Ice and Fire novel Chapter 125

As Selina finished, Derek suddenly realized what had happened.

He quickly said, "Yep! I'll go with her. Jackson. You should take Cherry home."

When she heard that Selina was planning to leave, Cherry said immediately, "I'll call a taxi to go home. Just go ahead with your plan."

Cherry was about to leave when Selina followed her and grabbed her hastily.

"But Cherry, it's not safe to take a taxi since it's so late. We would all be worried if you went home alone. Just let Jackson take you home." Selina said and then turned to Jackson with a commanding face, "Hey! Say something, Jackson."

But Jackson only responded haughtily, "Whatever! I don't care."

With that, he opened the door of his car and got in.

Cherry said to Selina, "I'd better take a taxi, Selina. It's alright. I'll call you once I'm home."

Then she pushed back Selina's hand and turned away to leave.

Selina and Derek both got angry when they saw Cherry leave alone.

Jackson watched her going ahead alone instead of getting into his car. He was so furious that he immediately started the engine and the car shot off!

Jackson slammed on the brakes and stopped the car just in front of Cherry.

Cherry had to stop and stand there, taken aback.

Jackson rolled down the window and yelled at Cherry, "Get in, now."

Cherry looked at him but had no intentions to obey. She said, "I won't get in your car. Just go on and mind your own business."

With that, Cherry walked around the car and then went on.

Jackson banged his fists on the steering wheel angrily. This damned woman! How dare she refuse to follow his word?

Jackson got out of the car quickly and walked rapidly to Cherry. He grabbed her arm and demanded fiercely, "How dare you disobey my word?"

"Why shouldn't I?" Cherry resisted immediately in response.

"Do not try to push my buttons, Cherry Shen." Jackson warned her in anger.

Cherry felt frightened when she saw his outraged face. He seemed to be in an uncontrollable fit of rage now.

"Get in!" Jackson commanded as he dragged Cherry to the car and pushed her inside.

Jackson started driving again. Cherry sat beside him. She did not utter a word and looked out of the window, helplessly.

Jackson did not know what to say either.

Finally the car stopped in front of Wilson's mansion. Cherry turned to open the door and get out as soon as possible. But Jackson suddenly pulled her by the arm.

She turned back to face him, but he did not say anything.

"What do you want?" She asked dryly.

"Do you really feel comfortable living here?" Jackson asked earnestly, even though he did not look at Cherry.

Cherry could tell that he was serious.

Cherry controlled her anxiety a little and said, "Jackson, you should know that we can't go back and reverse the past. You said that you hate me, didn't you? There used to be a lot of happiness in that apartment. But for me, there was also pain. The love in your heart wasn't for me at all. Why did you have to imprison me in a place that didn't belong to me?"

"But what if I tell you that I feel for you?" Jackson interrupted immediately.

Cherry did not know how to reply to that.

A few moments passed and then Cherry shook her head and said, "But Jackson, my eyes haven't deceived me and your behaviour couldn't have deceived any one of us. You abandoned me because of that woman, left me alone in our cold home..." Cherry stopped mid sentence as if she felt something was wrong, and corrected herself at once, "...in that cold apartment. By that time, your behaviour has already spoken that you had chosen her, not me."

"But the one I love is y..." Jackson hadn't finished what he was saying before Cherry broke in it.

"Jackson!" She shouted at him to prevent him from continuing.

Cherry tried to keep herself calm. She said, "I don't want to know who you actually love. I came back this time just because of Wilson's family. Besides, I'm satisfied with how my life is right now. So I hope that you won't ruin my life here. I just want to be thankful for all that I have and live peacefully every day."

Jackson looked at her sad little figure and felt a heartache. Why couldn't she understand his love?

"You shouldn't forget that we haven't divorced yet. You are still legally my wife." Jackson did not know what else to say and could only try to stop her by the sheer use of a forceful attitude.

At that moment, Jackson suddenly felt that he was so helpless that he could not even think of a way to stop his woman from leaving him.

Cherry took a deep breath in and said, "Since there was no love between us from the very beginning, and the one who stayed with you in all these years wasn't me, you can ask for a divorce if you wish for it. I'll respect your decision."

What Cherry said shot Jackson into a fury again. What? A divorce? The thought of divorcing her had never occurred to him.

Jackson angrily pulled his hand back from over her arm and grabbed her by the throat.

Cherry felt the great strength of the hand on her throat. She knew Jackson was in a fit of rage now. But what could she even do at this moment? Only to bear his fury...

"Cherry! You really thought I would let you go so easily? You thought I would allow you to find another man after you have gotten rid of me?" Jackson almost wanted to kill this woman, right here and now. And even if she were dead, she was his; she belonged only to him.

Cherry did not want to say anything and instead, managed to display a helpless smile.

When he saw her smile, Jackson felt his mind turning into a mess. Why did she have to set herself against him every time? Could she not just obey him for once? Although he had not done right by her in the past, his heart was all hers now. He wanted to love her forever, to care for her forever and to protect her forever.

Time was still going by, second after second. Jackson looked at her pained face. His hand was still grabbing her throat. She must have been feeling terrible. But she did not beg him to release her, even having borne the pain for so long.

Jackson didn't have the heart to go on like this. He took away his hand slowly, and moved away his eyes from her. Then he grumbled in a low voice, "Get out of here."

Cherry, who had been breathing heavily, gradually recovered herself. A drop of tear trickled down her cheek as she heard what Jackson said.

And yet, Jackson did not even see her cry.

Cherry got out of the car. Just after she closed the door behind her, the car rushed away hurriedly.

As she looked at the cloud of dust left floating behind the car, Cherry could not stop herself anymore and began crying. She cursed in her mind, 'Jackson! What an asshole you are! Why do you keep that woman by your side? Don't you know I hate that woman to death? It was she who ruined our marriage. Why do you still let her live at your side? With her still there, how can I get back to you with Joe?'

At the second floor of the mansion, Wilson had stood beside the window and observed what was going on outside. Ever since the military car had stopped there, he had stood there and looked out at the roadside. Although he couldn't see what was happening inside the car, he could almost figure out what was going on since the car had stopped there for quite a long time. He assumed that the relationship between Jackson and Cherry must have been recovering. When he saw Cherry looking at the car as it disappeared into the distance, and not entering the mansion, he felt that she must be missing Jackson.

Wilson turned around and left the window side. A hint of pain rushed into his heart.