Immersed in His Silent Love

At night, in the Anderson family's mansion, Ariana Edwards was silently watching the unconscious man lying in bed.

The man was handsome, with a chiseled face and exquisite features. Even though he was in a coma, he gave off the air of someone inherently dignified and strong.

This was the first time Ariana was seeing her husband, Theodore Anderson, the eldest son of the Anderson family.

Tonight was their wedding night.

At this moment, the door of the bedroom suddenly burst open, slamming violently.

Ariana spun around at the noise to see who just entered the room loudly.

The man swaggered in with a bottle of wine in his hand. His white shirt was partly unbuttoned, and his tie was hanging loosely around his neck. He was reeking of the smell of alcohol.

The drunk man who stumbled in was Jasper Anderson, Theodore's half-brother. And before today, Jasper had been Ariana's boyfriend.

"I'm here to keep you company, Ariana. You must be awfully lonely to have to be with a vegetable on your wedding night." Jasper spoke impiously and without respect, completely disregarding Ariana as his sister-in-law.

"Jasper, don't you have any shame showing up here like this? Where were you when I was forced into marriage or when I was tied to the operating table for an IUI procedure? You were in bed with my sister!" The sight of her ex-boyfriend made Ariana feel nothing but burning hatred.

Three months ago, Jasper's eldest brother, Theodore, was involved in a car accident that rendered him in a coma. Despite his vulnerable state, his life was still being taken advantage of. The Andersons wanted to use Theodore's preserved sperm to conduct an artificial insemination before his death, and Ariana was the chosen receptacle for the embryo.

However, Ariana knew nothing of this until this morning when she was deceived into attending the church in the name of a proposal by her ex-boyfriend. Her belief collapsed in an instant.

Moreover, to break Ariana's spirit and make her give up without a fight, Glenda Edwards, her stepmother, even took her to watch Jasper in the middle of sexual intercourse with another woman. At her wedding, in a room across the hall, Jasper and Ariana's stepsister, Brielle Edwards, were having sex unscrupulously!

It was one of the main reasons Ariana decided to complete the wedding and accept undergoing the IUI procedure. She wanted to be approved as an official daughter-in-law of the Anderson family, seize power and property of the Anderson family and take revenge on Jasper!

Jasper didn't expect Ariana to have known everything, but he wasn't that bothered and dropped the act. He pulled his collar and snarled at her with a contemptible expression, "Even if you know the truth, so what? Now that you're part of the Anderson family, you have to listen to me. Theodore is just a dying vegetable. The only person who can protect you here is me. If you're willing to bury the hatchet, we can still secretly be a loving couple."

Ariana sneered, "In your dreams, Jasper. I'm Theodore's wife now, the daughter-in-law of the Anderson family, and your sister-in-law. Nothing more."

Jasper scowled at her in disdain. His eyes trailed from her face and down to her curvy figure and, suddenly, he had an obscene thought.

In the past three years of dating, Ariana had always refused to sleep with him. If he could sleep with Theodore's newly married wife in front of Theodore's bed on their wedding night...

The thought of it excited Jasper. He quickly turned and locked the door, turned off the light, and walked toward Ariana slowly.

Ariana backed away vigilantly. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Theodore is a vegetable now. He's no use. It's better for you to have my baby directly."

With a wicked smirk on his face, Jasper pounced on her. The strong reek of alcohol filled Ariana's nose, and she stepped back quickly, frightened.

This bastard didn't take Theodore seriously at all. He even dared to attempt to rape his sister-in-law in front of his elder brother!

Trembling with fury, Ariana shoved Jasper away and shouted, "Get off me!"

With lust burning in his heart and alcohol in his mind, Jasper pulled Ariana's shoulder roughly, yanking her closer and trying to force her into a kiss.

Ariana couldn't stand it anymore. She grabbed something in hand and raised it in the air, prepared to hit Jasper with it to defend herself. But Jasper suddenly froze, and his expression changed dramatically.

She raised her head, bewildered, and realized Jasper was looking at something behind her. His face was pale and filled with terror as if he had seen a ghost.

"Th-Theodore..."

Ariana turned around to discover that Theodore was sitting up in bed, his sharp eyes staring at them coldly.

Ariana's mind went blank, her throat tightening. The man sitting on the bed had a harsh, petrifying expression. Even if he didn't say a word, she still felt great pressure under his cold gaze.

She wanted to explain herself, but Jasper spoke first.

"It's all this woman's fault! She asked me to come here! She tried to seduce me!" Jasper's swagger completely disappeared and was replaced with utter fear. He panicked and became incoherent, throwing the blame on Ariana.

