Chapter 19
The harsh word “merchandise” bit Joanna like a slap, draining the color from her lace. “Kenneth, what are you implying? What do you think of ma
asked.
Kenneth’s eyes narrowed, his tone sharp as ice. “You’re a woman offering herself to me for one night, that’s all?”
Joanna’s hands clenched the pillow beside her, her anger palpable as she hurled it at him. “Kenneth, you’re such a jerk,” she spat out.
He dodged easily, and the pillow missed him, thudding onto the floor. His expression hardened, “Ms. Mayfield, if you’re here to sell yourself, don’t act so superior”
“You’re the one selling yourself,” Joanna retorted, her voice shaking with humiliation. “Kenneth, you’re nothing but a cheap gigolo, a lowlife who becs women for money.” She felt degraded, forced to strip down to prove her sincerity, only to be judged like merchandise.
As she geared up to unleash more of her fury, Kenneth a cigarette, taking a leisurely drag as he pointed at her. “One more insult, and we’re done,” he warned.
Joanna bit back her angry words, her humiliation choking her. The room fell into a tense silence, the air thick between them.
The cigarette smoke dritted Joanna’s way, and she, not used to it, broke into a coughing fit. Kenneth’s forehead creased with a slight frown. “Tender, aren’t you?” he muttered, casually stubbing out the cigarette.
Assuming he was done with his cigarette, Joanna spoke up, breaking the silence. “So, how long do you need to think it over?”
“Depends on my mood,” Kenneth replied with a casual air, shrugging off his black robe to reveal his well–defined, attractive body, his abs and V-line standing out.
Joanna’s eyes widened, and she quickly averted her gaze. “Kenneth, you said you wouldn’t force women,” she reminded him.
After an extended silence and with no further advances from him, Joanna cautiously turned her head back. She noticed that Kenneth had changed into a black shirt and black pants, exuding an aloof aura.
At that moment, he was fastening a watch around his wrist Joanna glanced over, feeling a sense of familiarity with it. It appeared to be a new model from a high–end brand, one that likely cost a fortune.
Joanna was puzzled, wondering how a gigolo could afford such an expensive place.
“Joanna, before I give you an answer, you’d better think it through,” Kenneth said.
Confused, Joanna met his gare. “Think about what?” she asked.
His eyes were like dark pools, bottomless and threatening. When their gazes met, it felt as if he could see through her very soul.
A chill ran down her spine, and she felt stripped bare under his scrutiny. She couldn’t hold his game for long and eventually dropped her eyes.
“Think about if you can afford the price of getting mixed up with me,” he replied. With that, Kenneth turned and left the room.
His plan for the night was to meet Brielle. She had his pendant, which hinted at a bond that ran deep. But then Joanna got in touch unexpectedly. throwing a wrench into his schedule.
He changed the meeting spot from the Wesley estate to this hotel. That was where he found himself waking up from a coma, with Joanna right there. She hugged him tight, like a rose clinging to its stem, and left hickeys on his skin.
Outside the hotel, the rain drizzled down, leaving the air a bit damp. Brielle had just gotten off the phone with Linda, who sounded surprised that
Kenneth had sent her away.
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Chapter 19
“Brielle, don’t stress, Linda had said. “Uncle Ken might’ve had something come up last minute. After being in a coma forests, he’s got a lot on 15th
with the Wesley family.”
Brielle, still feeling uneasy, sought reassurance. “Linda, Is it true that Mr. Wesley lost his memory?”
Linda figured Brielle was taking it hard that Kenneth had forgotten her. “Brielle, don’t get too down about it. Uncle Ken will remember you sooner or later,” she said.
But Brielle’s eyes gleamed with a different kind of excitement. She was secretly glad that Kenneth had lost his memory. If he never got it back, she could mäke him believe she was the one he loved. Maybe then, she could become part of the Wesley family,
Lost in her scheming, Brielle suddenly spotted a tall figure leaving the hotel, someone with an umbrella in tow. As they drew nearer, Briella’s eyes lit up
and she hurried over. “Mr. Wesley,” she called out.
The rain was too loud for Kenneth to hear her. He didn’t even glance her way as he got into a slook, limited edition Rolls–Royce and drove off into the rain soaked night.
As the Rolls Royce vanished into the downpour, Brielle’s expression was a mix of worry and confusion. ‘Kenneth hasn’t acted like he was swamped, so why did he skip our meeting?” she wondered. A chilling thought crossed her mind. ‘Has he figured out I’m an impostor?”
“Ms. Burnham, are you ready to go?” The Ma
Mayfield family’s driver rolled up beside her, interrupting her thoughts.
Brielle was so lost in her musings that it dimmed the shine of her carefully applied makeup. She was just about to slide into the car when she noticed a stim figure emerging from the hotel’s entrance.
“Joanna? What’s she doing here?” Brielle muttered to herself as she popped open her umbrella and hurried over to intercept Joanna.
The idea of Kenneth’s pendant being with Joanna sparked a pang of envy in Brielle, and she couldn’t resist ajab. “Out late, aren’t you, Joanna? Got a hot date or something? Who was the lucky guy?”
“You wouldn’t want to know who I was with,” Joanna retorted, her steady gaze sending a shiver down Brielle’s spine that made her instinctively step back. Without another word, Jeanna brushed past her.
“Oh, Joanna, isn’t your mom’s death anniversary coming up?” Brielle called out, her voice saccharine sweet but with a malicious undertone that cut through the rainy night.
“Funny coincidence–my mom’s wedding anniversary is the same day. I’ll be too busy celebrating to visit your mom’s grave.” She paused, a fake smile in her voice. “Could you say sorry to her for me?”
Joanna abruptly turned around, her nails digging into her palms as she glared at Brielle. The anniversary of Lillian’s death, which fell on the same day as Edmund’s wedding to Rosalie, was always eclipsed by their nuptial celebrations.
Edmund had to choose between honoring his late wife Lillian or his current wife Rosalie, and year after year, he chose Rosalie Lillian, who had been outmatched by Rosalie during her lifetime, continued to be overshadowed even in death.
After the wedding anniversary came Brielle’s birthday, and Lillian was quickly forgotten. Even in death, Lillian couldn’t find peace, often spoken of with a mix of sighs and pity.
People would shake their heads, saying she hadn’t even been gone when her husband remarried, and that she’d brought it on herself with her infidelity and the HIV diagnosis.
Joanna stood there, rain drenching her, her eyes fixed on Briella’s smug expression. A deep hatred swelled in her chest, threatening to erupt
It was Brielle who’d taken Lillian’s life, but without proof, and given Brielle’s young age at the time, Joanna’s claims would have fallen on deaf ears.
Kenneth had cautioned her about the price of getting involved with him, but Joanna was determined. She was prepared to face whatever came, no
matter the cost.
as raw with emotion as she confronted Brielle. “You killed my mom. I swear, I’ll make you regret the day you were born.”
joanna’s voice was
11:45 Sat, 31 May Gu
Chapter 19
With those words hanging in the air, Joanna pivoted and strede away, leaving frielle to watch her retreating figure, strange uriase settling in
But Brielle quickly brushed off the feeling with a dismissive laugh. With Kenneth’s memory gone and his pendant in her hands, marrying him seene ka a sure thing. Joanna was no match for her.
And with Norbert set to join the Wesley family. Joanna would have to endure the bitter itany of her own husband addressing Brielle as “Aunt.” The thought of that day filled
