Chapter 4: Arranged marriage

People often said that marriage was the grave of love, the final destination of all relationships. What about an arranged marriage without love?

It was the grave of life. There was no way out, no way back.

Doris awoke from her nightmare, her spine dripping with sweat. She dreamed that she slipped and fell into the abyss, kept falling and falling. Both body and soul were suspended, being dragged by invisible forces to bottomless hell.

She didn't seem to be fully awake yet, her big, watery eyes looked around bewildered. Obviously, Ethan was no longer here. They had not slept together for a long time. They lived in one room but no longer shared the same bed. He rarely came home, and when he did, he also stayed in the study room. This spacious bedroom was left alone for her to live in.

Since when did their relationship become worse like that?

She had no idea.

Doris sat leaning against the headboard, subconsciously recalling what happened three years ago.

This marriage started off very vaguely.

That year, she was just dumped by her first love, Daniel. He went to study abroad without saying goodbye, leaving only a cold farewell message. At that time, she was deeply excruciating and missed him. The love between the two was so pure and sweet that Doris was extremely unforgettable. Three months later, when she learned that Daniel had a new girlfriend, she gave up her love. Her heart fell into a state of extreme despair. One day, she was walking on the street lifelessly, accidentally getting into a traffic accident. Paul Hall, Ethan's father, saved her and brought her to the emergency room.

When she regained consciousness, Paul asked her all sorts of questions, then suddenly burst into tears. After then, she learned that Paul and her mother had an old story, that he was her mother's ex-lover. Paul told her about his unfinished love affair with her mother, expressing deep regret at the loss of her mother. He said that he wanted her to marry his son to make up for their unsuccessful predestined relationship. He also guaranteed her life would be happy and worry-free.

Being abandoned by the person she loved without any reason, at this time, Doris was tremendously depressed and hopeless with love, so she agreed with Paul. Moreover, he saved her life, she decided to use this way to repay him.

After being discharged from the hospital, Paul took her to the Hall mansion, only then did she realize how rich the family was. Hall mansion looks like an old-fashioned castle. Although not greedy for wealth, Doris was also overwhelmed by the luxury and elegance of the palace.

It was also the first time she saw Ethan.

When she entered the living room, he was lazily sitting on the sofa, resting his chin with one hand, squinting at her. Doris had a cold personality but also blushed at his intense gaze. Even so, she had no particular feelings for him. She just felt that he was very handsome, had a very good figure, and had a musical voice.

Paul introduced the two to each other, the moment Ethan shook her hand, he gently squeezed her hand with a very shady gesture. Doris pulled her hand back in panic, and Ethan laughed teasingly at her embarrassment.

"Father, I didn't expect you to find me such an exquisite bride." Ethan used a sarcastic tone to talk to Paul.

"Son, watch your manners," Paul replied sternly.

Ethan shrugged, tilting his head to stare at her again.

Doris was not a talkative person, during the meeting that day, the number of times she spoke up was counted on her fingers, only when someone asked that she answered. If someone asked her about her feelings, she really felt nothing. At that time, her heart was hurt to death, indifferently watching everything that happened to her life, as if it was not her own marriage.

After all, she was too young, after being hurt by her first love, she even thought that she would never love anyone else in this life, so she thought it was good to marry Ethan. He was both beautiful and rich, she didn't need to worry about the next half of her life.

She didn't need love, only peace.

However, she was wrong. Not everything happened the way she wanted.

Doris closed her eyes, tried to escape from the memory, letting out a small sigh. She moved her body. Thanks to the housemaid, she had been washed clean after making love, so except for her tired waist, other parts of her body were not too uncomfortable. She slowly got out of bed, went to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face, and then went into the private dressing room to change clothes.

The first year after their marriage, Ethan frantically collected clothes for her, enough to wear all year without coinciding. Her clothes, shoes and jewelry almost filled the room. Later, Ethan's feelings faded, he no longer cared about her stuff, ending by giving her an infinite card to spend on her own. Doris glanced over at a small corner of the room, where his suits were kept.

He rarely came back, so the clothes here were not even a tenth of the clothes placed in the office at his corporation. Doris looked at them for a moment and then turned her face away. Today she chose a white, knee-length two-piece dress with a lightweight cardigan of the same color, and sneakers. The jewelry he bought she never took the initiative to touch, unless she met a special occasion such as a ball, a meeting in the Hall mansion, etc. She didn't even want to look at them.

She was not used to the luxurious life of the upper class at all.

Doris walked downstairs, the servants were already waiting to serve. She walked over to the dining table for breakfast, and the butler Edgar gently spoke to her, “Madame, are you going out now? Shall I tell the driver to prepare the car?"

She stopped moving her hand and reluctantly replied, "Ed, you don't need to talk to me so politely. Didn't I already say, you can just call me Doris?"

Edgar had been the butler at this mansion since she and Ethan were married. His personality is very peaceful and calm, giving her a very close feeling. When she first came to this place, she was not used to having servants, but without telling Ethan due to her shyness. At that time, Edgar was able to detect her uncomfortable feelings, reducing the number of servants in the house. Later, they showed up only when she needed to, cooking and cleaning the house at a fixed time, then retreating to the servants' quarters. Doris greatly appreciated him.

Edgar smiled, “Mrs. Hall, would you like to come out?”

Doris sighed at Edgar's respectful attitude, he was the same age as her father, and she didn't want to make things difficult for him.

“Yes, I would.”

Edgar immediately informed the driver to prepare the car.