Chapter 59 Drawn Boundaries
JOAN COLE’S POV
After leaving Cassandra at the coffee shop, I went straight to my office to bury myself in work, because if I didn’t I would overthink every word that came out of Cassandra’s mouth.
When I got there, I dropped my bag and exhaled slowly as I rubbed my temple.
Just as I was beginning to settle down, my phone rang.
It was Jane, so I hurriedly picked it up.
“Hello, Jane,” I said with a bright smile.
“Hi, Joan. Hope I’m not disturbing you,” she said, her voice as warm as ever, over the phone.
“Oh, not at all,” I replied.
“I was wondering if I could come visit you in your office if you are free. I would love to,” she continued.
“That’s perfectly fine. I would be more than happy to have you here,” I smiled.
We exchanged a few more greetings and ended the call.
True to her word, my receptionist buzzed my intercom to inform me of her arrival about an hour later, and I asked her to let her in.
When she walked in, she wasn’t empty-handed.
She was holding gift bags.
“Hi,” I stood up immediately, grinning from ear to ear.
“You have a nice space,” she also smiled, her eyes looking around my office.
“Thank you,” I replied, gesturing for her to sit.
“For Theo,” she said, placing the gift bag on my desk.
“How is he now? I’m so sorry I couldn’t come the day he was discharged from the hospital,” she added.
My heart softened instantly, forgetting about what happened earlier that day for a while.
“That’s so thoughtful of you. Thank you so much.”
I went through the bag briefly and looked up.
“And thank you for coming to the hospital that day. It meant a lot to me… especially at that moment,” I added sincerely.
“That’s nothing,” she waved it casually.
I hesitated, my brows lifting slightly before speaking again.
“Please, thank Dave for me too. I honestly do not know how to thank him enough for everything he did.”
Jane smiled.
Then she fiddled with the strap of her bag and her lips curled into a small and teasing smirk.
“Hmm,” she started.
“My brother doesn’t do that for just anybody though.”
My heart skipped a beat.
“He likes you, Joan,” she added
That was the same thing she said to me the first time we met.
“How can someone be so blunt?” I thought to myself.
I let out an awkward laugh and reached for the blueprint in my drawer.
Jane noticed I was trying to brush the conversation off, but she didn’t press further.
I cleared my throat and quickly changed the subject as I laid the blueprints before her.
“My team and I will begin redesigning your workspace starting next week. We’ve finalized the concepts already,” I said.
She leaned forward to look and her eyes lit up immediately.
“Wow! This looks so beautiful.”
Her reaction was genuine and that alone was enough to make my day. I had always loved it when my clients fell in love with my designs.
We talked about measurements, color themes, budgets, and other things. Then we finalized them before she left.
As she left, my mind went back to Cassandra and Alex.
But I didn’t let myself get engulfed by the thought.
After work, I went straight home.
The drive back home felt longer than usual, not because of traffic, but because my mind wouldn’t rest. Cassandra’s words kept ringing in my head, mixing with Alex’s thoughts and twisting into thoughts I didn’t want but couldn’t stop.
By the time I got home, I was emotionally tired.
Lena was in the living room, sitting on the couch with her laptop on her thigh when I walked in.
She looked up immediately when she heard the sound of the door.
“You are back early today,” she said.
I forced a small smile and dropped my bag on the couch beside her.
“Something happened today,” I said, my voice firm as I pulled the centre table forward and sat on it.
The seriousness in my voice made her sit upright instantly.
“What happened?”
I breathed out slowly and started talking from the beginning.
How Cassandra walked up to me.
How she asked to talk.
How we went to the coffee shop.
And everything she said when we sat down.
I didn’t want to keep things to myself anymore, so I didn’t leave anything out.
I thought maybe if I said it out loud, it wouldn’t feel so heavy in my chest anymore.
Lena was quiet the whole time.
But when I finished talking, she waited for exactly three seconds before she exploded.
“That man is scum!”
I blinked, caught unaware by her outburst.
“And that Cassandra or whatever her name is… what kind of person behaves like that?” She stood up and started pacing.
