Chapter 5

When Joanna received the call from Polly, she only said one thing, "I won't be Jeremy's maid anymore, Polly."

Joanna got up, washed up, and changed her clothes before heading out of her room. Janet Lake, the housekeeper Elliot had arranged for her, had prepared a lavish breakfast.

As Joanna ate the delicious meal Janet made just for her, she couldn't help but feel that her past self had been both ridiculous and pitiful.

Thankfully, Jeremy had given her a wake-up call, shaking her from her daze.

Halfway through breakfast, Elliot arrived. Besides joining her for the meal, he also had work to report to Joanna.

Who would have thought that Eterna, now the most favored skincare and wellness brand among high-society women in the country, was founded by a housewife?

In fact, when Joanna created Eterna Group, she wasn't a housewife. She was still a third-year college student.

Her major was traditional medicine, something she had been interested in for a long time.

Before she was ten, under Vivian's influence, she had already started reading ancient texts like "De Materia Medica" and "The Leechbook of Bald".

She had read these books cover to cover before she even started college.

However, it was still through an opportunity provided by Jeremy's mother, Wendy Greenfield, that she was able to establish Eterna Group.

During that period, Wendy was going through menopause and struggled with severe facial spots and frequent insomnia. She was very distressed.

Joanna created a mask using a blend of over a dozen herbs according to Wendy's symptoms and also made a concoction to help with her insomnia.

To everyone's surprise, both treatments were remarkably effective.

After several uses, Wendy's facial spots faded significantly. After ten treatments, they completely disappeared without any side effects or pain. Her insomnia also improved greatly.

Wendy was thrilled and began recommending Joanna's products to other wealthy women.

These women had no shortage of money. When it came to products that promised to improve their skin and health, they were willing to spend lavishly.

Taking advantage of this, Joanna founded Eterna and developed a range of all-natural skincare, makeup, and wellness products targeted at wealthy women. She even offered personalized skincare products for individual needs, which made Eterna incredibly popular.

After Elliot finished his work report, he suddenly asked, "You've been hiding for so long. When are you going to show yourself, big boss?"

Joanna took the last sip of her soup. Smiling, she shook her head. "Not yet."

Apart from Elliot, Skylar, and senior executives at Eterna Group, no one knew she was the owner.

Back then, she didn't even tell her first client, Wendy, the truth. The company wasn't registered under her name as well. She only held 89% of the shares.

Now, after nearly five years of growth, Eterna Group was valued at over 10 billion dollars and was still rapidly expanding.

"Makes sense." Elliot raised an eyebrow. "What if Jeremy, that blind fool, finds out and regrets it?"

Joanna smiled but didn't reply. She wasn't afraid of Jeremy regretting anything. She simply didn't want to create more trouble at this time.

Besides, her doctor had advised her to rest more and avoid too much activity this week.

After spending most of the day in her apartment, Wendy called around 5:00 pm.

"Yes, Wendy?"

"Joanna, I heard you're pregnant with twins! Is that true?" Wendy's voice was filled with rare affection and excitement.

Wendy had two sons, and Jeremy was the younger one. Her eldest son was named Joseph Hansen.

All the Hansens had high hopes for Joseph, and he was already designated as the heir to the Hansen Group. However, five years ago, he never returned due to a skiing accident.

The Hansen family was now left with only Jeremy. Even though Wendy hadn't approved of Joanna and Jeremy's marriage at first, she had always hoped to have a grandchild after their wedding.

Since Joseph's death anniversary was coming up, Wendy and Jeremy's father, Sean Hansen, had traveled abroad recently to the place where Joseph's accident occurred.

Joanna hadn't wanted to disturb them, so she hadn't told them about her pregnancy yet. Now that Wendy was asking, she couldn't hide it anymore.

"Yes," she replied.

"Thank God! You're finally pregnant!" Wendy exclaimed with joy. "Sean and I just got home. Come over for dinner tonight. Let me see my precious grandchildren!"

Joanna hesitated at the thought of her current relationship with Jeremy. She almost wanted to refuse, but Wendy had explicitly mentioned wanting to see her grandchildren, not Joanna herself.

The Hansen family had been kind to her, and Jeremy's grandmother, Anthea Mier, treated her like her own granddaughter. No matter how strained things might become between her and Jeremy, she could never see herself opposing the Hansen family.

"Okay," she replied.

After a quick tidy-up, Joanna had Elliot's driver, Dominic Lyons, take her to the Hansen residence.

She and Jeremy arrived nearly at the same time.

As she got out of the car, she looked up and saw Jeremy standing at the top of the stairs. His tall, slender figure stood there as the sunset bathed him in warm, soft light. Yet, the coldness and sharpness around him couldn't be masked.

Ten years ago, it was another sunset-filled evening when Vivian had taken her to visit Anthea. At that time, Jeremy had also stood before her and bathed in the same golden light, but his expression had been warm and friendly.

Now, he was narrowing his eyes at Joanna, and there was a deep, simmering anger in his gaze.

Joanna glanced at him briefly before looking away. After giving Dominic some instructions, she walked up the stairs into the house.

As she walked past Jeremy, he suddenly grabbed her wrist. His hand was large, strong, and warm, just as it had always been.

His slender fingers were impeccably clean and elegantly shaped, exuding a cool restraint that carried an understated yet captivating allure—just like the man himself.

Jeremy's gaze darkened as he looked at her. "What's wrong? Elliot didn't drive you here?" His words were laced with biting sarcasm.

His sharp and icy eyes swept over Joanna's stomach. "The children are his, aren't they?"

Joanna lifted her head and met his eyes. Since she was wearing flat shoes, her five-foot-six frame made her appear nearly a full head shorter than Jeremy as she stood before him.

The warm, gentle glow of the sunset was breathtakingly beautiful. Yet the mocking expression on Jeremy's cold face cut into her like a blade.

"We'll find out when they're born, won't we?" Joanna replied calmly.

Jeremy sneered, and his expression suddenly turned frosty. "Don't waste my time, Joanna."