Chapter 11

In the end, the divorce was just delayed.

Twilight was falling and the lights were on.

This night, Joyce finally found a chance to leave the Warner residence.

It was time to go see him, and she couldn't put it off any longer.

No one knew that she had actually rented a house outside.

When she arrived at the door, she turned the key when an unusual sound came from the house.

She frowned, but eventually, she pushed the door and got into the house.

What an obscure sight it was. A man and a woman were doing their wild business wholeheartedly right in the living room and did not even notice her.

The man's head was half raised, and the sultry woman with dyed red hair was on her knees.

Joyce didn't say a word, carrying the groceries she bought and walking numbly into the kitchen.

She closed the kitchen door behind her, and the meal was ready in half an hour. Baked cod with lime cheese sauce, macaroni and cheese with bolognese sauce, and corn soup.

When she opened the kitchen door and took the dishes out, the two outside had finished their business as well.

The sultry woman glanced at Joyce and scratched her head, "Handsome, ask me out again next time. You are awesome!" Her eyes kept glancing at his legs.

Justin's good-looking chin lifted slightly, "Next time you will definitely have more fun."

The two of them flirted like no one was watching.

After the woman left, Joyce spoke up, "Justin, it's time to eat."

Justin's face sank, "Then why don't you come and push me over?"

Joyce took a deep breath, the air was filled with a surliness that she instinctively resented and mentally rejected.

She stopped in front of him, and he was already dressed and sitting in his wheelchair, with his usual gentle, jade-like handsome face, only that the clarity under his eyes was no longer there.

And all the anger Joyce had suppressed in her heart disappeared when she saw the wheelchair beneath him.

Justin, the son of the Henderson family, was born with a golden spoon, and now ...

He noticed her gaze and pain flashed across his heart, "What are you looking at? Disgusted?"

"No." Joyce hung her head and silently pushed him to the table, "Let's eat, I made your favorite fish today."

Justin ate a few bites and suddenly put his chopsticks down and questioned, "When are we getting married?!"

Joyce froze, "I haven't graduated yet ..."

She had a fake marriage behind his back, and they had not yet gotten a divorce for the time being…

The bottom line was that she was well aware of her feelings for him, a responsibility that she couldn't let go of.

He sneered, "Joyce, how long do you want to keep me waiting? Why don't you just say that you dislike me for being an invalid!"

"I didn't mean that …" Joyce was helpless.

It was because he was so sensitive and fragile that she did not dare to stimulate him, and she could never say the words to reject him.

"Joyce, I offended the entire Henderson family for you and was thrown out of the house. And because of you my legs are crippled, and I cannot do anything but sit in this broken wheelchair every day! I fool around with women, and you don't care. You just want to get rid of me! Don’t think I don’t know about that."

He said, sweeping all the cups and plates off the table to the ground.

Joyce stared dumbfounded at the wreckage. She did not care?

She was a person who valued duty more than feelings.

For whom did she give up her favorite shooting career?

What was the reason she gave up the competition just before she was about to win the gold medal? And why did she quit?

How did she get through the last two years?

She worked hard every day and worked all over the place to raise money.

Why would she agree to marry Luther just for the money?

Yes, she was the one who put him in this situation.

She never wanted to get away from her responsibility.

If it wasn't for their bitter encounter, someone like him, who was born with a gold spoon, would not have ended up in this situation.

He should still be in his high society, a refined nobleman surrounded by thousands of young girls.

Right now, the only thing she wanted to do was to cure him and get the gentle Justin back on his feet.

"I don't want to get rid of you, Justin, I've already raised enough money for your bone splints and tendons. These days I've been busy contacting hospitals. Now I have found a hospital that has agreed to take you in. You can be hospitalized tomorrow. Really! Don't you give up, everything will be fine, you can definitely stand up." She slowly squatted down in front of him, looking at him with her eyes full of tears.

Almost, the ice covering his heart was about to melt but suddenly his face became even more gloomy, "What about after I stand up? Your mission is complete? You have no more guilt in your heart? And you're finally relieved?"

"I'm not, you're overthinking it."

He was so excited that he suddenly reached out and dragged her to him, leaning down to kiss her, "Then you should give it to me, and I want it now."

"Justin, don't…" She dodged his lips.

Angered, he pushed her violently to the ground and hissed, "Why do you refuse! Why don't you want to get married!"

Joyce was dismayed to the core, her bones ached all over, and she was really too tired after two years.

What had happened could not be changed.

And who could possibly know what would happen in the future?

That's all she could do for him. She had given him all she had, and that's all she could do.

"Justin, we're going to check into the hospital tomorrow."

Frowning, Justin pushed the wheelchair back into the room by himself and threw the door shut with a bang.

There was a moment when his heart rolled over and he almost wanted to tell her that he was just acting when he was fooling around with those women and he was just angry that she didn't care.

She didn't understand how much he loved her and how afraid he was of losing her.

