Chapter 1 Matrilocal Son-In-Law

After getting drunk that one time, I, Andrea Slater, slept with Gideon Lane. After that, he became my husband, marrying into my family. No matter what my family and I did to humiliate and degrade him, he never got angry. Instead, he remained perfectly docile and virtuous. However, just as I was gradually falling for him, he asked me for a divorce. He used to be so meek and kind, but he seemed to have changed without warning. Something changed overnight, and my family fell to ruin while he made a fortune. The meek husband I once trampled under my feet suddenly turned into my sugar daddy. … Gideon was a matrilocal son-in-law. I'd originally liked his younger brother, Terence Lane. However, at a class reunion, Gideon had taken advantage of my drunkenness and slept with me. In the end, everyone had learned about that incident. My dad, Winston Slater, had no choice but to give Gideon my hand in marriage. There had been one condition, though—Gideon had to become our family's matrilocal son-in-law. Gideon was born from his father's first marriage. Ever since his father, Jefferson Lane, had divorced and remarried, he'd never cared much about Gideon. Meanwhile, my family had been quite well-off, and I'd been the apple of my parents' eyes since childhood. So of course, Jefferson had readily agreed when Gideon was asked to be our matrilocal son-in-law. That was how Gideon and I had gotten married. Still, I hadn't been happy about it. The man I'd truly liked was Terence, after all. Filled with resentment, I'd kept picking on Gideon. I'd told him to sleep on the floor and never allowed him to get in bed. During meals, my brother, Joshua Slater, and I had mocked and bullied Gideon all the time. We'd even tried to stop him from getting food on his plate. Whenever I'd gone out with my friends and it rained, Gideon would thoughtfully come over with an umbrella. Even so, I'd scolded him. Either way, scolding him had been the only way I could vent my dissatisfaction. Strangely enough, Gideon had been something of a weirdo. He hadn't seemed to have a temper at all. No matter what my family and I had done to bully and degrade him, he'd never gotten angry. He'd maintained his gentle demeanor like usual. Now that I thought about it, he was quite good-looking. However, when we had been in school, he'd just been too introverted. He'd had terrible academic scores too, and he'd kept having to repeat grades. He'd generally been a disappointment in school. Terence was a different story. He was outgoing and handsome, and he'd had excellent grades as well. He'd been very popular in school. When I thought of Gideon snuffing out the budding romance between Terence and I, I felt upset again. Once, I'd gotten out of bed in the middle of the night and approached Gideon, who'd been sleeping soundly on the floor. I'd kicked him awake, complaining that I was thirsty. He'd been efficient about it, instantly getting up to fetch some water for me. He'd even been quite thoughtful. It had been nearing fall back then, and he'd been smart enough to get me some warm water. However, when I'd recalled him taking advantage of me on the night of the class reunion, anger had welled up within me. Raising my hand, I'd splashed the whole glass of water on his face. Even so, Gideon hadn't expressed any anger. He'd simply gone to the bathroom in silence. I'd gazed at his tall and wordless silhouette, surprised at the hint of remorse creeping into my heart. However, as soon as I'd remembered how he'd destroyed my happiness for life, the remorse had instantly vanished. Hence, I'd bullied and disgraced him for three years. Still, many things could happen in three years. For example, my family had gone bankrupt, I'd fallen for him a little, and… he'd asked me for a divorce. When he handed the divorce agreement to me, he said that his first love had returned. I had to admit that I felt awful at that moment. I felt like a large hand was gripping my heart, suffocating me. Still, having been spoiled since young, I had a strong sense of pride. I didn't express any disappointment or sorrow in front of him. Instead, I signed the divorce agreement without hesitation. After I signed my name, his cool yet gentle voice rang out beside me. "Shall I send a driver for you?" I was stunned for a moment before coming to my senses. Right—even though I lived in this mansion for more than two decades, it was no longer my home now. My family went bankrupt, and we sold everything we owned. As for Gideon, the guy who'd played dirty tricks to marry me, the live-in husband my whole family despised—he'd quietly started a company behind our backs. His company was thriving, and he'd now purchased this mansion. However, I had no right to blame him, nor did I have the right to ask for a portion of his wealth. After all, he'd been hiding and enduring everything for years. He'd earned his wealth through his own efforts, and he'd never used a single cent of ours. He didn't push me to answer. Instead, he just gazed at me quietly. It was exactly his tenderness that reminded me of what I'd done to him in the past. I was surprised by the shame I felt. After all, I'd fallen to ruin, and he'd made a fortune. Under such circumstances, it only made sense for