leila. If only he didn't have a use for her, Charles wouldn't have tolerated her till now.

He felt even more furious at Melissa for her share of the blame. He had been putting up with Leila for his mother's sake, but things had gotten out of hand.

"Please, have some water," said Charles, not knowing what else to say to Franklin.

Franklin politely took a sip of water from the glass on the table before he sat still on the couch.

The room fell into a deathly silence, and yet no one was saying anything for a quite long while.

They were completely immersed in their own thoughts, when suddenly the door was pushed open from the outside.

Angel had just come back from shopping, as was made obvious by the bags hanging from both arms. All smiles, she walked up to speak to her father when she realized that Charles was sitting there.

For a second, Angel's surprise could be seen on her face, but she quickly regained her happy, beaming face with an innocent smile.

"Charles, what are you doing here?" Angel suppressed her excitement and quickened her pace towards Charles.

Charles looked embarrassed as he pointed at Franklin and said, "Mr. Zhou got injured because of me. I am sorry."

"Dad, what happened? Are you okay?" Angel's eyes widened as she rushed to Franklin almost as soon she heard what Charles had said. The concern in her eyes was clear and consistent.

Franklin felt pleased when he saw his daughter's face. He pulled her up by her hand and smiled. "It's nothing, my darling. Don't worry, your old man is stronger than he looks!"

A layer of water glazed over Angel's eyes. She couldn't hold her tears back when she saw that the blood had oozed from his wound and seeped into the thick bandage.

"Mr. Zhou got injured while he was trying to save me. I am eternally grateful to him. Please, allow me to take care of all the expenses." Charles thought it was necessary to tell Angel the truth sooner rather than later.

Angel felt even more puzzled when she heard Charles' explanation. She couldn't help but wonder what was really going on.

"Mr. Lu, don't feel guilty. It's not your fault." Franklin immediately corrected Charles when he saw his guilt. After all, he knew he deserved everything that had happened to him. Although everything had gone according to his expectations, the result didn't seem as satisfying as it would.

Charles didn't know what else to say, but he knew that it was inappropriate for him to stay, so he found an excuse and left them alone.

Angel wanted to stop him from leaving, but she couldn't find any reason. All she could do was watch him walk away.