Love Rents A Room
Chapter 89: Taking Action

Chapter 89: Taking Action

Joanne sat there crying for a while, but eventually, she just got tired. What was the point? Tears wouldn’t fix anything just like in the past. She had too much to do, too many responsibilities. She had to pull herself together.

Wiping her face, she pulled up the security feed for her company. JD had gone to work. He had isolated himself in his cabin, his expression unreadable, lost in thought. At least he wasn’t avoiding her entirely.

But watching from afar wouldn’t solve anything, either. She needed to talk to him.

Just as she got to the door to check the faulty security camera, Fiona’s car pulled up in the driveway.

"I come bearing ice cream!" Fiona announced, stepping out of the car with two oversized tubs in her hands.

Joanne sighed but opened the door for her. She didn’t know how Fiona managed to sense when she was falling apart, but she was grateful for the company. What’s a better medicine for heartbreak than ice cream?

Joanne didn’t bother with a bowl, just grabbed a spoon and dug straight into the tub. "You’re not having any?" she asked between mouthfuls.

Fiona shook her head, a bit put off but Joanne stuffing the ice cream. "I’m good."

This morning, Fiona had came across that video Nina had posted. She showed Liam that video. He wasn’t bothered that he broke up with Joanne; he was sure Joanne and Jonathan wouldn’t work out. But Jonathan breaking her heart by cheating on her... That he couldn’t accept. Fiona had to calm him down before he left to pounce on Jonathan Meyer.

She knew Joanne would be suffering alone and so she came here. To be honest, she didn’t care much if Liam punched Jonathan in the face. He deserved it for hurting Joanne.

And watching Joanne, Fiona was glad she came here.

"Nina is a b*tch to post that video..." Fiona said carefully.

Joanne blinked. "A video?"

Fiona hesitated. "The breakup. With Jonathan."

The spoon in Joanne’s hand froze midway to her mouth. The breakup?

She had been so overwhelmed by JD, by everything, that she had completely forgotten about that mess. But what video did that ingrate post?

"What’s her handle?" she asked, grabbing her phone.

Fiona exhaled. "Joanne, don’t—"

But Joanne was already typing. She wasn’t following Nina, but it didn’t take long to find the video. It was trending.

She watched the video. She didn’t have to watch it in full because she was there. She went through the comments.

Fiona groaned. "For the love of God, do not read the comments."

Joanne ignored her, scrolling anyway. She expected to see people gossiping, taking sides. But then she saw something worse—people linking the scandal to her farm. To Shamrock Logistics. And, of course, to Meyer Steel.

Her mind switched gears instantly.

She checked the stock market. Meyer Steel’s shares were plummeting. Well, maybe he deserved it a little. He could handle it.

Her company wasn’t public, and her clients weren’t the type to care about personal drama, so she wasn’t too worried about that.

"But Charlotte..." Joanne said. Her face turned red out of anger.

What if she saw this? Even if she didn’t see it, someone else would tell her about it. What would she think of her father?

Her blood boiled.

How cruel and senseless could Nina be?

She dialed Jason immediately.

"Nina has one hour to take that video down," she ordered, her voice razor-sharp. "If she refuses, withhold her severance and get the legal team involved. I want her gone—effective immediately. Get legal to discuss further actions."

Jason stammered a response, but Joanne had already ended the call. Her mind was already busy plotting revenge against Nina for this mistake. She intended to sue her into obscurity for ruining her reputation and jeopardizing her company. The only way Nina would be able to survive was if she left the state. Otherwise...

Joanne sighed. How good was Jason with this? She would’ve trusted JD to handle this, but...

Wait.

JD had seen the video.

That’s how he knew about Jeffrey Winchester. That’s why he had looked at her the way he did.

A wave of nausea hit her.

He must have thought she was bragging. That she was some shallow, money-hungry woman who played with rich men and changed her affection from one man to another without any thoughts.

Her vision blurred. Her hands trembled as she set the phone down.

It hurt. It really hurt.

Fiona rubbed Joanne’s shoulders gently as she started to shake.

"Fiona... I ruined everything..." Joanne whispered, her voice breaking as she leaned into her.

Fiona held her close, letting her cry it out. She admired Joanne—not just for how strong she was, but for how quickly she had taken control of the situation despite her pain. Even in the middle of all this, she had been sharp enough to fire Nina and contain the scandal before it spiraled further.

But then, as Fiona glanced down, something caught her eye...

A hickey.

Her eyes widened.

"Holy f*ck!" Fiona hissed. "Did you sleep with your paying guest?"

She knew she was right.

Joanne stiffened, looking up in shock. "How did you—"

Before she could finish, fresh tears welled in her eyes, and her face crumpled.

Fiona sighed, rubbing her back. "Come on... it’ll be okay. He’ll understand. Don’t worry."

Maybe it was the way Fiona said it, or maybe Joanne just wanted to believe her, but something about those words made her feel a little lighter.

But she didn’t want to stay here. She couldn’t sit still in this house, drowning in emotions.

She needed the wind in her hair. She needed to move.

Sniffing back her tears, she stood up, determination creeping into her features. "I need to check the camera."

Fiona didn’t stop her as she grabbed her jacket and headed out toward the barn. She watched as Joanne saddled up Mr. Darcy, the familiar routine grounding her.

With a deep sigh, Fiona sat back against the couch.

This morning, Liam had asked her something strange.

"Do you think the Jeffrey who is staying at Joanne’s house is the Jeffrey Winchester?"

It had caught her off guard. Then, he had asked her to look up Jeffrey Winchester online, just to be sure.

But there was nothing.

Someone had scrubbed Jeffrey’s existence from the internet.

There were articles about Jeffrey, Philip Winchester’s grandson, about his inheritance, about the powerful empire he might one day take over, but no pictures, no trace of who he really was.

It was bizarre.

And judging by JD’s reaction today...

Was Liam onto something?

Fiona was lost in thought, her fingers absently scrolling through search results. Before she could dwell on it further, the sound of multiple cars pulling into Joanne’s driveway snapped her back to reality. She stood up cautiously and moved toward the window, peering through the curtain.

A sleek, black Rolls-Royce led the convoy, followed by a tinted Range Rover. When they stopped, four suited men exited the second car—security detail.

From the Rolls-Royce emerged a sharply dressed older man, exuding power. Fiona recognized him instantly.

Philip Winchester.