Chapter 228 She Is My Wife

Chapter 228 She Is My Wife

After Kevin finished speaking, Cathy understood his meaning.

Cathy stopped in her tracks.

"Let's wait a moment and let her go in first."

Following the nurse's directions, Lillian found the hospital room where Justin and Joanna were staying.

After knocking on the door, she pushed it open holding a bouquet of flowers.

Justin was able to sit up now, with a laptop in front of him as he handled work matters.

Seeing it was Lillian, his brow furrowed briefly before quickly relaxing.

"Why are you here?"

Lillian placed the flowers on the table and looked at Justin with a smile. "My mother's worried about you. She asked me to come check on you."

"Mm."

Justin nodded. "I'm doing fine."

Lillian pretended not to notice Justin's coldness. She glanced at the unconscious Joanna. "How is she?"

"She's doing well too. The doctor says she'll wake up soon."

Justin's indifferent gaze, when it moved from Lillian's face to Joanna's, became tender.

Lillian turned her head just in time to see Justin's affectionate expression.

That lingering, gentle look in his eyes—she'd never seen it before.

"Congratulations."

Lillian spoke the insincere words, a faint smile rising on her face.

Justin nodded, and when he looked back at Lillian, he'd returned to his earlier indifferent manner. "Thank you."

After a pause, Justin added, "If there's nothing else, you should go."

The smile on Lillian's face nearly faltered. She hesitated. "All right, I'll head back then. My mother will be relieved to know you're okay. You know how she has a weak heart—she's been losing sleep worrying about you..."

"She doesn't need to worry about me."

Before Lillian could finish, Justin interrupted, then added, "And you don't need to either. Don't come here anymore."

Lillian's expression froze, the curve of her lips fading. She looked at Justin with an awkward, slightly wounded gaze. "But... aren't we at least still friends?"

Justin's gaze remained fixed on Joanna, not noticing her hurt expression.

"We're friends," he said flatly.

Just as a glimmer of hope rose in Lillian's heart, he continued, "But there's no need."

No need to come see him.

No need to meet.

Simply because she was an unnecessary presence.

Lillian chewed over Justin's words, feeling utterly humiliated.

"I understand. I won't disturb you both. I'll go now. I hope you both recover soon."

Before she'd even finished speaking, Lillian was already moving toward the door.

She turned around, walking with uneven steps, one foot lighter than the other.

Opening the door, she suddenly froze at the sight of the people outside.

She felt even more mortified.

Cathy looked at Lillian's wounded expression, suppressing a laugh as she stepped aside to clear the doorway.

Lillian didn't linger for another second. Her steps quickened as she left without looking back.

Cathy pushed open the door and walked in with a smile, raising an eyebrow at Justin.

Making no effort to hide that she'd been eavesdropping, she said directly, "Smart move. You didn't betray my trust."

Justin had just sent Lillian away, and seeing another group of people enter—especially with Brandon among them—he frowned and immediately tried to send them away. "You all should leave too."

Kevin's mouth twitched at this.

Diana and Brandon both frowned.

Cathy, who'd just finished praising him and hadn't yet wiped the smile from her face, gritted her teeth in annoyance. "We're here to see Joanna. You have no say in this."

"She's my wife."

As he said this, Justin deliberately glanced at Brandon.

He was declaring that Joanna was his.

Cathy remained unimpressed, saying jokingly, "Once Joanna wakes up, that might not be so certain."

"Exactly!"

Diana chimed in.

She'd keenly noticed Justin's hostility toward Brandon and deliberately pushed back.

Placing the handmade sunflower bouquet she'd been holding at Joanna's bedside, she stood by Joanna's bed and lifted her chin at Justin with a "you can't tell me what to do" attitude.

Justin's expression turned cold.

He didn't bother arguing with Diana, instead sweeping his icy gaze over Brandon before looking back at Cathy.

"Do you have too much free time?"

Justin's comment only made things worse. Cathy's anger flared.

"I should be asking you that! Is the amusement park project really that urgent? Are you trying to kill me?"

"It is urgent."

Justin's threat was blatant. "If you don't leave now, I can make it even more urgent."

"The contract clearly states the delivery date. Who are you trying to scare?"

Cathy had been so busy lately she barely had time to sleep.

But the profit margin Justin offered made it impossible to refuse.

"All right." Kevin pulled her back. "We're here to see Joanna, not to argue."

He looked at Justin. "We'll go ask the doctor about Joanna's condition. If everything's fine, we'll leave."

"Don't let me keep you." Justin offered no courtesy.

These people were too annoying.

He'd rather none of them came.

No one should disturb the private space he shared with Joanna.

Cathy wanted to say more but was pulled away by Kevin.

Brandon also led Diana out.

Once outside, Kevin reasoned with them, "However you look at it, at least it shows he values Joanna. That's enough."

"But he's so rude! Why shouldn't we be allowed to spend more time with Joanna?" Diana pouted in dissatisfaction.

Kevin quickly glanced at Brandon, then joked with Diana, "When Joanna wakes up, you can complain to her."

"I definitely will!"

Diana made a mental note to settle this score with Justin later.

The four of them went to find Willie. After confirming that Joanna had been well cared for during this time, they left with peace of mind.

Days passed one after another. Justin went from lying in bed to sitting in a wheelchair.

Most of the time, he sat at Joanna's bedside, learning Karen's massage techniques, massaging Joanna and talking to her.

From their first meeting to scene after scene from their married life...

Unfortunately, Joanna never responded.

Karen and Elizabeth came frequently at first, but later, seeing that Justin only stayed with Joanna and ignored them when they visited, they tactfully stopped disturbing them, only coming at mealtimes to bring food.

The biggest change was in Hazel.

After going through these recent upheavals, her temperament had matured considerably. Aside from going to school, she spent her time at home taking care of Elizabeth.

Elizabeth, having endured one blow after another, grew increasingly frail.

Her already aged body moved even more slowly now.

When Joanna woke up, another month had passed.

Before she opened her eyes, a clear, mellow male voice reached her ears. She couldn't make out what he was saying, but his tone sounded like he was telling a story.

Her eyelashes trembled, and it took a while before she could lift her heavy eyelids.

She saw a white ceiling. She blinked, then turned toward the voice.

The man's profile was thin, his jawline sharp, the curve of his nose as if finely sculpted, his thin lips moving slightly as his pleasant voice spoke with great tenderness.

Joanna's mind wandered for a moment as she blinked her confused eyes.

The man looked over at that moment. He froze briefly, then joy flooded his deep eyes.