Filed to story: The Regretful Billionaire: An Unpredicted Reunion
“Don’t cry!” Rowena tried to comfort her. “At least you have good marriage prospects.”
Good marriage prospects? Jolene felt even sadder and cried even louder.
“Jolene, I can’t help you anymore. You have to hold onto James tightly and make him marry you, or else you’ll be finished,” Rowena said. Jolene knew that her future would be uncertain if she couldn’t marry into the Windsors.
However, given how James treated her, she would have a better chance at entering heaven’s gates than marrying him.
It seemed that Rowena knew that Jolene was struggling.
“I know James isn’t treating you well, but he’s not trying to push you away either. You still have a chance. What you need to do is try to have his child. Even if he’s reluctant, the Windsors will force him to marry you.”
As long as she became a part of the Windsors, it wouldn’t matter whether Graham acknowledged her as his daughter. She would be Mrs. Windsor, completely different from her current status.
However, the thought of having a child with James only made her cry harder.
Since moving into James’s villa, Jolene had been diligently cooking, cleaning, and keeping everything in order, but it seemed to be all for nothing. James paid her no attention, and she had not even set foot in his room. Given these circumstances, how could she possibly conceive a child with him?
Do You Still Plan on Marrying Me?
Although Jolene was deep in despair, she hid her troubles from Rowena, knowing that she’d only make her mom more upset on top of the divorce row.
After she comforted Rowena and coaxed her into sleep, she finally left the hotel and rushed back to James’ villa. She had wanted to spend time with Rowena at the hotel, but James set up ground rules for her, and one of them was a ban on spending the night out.
She dared not go against the rules and rushed home as fast as she could, even when the clock had struck midnight.
After arriving at the villa, she cautiously opened the door, thinking that James must have gone to bed at this time. She planned to tiptoe back to her room to hide the fact that she’d been out.
To her dismay, the lights flickered on once she reached the living room. James sat on the couch and shot her an icy glare that sent shivers down her spine. “Where did you go?’
“What’s the matter? Why would he be sitting in the living room at this hour? Could he be…waiting for me on purpose?” Those thoughts plagued Jolene’s mind. Instead of feeling happy, she was gripped by fear. She was scared he’d go physical on her, even though he never laid a finger on her.
She tried her best to remain composed and went up to him, explaining calmly. “I went to see my mom.”
“Rowena Glass?” He raised an eyebrow, showing no respect for her mother at all. He had heard about the incident involving Danika and Rowena’s role in it. Rowena had to thank her lucky stars that he had not taken action against her. In fact, James had wanted to avenge Danika, but he had to sit out because Graham wanted to resolve the matter by himself.
Jolene nodded and walked up to him. “My dad wants a divorce. She’s in a bad mood.’
“Hah,” he snickered. ‘Your dad is cursed for marrying a woman like her.”
She pursed her lips and fell silent. Although she disagreed with how James addressed
Rowena, she didn’t have the guts to talk back to him and merely protested in silence.
He appeared to have read her mind and warned her, “We’re not married yet, but you are now my fiancee. I’m warning you not to help her, or I won’t go easy on you.’
“Have you ever gone easy on me?” She didn’t vocalize her thoughts and flashed a bitter smile instead, lamenting, “I can’t even help her even if I want to.”
She had nothing to her name apart from the title of James Windsor’s fiancee. She even lost her stature as the second daughter of the Zellwegers.
“She isn’t worth it,” he replied.
“But she’s my mom,” she blurted out and instantly witnessed the change in his expression. Stumbling backward in fear, she said shakily, “I won’t help her.”
In reality, Rowena didn’t need any of her help. Jolene was the one who needed to be saved.
“Good to hear that.’ He stood up and prepared to go upstairs. ‘If you plan to come home at this late hour, you might as well never come back.”
Before he left, she blurted out her burning question, “D-do you still plan on marrying me?’
They were engaged with marriage set in sight. Right now, the Glasses were ruined, and she also lost the backing of the Zellwegers. Even her parents wanted a divorce. Jolene really had nothing left. Her only concern was her coming marriage to James, and she shuddered at the possibility that she might lose everything
What Do You Think?
Jolene feared all her tricks and schemes would go to waste. More than that, she worried that she might suffer a bad ending and that Danika would keep winning…
Caught off guard by the unexpected question, James paused and looked at her with a mocking smile on his face. “What do you think?”
“I don’t know.” Jolene shook her head and spoke the truth—she was truly clueless.
When the Glasses were around, and her family was intact, she thought she stood a better chance at marrying James, knowing that he’d defer to the wishes of the two families despite having no feelings for her.
But she wasn’t too sure about that anymore.
She looked like a joke in his eyes. He said disdainfully, “Oh, you’re not sure now?
Does that mean you were confident in yourself before this?” Taking her silence as a yes, he smirked. “Your self-confidence is through the roof.”
With that, he retired to his bedroom without leaving an answer to her question. Still, he believed that she must have gotten the memo by now.
Back in the living room, a pale-looking Jolene was trembling violently. She knew the meaning behind his words-he’d never marry her. Not only that, he had never planned to marry her from the get-go.
