Kayden soon came downstairs by himself using the elevator. He was moving towards the dining area when he passed by Lilian in the living room. The woman was standing still, a file of papers in her hand.

"Aren't you hungry?" he asked, his brows raised. "Come."

"Yep, coming." Lilian quickly put down the file on the center table.

After a long day, not only did she skip her meal, but she also vomited several times, her stomach churning after she witnessed Benjamin be romantic with a man.

Her stomach was empty, so when they sat at the dining table, she immediately grabbed the utensils and stuffed her plate with numerous dishes served in front. She even forgot that Kayden was with her for a moment due to hunger.

Kayden frowned, his eyes locked on his wife, who was busy eating. "Have an early rest after dinner. We'll visit my family tomorrow."

"Sure," Lilian replied casually, her mouth filled with delicacies. She regained control of her senses after swallowing a mouthful of food.

"Your family lives at Ben's grandmother's house, right?" she asked as she finally realized she would meet that family again. Thinking about it, she now felt her appetite decreasing.

"Ben, huh?" Kayden asked as he placed a piece of vegetable in his mouth. "That's such an intimate call name."

Lilian bit her bottom lip. "No… I just… I was used to calling him that. I guess it's not appropriate anymore," she whispered, her voice filled with sadness and grief.

She remembered what her best friend, Bella, used to say to her. "You don't even need to eat or sleep anymore. It looks like just saying Ben's name gives you enough energy."

Lily could not decide whether it was good that Bella had to leave for business on her wedding day. She couldn't imagine what Bella's expression would be once she discovered that Lilian did not marry Ben but married Ben's uncle.

As Lily was consumed by her thoughts, Kayden could not help but stare at her with a calculating gaze. Slowly, he peeled a shrimp and placed it on Lilian's plate.

"It's okay. You can still call him Ben. He would have to call you aunt, anyway."

"Aunt?" Lilian asked in confusion, but after a few seconds, her face brightened.

Lilian had already forgotten that she was now Molly's sister-in-law, and Benjamin should address her with respect. Why was she afraid to meet with them in the first place? How could she forget that the sole reason she married Kayden was to anger and take revenge on the Holmes family.

Regaining her appetite, Lilian grabbed her spoon and fork again and continued eating with a smile flashing on her face. She popped the shrimp that Kayden gave her into her mouth, and as she chewed, she gave him a bright smile. "Thanks, hon," she said.

Kayden's mouth gaped open. He didn't expect Lilian to call him 'honey' willingly. Still, he was glad that the woman was in a good mood.

He shook his head gently and thought to himself, 'She's still a little girl with such a simple heart. Everything could be seen in her expression; it was obvious what pained and joyed her. No wonder Benjamin and their family bullied her.'

***

After dinner, Kayden went directly into the study room while Lilian took a bath and went to bed early. Her husband didn't need her to warm the bed; she could simply relax and sleep soundly without worries of someone harassing her.

Lilian bathed herself peacefully, and tucked herself comfortably in the bed. She was looking forward to the moment when Benjamin would call her' aunt', which was why she fell asleep with a light feeling.

When Kayden entered the room and found Lilian sleeping soundly, he opened the window to let the cold wind gush through. The moonlight streamed in, illuminating Lilian on the bed. Her body was curled up, and the blanket had slipped down her legs, but she slept peacefully.

Kayden's wheelchair slowly approached the bedside. He stared quietly at the woman's charming face. A faint smile gradually rose from the corners of his mouth as his thoughts drifted back to a memory twenty years ago, when he was a ten-year-old boy.

A young couple brought a cute three-year-old girl to their home. His father received them warmly and asked Ben, who was only three years old then, to hold the little girl's hand and play. Kayden's father, who was over sixty years old at that time, looked at the two little ones and said to the little girl's mother that Benjamin and the girl should get married when they turned eighteen.

Kayden's father also said that the marriage would make their father's wishes come true.

