Chapter 189 Henry's Confession
At 2 PM, Grace hopped in the car and took Taylor over to the Montague Group.
Taylor was dead set on bringing the dog along.
After parking, Taylor bolted into the lobby with the puppy, Sherry, who seemed to know this was her turf, strutting around on her tiny legs.
A pair of high heels clicked to a stop in front of them, followed by a frosty voice. "This is a company! What's with the kids and dogs? Where's security? Why haven't they kicked the dog out?"
Grace walked in just in time to see Sierra.
Sierra spotted her too and froze for a sec, then glanced at Taylor. Her voice got all tight. "Is she your and Mr. Montague's kid?"
Grace didn't even bother to answer. She went straight to Taylor. Taylor, who'd just been scolded, had tears in her eyes. "Mommy, she yelled at Sherry and wants to kick her out! Tell Daddy to fire her."
Taylor thought the company was like a playground where she could just fire anyone she didn't like.
Grace squatted down and wiped her tears. "If she messed up, Daddy will handle it. But the company really doesn't allow dogs."
Taylor pouted. "But..."
Grace smiled. "Sherry's different! Daddy likes Sherry."
Taylor perked up again, ignoring Sierra, and happily ran to the elevator with the dog.
Sierra watched Taylor's back, thinking about how cute she looked in her orange overalls, with her delicate and pretty features. Henry must really love Taylor!
Taylor was a pro at complaining. As soon as she got into Henry's office, she jumped into his arms and whispered, "A lady didn't like Sherry and wanted security to take her away."
Henry put down his papers, held Taylor, and sat on the sofa, gently comforting her.
The sunlight was perfect, shining on Henry in his white shirt, making him look extra handsome.
Teary-eyed, Taylor said, "Mommy said you like Sherry, but I don't believe it."
Henry couldn't do anything about Taylor. She was way more of a handful than Grace was as a kid, but a little bit of Taylor's stubbornness didn't matter.
Taylor hugged Henry's neck, sniffling. "Daddy always kisses Mommy and me, but you've never kissed Sherry. If you kiss her, I'll believe it."
Henry was totally helpless.
Taylor begged, "Daddy, kiss Sherry."
In the end, Henry gave in, picked up the puppy, and kissed it on the mouth.
Sherry barked.
Grace saw Henry like this for the first time and couldn't help but laugh softly.
Henry looked up and saw her smile.
He was a bit stunned, then realized she hadn't smiled so freely in a long time, and his blue eyes got a bit more thoughtful.
Grace put away her smile. Just then, Celeste walked in. As she passed Grace, she whispered, "Wait for me at the coffee shop on the first floor. We'll chat in a bit! Mr. Montague will be a while."
It had been ages since they last caught up; a good chat was long overdue.
Grace nodded. She knew Taylor wanted to hang with Henry, so she headed downstairs solo.
Everyone at the Montague Group knew Grace was Henry's top priority, so they made sure to treat her right and served her the best coffee.
Grace was prepping for pregnancy; she held the coffee and drifted off into her thoughts.
Just then, someone plopped down in front of her.
Grace thought it was Celeste, but when she looked up, she saw Sierra.
Grace gave a faint smile and decided to cut to the chase, "Ms. Williams, you're really something. After all these years, you've climbed up to this spot. Planning to stick around at Montague Group HQ?"
Sierra didn't answer straight. Instead, she shot back, "I can never forget the $1,000 Mrs. Montague threw in the snow."
Grace smiled lightly. "No need to be so grateful."
Sierra was fuming but quickly cooled down, flicking her long hair in a flirty way. "Doesn't Mrs. Montague want to know about my past with Mr. Montague?"
Grace was pretty annoyed. She stirred her coffee, her tone icy. "You said it yourself, it was in the past! Is there any point in digging up old dirt? But I remember Henry was still married back then! Even if something did happen, it would be a stain on Ms. Williams. How can you brag about it here?"
Grace's tone got even colder. "Do you think if I tell Henry about this chat, you'll still have a job tomorrow?"
Sierra was here for a job review, but she wanted to stay in Evergreen City; it was always her dream.
She didn't believe Grace had that kind of pull. She knew they were divorced and that they were only together now for Taylor.
Sierra gritted her teeth. "Mr. Montague values talent."
Grace smiled faintly. "Seems like you don't know Henry well enough."
Just then, Celeste showed up. Catching sight of Sierra, a hint of disapproval flashed in her well-defined eyes.
Sierra was pretty scared of Celeste and greeted her.
Celeste gave a faint smile in response, and seeing her coldness, Sierra left dejectedly.
After Sierra left, Celeste sat down, took the coffee from Grace's hand, drank half of it, and said, "She worked her way up from a branch office. I heard she put in a lot of effort to stay here, even sleeping with two or three guys. What's the point?"
Celeste added, "I'll handle it! She won't stay."