She sank into despair and was at a loss for her next step. Should she leave in anger or retreat to her room like a loser, pretending nothing had happened?
She was lost. All she knew was that she felt extremely distressed by the turn of events.
Danika had no idea about the twists and turns in Jolene’s life, and she wasn’t interested in her sister anyway. After making a full recovery, she returned to work at the hospital with a focused mind. After all, Graham was around to provide support, and she believed he would take good care of all the problems.
After she wrapped up the consultation for a patient, she was about to call the next patient in but froze upon seeing the name on the list. After a slight pause, she gritted her teeth and called, “Eustace Quincey!”
Soon, the man entered with his medical records in his hand.
“Mr. Quincey, what are you doing here?” She kept a smile on her face and held back her rage.
“I waited in line for a consultation,” he answered curtly, rendering her speechless. Of course, everyone knew he was here for a consultation, but he could have sped up the process with his privilege.
What Does That Have to Do With You
Ignoring his advances, Danika reiterated her words and added, “I can perform the surgery on you, but you have to understand the risks that come with it.”
“Got it.” Given that he was willing to come for a consultation, he must have been mentally prepared for the worst-case scenario. Curious about his insistence, she asked, “I remember you said you didn’t care about the memory loss. Why would you change your mind now?”
“What are the consequences of not getting the surgery?” he suggested, directing the question back at her.
She immediately understood him and chuckled. ‘Mr. Quincey, you are indeed smart. Without the surgery, you will gradually lose your eyesight and likely suffer a brain hemorrhage.”
Eustace could opt for surgery when his condition deteriorated, which would not threaten his life, but no one could foresee other uncertainties in his life at that time. Therefore, it was clever of him to get the surgery out of the way.
“When can I get the surgery?’ he asked.
Danika checked her schedule and thought about it for a moment. “Let’s do it in a week. I need to prepare for the surgery and get assistance from other departments.”
“Sure.” He had no objections.
After their discussion, she had to politely ask him to leave because it did not seem he would make a move. “Mr. Quincey, you may leave now if you have nothing else to discuss. I need to see my next patient.”
“What’s your relationship with Evan Clarke?” he blurted out as he stared at her. She froze in astonishment. “Mr. Quincey, you’re quite a busybody, aren’t you? That is none of your business.”
“I’m just curious,” he replied.
Feeling disdainful, she refused to give him a second look and called out to her next patient, “Lisa Green!”
He had no choice but to leave, but the feeling of uneasiness lingered. On his way out, he bumped into Evan Clarke, who was there to meet Danika.
Evan was startled to see him but gathered himself. “Mr. Quincey, are you here for a consultation with Danika?”
“Yes.” Eustace nodded but didn’t leave. He hung around and chatted with Evan, perhaps out of curiosity about his relationship with Danika.
“You don’t have any feelings for Danika now. Am I right?” Evan went straight to the point.
Frowning at Evan’s boldness, Eustace retorted, “What does that have to do with you?”
“It has everything to do with me,” Evan explained. “I have known her since we were young. She went through a lot these years because I was living abroad. Now that I’m back, I won’t allow anyone to hurt her.” He glanced at Eustace with hostility. “I hope that people like you, who have hurt her, stay far away from her.” He knew very well that the visit to the hospital was Eustace’s excuse to meet with Danika.
Ashen-faced, Eustace snorted. ‘Are you telling me that you’re childhood sweethearts with Danika?”
“That’s not wrong.” Evan did not deny it. “My only regret was rejecting her confession years ago.”
“Danika confessed to Evan Clarke, and he rejected her?’ Eustace thought.
Alarmed and distressed, he might act on his temper had his rationality not held him back.
“Mr. Clarke, what’s the point of telling me? I’m not interested in your relationship with Danika. I was only here to book surgery with her.” Eustace’s excuse was flimsy, given that he was the one who had initiated the conversation
Give Up on Your Vain Hope
Hearing that, Evan raised his brow. “Oh, is that so? Great. I, too, believe that you wouldn’t harass Danika.”
“Mr. Clarke, you have a wild imagination.” Eustace scoffed and left, not willing to speak to him any longer. Evan smiled at the sight and went to Danika’s office.
It was close to noon, and Danika was done seeing all her patients scheduled in the morning. She said, “Evan, good timing! I’m about to get off work.”
“Nice. Let’s have lunch together?” He beamed, and she nodded. She brought him to the cafeteria, her attitude vastly different from when she dined with Derrick Clearwater. Evan didn’t mind cafeteria food as long as he was with Danika.
At noon, the cafeteria was bustling with hospital staff who weren’t close to Danika but recognized her nonetheless. They looked at Danika and Evan with curiosity and wondered about their relationship.
Danika ignored the eyes on them and searched for a table with Evan. Meanwhile, Derrick glared at the two of them. He had harbored suspicion about their relationship, and his guess was proven right. He finally understood the reason behind Danika’s rejection-she had chosen the other guy over him. However, he was clueless about Evan’s background and wondered if Evan was one of the members of the Ten Elites. If so, he would never stand a chance against his rival.
The thoughts troubled him. His average background frustrated him, unlike Danika and Evan, who were born into wealth.
