Chapter 232 Not Allowed to Say No

Chapter 232 Not Allowed to Say No

"Stop talking behind my back and I won't have anything to worry about."

Justin lowered his hand from his chest and pulled himself into the wheelchair, carefully easing his weight into the seat.

Once he was settled, Joanna shot back, "Only people with a guilty conscience assume they're being talked about."

Justin tilted his head back to look at her, one eyebrow arching upward. "And what exactly did I do?"

His tone was casual—almost bored—but there was something in his eyes, a dark, unreadable warmth that made Joanna's mind betray her instantly. Last night's words came rushing back. And then the dream.

He was doing this on purpose. She was absolutely certain of it.

But if she let him see that he'd gotten to her, she'd be handing him exactly what he wanted.

Joanna clenched her jaw, forced herself to breathe, and let her gaze go cold.

The door swung open just then. A nurse stepped in for morning rounds.

"I'd like to change rooms," Joanna said, her voice flat and deliberate.

The nurse glanced between them—she knew they were married—and blinked in confusion. "Would you both like to be moved to a different room?"

"No. Just me. A private room, please."

"Of course." The nurse hesitated for a half second, then nodded. "I'll look into availability."

"As soon as possible would be great."

The door had been left open. Karen walked in just as the last words left Joanna's mouth. She caught the edge in Joanna's voice, then looked over at Justin—jaw tight, knuckles pale against the armrest, wearing the expression of a man who knew exactly what he'd done and had absolutely no idea how to undo it.

Karen didn't need the full story.

"Hold on." She stepped forward and gave Justin a sharp look. "Did you upset her?"

Justin pressed his lips together and said nothing. He just looked at Joanna.

"Apologize. Now."

"I'm sorry."

The words came out immediately—no hesitation, no hedging. It was so fast that Joanna's anger had nothing left to push against.

Karen turned back to her. "What did he do?"

The question made it worse. Heat crept up the back of Joanna's neck.

Justin stayed quiet and kept his eyes on her.

"It's nothing," Joanna said quickly. "I just—I like having my own space. That's all."

Karen sat down beside her on the bed and rubbed her back in slow, gentle circles. "I understand, sweetheart. But if the two of you are in separate rooms, it's so much harder for me to keep an eye on both of you." She gave Joanna a soft, tired smile. "How about this—I'll make sure he leaves you alone. No bothering you, no unnecessary talking. Will that work?"

Joanna almost said no.

She almost said she didn't need Karen running back and forth between rooms, that she could manage on her own, that a private nurse would be perfectly fine.

But then she looked at Karen—really looked at her—and noticed the silver threading through her hair that hadn't been there before.

The words didn't come.

Karen exhaled quietly with relief. Then she turned to Justin, eyes narrowing. "You heard me. You don't get to provoke her. Whatever she asks of you, you do. No arguing, no refusing. Understood?"

Justin leaned back in his chair, shoulders relaxing. He didn't agree. He didn't argue either.

Joanna filed that away as a non-answer and didn't push it. She didn't actually believe he'd follow through anyway.

The nurse, seeing the situation had resolved itself, slipped out without a word.

Karen opened the insulated bag she'd brought and lifted the lid on a thermos. A warm, savory smell drifted through the room.

"I checked with Dr. Quinn this morning," she said, ladling soup into a bowl. "He said since yesterday's porridge went fine, you can try a little protein today." She held the bowl out carefully. "Chicken and rice. Very mild—barely any seasoning. Nothing that'll upset your stomach."

The soup was still steaming. Karen set it aside to cool, then went through her usual routine—helped Joanna rinse her mouth, pressed a warm damp cloth to her face, handed her a small cup of water and the pills she needed to take before eating.

By the time all of that was done, the soup had cooled to a safe temperature. Karen passed it to Joanna and settled beside her on the bed, watching her eat with quiet, steady attention.

Across the room, Justin opened his own meal container without a word and ate alone by the window.

Just after ten, the door opened again and Diana came in, arms full of flowers, cheeks flushed like she'd half-jogged down the hallway.

Karen took it as her cue and slipped out to give them space.

Diana dropped into the chair beside the bed and leaned forward conspiratorially. "Joanna, I've been teaching myself to bake. The moment you're cleared for sugar, I'm bringing you something homemade. You have to let me."

Joanna laughed softly. "Deal."

Diana glanced over at Justin, who had settled back by the window with a book, then turned back to Joanna with a pointed look. "I can come whenever I want, right? Nobody's going to try to stop me?"

Joanna tilted her head. "Why would anyone stop you?"

Diana cut her eyes toward Justin again, puffing out her cheeks. "Because every single time I came to visit while you were—you know—he kept kicking me out."

She jerked her chin in Justin's direction.

Joanna turned to look at him.

Justin had the book open, eyes supposedly on the page. But as if he could feel her gaze, he glanced up—and their eyes met directly.

He looked away. Fast.

That was all Joanna needed to see.

"Ignore him," she said. "Come whenever you want. I mean it."

"Yes!" Diana's face lit up. She made a point of sticking her tongue out in Justin's direction.

Justin's jaw tightened. He looked up with a sharp, unamused stare—

—and the instant Joanna turned toward him, he dropped his gaze back to the book like nothing had happened.

Diana watched the whole exchange and pressed her lips together to keep from laughing. So that's how it is.

She rearranged her expression into something sympathetic and heaved a dramatic sigh. "Oh, Joanna. I should tell you—Cathy wanted to come today, but she said she's completely buried right now. That's why she sent me ahead."

"That's okay," Joanna said automatically, then paused. "What's she working on?"

"The Lawson Corp project. She said the deadline's brutal—her whole team's been pulling late nights for weeks." Diana slid her gaze sideways toward Justin and added, almost innocently, "She also said she has a theory that someone deliberately made the timeline that tight... to keep us from visiting you."

She pointed at Justin with one finger, trying to look casual about it.

Joanna stared at her for a beat, then looked at Justin.

He closed the book. The easy, unreadable expression was gone, replaced by something considerably colder. "I gave her a project. She's making money. A little gratitude wouldn't kill anyone."

Diana immediately shifted closer to Joanna like she was seeking cover.

"Hey." Joanna's voice was mild but firm. "Dial it back. You're scaring her."

The door opened before Justin could respond.

Cathy walked in, already talking. "Sorry I'm late—emergency call ran long, otherwise I would've been here an hour ago." She exhaled sharply and aimed a look directly at Justin. "Okay. I need to talk to you. Your team wants a full plan revision, fine, I can work with that—but does it have to be submitted by end of business today? My people haven't had a day off in over a month."

Diana spread her hands in an I-told-you-so gesture.

"Really?" Justin set the book down on the windowsill. "You still made it here, which tells me you're not as slammed as you're claiming."

Cathy planted both hands on her hips. "I'm here because Joanna matters to me, and also because I'm negotiating. So answer the question—will the world actually end if we push the revised plan to tomorrow?"