Mr. Billionaire, I'm Back!

Chapter 58: The New Agreement

When Joanna awoke, she was surprised that Brian wasn't there, so she asked the nurse if she knew where he'd gone. The nurse said what she knew, and Joanna wasted no time in calling him.

She dialed his number from memory on the hospital phone by her bed, and she was utterly gobsmacked when a woman answered.

Elaine: "Hello? Are you looking for Brian?"

When Joanna heard Elaine's voice, she assumed that the woman was Brian's girlfriend, and she began to cry.

Elaine: "Hello? Is anyone there? If you are looking for Brian, please call him later. He's in the bathroom."

Joanna ended the call without saying a word to Elaine. She suddenly felt furious, and she was about to throw her phone against the wall when her doctor stepped into the room. When he saw how upset she was and what she was about to do, he said, "Oh, Joanna. Don't do that. I can see that you're upset, but if you destroy your phone, you'll regret it." He smiled disarmingly. "Here, I'll come and sit beside you, and you can tell me everything."

Joanna wiped the tears out of her eyes. "You would do that?" she asked.

The doctor's smile widened, and he said, "I would."

***

Elaine chuckled as she put Brian's phone back in his jacket pocket. Almost immediately after her task was complete, Brian returned. He smiled at her, and then he sat back on his chair and took his phone out of his pocket. Elaine knew that he was checking to see if he had received any messages from his little fool, and it made her want to throttle him. She thought - Brian, why are you so interested in that woman? I am right here, but you don't even see me!

Portor returned with their breakfast, and the doctor returned while they were eating. He examined the old man and declared, "I do believe that your Grandfather is out of the woods!"

Everyone was very relieved, and they thanked the doctor for everything that he'd done for them. They finished eating, and then Brian excused himself so that he could talk to Joanna with a little privacy. He returned to the designated area and dialed her number, but the call went straight to voice mail.

Brian felt that something was wrong, so he called the nurse at the hospital. When she answered, he said, "Hello, Miss. Please check if Joanna's awake."

"Miss Devine woke up very early," the nurse said, "and she was discharged an hour ago."

Brian frowned and hung up the phone without saying thank you or goodbye. Then he went to the parking lot, found his car, and drove to the Divine HQ. He stormed into the building, went straight to the executive clerk's desk, and said, "Hello. I'm here to meet Ms. Joanna Devine."

The executive clerk quickly checked Joanna's calendar, then she frowned and said, "Sir, I'm sorry, but Ms. Devine took a personal day. She is not in. Would you like to leave a message?"

Brian walked away without saying a word. Once he was on the street, he sent Danny a text message. It said: "I need Joanna's current location. Now! Find her and contact me ASAP!"

***

Betty walked into Ken's office and sat on the sofa. Ken was sitting behind his desk, and Joanna was standing near the window. Once Betty was settled, Ken turned to Joanna and said, "Now that we're all here, why don't you tell us what this is all about?"

Joanna smiled and said, "I'd like to wrap up some business."

Betty looked at her suspiciously. "What business?" she asked.

"I have two different divorce agreements," Joanna replied. "Why don't you guys take a look at them." She handed one to each of them, and then she said, "Once you're done with the one in your hand, switch."

Betty was surprised. She hadn't realized that their marriage was so far gone. "Is this necessary?" she asked. "Can things not be worked out between you?"

Joanna frowned and said, "Just read it."

Ironically, Betty was closer to Joanna that she was to Ken, so if Joanna said that it was over, she believed her.

The first agreement was the one that Ken had already seen, the one that would provide Joanna with 10% of Ken's shares. The second agreement was new. In it, Joanna agreed to walk away with nothing, but only if Ken agreed never to marry Jane Wilson. When Ken read the condition that had been added to the second agreement, he was furious. He thought - Who is she to tell me who I can and cannot be with?!?!?

After seeing the video of Jane and her lover at the Injoy Bar, there were so many things that Joanna had finally understood; most importantly, why Ken's Father hadn't wanted Jane to be a part of his family. Obviously, he had discovered that she was connected to Jared.

This must have been why he forced Ken to marry me – thought Joanna. It was his dying wish, and as long as she was married to him, the Green Family was safe from the Gross family. Unfortunately, Ken's Father underestimated Ken's feelings for Jane.

If Joanna retained 10% of Ken's shares, though, neither Jane nor the Gross family could completely take over Green Division Unlimited. Not surprisingly, Ken didn't see it that way, and after reading the agreement, he tore it into a million tiny pieces.

"I sense a problem," Joanna said lightly. "Maybe you can explain to me why you think that I should walk away from this marriage empty-handed…"

"I don't need to explain anything to you!" Ken growled. "And I am not going to turn away the love of my life for you!"

Joanna desperately wanted to tell Ken what she knew about Jane and Jared, but she didn't think he'd believe it. Suddenly, she thought of the video. She took a deep breath and said, "Jane isn't what she appears to be, and I can prove it." Then, before Ken could argue with her, she pulled out her phone. "I have something to show you."

Ken snarled and batted the phone out of her hand. "I don't care to see anything you have to show me!" he snapped. "Anything coming from you is bound to be full of lies!"

Betty frowned. She was disappointed by the way Ken was behaving. She knew that Joanna was a good person, and not at all the way her brother was making her out to be. She turned to Ken and said, "Ken, you aren't listening. I always told you that your stubbornness would get you into trouble, and this is exactly what I was talking about. Take a few deep breaths, and don't say anything else until you've given your words some actual thought."

Betty had hope that her little speech would help, but it only made Ken angrier. "Who's side are you on, anyway?" he spat the words at her. "You are my sister. Joanna is nobody to you!"

"Ken, shut up!" Betty shouted. "I am a grown-ass woman. You don't get to tell me what to think, and when you're wrong, I'm not going to pretend that you aren't!"

Ken paused for a moment, and then he sneered. "Typically, I value your opinion," he said. "But not this time. Not when it comes to Joanna. When it comes to Joanna, you're blinded by your friendship!"