Chapter 3 This Woman Is Dull

"Ouch!" Ellie winced, feeling an intense pressure on her jaw.

"Does it hurt?" Kaiden's sneer lacked any humor. "Then tell me, Ellie, how do you plan to fulfill your duties as a wife in bed?"

In bed...

Duties...

The implication of his words made her cheeks burn.

Legally, she was bound to such responsibilities.

Kaiden observed her embarrassment with a trace of irony.

Hadn't she already slept with Erick? Yet here she was, feigning innocence.

"You'll need to do everything, given my disability," Kaiden said, his voice tinged with mockery, yet his expression unchanging.

Ellie's face flushed deeper, her eyes glued to the ground.

Kaiden was relentless in his charade of disability.

"Answer me," he demanded.

Swallowing her pride, Ellie stammered, "I can... try to learn... to do whatever is needed... I'm not afraid of..."

She pondered that Kaiden, despite his facade, seemed unlikely to engage with her, whom he deemed beneath him.

"Despicable," he muttered, releasing her abruptly. He noticed the red marks his fingers left on her skin.

She was such a delicate woman, he complained to himself with a snort.

Ellie, masking her relief with a composed smile, said, "I'm very much looking forward to living with you, Mr. Thorpe."

Kaiden's face darkened as he wheeled away.

This time however, he decided to let her stay and not have her thrown out.

Ellie's body, wracked by fever, swayed. Her vision grew hazy, and she fainted...

-

Awakening later, Ellie felt disoriented, her hand sore from the IV needle.

She was in a guest room adjacent to Kaiden's.

Battling her illness, she took her medicine, cocooned herself in blankets, and sweated profusely.

As sleep overtook her, a moment of clarity emerged.

Kaiden was a man best avoided; antagonizing him was unwise.

Ellie resolved to ignore his pretended disability. Curiosity, in this case, was not her ally.

After some time, she was woken up by insistent knocking.

"Mrs. Thorpe, Mr. Thorpe requests your presence in the small warehouse on the first floor concerning your dowry," a maid informed her, her face etched with concern.

Ellie knew little of the dowry prepared by the Gordon family, but her instincts told her it was bound to be problematic.

In the warehouse, the air was heavy with tension.

Kaiden sat in his wheelchair, an object in his hand, emanating a forbidding aura.

"Mr. Th..."

Bang!

Before Ellie could complete her sentence, Kaiden abruptly threw an object at her.

"How many more disgusting tricks do you have up your sleeve, Ellie?" he spat, his eyes icy.

The item hit Ellie, its contents scattering on her and the floor.

Among them were provocative lingerie and several boxes of medication.

Her mind racing, Ellie crouched to inspect them.

The boxes held various aphrodisiacs, including concoctions purportedly for conceiving a child, and even... potency-enhancing pills.

A clear insult to Kaiden, these items were an appalling inclusion by the Gordons in her dowry.

"Ellie, are you that desperate to share my bed and bear my child?" Kaiden's gaze was inscrutable.

Ellie, seething internally at the Gordons' insult, composed herself and stood. "Mr. Thorpe, I had no idea these items were included."

"And what about this?" Kaiden asked with a sardonic laugh, gesturing towards a makeup box on the table.

Ellie's heart raced as she approached the box for a clearer view.

Contained within were a fabricated photo of her and Erick, a heart-shaped necklace, and several affectionate letters, none of which were hers!

"Ugh!"

Kaiden's fingers abruptly pinched her cheeks, forcing her to look into his cold, dispassionate eyes.

These fraudulent keepsakes were an insult to Kaiden, a gesture no man would easily stomach.

"Ellie, to marry me while harboring another man's tokens... quite bold."

"I didn't. The Gordons arranged the dowry, I..."

Her attempt to clarify was futile.

Any explanation would seem like a feeble excuse.

Resigned, Ellie lowered her gaze.

She then bowed slightly. "I apologize."

She should have been more mindful of the dowry.

Kaiden's perception of her shifted.

Last night's defiance had faded, replaced by subservience.

"Ellie, many vie for the role of my wife. Don't assume you've secured a place just because you're here."

He was warning her.

Despite his estrangement from his father Jorge Thorpe and lack of influence in the Thorpe family, Kaiden's status as Jorge's only legitimate son still drew many aspiring brides.

Should it become known that Kaiden wasn't actually disabled, the competition would intensify.

The Gordons' dowry was discarded from Moon Manor like trash.

Reflecting on the origins of the supposed tokens of affection, Ellie realized the truth.

It was Demi's doing!

She had been the only one to access the dowry box before the wedding.