Chapter 81 He Is Avoiding It
It was Chris's voice, slurred with drunkenness.
Joanna put her coat back on and walked to the door, opening it to a heavy smell of alcohol.
"Chris, I already explained everything clearly at the seminar. You're the one who refused to believe I had the ability to heal, who wouldn't admit I was Dr. J. It's very late now, I need to rest!"
Chris's eyes were bloodshot, his face flushed with intoxication. He stumbled forward a few steps and fell into Joanna's arms.
His body was heavy, pushing Joanna back two steps, and they both ended up inside the room.
Joanna frowned, trying to push Chris away, but he wrapped his arms and legs around her, giving her no chance to break free.
"Joanna, I'm sorry... I should have paid more attention to you and trusted you more. What you said to me today really hurt, but we're husband and wife. We just lack communication. There's no need to go as far as divorce, right? Joanna, when we get back, you can operate on Grandpa. This time I'll definitely believe in your abilities."
Chris's mouth kissed her clothes, searching for the scent he missed.
Joanna's face darkened, but she couldn't bring herself to hit him. She could only struggle a few times and kick the door shut.
"That's all in the past now. I don't care anymore. Chris, if you're drunk, go back to sleep. Don't come here acting crazy! What about Cynthia? Isn't she your fiancée? Call her."
Chris covered his ears, as if he didn't want to hear Cynthia's name.
He used his other hand to cover Joanna's mouth, his voice aggrieved: "Joanna is my wife. We're not divorced yet. She'll forgive me!"
There was no way to communicate with a drunk person, so Joanna simply stopped trying.
She closed her eyes, thinking about how to get rid of him, when Angelo knocked on the door: "Joanna, you're back, right?"
"Angelo..." Joanna was about to call for Angelo's help, but her mouth was still covered by Chris.
Unable to make a sound, she kicked the door a couple more times, hoping Angelo would understand her plea for help.
Chris rubbed against her with bloodshot eyes, his hair scratching her chin uncomfortably: "Joanna, why aren't you saying anything? Come home with me, okay? Without your bed, I can't sleep..."
Joanna froze for a moment, falling silent, forgetting to continue making noise.
She was angry at Chris and resented him, all because she had once loved him and invested her feelings.
Suddenly hearing these sweet memories from the past, her emotions became complicated in a way she couldn't describe.
During Joanna's moment of hesitation, footsteps outside faded away. Angelo seemed to have left.
It was too late for Joanna to call him back.
Chris was still making a drunken scene, his hands restlessly pulling at clothes—sometimes at Joanna's, sometimes coming back to remove his own.
The difference in their strength was too great. Joanna couldn't break free.
Just as she was about to lift her leg to strike Chris's abdomen, the door was swiped open. Angelo stood outside and immediately saw the two people on the floor.
His expression changed, and he quickly pulled Chris away and helped Joanna up.
"Did I... interrupt you two?" Angelo's tone held uncertainty.
He didn't know if Joanna had completely moved on from her past feelings or how she would handle Chris's advances.
"No, Angelo, you came at just the right time." Joanna wiped the sweat from her forehead. "I don't know why he came here drunk. He doesn't seem very clear-headed."
"He didn't do anything to you, did he?" Angelo asked with concern.
Seeing Joanna shake her head, he felt relieved.
The two of them looked at Chris curled up on the floor and fell silent for a moment.
Angelo asked: "What should we do with him?"
Joanna glanced at the bathroom and said: "Throw him in there to sober him up. We don't know where he's staying."
Angelo did as she said, throwing him into the bathroom and turning on the shower.
The cold water quickly sobered Chris up. When he saw Joanna, his mouth was about to curve into a happy smile, but it fell when he saw Angelo.
He turned off the shower, looked around the environment, and frowned: "Joanna, you kidnapped me? Just because I didn't apologize to you at the seminar?"
Joanna was somewhat impressed by this man's thinking. She sneered: "You came here drunk on your own. I haven't even asked Mr. Cooper how you knew we were staying here."
Chris pressed his lips together and said nothing.
The method he used to find out wasn't honorable—he had hired a private investigator to follow them.
Angelo's expression turned cold: "If you won't say, then we'll have to call the police. Mr. Cooper wouldn't want to be detained by the police, would he?"
Chris gritted his teeth and retorted unwillingly: "Joanna and I are husband and wife. What's wrong with me following her? We're not divorced. Even if we slept in the same bed, it would be legal!"
Joanna's hands slowly clenched into fists. She said: "Even if we're not divorced now, it will happen soon. You didn't come here just to show me your drunken state, did you? Chris, it's very late. I need to rest. If there's nothing else, please leave!"
Chris quickly grabbed the door frame and walked out, water dripping from his body onto the floor, making him look somewhat disheveled compared to the well-dressed Angelo.
He said: "I didn't know you were Dr. J before, which is why I said you weren't capable enough to work at St. Mary's Hospital. But now you've proven your abilities, so come back to your own family's hospital. Joanna, are you really willing to work as someone else's employee for the rest of your life?"
This topic had actually been discussed before coming to Valeria.
Joanna had refused Chris then, but now Chris was bringing it up again.
"Whether I'm Dr. J or not, you already rejected me once, so I won't go back."
Chris's tone was urgent: "It was just a misunderstanding between us. Now that the conflict is resolved, why won't you come back to the Coopers? I didn't know your identity then, but Angelo must have known all along, so he used you to reach a cooperation with Luke! Joanna, don't let him fool you. He's just a stranger. We're family!"
Joanna understood.
Chris felt embarrassed after losing face at the seminar and was too ashamed to discuss cooperation again, so he wanted to use her relationship with Luke to make it happen.
He was valuing her worth again and trying to win her back.
Joanna found it somewhat amusing. She leaned back against the wall and asked him: "Does Cynthia know you came to find me?"
Chris said nothing, but his attitude made it clear—he hadn't told Cynthia.
Joanna continued: "Now you think I'm capable, so you're having regrets. But what about Cynthia and the baby? Chris, aren't you going to take responsibility for them?"
Chris opened his mouth but couldn't speak.
Before coming here, he hadn't thought about this problem at all.
He thought Joanna was just angry that he had misunderstood her. Now that he understood her abilities, of course he couldn't let such talented person go.
But choosing between Joanna and Cynthia—he hadn't thought that far yet.
Or rather, he was avoiding the question.