Adie pouted and said firmly, 'From now on, I'll do my best to find Mommy a husband. He'll share Mommy's workload, love her, and protect her!"
Joanna felt her heart warm when she heard this, and she couldn't resist kissing Adie's cheek. "Adie, you're the best, but work isn't that tough, and I have you to love and protect me. That's more than enough, so you don't have to find someone for me."
"It's different!" Adie clenched his fists, trying to get his point across. "I'm your son, not your husband. What you need now is a husband, and that's why I need to find you one."
Joanna stared at Adie, at a loss for words.
Clara burst into laughter, and grinned at Joanna. "In my opinion, you should just let Adie find you a man. If he does find you a knight in shining armor, he'd also be finding a father for himself. Wouldn't that be killing two birds with one stone? I'm sure Adie's judgment is better than yours; whoever he chooses can't possibly be any worse than a certain someone, don't you think?"
Joanna didn't take what Adie said seriously and nodded absently. "Alright, Adie. I'm counting on you to find the man of my dreams. I'm very vain, so I need a man who's tall and handsome. Good luck!"
"Don't worry, Mommy, I'm vain too. I'll definitely find you a handsome man!" The two bumped fists in agreement.
Joanna had a little too much to drink last night, and she was having a pounding headache. While Adie watched cartoons in the living room, she entered the kitchen to make herself some soup for her hangover. She cut a pear into pieces, soaked some white fungus, and added both into a pot of water. She then let it simmer for an hour.
Clara entered the kitchen with a bowl of ice cream, and leaned against the kitchen island as she said to Joanna, "Joanna, to be honest, I think breaking up with my brother was a good move for you. You didn't love each other, so instead of getting married, you two should just remain friends. It's better for both of you that way."
Joanna smiled faintly as she cut a watermelon. "I know there isn't a man alive who will love me and my children more than your brother does.
Losing him was my loss, but I genuinely hope he can find a woman who deserves him. As for myself, I don't plan on getting married. Being single isn't that bad. I don't have to deal with people I don't like, and I'll have so much more freedom. All I want to do is to raise my children. Once they're old enough to have their own families, I can do whatever I want. I'll be able to travel the world, read books, or even become a nun!"
"Become a nun?" Clara was taken by surprise. "You're barely thirty! You don't have to get married, but you can still get into relationships. There are plenty of fish in the water!"
Joanna focused on cutting the watermelon, and just smiled without saying anything.
"In my opinion, the male escort from last night wasn't too bad. At the very least, he can make you happy. You don't have to be stressed all the time…" Clara recalled how Joanna had screamed for the male escort from below the stage last night.
She just wanted Joanna to feel young and free like that again
Clara wholeheartedly believed that life should be lived to the fullest, without stress or misery. That was all she wanted for her best friend. At the very least, she didn't want Joanna to give up on romance at the young age of thirty all because of a selfish scumbag!
'Isaac has another performance in a few days, so why don't we go back then and have a good time? Also, I heard that The Blue Inn hires handsome new performers every few days or so. They always fight for the top spot, so if you get bored of Isaac, we can always find you someone else. You know, I think we should try to view relationships the way men do. We should only care about their appearance, and never get emotionally invested. That way, well never get hurt, right?"
Joanna chuckled, her eyes gleaming with mirth. "Clara, what happened to you? In the past, all you talked about was undying love; you'd even pray for a man who loved you with all his heart. How did you come to this sudden realization?"
"Well, I guess it was when I got fooled by that scumbag." Clara let out a long sigh.
"William is a pretty good actor. He was playing me like a fiddle the whole time! Did you say that poison was fake? Why didn't it kill him? I can only blame myself for not shooting him and killing him back then!" Clara growled, stomping her foot in frustration.
"Alright, don't get upset. I think he's realized what he's done wrong, and he risked his life to make up for it. If you still can't move on, give him another chance. You don't have to worry about me -1 won't mind." Joanna could tell that Clara still hadn't moved on despite how much she claimed she hated William.
That's because the opposite of loving someone wasn't hatred, it was indifference.
The more Clara said she hated him, the more obvious it was that she loved him. William still had an important place in her heart, and his betrayal had hurt her deeply. However, Joanna knew Clara was a devoted friend, and she would feel bad getting back with William after what he did to Joanna; that was why Clara had cut off all ties with William.
'Fat chance! I've seen through his facade, and I can't trust him anymore. With a place like The Blue Inn, I can meet handsome, young men every night. Why would I give up all that for one guy?" Clara hugged Joanna's arm like a child. "I don't care, you're going there with me again! Friends have to share good things with each other, and looking at attractive men is one of those things!"
Joanna couldn't say no. "Alright, alright. I'll go with you."
After drinking her soup, Joanna switched on her computer to settle some matters related to Stellar Group. Stellar Group was now entering a period of rapid growth, and it needed more investments. However, the company was seriously lacking finances. With their source of capital cut off, she needed to find an alternative, or their four years of hard work would go down the drain.
Liam had been contributing far too much over the years, so Joanna was too embarrassed to ask the Blackwood family for more financial aid. Additionally, the families in the City that were capable of offering help were all on the Moran family's side. Naturally, they wouldn't help the Moran family's rival.
'Ahh, what a pain!' Joanna grumbled inwardly.
Suddenly, Joanna received a call, and she answered it cautiously.
The voice on the other end of the line was soft and magnetic. "Been a while, hasn't it? I heard you're in need of cash.