He was afraid that she would say it out, and even more afraid that she would really tell him what was in her mind.

He was not stupid. He understood that she did not love him. It was either sympathy or guilt, but never the love he wanted.

Now or two years ago, it was always his wishful thinking.

But he had nothing left now, and he really could not live without her anymore.

Joyce stood up and bent over to clean up the pieces.

She was distracted and suddenly she felt a stinging pain in her finger. She took a glance and found that she had accidentally cut her finger. The bright red blood and her snow-white skin formed a sharp contrast.

She lifted her head and looked at the closed door of the room, a mixture of emotions in her steady gaze.

If it was just money, there will be a time when she could finally pay it off.

But what if it was love? How could she pay it off?

St. Maria Hospital.

Joyce finished the check-in procedures for Justin, settled him in, and waited for his surgery.

After that, she kept running between the Warner residence and the hospital, very tired every day.

Finally, Justin’s surgery was tomorrow.

In the afternoon, many people were coming and going from the hospital, but Justin was not in the room at the moment.

Joyce asked around and heard from a nurse that Justin was pushing his wheelchair to the backyard garden.

It's true, Justin had never liked crowded places. He must have gone to the backyard garden to relax.

She followed the stone path to the backyard garden of the hospital, and after the corridor, she saw Justin's back from afar.

The sun was setting already. The afterglow sprinkled on his shoulders, and he propped one hand on his forehead. He seemed to be thinking about something. Around him were flowers of all different colors and the chirping of all kinds of birds, and Justin looked just peaceful in it.

She also felt relieved. She had waited too long for this moment, and she did not want an accident.

After he was hospitalized, Justin had become more and more unstable, sensitive, and silent, she could only spend more time with him. Maybe it's because he's nearing surgery and he felt a little nervous.

She walked over gently.

She was afraid to break this quiet scene.

Justin heard her movement behind him and pushed his wheelchair around.

The moment he slowly turned around.

Joyce froze.

Today, he was wearing a gray suit, and a white shirt. The gentle tone of the colors and the clear eyes on the handsome face were like a beam of light from above the cloud. Even if it was just a glimpse, she was shocked by the unworldly elegance of this man.

At that moment, Joyce seemed to have gone back in time, as if she just met Justin for the first time.

How wonderful life would be if they met each other just for the first time?

"I've been waiting for you for a while," Justin said softly.

Joyce suddenly looked back. What's wrong with him today, dressed so formally.

"Justin, I'll push you back. Don't catch a cold from the wind."

"Come here." Justin smiled gently, "I need to talk to you."

Joyce slowly walked to him and bent down to look him in the eyes.

"During this time, I know my temperament has changed, I'm sorry. You must have suffered a lot." He bathed in the sunset and said slowly, "I'm sorry, I was too weak to accept the reality. These days I have thought about it. Whether I can stand up or not, I will be strong to face everything."

Joyce listened silently, and endless aggression from the bottom of her heart continued to surge up.

Two years later, has he finally figured it out. Was he finally willing to face it? For two years, she had been careful, afraid to hurt his fragile self-esteem. These two years, she had been too hard on her body and mind.

"Don't cry." He tenderly reached out and gently wiped the tear stains from her cheeks.

Joyce was shocked to realize that she was already in tears.

If her efforts of the past two years could get him back to what he was like, then it would be worth it.

Justin took a blue velvet box out of his pocket. He opened the lid and it was a diamond ring, dazzling and radiant.

"I asked the nurse to get it for me this morning."

Joyce noticed his empty left wrist. So he had asked the nurse to help him sell his expensive limited edition watch for the ring?

"Joyce, marry me."

Justin held her hand tightly, and his clear eyes were sincere, "I know, such a proposal is too simple. I can't give you anything better at the moment. But believe me, I will find a way, everything will be there, and I will make it up to you."

Joyce's heart was beating jumbled and overwhelmed.

She certainly wanted Justin to put himself together.

But in her current condition, how could she possibly say yes to his proposal?

But she didn't want to let Justin down either.

With the surgery coming up tomorrow, she didn't want to hurt him.

What a dilemma…

Justin gently, one by one, unfolded her slightly trembling fingers.

He took out the ring and put it on her, "If you don't refuse, I'll take that as a yes."

The moment the ring was put on, the coldness woke Joyce up suddenly.

No, it was wrong. She could not marry him.

No, that's not it, that's not how she felt about him.

It's for responsibility, not love.

She took a step back like a lightning bolt and reached up to wipe the tears from her face, her mind in total chaos. What should she do?

Just then, a shrill female voice pierced through the quietness.

"Joyce! What are you doing here?!!"

Shelly accompanied her grandmother to the hospital for an infusion, and after she was done with the procedures, she came out for some fresh air. She didn't expect to see Joyce in the back garden, who seemed to be secretly meeting a man!

Well, she got it!

Today she must expose this bitch for what she really was.