"I am older than Ben. Why will he have a wife first? Leah should be my wife in the future," Kayden remembered saying to his father.

But the old man didn't budge. Instead, he became angry at Kayden for interfering and being selfish.

"You are Ben's uncle. How can you marry her? You're older than both of them."

Kayden didn't agree with the decision, but he had no choice. However, he saw how Benjamin pushed Leah to the ground. Kayden had no idea where he got the courage, but he went straight to push Benjamin, which made his nephew stumble.

He could still remember his father's hard slaps on him that day. Kayden even went a day without food as his father's punishment for hurting little, innocent Benjamin.

Kayden had long forgotten what the girl looked like in his memory because he never saw her again after that encounter. Later, Kayden discovered that the girl and her family had vanished without a trace.

He only remembered that her surname was White and the little girl's name was Leah.

However, the woman in front of him…

Kayden knew that Lilian was not the little girl who caused his father to beat him up. However, when he saw Lily's picture before his flight to attend the wedding, he made up his mind.

He knew he wanted Benjamin's woman to be his.

Kayden did not care how long it would take, as long as he could find the White family and the little girl that Benjamin was supposed to marry. He could get what truly belonged to the Brown family once he found Leah White.

Too many years had already passed, and he wanted to get them back as soon as he could.

Kayden raised his hand and gently covered the falling blanket on the sleeping woman. After adjusting the air conditioner's temperature, he left the bedroom silently.

Lilian slept until dawn. When she woke up and looked around, she was greatly relieved to see that the bed was the same as it had been before she fell asleep. Kayden kept his word by sleeping in separate beds.

She hoped that in the following year, they could live in peace and end this absurd marriage early. She could be free again with only a year left of holding on.

When Lilian came downstairs after cleaning herself, Kayden was already sitting at the table, reading a newspaper. His face was fully covered, but he put it down slightly as soon as he heard Lily approaching.

"Did you sleep well last night?" Kayden glanced at her faintly. He was about to glance back at the paper, but he couldn't help looking at her more.

It was the first time he had seen Lilian without any makeup. Although the woman didn't have the charm of a bride like yesterday, her naturally fair skin, clear eyes, and exquisite features made Kayden stare longer than he had hoped for.

Lilian didn't look like a 23-year-old woman. She was like a college student who hadn't graduated yet, young and lovely. Any man would have stared if given a chance.

"Yeah, I slept well." Lilian was about to ask whether Kayden had a good sleep in his study room, but the man interrupted her before she could speak further.

"We'll visit the Holmes after breakfast," Kayden said.

"Oh, okay." Lilian glanced at the maids and bit her bottom lip. It was good that she failed to ask Kayden because if she did, the maids might have heard that they were sleeping in a separate room.

They had to pretend everywhere that they were an intimate couple. If anyone finds out that they were only a husband and wife on the paper, their image and reputation would be ruined.

After breakfast, the two made their way to the Holmes' house. Along the way, Lilian's mind wandered through her memories and everything that had happened with Benjamin over the years.

She felt sad that they ended up like this. Until now, she couldn't accept that Benjamin was gay. How could he pretend like that? Lily was sure that Ben cared for her; he was sweet and gentle. But if his preference was a lie, did that mean that his care and concern were lies, as well?

Lilian stared out of the car window, the city's scenery passing through her eyes in a quick motion. There was sudden warmth on the back of her hand on her lap. She looked down and saw Kayden's hand was in her hand.

"You need to ask Molly for wedding gifts. She's stingy, but you needed to make sure that she'd give us an extravagant gift."

Kayden didn't give her a chance to free her hand from his hold, but she stopped struggling when she saw her husband's devilish grin. They needed to act sweet and lovely, so she had no choice.

"Okay, fine, I'll request some expensive ones," Lilian said in defeat.

***

The Holmes mansion was located in the hillside area on the outskirts of JC City. The always peaceful-looking house, however, was filled with yells and quarrels inside.

