"I'm very sure. He's a very good man. I'm sure you'll like him once you get to know him. My lover is the ideal type of boyfriend and husband. He's caring and attentive," Jovanka praised with shining eyes. Joanna responded to her friend's words with a serious nod, while Tessa glanced at Adaline, who was now smiling faintly.
In Adaline's heart, she did indeed agree with Jovanka's statement about Altezza's character, although there was a pain that emerged that she couldn't just brush aside.
"But if he's a good man, he shouldn't abandon a woman who's already carrying his child," Joanna commented again.
Jovanka shrugged nonchalantly. "I also don't know why he did that foolish act. But indeed, since the beginning, when we were still together, he really wanted to have a child. It's just that back then I kept postponing it because I wasn't ready to give up my career.
"But even though it seems cruel, I like the way he handled it because it benefited both of us. So even if we get married later, he won't nag me anymore to have a child. Because he already has a child from his current wife."
In silence, Tessa reached for Adaline's clenched hand on her lap under the table. Offering her friend silent support.
"What if you're criticized as the destroyer of someone else's marriage?" Tessa asked. "Isn't the man's marriage now known by his family? If suddenly he divorces his current wife, there will surely be a lot of negative comments about your marriage, won't there?"
"That won't happen," Jovanka replied proudly.
"Why do you think so?"
"Because actually, the one who became the third person in our relationship is his current wife." Jovanka replied again. A smile bloomed on her beautiful face. "This is a secret, don't let it slip." The woman said. "He and I actually got married secretly, and this is our sixth year of marriage."
"What?!" Once again Joanna and Tessa exclaimed simultaneously.
"We got married six years ago. But secretly. When we decided to get married, I was still a beginner in the modeling world. Still building my career. So I accepted his proposal on the condition that this marriage must not be known to the public."
"Isn't that actually disadvantageous to you?" Once again, it was Joanna who asked.
"Not really. Like I said, my husband is the ideal man. He provides everything in my name. Grants all my requests.
"His behavior is like any other husband's. It's just that his one flaw is that we can't announce it publicly," Jovanka stated.
"He loves you too much to do all that," Joanna commented, unaware that her words had hurt her friend's heart.
"That's right," Jovanka said again, proudly.
"And because of that love, did he forgive you and take you back?" Joanna nodded her head. "So, what's your status with him now?"
A happy smile spread across Jovanka's face. "Of course, his wife."
"Meaning?"
"We did separate a while ago, but we got back together yesterday. He even took care of me all night when I was sick."
"Oh, during the food poisoning incident?" Joanna asked, to which Jovanka nodded. "He's so sweet," she praised again. Once again, Jovanka nodded.
"In that case, you're a young wife now, right?" This time, Tessa commented.
Jovanka nodded. "Don't I have a double advantage? Not only has my husband returned to me, but I'm also now the young wife who will surely be more pampered," she said. Tessa's grip on Adaline's hand tightened. "Adaline, why are you so silent?" She turned to Adaline, who hadn't commented since earlier.
"I'm genuinely happy for your happiness," she replied sincerely. "However, considering my current position, I can't help but feel sorry for your husband's first wife.
"Nevertheless, as fellow women, especially when she's pregnant, the game you and your husband are playing seems cruel. But I also can't judge you," she said softly. "Because life is indeed about choices. Happiness or sadness comes from the choices we make, right?" She asked Jovanka, who nodded.
"But, hypothetically speaking, if you were in the position of the first wife, what would you do?" Jovanka asked, her eyes full of curiosity.
Adaline furrowed her brow for a moment. "I would reassess the situation."
"What do you mean?" Jovanka looked at Adaline, puzzled.
"God can change hearts. I can only pray, in my efforts to win over my husband's heart. Hopefully, during the course of my pregnancy, my husband can truly fall in love with me," she replied sincerely.
"What if he can't love you?" Jovanka asked.
"You should ask your husband to choose," Tessa said, Joanna nodding in agreement.
Adaline shook her head. "Love is not something that can be forced. No matter how hard we try to be the woman a man adores, if his heart isn't for us, our efforts will be in vain.
"That's why I prefer to be myself. And if I do want to change, it's because of my own desires, not because I want to become what he desires.
"So I won't ask him to choose. Because that's heavy. Let him do what he wants.
"Because if his heart is truly for me, he will come back to me," she answered honestly.
"What about the baby? What about the custody rights of your baby? Are you willing to hand over the baby you've carried for nine months to another woman?" Joanna looked at her sharply.
"Why not? He is also the father. He has rights over it. He has a duty to raise and care for his children.
"If what Jovanka says is true, that the father really wants a child, then he must be prepared for all the consequences of having one. Including taking care of, raising, and giving love.
"It all comes back to you, are you ready to raise the child of your husband's first wife? Because no matter what, blood is thicker than water. In the future, there will surely be shadows of the first wife haunting your marriage.
"And because of that, you shouldn't hate your husband's child. Because children don't understand their parents' issues," Adaline replied again. "Not to scare you. But most cases happen like that."
Joanna and Tessa nodded in agreement with Adaline's words.
"Adaline is right. Sometimes if the first wife doesn't agree with their separation or feels jealous of her ex-husband's new marriage, they always find many ways to make their husband's new marriage uncomfortable.
"Sometimes they even use the children as tools to create problems.
"But I'm sure Adaline is not a bad person," Tessa replied. It was more like a subtle jab and a warning to Jovanka.
"I hope so, as you suspect." Adaline said with a smile on her face. "If that happens to me, I'll accept it willingly. It's better to let go than to have to share a husband. Because honestly, I'm a greedy person.
"I don't like sharing what should rightfully be mine with others. But my mother always taught me that 'goodness will meet goodness.' So maybe if that man isn't the right one for me, then God will give me a good man. Because even until now, I'm still working on myself."
Jovanka looked at Adaline uneasily. She didn't expect that kind of response from her. Initially, she had hoped for a confrontation so she could provide all the reasons why she was the better woman and the one more deserving of Altezza. But after hearing Adaline's response like that, Jovanka felt satisfied because it turned out she didn't need to make the effort to get rid of her. But even so, there was still a lingering discomfort in her heart that she didn't know how to interpret.