Grace nodded. Although she didn't care much, having someone like that around was always uncomfortable.
Celeste smiled faintly. "Someone like Mr. Montague will always have young women around him. Sierra is not a special one. There's nothing between Mr. Montague and her, don't overthink it."
Half an hour later, Henry wrapped up his work and took Taylor to the hospital. By the time they were done, it was already 6 PM.
Henry was driving, and it was rush hour, so traffic was crawling. Taylor conked out in the back seat.
The car stopped at a red light.
Henry adjusted the temperature a bit higher and casually asked Grace beside him, "Celeste told me Sierra said some stuff she shouldn't have. Want me to can her?"
Grace didn't like Henry's probing attitude.
He already knew about Sierra and hadn't done squat, yet he asked her.
So Grace's tone was pretty indifferent. "She's your employee! Not my problem."
Henry looked ahead and smirked.
He didn't push it further and instead talked about Taylor's health. The check-up results were better than last time, which was a relief for Grace.
She thought the Sierra drama was over.
But she didn't expect that later that night, while she was getting clothes ready for a shower, Henry would follow her into the bathroom.
He closed the door with his heel, gently pressed her against it, and pushed her to the edge, insisting she say those words.
How could Grace be willing? She was cornered, her face turned to the side, rubbing the door in discomfort. "Henry, you're a bastard!"
He reached out to hold her, his blue eyes locking onto her face. He was very close.
Grace could smell his pleasant scent, see every pore on his skin, and even watch his Adam's apple bobbing.
Just like that, Henry's Adam's apple moved as he softly said, "But this bastard loves you."
Everything went quiet.
The rapid breathing, the urgency between Henry and Grace, seemed to freeze, as if the whole world was left with Henry's one sentence, "I love you."
Grace's eyes were moist, and she looked at him hopelessly, her voice trembling. "Henry, we can't talk about love! If you loved me, how could you bear to hurt me and sacrifice me again and again!"
Every hurt he gave her was unforgettable, a lifelong scar!
Clara had tested her attitude in the morning , thinking she would waver, thinking she would want to get back with Henry.
Yes, Henry was very considerate now, but the hurt he had given her was also real.
Every winter, Grace's body would feel a bone-chilling cold. Sometimes at night, she would dream of herself curled up in the corner of that villa, hopelessly waiting for dawn because the sun would be a little warmer.
Thinking of those times, everything turned cold.
Grace pushed Henry away, gently straightening her clothes, her voice choked. "Sorry! I'm really not in the mood tonight."
A wave of sadness washed over Henry. Without bothering to fix his disheveled appearance, he simply stood there and watched her walk away.
Suddenly, he grabbed her slender wrist, which still had faint pink marks from the past; though faded, they were real.
Henry didn't say anything, just slowly pulled her back, drawing her into his arms.
He held her tightly, as if trying to hold onto sand slipping through his fingers, desperately wanting to keep it.
The next day, the first thing Henry did when he got to the office was to have HR send a notice to the Harmony City branch, terminating Sierra's employment.
This move shocked the entire Montague Group.
Everyone in the company had seen Henry's preferential treatment towards Sierra back then, and now they couldn't believe he personally fired her.
But no one dared to ask, except Celeste.
When Celeste delivered the documents, she reported the matter. "The Harmony City branch has already notified Sierra, and she doesn't need to attend this afternoon's review meeting."
Henry glanced at the documents and responded with a faint "Hmm."
Celeste guessed that because of Sierra, he and Grace had another disagreement, so she asked, "Are you still attending tonight's social event, Mr. Montague? Should we reschedule?"
Henry leaned back in his chair, pinched his forehead, and said in a faint tone, "No, Grace's birthday is in a few days, make sure to clear my schedule."
Celeste smiled and agreed.
After work, Henry made a special trip back to Tranquil Heights.
He said it was to change clothes, but it was obvious he wanted to see Grace and Taylor. However, the servant told him that Grace had taken Taylor out to meet friends.
Henry felt a bit disappointed and changed his clothes before leaving.
His mood was bad, and everyone at the social event could see his low spirits. No one dared to toast him, and even the young women didn't dare to get close.
They all called him "Mr. Montague" with a sense of distance.
Around nine o'clock, Celeste thought it was about time. She took a phone call and then whispered a few words to Henry. The others knew Henry was about to leave and naturally made way for him.
Henry politely said his goodbyes and left the private room. He and Celeste took the glass elevator down. Standing inside, the city's neon lights were in full view, making it one of the more beautiful spots in Evergreen City.
Suddenly, Henry looked at the opposite elevator, where there was only a couple.
He recognized both the man and the woman. The man was Brent, and the woman was Juniper. At that moment, Brent had his arm around Juniper, and Juniper was holding his waist.
Juniper was wearing that ruby necklace on her neck. They were clearly lovers!
Henry appeared calm on the surface, but inside, he was shocked.