"You're not going to look for Benjamin? He has been missing all day! Do you want to lose your son?" Molly said angrily while pointing at her husband, Martin Holmes.

"Don't you feel ashamed? Why would I look for him? Do you know that our family name is in the news today? He disgraced us!" Martin was usually quiet and good-tempered, but the current events made him erupt like a volcano.

He threw the newspaper he was holding on the center table and glared at Molly. "You spoiled him too much, and it's all your fault. Sooner or later, this family will be destroyed, and it will be your and Benjamin's fault!"

The shouting came to a stop when a housekeeper hurriedly came. "Sir, Mam. Sir Kayden is here."

"Just in time!" Molly said, her anger spilling out like coffee. "I'd like to ask what disdainful things the bitch Lilian did. She made my son so angry that he didn't even want to marry her. He didn't have an explanation, and he didn't go home, either!" Molly immediately turned her direction, smoothed her hair, stepped on high heels, and walked out of the living room with her head held high.

Martin shook his head in disbelief, a heavy sigh coming out of his mouth. "This is embarrassing. Damn it!"

"What are you two doing here? You just got married, so you should have just stayed in bed, kissed each other, and whispered sweet nothings to one another," Molly said sarcastically, her disdainful eyes falling onto Lilian's.

Kayden frowned slightly, but he didn't say anything. He waited quietly for Lilian to respond.

"Oh, Mrs. Holmes—I should call you Molly now, right?" Lilian gave a forced smile. "Kayden and I are here to visit his family. I know it's sad that we didn't end up as a daughter and mother-in-law tandem, but I think a relationship between sisters-in-law is closer, don't you think?"

"That's a load of crap," Molly spat. "You're simply a little bitch girl. You will never be my equal. Maybe you could be in your next life, but for now, quit calling me Molly and address me with damn respect."

"But she is, Molly," Kayden interrupted as soon as Molly finished. He pushed his wheelchair forward, his piercing gaze directed at his sister. "She's your equal. In this life, the next life, and the following lives. As long as she's my wife, you'll treat her as such."

Molly stared at Kayden with her eyes widened in disbelief, "Kayden, did you just talk to me like that for this woman?! Do you even respect your sister?!"

"Respect and being respected are mutual. If my sister doesn't respect my wife in the future, I'm afraid it will be hard for me to respect you." Kayden turned his head after he said this and reached out to Lilian. "Honey, let's go and find Martin."

"Okay," Lilian answered, pushed Kayden's wheelchair past Molly, and walked towards the living room. However, before they could leave, Molly stepped forward, held Lilian's arm, and pushed her away from Kayden.

"You bitch! When you were Benjamin, you acted damn obedient and nice. Now I know you're just pretending!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "Tell me, what did you do to Ben? Did he find out you were cheating on him with Kayden? That was why he ran away?"

"Are you saying Lilian purposefully pushed Ben away because we were having affairs? Is that what you think happened?" Kayden asked, his devilish glare piercing through his sister's sin.

But Molly wouldn't back down.

"So you admit it?" she asked in disbelief. "You know what, Kayden, I thought that even if we were only half brothers and sisters, we still treated each other with respect. Now you're throwing our relationship to the brim? We were fine when you were still in the US, but as soon as you came back, you wreaked havoc on our family and stole Ben's wife. Why? What are you planning to do?"

Kayden narrowed his eyes and looked straight ahead, motioning for Lily to come to push his wheelchair again, ignoring Molly's hysteria.

Lilian came over, held the push handle of the wheelchair, and calmly said to Molly, "Since you're pointing fingers, I think you should know that it was Ben's fault why he canceled the wedding. Kayden and I only met yesterday. Please don't put all the blame on us."

Molly suddenly turned around and slapped Lilian in the face. "You bitch, you have no right to speak here!"

