He Chose Her On Our Wedding Night So I Took Everything Chapter 02
When I didn’t answer right away, Eric must have assumed I was about to back down.
“Alright. Go back to the master bedroom. I’ll come over as soon as Maddie calms down.”
I looked at him. “And what are you coming over for?”
He paused, his expression hardening with impatience.
“Everyone here tonight is a friend of the family or a client. Don’t give them gossip for tomorrow’s brunch.”
Madison peeked out from behind him.
“Don’t worry, Elodie. Eric will definitely spend tonight with you. He just has to wait until I fall asleep.”
“I can’t sleep in a strange place, and I’m not used to being without him.”
“It’s been like this for years. You can’t just show up and expect everything to change.”
She said it so matter-of-factly, as if I were the one making an outrageous demand.
I asked her, “If I’m the outsider, then what are you?”
She didn’t answer, just tightened her arms around Eric’s.
“Eric, she wants to know what I am to you. You tell her.”
Eric’s tone was placating, but he made no move to pull his arm away.
“You’re my little troublemaker. Happy now?”
Madison’s smile was instantaneous.
“You hear that, Elodie? You should ask him. In this house, his answer is the only one that matters.”
It finally clicked. The Hawthorne family didn’t care how I felt.
All they cared about was whether I would swallow my pride for the sake of this marriage.
I turned to leave, but Eric’s voice stopped me.
“Stop.”
He stepped in front of me, lowering his voice.
“I know you don’t like it, but Maddie was sick a lot as a kid, and she’s used to depending on me. You’ll be seeing her around. You have to learn to accept her.”
I laughed.
“And how far does that acceptance go? Accepting her hiding in our closet in a nightgown, or accepting you locking yourself in a guest room with her on our wedding night?”
His expression soured.
“Don’t make it sound so ugly.”
Madison walked over, pressing herself against his side.
“Don’t be mad at Elodie. She just doesn’t know you yet. We can help her understand over time.”
Then she turned to me again.
“I’ll let you have him tonight. But after this, Eric has to give me at least one day every weekend. That’s not too much to ask, is it?”
The maid’s head was still bowed, her shoulders trembling with suppressed laughter.
And Eric only sighed.
“Maddie, stop talking.”
“Why can’t I? You promised me that getting married wouldn’t change anything between us.”
He didn’t deny it.
That brief silence was all the answer I needed.
They looked like a couple who had just made up after a fight.
I was the one standing before them in a wedding dress, yet somehow, I was the intruder.
“Eric, cancel tomorrow’s appointment at the County Clerk’s Office.”
He frowned, then a humorless smile touched his lips.
“The wedding already happened. You want to back out now? Are you really going to make both our families explain this to every guest who was here tonight?”
“Yes.”
I met his gaze calmly.
“A ceremony isn’t a legal marriage. We don’t have a license. This ends here.”
“The partnership Carrington was preparing will also be re-evaluated. Without a marriage, those arrangements are off the table.”
The smile vanished from his face.
“You’re threatening me with the deal?”
Madison’s smile disappeared too.
“Eric agreeing to marry you was more than enough of a leg up. Don’t start acting like you’re owed something.”
I glanced at her, not bothering to explain.
Arguing with them about respect would be a waste of my time.