With an apathetic face, Theodore growled one word in a dangerous tone. "Out."

Jasper immediately understood. He didn't dare to stay any longer and practically ran out of the room in a hurry.

Ariana stood by the bed, trepidation gripping her heart. She instinctively wanted to turn around and run away too, but Theodore grabbed her arm tightly and prevented her from escaping.

"Who are you? Why are you here?" Theodore's eyes were devoid of emotion as if he were staring indifferently at a dying prey.

A sharp pang of pain stung Ariana's arm, but she held back her tears and explained, "I'm your newly married wife, Ariana Edwards."

"Wife?" Theodore chuckled coldly as if he had heard an ironic joke. Suddenly, the laughter abruptly stopped, and his expression changed. His hand shot up and tightly wrapped around Ariana's neck like a snake.

Ariana's breath hitched in her throat, and her body trembled with fear. She flailed desperately, trying to escape from his grip, but the man had no intention of letting her go at all.

Her heart was thumping loudly in her chest. She couldn't understand why a former vegetable, who had been inactive in bed for such a long time, still had such great strength.

Fortunately, Theodore's father, Darian Anderson, happened to be passing and heard the sounds. When he entered the room and surveyed the situation, he scolded Theodore, "What do you think you're doing? She is your wife!"

Theodore turned his head to look at his father, still not loosening his grip on Ariana's throat. His impassive handsome face was so cold.

Just when Ariana felt light-headed and thought she was going to be strangled to death, Theodore suddenly let go.

She was still in a state of shock. She touched her bruised throat, gasping for air. Her throat was dry and painful, and she coughed violently, her eyes stinging with tears.

When the oxygen finally reached her head, she could think clearer, and she was terrified of staying near him any longer. She stumbled away from his bed and to the sofa, cowering in the corner to calm down.

Darian called in a group of doctors to examine Theodore's physical condition, and soon the result came out.

The head doctor glanced between Theodore and Darian, hesitation flickering on his expression.

Darian's hands clenched into fists. He let out a cough, and then asked with a grim expression, "Tell me, how is he?"

The doctor sighed, "Although he has woken up, there's still sequela. Especially his legs, which were badly hurt. He has lost all sensation in his legs. It might be difficult for him to stand up again."

"You mean he's disabled?" Darian asked, his voice raising in disbelief.

Ariana heard Darian, and she looked sideways at the situation subconsciously. She was surprised to see the relief on Darian's face.

"Yes." The doctor sighed with pity and said, "If he keeps receiving treatment and goes through long-term physiotherapy, he may still have a chance to recover."

"I see. Thank you. You can leave now."

Darian waved his hand dismissively and instructed the doctors to leave. Once the doctors filed out, he turned to face Theodore again and showed a rare kind smile. "Rest well now. Don't worry too much. I'll find the best doctor out there to treat your legs. You need not worry unnecessarily."

Then he called Ariana to the bedside. She went over hesitantly, and he introduced her. "This is Ariana. Your wife. She will take care of you in the future."

Hearing this, Ariana thought she sounded more like a caregiver than a wife. She rubbed her neck, looking embarrassed.

But Theodore didn't buy it. "Since when did I have a wife? This marriage doesn't count since I didn't witness it. I'll ask the lawyer to deal with the divorce procedures."

The atmosphere turned frigid, and so did Darian's expression. His face twitched slightly as if he was restraining his wrath. "Divorce is unacceptable."

Theodore sneered in disdain, "Darian, what qualifications do you have to decide for me?"

The tension between the two of them was so thick it could have been cut with a knife.

The strained atmosphere told Ariana that the relationship between the father and son was not on the best terms. She watched and stood aside awkwardly, feeling redundant.

Darian was so outraged that his shoulders were trembling. He said firmly in a low voice, "It has been settled. Ariana just finished the IUI procedure, and she may very well be pregnant with your child. Either way, you need to wait for at least a month when the result comes out to confirm whether she is pregnant or not."

After saying that, he stormed out of the room, seething.

Once he left, it was only Ariana and Theodore in the room. She held her breath and braced herself as if she was facing a formidable enemy.

"Pregnant?" Theodore turned to look at Ariana. He examined her from head to toe as if he were inspecting a product.

After a while, he chuckled and asked in a frivolous and unconcerned tone, "Miss Edwards, which do you prefer, surgical abortion or medication abortion?"

Ariana didn't expect Theodore would so decisively demand that she have an abortion. She stared at him for a few seconds, stunned.

Her silence caused Theodore's face to darken.

"Come here," Theodore commanded abruptly, motioning Ariana over with a wave.

