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CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Penulis: Treyl
last update Terakhir Diperbarui: 2025-03-10 23:44:21

031

JOANA'S POV

I tried my best to keep calm as my kids left the room, Mirabel kept looking back until I finally blew her a kiss.

She smiled and caught it.

“Works like a charm,” I said softly, then turned to Caleb, who looked like he was in a haze.

“Caleb
”

He jolted a bit at my touch, “Yeah
 I'm here,”

“Caleb, I want you to be truthful with me. When was the last time you slept,”

Caleb fumbled with his hands avoiding my gaze, “Caleb
” I said softly, “I'm back now; you need rest more than anyone; thank you for everything, but I would never forgive myself if anything should happen to you.”

I opened my hands wide and reached out for a hug. He hugged me ever so tightly but still so loose.

“I thought
 I thought I lost you
”

“I
”

I patted his back as I felt warm liquid touch my back, “It's fine
 I'm here now, and I'm not going anywhere.”

He broke the hug and wiped the tears, with a weak smile on his face.

“I'll be going now. If anything arises, anything at all, d
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  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY-THREE

    143JOANA'S POVWhen he finally turned and looked back at me, there was something I did not expect to see on his face – not anger, not bitterness. Sadness, yes. But beneath it, acceptance. And something even stranger.A smile.If that is the best thing for you, Jo, he said in a hoarse voice, “you should then go for it”.My heart twisted. “Clinton
”“I’m not kidding,” he said and stretched back. “You’ve always deserved to choose. Not out of guilt. Not out of obligation. But out of your own heart.His words floated like a lullaby that I never knew I needed.“You’re not mad?” I asked quietly.He laughed softly. “Of course I’m mad. I’m fuming
but not at you. I’m mad at times. Under circumstances. In the thousand things that went wrong before we ever had a chance to make it right”.His voice got somewhat choked at the end, and he cleared his throat and stood up straight.“I had my shot, Joana. And I blew it. I left you with the burden. I dissolved when I should have remained. I let my fami

  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY-TWO

    142 JOANA'S POV Minutes later, we all watched the screen in silence. In the footage, Daniel cornered Jake near the lockers. The words weren’t clear, but the aggression was. Shoving, mocking, laughing. Calling over his friends. It played like a loop. Day after day. Then, finally! –We saw Japheth arrive, and he came out in front of Jake, fists clenched. He told the boy off, and when Daniel pushed Jake again
 Japheth lost it. The mouth of Mrs. Holden opened, and then it was closed. She didn’t speak. The principal paused the video. “In doing so, I feel that this was a reaction to bullying that was being experienced”. “I
 I didn’t know,” Mrs. Holden murmured. “No, you didn’t,” I told coldly as I got up. And although I do not approve of Japheth’s response, I can see why he did it. My boys take care of each other. She turned to look at me, actually looked at me, and I saw her face colour red, not from anger this time, but shame! “I’ll have a word with Daniel”, she mumbled a

  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY-ONE

    141JOANA'S POVMy heart skipped, then stuttered.It was not a question of having the wrong choice in Clinton. It was about Caleb presenting me with what it feels like to be loved without the burden of the past.I looked up into his eyes, and in them, I saw something that terrified me because it felt real.Felt like home.He got up, walked around the table, and leaned next to me. Gently, carefully, he leaned down.My breath was caught in my throat as his face approached me.I could stop this.I could retreat, turn my back, and be within the comfort of the undetermined.But I didn’t.Not this time.As his lips came close to mine, a thought rolled at the back of my mind like a distant thunder;I’ve made my choice.I withdrew myself from the kiss, and my cheeks were burning with a heat that I hadn’t felt in years. Not like this. Not this kind of warmth.It wasn’t the type of flushed warmth I was used to from being caught doing something I wasn’t supposed to be in the act of doing– it was

  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY

    140 JOANA'S POV As soon as Ciara was gone, the room filled with an unsettling quiet I couldn’t seem to get rid of. Sitting still on the edge of my bed, my legs crossed under me, I watched the glass of wine getting closer to being drained on my nightstand. Her words kept coming back to me, over and over again. You’re going to have to pick soon, Joana. In the end, one of them won't be able to stay. I wish she weren't so right about it. Caleb and Clinton. Two names. Two men. There was a constant fight in my heart between them. One brought me peace. He brought up all the pain I thought I’d healed over. Still, he was always the one who rushed to me when I was at my lowest. A chime broke the silence. My phone screen lit up. “Are you free tomorrow? There’s a project thing I need your help with. I looked down at the screen and tried to keep from smiling. Being plain and trying to bring work and relationships closer together is so much like him. I gave a small laugh and

