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Joane's heart hammered in her chest as she locked eyes with Nikolai, his presence sending a flurry of emotions through her. She fought to maintain her composure, pushing down the wave of feelings threatening to overwhelm her. She couldn't afford to let him see how much he affected her. The memories of how close they had gotten and how he had been there for her made it hard for her to hate him like she used to. His ocean-blue eyes relaxed when they met with her brown ones, another reminder of how worried he had been, and that made it even harder for Joane to do what she was supposed to."Joane," Nikolai said softly, stepping closer, his eyes searching hers for any sign of recognition. Fear gripped him as he wondered what happened. ‘Did the memories return and affect her so bad that she is in the hospital?’ He thought as he rushed to her and wrapped his arms around her.“Thank God you’re safe. I was losing my mind.” He whispered before he turned to the Doctor, “What happened? Is she oka
When they arrived at Nikolai's penthouse, Joane immediately retreated to her room, shutting the door behind her. She leaned against it, taking a deep breath. She had to keep as much distance between them as possible, no matter how much it hurt.Nikolai knocked softly on the door. "Sweetheart, can we talk?"She steeled herself before opening it just a crack. "There's nothing to talk about, Nikolai. I need to rest.""Joane, please," he pleaded. "I don't understand why you're pushing me away. Just talk to me.""I'm tired," she repeated, her tone colder. "I need to be alone."He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Fine. But I'm here if you need anything."Joane peeped through her door as she watched him walk away, her heart aching. She wanted to reach out, to tell him the truth, but she couldn't. Not when she would only bring him misery.The following day, Joane waited for Arthur’s response and kept checking her phone but nothing came up.Her waiting turned into weeks, and Joane co
“I can’t do this anymore Kia!” She cried into the phone.After refusing to open the bedroom door, she heard the front door being shut which was a sign that Nikolai had left the house. The way he banged the door showed how angry he was. Joane had leaned against the door as tears streamed down her face and her heart shredded to pieces.“I’m so sorry hun. I am sorry that you’re going through this. I wish I could wrap my hands around you and help you calm down. You should come over and stay here for a few weeks. Maybe Stella can put a smile on your face.” Kiana smiled softly into the phone, her heart breaking for her friend.“I’ll think about it when I land tomorrow morning. I really love him, Kia.” Joane sniffed into the phone.“I know babe,” Kiana responded.“Maybe if I had listened to you things would have been different.” Joane sniffed into the phone.“It’s not your fault. Don’t be too hard on yourself. I didn’t even really know her but she was close friends with my ex-best friend Ann
A few hours had passed since Nikolai had left and every minute that passed made Joane even more anxious. She knew staying would just make things harder for her so she decided to leave earlier than planned. 'it's better for me to sleep at a hotel so that it's easier for me to go to the airport tomorrow.' she sighed. With a heavy heart, she picked up her phone and dialed John's number. After saving her twice, they had become closer and despite how much Nikolai disliked him, Joane stayed close to him because she felt he was the only real friend she had in Sanson City. He picked up on the second ring, "Hi J, what's up?" "John, hi." She breathed. "I uhm need your help. Can you please drop me off at the hotel?""I told you, I don't want any part of your crazy plans. Take a taxi. I don't like people who easily give up." John responded even though his voice was not harsh."Please." Joane choked and blocked back her tears. After a few seconds of silence, John finally sighed and said, "Fine
A bucket of ice-cold water was splashed on her face making her groan in pain as her eyes slowly opened. What Joane had hoped was a terrible nightmare, turned out to be a cruel reality.She had been abducted and hit so hard that her face was still in pain. She was tied to a chair and when she looked around for any sign that could help her escape, the man who was holding the bucket chuckled, “You think this is a mall that you can just walk in and out of?” He asked in a mocking tone. “Why don’t you ask for directions then?” The other man added and they both fell into a fit of laughter.“Fuck you!” Joane spat angrily but it didn’t wipe out their smirks. As they moved closer, one grabbed her hair in a painful pull and whispered, “I will definitely do it hard.”Joane felt disgusted as she felt the bile rise in her throat. Something about his scent disturbed her and the closer he stood, the more she felt like she would vomit her intestines out but she fought to keep it intact.‘I can’t st
Joane's brow furrowed in confusion. "What plan?"Isabella rolled her eyes, her expression turning cold and irritation evident on her face "Oh, you don’t know anything do you?” But she didn’t wait for a response when she continued while she paced around, "You see, my dear, this all started long before you came into the picture. My father was supposed to take over the Cooper Group. It was his birthright, and my birthright was to Marry Nikolai so we could be reunited as a family. Then you came along and ruined everything!"Joane struggled against her bindings, trying to understand what she had just heard but it wasn’t making any sense to her, having slept in a chair didn't help her body ache either but she remained focused on getting the confession out of Isabella, "Your father? What does he have to do with this? And how is marriage a birthright?" She half laughed at how ridiculous Isabella sounded. "Leo Cooper is my father. You dumb ass, and Nikolai is my soulmate. His purpose is t
Nikolai paced the length of his office, his phone pressed to his ear. He had been trying to reach Joane for hours, but all his calls had gone unanswered. Worry gnawed at him, each unanswered ring heightening his anxiety.“Does she hate me that much?” He mumbled under his breath.Nikolai didn’t want to call Arthur because he felt like he was already putting his friend in an awkward situation by making him the middleman. He tried to deal with their problem on his own.After trying again, he decided to first reach out to Micheal in case he knew something. Who picked up on the second ring.“Hi.” He answered, “Do you need me for anything?”Nikolai froze for a few seconds. He had been thinking about what he had said to him and a part of him felt guilty because Micheal may not have told him he was his father, but he stood by him through it all, including in moments that he was too ashamed of talking about. Nikolai had a great relationship with Leo but it got stained after the day he caught h
“It’s good to see you,” Leo said as Nikolai walked in.He found his mother sitting silently and wondered what made her extra low. Even after what had happened, Marjory wasn't the type not to jump when she saw her son so something felt off and he was going to speak to her,After talking to Leo.“I don’t have much time, so let’s get to the point,” Nikolai said.Leo cleared his throat as he eyed his son. Isabella had not told him what she had done with Joane but only told him to force Nikolai to marry her and because he wanted to be with Katherine, he gladly accepted to do so.“I’ve set the date for you and Isabella. You didn’t break off the engagement publicly as planned so they still think you’re together. This is your chance to make things right.” Leo said but didn’t get a chance to say the next words as Nikolai’s fist met with his cheek and made him stumble backward while grabbing his side of the face in pain.“What the hell!” He shouted.“Nik!” Marjory stood but didn’t even bother t