The sudden slap made Lilian have no time to avoid it. In an instant, there was a clear five-finger print on her face. She could feel it immediately numbing her cheeks.

The pain made her bit her bottom lips and covered her burning face with her palm. She tried not to shed tears, but the sides of her eyes still warmed.

She hoped that now she had the same status as Molly, she would be treated decently. She guessed wrong.

Kayden frowned and looked at Lilian, who lowered her head and said nothing. His face immediately became brooding.

"What the fuck are you doing, Molly?! How could you treat my wife like this? I already warned you!"

"She's not your damn wife, Kayden!" Molly exclaimed in return and glared at Lily and Kayden. "I won't give my blessings to this marriage! If your mother is here, and even if our father, I'm sure they won't agree with you marrying this bitch!"

"Our marriage is already bound by law. You should apologize to my wife now, or else I will have to sue you for harassment." Kayden took out his phone and started to dial a certain number on the keypad.

"I'm waiting, Molly. You know me, I have no patience."

"What?" Molly looked at him in shock. "You mean you already filed for your marriage certification?"

"Forget it, honey; we're a family now. You don't have to sue your sister." Lilian glanced at Molly, glinting with revenge and hatred, and pushed Kayden to the living room.

"What did you just say?" Molly was about to say something more when messy and eager footsteps arrived at the door.

Everyone turned and found Benjamin standing by the door with his brother, Jack.

"Mom, Ben is here. He's okay." Jack's eyes fell on Kayden in the wheelchair, and then his curious eyes went to Lilian.

His mouth gaped. "Lily, I'm sorry. I hope you can still forgive Ben for abandoning you on your wedding day."

"Don't call me Lily. I'm your aunt now. You should address me accordingly," Lily said in a formal but low tone. However, instead of gazing at Jack, she looked straight at Benjamin.

"Aunt?" Jack asked in a whisper, his forehead knotted in confusion. Then, he turned to Molly. "What do you mean she's my aunt now?"

Molly, ignoring Jack's question, quickly walked toward her eldest son. She held his hand and stared. "Ben, tell Mom what's going on. What did this woman do? Did she cheat on you? That was why you broke the wedding off?"

Like Lilian, Benjamin had been staring at her since he came back. However, amongst guilt, he also felt puzzled. But after hearing what Lily said, he finally put two and two together and realized that Lily must have married his uncle, Kayden.

Benjamin frowned. "You married my uncle just to get revenge on me?"

Kayden didn't speak. His indifferent eyes swept over the faces of Benjamin, Jack, and Molly. Finally, he fixed his eyes on Lilian, who lowered her head. He tightened the hands that he put on the armrest of the wheelchair, his teeth gritting in anger.

***

Lilian closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. She didn't look up nor answer Benjamin's question.

She thought she could relieve her anger if she became Benjamin's aunt, but as soon as he appeared in front of her, she could barely speak to him. The heartbreak he brought her came back to her all over again, making it difficult for her to breathe.

Yes. The reason why she sought for another marriage partner at their failed wedding was so she could take her revenge on him. That was why she married Kayden without any hesitation. However, instead of the satisfaction she expected, she only felt worse.

Was it because the third party involved in his cheating was not a woman?

Benjamin grabbed her wrist directly because Lilian had not spoken for a while. "You've let me down, Lilian. Even if I can't marry you, you don't have to marry such a man! Do you want to be a maid for him all your life?" His tone was disapproving but tinged with obvious concern.

Concern?

Lilian couldn't help but mock herself. She shook her hand free from Benjamin's grasp and stared at him coldly. "Benjamin, I'm now your aunt. Please respect your uncle and me. You're acting worse than the disabled person himself. Although your uncle's legs are disabled, he's much better than your "disabled" heart!"

"Uncle?" Benjamin was stunned. He turned to Kayden and looked at him carefully.

Kayden raised his eyebrows. His lips' corners were turned into a light and uninhibited smile. "What is it, my nephew? Don't you recognize me?"

