The following day, the sun shone brightly. Jack immediately sent Ace all the pieces of information he had on Joanna. After reading it, Ace was shocked, and he had a new perception of her.
They had been married for three years and were about to get a divorce, and only now did he find out that his wife was the infamous genius that graduated from Starlight University.
She skipped two grades in high school and entered Starlight University without needing to take the exam. She studied Chemistry and Technology, majoring in Biomedical Engineering and Physics .
She became the lecturer's assistant in her second year, and whenever she was in class, it would be full of students. During her second year of postgraduate, she went to Asken as an exchange student and continued to have exceptional grades.
However, everything changed when she was in her final year.
The Pierces faced insolvency and declared bankruptcy. Her parents committed suicide because they were unable to face reality. The former member of The Great Eight of the City had fallen and gained a slew of enemies.
Afterward, she became an orphan under Maurice's care where Ace rushed home under the threat of Old Mr. Moran and immediately married Joanna.
He wasn't happy with the arranged marriage, so he hated her.
He still remembered the first time he met her. It was raining. She was wearing all white, and a white flower was hanging on her ear. She looked petite as she didn't speak a word with a solemn face.
Ace didn't like women who were quiet and solemn, so his first impression of her wasn't great.
As a result, he had never been interested in his wife in the previous three years. He obviously didn't want to know her. He pretended to be a loving pair with her whenever he needed to attend an event, but they had no further interaction.
It was undeniable that Joanna carried out her responsibilities as Mrs. Moran. She was respectful and attentive to his grandparents. Even though she had been practically a widow for three years, she didn't get involved in any scandals.
If it weren't for Alice, he wouldn't have minded going on with this marriage.
After Joanna woke up, she sat up from the bed and stretched her body. Last night was her most peaceful sleep in the past three years.
She looked around the room and didn't see Ace, and she instantly let out a breath of relief.
"He finally left!"
However, her hopes were crushed when she walked out of her room and saw him sitting on the sofa.
"Why are you still here? I thought, as the CEO of Moran Group, you should be busy." She said, her expression filled with
disdain as she looked at the man.
He put down the newspaper and looked at her calmly before saying, "Have some breakfast."
Only then did she see there were all sorts of food on the dining table.
She felt conflicted.
Before this, she would be so happy, but now it was too late. It only felt funny seeing him do all this.
"Ace, you really don't have to." She looked at him calmly as she said coldly, "First of all, we are married by contract, so no feelings are involved. Second, we're about to get a divorce soon. Third, I think Alice needs this breakfast more than me."
"To conclude, I hope you know your limits as my soon-to-be ex-husband. Please keep a distance from me and don't bother me anymore, so people don't misunderstand us."
Her words were blunt to the point that it might have hurt him.
However, he wasn't mad at her.
He stood up from the sofa and slowly approached her. In the still and silent air, they gazed at each other. He was taller than her, so his aura felt greater, as if he was suffocating her.
"So… Have you misunderstood something?" his voice was cold as he looked at her and asked.
Joanna subconsciously pursed her lips but didn't answer him, thinking to herself, 'You're aware of what I misunderstood. Why are you pretending not to know?"
Ace's dark eyes focused on her, and he said, "I don't care what you misunderstood me, but I don't want you overthinking things. I'm doing all this to thank you for saving me. Besides that, I have no other intentions."
After hearing this, she laughed mockingly at herself.
She knew she had read too much into his actions.
He had never liked her in the past three years, so it was impossible that he had feelings for her now!
"That's good." She relaxed instantly and joked, "After the divorce, we won't see each other anymore."
Ace merely pressed his lips together and didn't say a word. He was thinking of the same thing, but he didn't feel happy when he heard her say it.
Joanna rolled up her sleeves, pointed at her injury, and said, "See, my injury is healing. I can take care of myself. You can leave now."
He looked at the scar and asked indifferently, "Where's the medicine? I'll put it on for you."
"No. It's not necessary. I can do it on my own."
Ace didn't care at all about her refusal. He found the medicine and applied it to her. The scar was longer and deeper than he had thought. He couldn't imagine how painful it was for her when she had gotten this wound.
"Ah! That hurt." Joanna hissed through gritted teeth.
"Bear with it…" His movements were gentle as he blew on her scar and said coldly, "If you're scared of the pain, why bother acting strong and being the hero?"
"Hey! I got hurt because of you!"
She was so mad that she wanted to hit him!
"Don't do stupid things like this anymore. I'm not worth the risk," He looked at her scar and said in a hoarse voice.
He was naturally strong, so he didn't like owing another person a favor.
His phone rang when he rubbed the medicine on her wound. Joanna saw the name on the screen and noted it was Alice calling him.
She asked him, "Aren't you going to pick up the call?"
Ace hesitated for a while before putting down the medicine and picking up the call.
"Ace, where are you? Can you come to the hospital for a while? I want to apply for a checkup card, but they need your signature as the baby's father."
Her coquettish voice wasn't loud, but Joanna heard her clearly.
"Okay. I'll come immediately."
There wasn't hesitation in his answer.
She could tell that he really cared about Alice and her child. At the thought of her two kids inside her tummy, she felt they would never get any love from their father.
The thought made her sad.
Ace was hesitant when he noticed the scar that was only partially covered with medication.
"It's okay. Go. She's waiting for you. I can do the rest."
"Are you sure?"
"It's only a scar. Not like I became cripple. Of course, I'm sure." Joanna replied, raising an eyebrow and laughing sarcastically, "If she knows you're here with your future ex-wife, she'll probably get upset. That wouldn't be good for the baby."
Her words made him a little worried. The baby was Dylan's only bloodline. He couldn't let anything happen to the
baby.
"I'll go now. Call me if you need anything."
After that, he grabbed his jacket and phone and left the house.
Instantly the house became cold once again.
Joanna froze in place for a while before laughing at herself.
'I've lost completely,' she thought to herself.
But then she gathered her feelings and decided it was all fine that he was gone since it meant she could finally be free to read books and practice yoga.
Just as she was excited to have her own time, the doorbell rang.
"Could he possibly return halfway?"
She opened the door with some anticipation but saw that the person standing outside was not someone she ever imagined turning up here.