Under the pressure of his dominating aura and his cold eyes, Ariana gradually gave up resisting. She meekly lowered her head, her stomach turning uneasily. She was terrified of her new husband. The bruise on her neck seemed to ache even more as her heart raced in fear.

Too afraid to deny him, Ariana hastily moved a few steps closer to the bed.

"Say you're pregnant. How are you sure it's mine?" Theodore's eyes fell on her belly, and his demeanor became contemptuous again, terrible cruelty glinting in his eyes.

Ariana trembled. She knew that Theodore must have misunderstood the situation earlier, so she explained hurriedly, "I've already broken up with Jasper. We have nothing to do with each other now..."

Before she could finish speaking, Theodore suddenly got impatient and yanked her hand. She lost her balance and stumbled, falling into his arms.

A pleasant smell met her nose. Theodore was so close that she could feel his breath against her skin.

Ariana stiffened, her mind going blank for a moment. Then she snapped back to her senses and used her arms as support to stand up.

But Theodore used one hand to press her down on the back of her neck, preventing her from escaping.

Sensing danger, Ariana went completely still, like a deer caught in headlights, her heart hammering in her chest.

Theodore turned his head slightly to whisper in Ariana's ear, "Even if you are pregnant with my kid, I won't let you give birth to it."

He lowered his eyes to study the woman he held captive in front of him. His other hand slid over, and his slender fingers unbuttoned her collar, his thumb rubbing the side of her neck as if he were being affectionate.

Ariana trembled, repulsed by his touch. Her hair stood on end. A sudden surge of fearing her death turned her into the likes of a frightened, frantic bird. Squirming desperately, she somehow broke free from Theodore's hand and sprinted out of the room. But, when she reached the door, she accidentally bumped into a person who was about to enter.

She was so anxious to get away that she didn't even look at the person properly but hurriedly apologized and then ran out of Theodore's room.

When Horace Silence entered the room, he noticed Theodore staring in the direction in which the woman had left, deep in thought. With his keen professional instincts, he immediately discerned that the woman he had seen just now was his boss's newly married wife.

Horace was a little curious, but he refrained from asking. He placed the examination report he had been holding in his hand onto the bedside table.

"The doctor informed us you're fine. You'll reach full recovery after some treatment for your legs." Horace paused and said hesitantly, "Now, the doctor is lying as you asked. Everyone in the Anderson family thinks you're permanently disabled, which makes it very likely that you will be targeted..."

Theodore glanced at his assistant with a callous smile. "Wouldn't it be interesting to see prey complacently jumping into a trap and then gradually falling into despair?"

Horace pushed his glasses higher up on the bridge of his nose. He couldn't help but ask, "Then, is Ms. Edwards also prey?"

Theodore cast a scowl at Horace and warned with a cold face, "Don't ask too many questions. Mind your own business."

Horace's expression twitched in fear, and he quickly lowered his head, dutifully standing up straight.

"A background check on Ariana. I want all her information," Theodore ordered briskly.

Horace nodded.

*

After rushing out of Theodore's room, Ariana found the housekeeper, Judy Kelly, and asked her to prepare a guest room for her to reside in.

Judy was a chubby and jovial middle-aged woman with a warm smile. She noticed Ariana's pale expression and held her hand, babbling in an attempt to offer her comfort, "Mr. Anderson just woke up after so long, so he's just too surprised to accept it for now. Love needs cultivation. Please be more patient and try to make him happy. Perhaps he will learn to accept you with time."

Ariana listened to her rambling quietly, but she disagreed completely in her heart. Trying to please him would be a stupid thing to do. She might even lose her life just by being by his side.

After their conversation ended and she went back to her room, Ariana finally had time to rest. Lying on the bed, she listlessly stared at the ceiling with apprehension in her heart, worried about her future.

She had thought her husband would die soon and that she would become an approved daughter-in-law of the Anderson family.

But everything went the complete opposite of what she had expected. Not only was Theodore still alive and awake, but he also couldn't tolerate her and intended to kick her out of the Anderson family.

Ariana felt annoyed and depressed. After such an emotionally fueled day, she was exhausted and soon drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, she was woken up by the alarm clock set on her phone. Blinking sleepily, she picked up her phone, trying to turn the loud alarm off. But, when she turned her phone screen on, she happened to catch a glimpse of a photo on her news feed. It was the latest news about an auction in the city. One of the auctioned items was a beautiful necklace that belonged to her mother's legacy!

Her grogginess vanished in an instant. She sat up abruptly, staring at the image, a monstrous fury rushing through her. Damn! Glenda not only sold her to the Andersons but also seized her mother's legacy and auctioned them!