“I’ll look for Wilhelm.” Shane understood what she needed to do and spared her the trouble by cutting across her.
Wilhelm was the elder brother of the princess and the original owner of the diamond mine that Shane had bought.
Natalie knew that he had just given her leave to speak to Joyce privately by picking that moment to have a conversation with Wilhelm. Her heart burst with gratitude for Shane. “Thank you darling. I’ll make it up to you tonight.”
A sliver of excitement flashed across Shane’s eyes at Natalie’s promise as he nodded eagerly.
Natalie waved at him as he disappeared into the crowd before turning away to the corner where her friends were.
“Joyce,” Natalie called.
Joyce jumped and looked up at the sound of her name but quickly returned to assume her defeated posture.
“She has been like this since I’ve found her.” Lina rubbed her temples in consternation. “Nothing I said made any difference.”
“Thank you, Lina.” Natalie gave her a grateful smile.
Lina waved her hand as if to say that it was no trouble. “Don’t worry about it. She’s too hung up on Stanley, that’s all. I couldn’t understand why she would let one man cause her so much pain and misery. It’s a good thing you’re here, Nat. I need a drink. You have a go at talking some sense into her.”
“Go on, Lina.”
Natalie took her spot at the vacated seat next to Joyce.
Turning to Joyce, she said, “Joyce, did Stanley say something to you?”
Joyce nodded mournfully.
“What did he say?” Natalie raised her eyebrows curiously.
“I went up to him earlier when I first spotted him with Annie. He told me that I had nothing to do with him and that I had no business asking about his affairs. And then he told me to get lost.” Joyce gave a self-pitying laugh.
So that was what happened. No wonder she cried.
When Joyce had visited Stanley abroad, she had already met Annie as one of his acquaintances. Even that did not make her as upset as running into them at the party.
Being told to get lost and not wanting to have anything to do with her would hurt the heart of any woman.
Natalie pulled Joyce over tenderly to lean her against her shoulders. “Stop thinking about it. We need to change how Stanley treats you, but if you feel sad about it now, how will you be able to handle it in the future?”
“Nat, I’m not just upset with how he had treated me,” Joyce said as she sobbed softly. “It hurt watching how he treats Annie. When I met her the last time I went abroad to visit Stanley, he treated her very coldly which was what gave me the confidence to allow her to care for him, because I didn’t think that anything would happen between them. But this time…”
What happened this time around had really frightened Joyce.
It was obvious that Stanley’s attitude towards Annie had warmed up considerably since Joyce had last met either of them. Stanley even went to the point of passing that remark that he would consider going out with Annie.
Something like that would definitely have caused her worry and anxiety.
Natalie fell silent, being at a loss for words.
If truth be told, the way in which Stanley had treated Annie surprised her too.
What has happened between the two of them?
“Nat, what do you think I should do?” Joyce looked up to gaze at Natalie with bloodshot eyes. “He has loved you before, not to mention treating Annie differently than how he does with other women. But I am the one who has been with him the longest. Why wouldn’t he even consider me?”
Natalie parted Joyce’s hair, she could feel the sorrow of her heartbroken friend. “Because there are still some misunderstandings between the two of you.”
“Misunderstandings!” Joyce choked as she sniffled. “Yes, those d*mn misunderstandings! I have explained it to him so many times but he refuses to believe me! Why?” Joyce buried her head as fresh tears overwhelmed her once more.
Natalie stroked her hair, as she did not know what else to say.
Stanley had blamed the death of his parents on Joyce and her family. Since then, he had held a grudge against the Rivers. Under no circumstances would he be compelled to believe the word of his sworn enemy.
Joyce had a long way to go if she was determined to earn Stanley’s trust and resolve the misunderstandings between them.
Unless fresh evidence was unearthed to prove conclusively that the Rivers had nothing to do with the death of his parents, Stanley would be living under the belief that Joyce and her family were involved for the rest of his life.
Natalie had decided to ask Connor to investigate the matter. There was a chance, however slim it may be, that such evidence could be discovered.