“Coming to you like she’s some saint explaining betrayal?”
I sighed softly and wanted to talk, but she wasn’t done.
“And his mother! She’s just a classist blinded by money and material things. So, I’m not surprised,” she scoffed loudly.
I just looked at her.
Lena had always been my personal cheerleader and defender.
If the world stood against me, Lena would be the first to pick up a sword, even if she didn’t fully understand the battle.
So her anger wasn’t just a show.
“You shouldn’t even be stressing about those people,” she went on, placing her hands on her hips now.
“If anything, you should be thankful that you saw Alex’s true color early.”
I leaned back on the couch, watching her pace the living room like an angry lawyer arguing a case.
A small, tired smile tugged at my lips as I watched her.
“You are not saying anything?” she said, turning to me.
“I expect you to cuss at him with me,” she added.
“I just feel stupid,” I murmured.
Her eyes softened instantly and she moved closer to me.
“You are not stupid, Joan,” she said softly.
“I should have known… but I walked willingly into it,” I said and swallowed hard.
She sat beside me and shook her head.
“If anyone should feel stupid, it’s Alex. Because he lost a rare gem,” she replied, putting her arm around my shoulder.
I didn’t reply.
I just rested my head on his shoulder as she kept muttering insults about Alex under her breath.
I was grateful for the gift of her, because even if my heart was broken, she didn’t let me carry the burden alone.
The next morning, I drove into the parking lot of my workspace and found Alex standing beside his car like he had been waiting for hours.
As soon as I saw him, my grip tightened on the steering wheel, staring at him in annoyance.
I had no energy for small talks that early morning.
I got out of my car anyway, hoping to just walk past him, and foolishly thinking he would just watch me leave.
But of course, he didn’t.
He rushed towards me almost immediately.
“Joan… please, I need to talk to you,” he said, following closely behind me.
I paused and closed my eyes briefly, inhaling patience.
My staff was already arriving, some glancing curiously in our direction and the last thing I wanted was a scene outside my workplace.
“Fine. Follow me,” I nodded stiffly and said through gritted teeth.
He heaved a sigh of relief and followed me like a man walking towards judgment.
Inside, I went straight to my office and dropped my bag on my desk.
I remained standing and didn’t bother to offer him a seat either.
“Say whatever you want to say,” I said, my tone sharper than I wanted it, but I didn’t bother to soften it.
“And make it quick. I have a lot to do,” I added.
His eyes narrowed, clearly taken aback by my coldness.
Still… he didn’t try to show it.
“Cassandra’s pregnancy…” he began.
“It was my mother’s doing. She set the whole thing up. I swear to you, Joan, I don’t love her.”
I stared at him blankly.
Because honestly, I wasn’t interested in the story behind it anymore.
I was interested in just one thing.
I stared at him for a while, then I broke the silence.
“Is the pregnancy yours or not?” I asked.
For me, his answer to that question could change a whole lot.
He looked at me, his eyes shifting quickly away and back.
His lips parted, then closed again.
That tiny pause told me everything I needed to know.
I nodded slowly, more to myself than to him.
“Leave my office, Alex,” I said.
His eyes widened instantly.
“Joan, please give me…”
“Leave. Now!” I cut in before he could land.
He didn’t budge, instead he tried to move closer to me.
“Please, listen to me. It’s not what you think. I just need more time to explain,” he muttered, his voice laced with desperation.
I moved to my desk and pressed the intercom button without breaking eye contact.
“I will call the security to escort you out if you don’t walk out of that door this instant,” I said calmly.
Hurt flashed across his face, but I didn’t flinch.
Reluctantly, he turned.
But before walking out, he turned to look at me again.
I looked away from him and he left, the door clicking shut behind him.
With that, I let out the breath I had been holding, and I lowered myself slowly into my chair, my hands trembling slightly as I stared at the door.
When I was sure he had left, I walked out of my office. I needed something cold from the vending machine, something to help me cool down.
Just as I turned to the corner of the break area, I heard whispers.
“… I was sure I saw him enter her office.”
I froze.
“Are they talking about me?”