  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-NINE

    139 JOANA'S POV I took a few steps back from them. “I’ll call a cab.” Clinton’s brows furrowed immediately. “No. I’ll take you home.” Caleb said, “You don’t have to walk out like this.” But I shook my head. “I do. If I stay with either of you, things will get even more complicated. I’d just like to figure this out by myself for now.” Although they weren’t happy with it, they eventually nodded after a long and tense silence. While dialling for a cab, I realised they were still watching me. Their silent hopes. Their unspoken fears. I didn’t look back. --- On the way home, there wasn’t much conversation, and the driver said a few things I didn’t even really notice. I watched the streets go by outside the window, as though I were only just halfway out of a dream. All my emotions were mixed together with every memory and moment I had spent with both brothers. I had loved Clinton with a passion that hurt. The father of my children. He always jumped in to help me when

  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-EIGHT

    138 JOANA'S POV Mr Gates looked at me briefly, “I convinced myself I was supporting the family. I considered you a danger to what I wanted to uphold. All I accomplished was to undermine what I said I wanted to defend.” A bitter chuckle escaped me. “You almost succeeded in separating me from my children.” His eyes welled up. “I know, and there is no way for me to take that back. But I want you to realise that I finally see it now. The pain I caused. Not just towards you, but toward Clinton.” With a hard swallow, he repeated, “I was wrong. My feelings about Clinton influenced the way I interacted with you. I didn’t like that you didn’t give in. Because you wouldn't yield like the rest of them did.” “For that reason, I won’t do what others want me to,” I said calmly. He nodded. “That is the reason I now have the greatest respect for you. Almost dying made me realise it—but I finally see you clearly, Joana. You are not the person I accused you of being. You’re strong. Brav

  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SEVEN

    137 JOANA'S POV We settled into a calm and secluded place in a restaurant only a short distance from the office. I asked for an omelette along with black coffee. His meal included pancakes, together with two additional sides, topped off with orange juice. “I hadn’t realised you eat this much,” I said quietly when the plates came. He replied, nudging the salt towards me, "And I forgot how little you seem to do. Instead of truly living, you simply get by.” I kept my eyes on my food and didn’t glance in his direction. He suddenly looked at me and asked, “Don’t you remember that breakfast spot in Barcelona?” I looked up, startled. “What?” “There was a small cafĂ© just outside the Gothic Quarter. You made us walk over half a mile to have churros.” “I was carrying a child,” it slipped out of my mouth before I realised what I’d said. “And hormonal.” He froze. In that second, the room seemed to narrow around us. I regretted the words instantly. He lowered his eyes to hi

  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SIX

    136 JOANA'S POV Her voice echoed in my head – her innocent mask, desperate face, and warning laced with venom. I grinned back, looking collected while burning inside. At last, I saw her for who she really was. It was no longer a choice for her to front gentleness or indifference. Still, I couldn’t stop thinking, just a bit... awkward. Such intervals leave you feeling empty. The kind of depletion, nothing, not even coffee, can really calm. The kind that bleeds itself into your very existence, wanting nothing but a peaceful glimpse into the ocean and an escape to sleep for a week. But that wasn’t the option for me. Certainly not, when a jewel bidding contract was ready to run, sitting on my desk and bearing the weight of the entire international expansion of my company. I entered the lobby, propagating my heels across the lustrous stone floor ever so softly. Her warm smile blinked and then quickly went back to her keyboard when she greeted me. But then I saw him. Cli

  • TAKE ME BACK EX WIFE   CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FIVE

    135 JOANA'S POV A part of me felt that I would refuse the ride altogether as we drove towards the prison. But I was done running. Done bottling things up. The opportunity had presented itself for me to face the monster in my life – this hurdle force hell-bent on breaking what meant the most to me. Anita. The one who stared into my eyes and did her best to kidnap my daughter. Then, later, pretend nothing had happened. The lady who almost stole everything from me. And for what? Solely because of love That’s what I needed to find out. — As I entered this small visitation room, I saw her already seated, now strapped to the table, but with blunt irony in her position. Her once immaculate hair, now dull and just tied up at the back with a loose band. Her bearing had not changed: she carried herself straight and proud, her chin held high, and her lips had that tincture that comes from knowing you cannot be trusted. I didn’t sit immediately. I stood at the doorway and star

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