“Ethan…” Iris couldn’t hold back any longer. She ran to Ethan, grabbed his hand tightly, and cried, “Ethan… I was wrong… I really know I was wrong, please… give me another chance… Ethan, I really love you…”
Iris cried as she spoke.
She had been infatuated with Alexander’s tenderness, but… no matter how gentle Alexander was, he wasn’t as outstanding as Ethan.
It was because Ethan was too indifferent to her that she was drawn to the warm and caring Alexander. If Ethan had shown her even a bit more warmth, care, or affection, she wouldn’t have looked at Alexander twice.
This was very awkward.
Her sister was crying and professing her love for her husband.
In this situation, she really didn’t know how to handle it.
So… she could only stand there.
Ethan didn’t shake off Iris’s hand but looked at Clara instead.
Clara was bewildered by Ethan’s gaze.
Why was Ethan looking at her?
What was she supposed to do in this situation?
Ethan asked Clara, “You have no objections?”
What objections could she have?
Ethan said, “Previously, I just had a meal with Belle, and you threw a fit, forbidding me from associating with other women. Now your sister is seducing me… and you have no objections?”
How could this be the same?
Her sister and Belle were not the same.
“As my wife, you just stand there and watch another woman seduce me?” Ethan asked, his voice growing colder. It was clear that the domineering CEO was unhappy.
Very unhappy.
So… what should she do if not stand there and watch?
She wanted to close her eyes.
But would he allow it?
Iris had many things she wanted to say to Ethan, to confess her deep feelings… but with Ethan like this… how could she say them?
She was here, heartbroken and tearful, confessing her love, but Ethan didn’t care at all. Instead, he wanted Clara to deal with her?
Ethan… how could he become so cruel?
How could he be so cruel?
Seeing that Clara still hadn’t made any move, Ethan’s expression turned completely cold. He raised an eyebrow and sneered, “What? Do you want to give me back to your sister? Do you think… I would want a woman who has been played with by another man… a used shoe?”
The Everett family thought they could treat him, Ethan, however they pleased.
Clara’s body stiffened as she looked at Ethan. Ethan was truly angry.
Iris’s tear-filled eyes widened in shock as she looked at Ethan in disbelief.
Ethan called her… a used shoe?
A used shoe?
He actually called her a used shoe.
Iris was deeply hurt.
She couldn’t believe Ethan would insult her like this.
“Sis…” Clara looked at Iris and said, “Let go of my… husband.”
Iris looked at Clara in shock.
Clara took a deep breath, made up her mind, grabbed Iris’s hand, and forced her to let go of Ethan’s hand. She looked at her and said, “No matter what happened before, now Ethan is my husband. You are his sister-in-law. From now on, I hope you can keep your distance from my husband.”
“Clara…” Iris looked at Clara, tears streaming down her face.
Clara hardened her heart and said, “Sis, you made a mistake. You didn’t cherish Ethan. Now… Ethan is my husband. What do you want? To apologize to Ethan? To hope that Ethan will forgive you? Then you two can reconcile and live happily ever after? What about me? Did you ever think about me? What will happen to me then? Or did you never think about me at all? Does you only care about her own happiness?”
Iris looked at Clara and shook her head while crying, “No, I didn’t, I didn’t…”
“Clara!” Sophia frowned and glared at Clara. “You stole your sister’s man, and now you’re forcing your sister like this?”
Clara looked at Sophia angrily. “What do you mean I stole my sister’s man? At that time, when Ethan proposed to marry me, did you refuse? Why didn’t you refuse then? Why?”
“Don’t think I don’t know what you’re planning. You just thought that as long as it was a daughter of the Everett family marrying Ethan, it didn’t matter who it was. As long as a daughter of the Everett family married Ethan, it would represent the union of the two families and bring benefits to the Everett family. Did I have a choice? You didn’t stop me from marrying Ethan back then, and now you say I stole Ethan. Mom, don’t you think it’s too late?”
Sophia glared at Clara angrily. “How dare you talk back?!”
She was furious.
She felt that Clara had grown tough and dared to talk back to her now when she never dared before.
“Why wouldn’t I dare?” Clara looked at her and said, “Mom, you should thank me. You’ve hated me all these years because I’m a daughter. Because of giving birth to me, you couldn’t have more children. But did you ever ask me if I wanted to be born by you?”
Sophia: “… You’re talking nonsense!!!”
Clara sneered and said, “Mom, you really should thank me. Thank yourself for giving birth to a daughter. Otherwise, when Iris got into trouble and the Everett family had no other daughter to marry Ethan in her place, the union of the two families would be canceled. The Everett family embarrassed the Logan family so much. Do you think you could still stand here as a noble lady?”
Sophia looked at Clara angrily and in shock.
It seemed she hadn’t expected Clara to say such things.
But thinking carefully… it seemed that this stubborn and strong-willed Clara was the real Clara.
She indeed didn’t like Clara for the reasons Clara mentioned… but also because Clara wasn’t close to her.
She treated Clara badly, and Clara only maintained a superficial mother-daughter relationship with her without ever trying to please or flatter her.
Unlike Iris.
Iris was always gentle and obedient, would act cute and flatter her.
But Clara… in the Everett family, she was like an emotionless person.
People have feelings too.
If Clara had acted cute and flattered her like Iris did, how could she dislike her so much?
Even if she couldn’t treat her as well as Iris, she wouldn’t hate her as much as she did now.
“Sis…” Clara looked at Iris and said, “Why do you think that just by apologizing and admitting your mistake, Ethan will forgive you? Do you think he can’t live without you? That he can’t find another woman? That he must accept a woman who betrayed him and let others laugh at him behind his back as a cuckold?”
Iris looked at Clara.
She was also shocked by Clara’s words.
What Clara said was something she had always been afraid to face…
“Ethan… loves me,” Iris said, looking at Ethan with tearful eyes full of hope.
She firmly believed that Ethan loved her deeply.
She could feel that Ethan’s elders didn’t like her and thought she wasn’t good enough for him. But even though they disapproved, Ethan still chose to be with her and got engaged to her.
Being able to withstand the pressure from his elders and stay with her proved that Ethan loved her very much.
She knew she had indeed betrayed Ethan and made him a laughingstock. But… as long as Ethan loved her enough, he could ignore those outside jeers.
Ethan looked at Iris and curled his lips slightly. “I never… loved you.”
“… No!!!” Iris couldn’t believe it. She staggered back a few steps and stared at Ethan. “No… you love me. You love me… If you don’t love me, why did you get engaged to me? You had so many noble and wealthy ladies to choose from. You didn’t want them; you wanted me. You love me; you must love me.”
Ethan’s love made Iris very proud during their engagement year.
Proud that she had won Ethan’s love.
Ethan’s love made her feel equal even in front of noble ladies from better families than hers.
No matter how perfect or excellent those noble ladies were, it didn’t matter because Ethan didn’t love them.
Ethan only loved her.
But now… Ethan told her himself that he didn’t love her. He didn’t love her…