him to repay me double for the humiliation he'd suffered back then. Instead of doing that, he remained as gentle as he used to be. I hastily said, "It's okay. I can get home on my own." With that, I ran outside in a panic. Behind me, his calm voice sounded. "Did you come here for something?" "No." I dashed out of the yard without looking back. It started raining. I tightened my grip on the gift in my hands. Today was the third anniversary of our marriage. I'd never treated him well before, but after realizing my feelings toward him, I'd wanted to properly celebrate our anniversary for once. Unexpectedly, I'd been met with a divorce agreement instead. I smiled in self-deprecation as the rain poured onto me, drenching me. … The next day, I fell sick. I stayed in bed, and I couldn't get up at all. Then, I heard a noisy ruckus outside. As I dragged my weak body outside, I saw Dad sitting on the peeling balcony wall, announcing that he didn't want to live anymore. We were now living in an old residential building. It was a dirty and messy place, but the rent was extremely cheap. My mom, Melinda Brown, was sobbing tragically as she spoke to Dad. She said that if he jumped, she would jump as well. She didn't want to stay alive, either. Despite my splitting headache, I tried to coax Dad out of it. I reasoned that we'd only gone bankrupt—as long as we were still alive, we'd still have hope. All of a sudden, Dad stared intently at me. I felt my heart drop when I noticed his fiery gaze. Right after that, he said, "Can you please ask Gideon to help me out? He's our son-in-law, so I'm sure he'll help us." Mom hastily added, "That's right. We weren't exactly nice to him in the past, but I'm sure he'll lend us a helping hand for your sake. Just plead with him, okay?" I smiled bitterly. My parents still had no clue that he'd dumped me. I didn't want to plead with that man, but Dad threatened me with his life. In the end, I had no choice but to agree. Before I set out, Mom spent our last bit of money on an outfit for me. I was dressed in a deep V-neck dress paired with sexy leather heels with pointed toes. Mom even got someone to do my makeup beautifully. I was given a gorgeous makeover. I stared at my reflection in the mirror, a self-mocking smile flitting across my lips. I didn't look like I was going to plead with Gideon at all. Instead, I was all decked out as if I was about to seduce him. But even if I stood completely naked before him right now, he probably wouldn't spare me a glance. Even now, I couldn't understand why he'd slept with me on the night of the class reunion. Had he gotten drunk as well and mistaken me for his first love? I decided to ignore my troubling thoughts for now. I had to appease my parents, so I went to plead with Gideon, even if it was just for show. I received word that Gideon was at work right now, so I went to his company in the seductive getup. My parents stayed on the ground floor of the company, awaiting my "good news". As I gazed at the expectant looks on my parents' faces, I didn't know what to say for a moment. I only felt my heart aching. When I arrived at the floor Gideon was on, I received tons of judgmental stares. I could also hear harsh criticism and mockery all around me. I pretended not to hear them as I straightened my back and went right to Gideon's office. However, the second I saw him, I chickened out. I even shrank back a little. At that moment, he was sitting on the chair, looking all noble and dignified as he gazed at me with a smile. I wrung my fingers as I explained my intentions shamefully. His gaze suddenly darkened a little as he asked with a smile, "Why do you think I'd help your family?" I knew that I wouldn't succeed anyway, so I smiled wryly and said, "Just pretend I never came here, then." He was right. Judging by how we'd treated him back then, we should be grateful that he hadn't already sought revenge on us. He wouldn't possibly help us out. How haughty could I have been to come here and plead with him? The more I thought about it, the more embarrassed I felt. I wanted to run away, but he called out to me. "But tell me, what are you giving me in return? If the price is right for me, I don't mind helping your family out a little." I was stunned. I racked my brain for ideas, but I couldn't come up with anything I could give him in return. My body? Ha! If he actually had any desire toward me, he'd had all the chances in the world back when we'd been married for three years and spent countless nights in the same bedroom. However, in those three years, he'd never even gotten close to me. I lowered my head, saying in embarrassment, "Just pretend I was never here." To my surprise, Gideon suddenly walked toward me. He was a whole head taller than me as he stood before me. He leaned in a little and let out a low chuckle in my ear. "With an outfit like that, why are you even pretending to be modest?" My blood froze in my veins, and embarrassment overwhelmed me. I wished I could just escape right away. He suddenly wrapped an arm around my waist as he put on a knowing smile. "We've been married for three years, and I've slept on the floor for the same amount of time. I haven't tasted you in a long while. Why don't you… give yourself to me in return?"