Chapter 2

"Cora, aren't you going too far? We haven't even had the ceremony yet—how could you take off your veil?"

Peter Gilbert, his face pale after I stepped on him, demanded of me.

"Because I felt like it!"

I threw the bridal veil on the ground and pointed at the contract.

"Peter, get this eyesore out of here now, or else—"

"Or else what?"

Ada Dickerson was so angry she stood up from her chair.

"Cora Fox, I'm still here. It's not your place to run the Gilbert family yet."

As she spoke, she shot a look at the men standing beside her.

Peter's brother Asher and a man I didn't recognize walked toward me.

"Cora Fox, on such a joyous day, you just have to make everyone miserable."

"You think the Gilbert family is as ill-mannered as you?"

"The Gilbert family has its own rules."

The words had barely left his mouth when two men pinned me down hard.

"If you sign, the ceremony goes ahead as planned, and this marriage can still happen."

Ada's face was vicious, and every word, in and out, reeked of doing me a favor.

"And if I don't sign?"

"Don't sign? If you don't sign, don't even think about setting foot in the Gilbert house today."

Peter looked at me, his eyes full of displeasure. "Cora, it's just signing a document. Do you really have to embarrass my mother today?"

"My mother put so much care into this wedding, our whole family is looking forward to you joining us, and you're going to be this ungrateful?"

I'm ungrateful?

I paid for the wedding hotel. The bridal car fleet came from my own company.

All his family did was set up a shabby table at the family chapel.

And now somehow I'm the ungrateful one.

"Cora, give it a year. If the two of us both try harder, we'll have a child by then."

Looking at that face of his that I found so repulsive.

I said flatly, "Peter, are you blind? Why don't you open your eyes and read what the second clause says?"

He glanced at it. "Cora, Jayden is the eldest son of our Gilbert family. When he turns ten, giving him one house is no big deal."

Hearing that light, careless tone of his, I smiled coldly.

"You have more houses than you could ever use—what's wrong with giving one to our Jayden? And if you really can't have a son, Jayden will take care of you in your old age."

Chloe Abbott proudly stroked the face of the five-year-old giant baby who could only babble.

"No thanks, I'm not interested. My houses will never go to him, and I don't need his care."

"Besides, are you sure that a giant baby like this, who's five and still can't talk and only babbles, is going to take care of me someday?"

"You—Cora Fox, what are you spouting? Our Jayden is just a late bloomer."

Chloe flushed red, pointing at me and cursing.

"He'd better be—he'd better not really be a giant baby who can only babble."

Smack. My left cheek burned, stinging.

I was stunned.

Peter glared at me viciously.

"Cora Fox, how can you be so vicious? Jayden is only five. I won't let you insult him like that."

Looking at this man I had loved for five years.

On our wedding day, forcing me to sign a childbearing contract.

Splitting off my house, and now even raising a hand against me.

I stared straight at him.

There wasn't a trace of love in his eyes as he looked at me.

Instead, there was only more disgust.

Fine. If that's how it is.

Then I don't need to agonize over it anymore.