Benjamin's eyes widened. He asked, uncertain, "You're Uncle Kayden?"

Kayden restrained the smile that didn't reach the bottom of his eyes.

Molly went over to Jack's side and grabbed his arm. "He is. Ben, Jack, this is your Uncle Kayden. You left early yesterday, so we didn't get the chance to introduce him. Both of you, say hello to your uncle." she ordered.

The two brothers stared at Lilian and Kayden together, suddenly realizing something.

"My uncle married my sister-in-law?" Jack, who was a straightforward person, asked directly. He was obviously surprised while Benjamin's brows furrowed. He threw Lilian a complicated look, then turned to the living room.

Kayden wheeled the wheelchair to Lilian, took her hand in his, and told Jack with a smile. "Jack, she's not your sister-in-law. She's your aunt-in-law."

"Oh! Okay, Uncle. I understand now." Jack was only an 18-year-old and still more of a child than an adult. He easily accepted the situation. The complicated relationship between Lilian, his uncle, and his brother went over his head, so it was easy for him to change how he addressed Lilian. "Aunt!" He called her sweetly.

This "Aunt" made Lilian uncomfortable. She could feel the heat rise to her face, but still, she gritted her teeth and nodded to Jack. "Good boy!"

Molly was angry, but she was afraid that Kayden would reprimand her, so she endured the situation and walked over to help him push his wheelchair. "Come on, Kayden. Let's sit in the living room to talk."

Even if she hadn't seen her brother for more than ten years, she still heard a lot about his accomplishments in the United States. He didn't let his disability be an obstacle to his ambitions. It was stated that his current net worth had long exceeded that of her husband's.

She couldn't afford to offend such a brother. As for Lilian, she had to figure out what happened between her and her son!

In the living room, Martin spoke to Lilian gently. "Lily, why did Benjamin suddenly leave yesterday? You were so furious that you even looked for another marriage partner on the spot. Tell me everything. I'll help you punish Benjamin."

Benjamin did not hesitate to kneel down in front of his parents after he heard this. "Dad, Mom, it's all my fault. I fell in love with someone else, so I couldn't marry Lilian."

Lilian stared at his regretful appearance. She couldn't help but smile bitterly while thinking in her heart: Don't worry, Benjamin. You did such a disgraceful thing that I feel disgusted to even talk about it.

"Bastard! Why didn't you say it earlier? Is that the way we do things in the Holmes family? Just dump the bride and walk away from the wedding?" Martin slapped Benjamin so hard that he fell to the floor. There was even blood at the corner of his mouth.

Molly felt bad for her son and could not bear to look at him directly. But the expression on her face quickly changed from distress to joy.

She had objected to their marriage for so long, and her son finally figured it out. Although it was a little late, and he had to pay the price, as long as he didn't marry Lilian, he would have the opportunity to find a more eligible wife in the future. Wasn't that a better deal?

Kayden remained silent as he held Lilian's hand in his, indifferently watching his brother-in-law educate his nephew.

Benjamin knelt again. He moved closer to his father and hugged his leg. He raised his head to him and begged. "Dad, Mom, although I did something sorry for Lilian, I don't want to see her unhappy. Please persuade my uncle not to marry her. The doctors had diagnosed his legs to be permanently disabled. He could never stand up again. How can he bring Lilian happiness? Uncle still retains the same habit from his youth and just wants to take everything from me!"

A cold smile slowly appeared on Kayden's lips. "Benjamin, aren't you disrespecting me a little too much by speaking ill of me in front of so many people?"

Benjamin stood up directly after hearing his uncle's words. He walked up to Kayden and asked with a frown, "Okay. You're indeed my uncle. I want to know… What's your intention? Even if Lilian was the one who proposed the marriage, as my uncle, you shouldn't have accepted. Besides, in your current state, you're not even a "man" now. Can you even make Lilian happy?"