Sir, Please Sign Here to Get a Divorce-Chapter 56: I’m Not Interested in You, Even if We Sleep Together
"I know you’re bothered by Sylvia Schuyler’s appearance, but don’t you worry. She can’t take anything that belongs to you. Don’t overthink it. Ethan is a stubborn man. If he wasn’t set on you, he wouldn’t keep you by his side.
You are the one he chose. Just stay by his side, change his mind about being childfree, and have a baby. Then, after we pass away, you’ll be the matriarch of the Yardley family."
Serena Yardley, "..."
Lowering her head, she was truly touched by her mother-in-law’s kindness and acceptance.
But things between her and Ethan... they had already reached their end.
"Serena, you’ve had a hard life since you were a child, with no family by your side. But you’re also lucky. I hope you’ll cherish and work on this marriage. Don’t give up what you have so easily, or you’ll regret it later."
’After all, not just any woman could marry into the Yardley family.’
’If it weren’t for her son’s affection, what did she have to compete with? She was an orphan with a modest education and a small frame. And while she was pretty and sweet, plenty of people were pretty. What did she have to stand out from the rest?’
’She pitied the girl. Otherwise, she really would have preferred her son to marry someone of equal social standing.’
Serena Yardley understood her elder’s good intentions. She nodded and replied, "Yes, thank you, Mom. I’ll do my best."
"As long as you understand. When you go back, if you’re wronged in any way, or if Sylvia Schuyler comes looking for trouble, you call me. As your mother-in-law, I can still back you up."
Raising a hand to pat Serena Yardley’s head, Sophia Quinn showed that she was genuinely fond of her.
’She just hoped the girl would live up to expectations and give the Yardley Family a chubby little grandson soon.’
Then, a thought occurred to Sophia Quinn, and she added:
"It’s too late tonight. Don’t go back, just sleep here. I don’t think you’ve spent the night here since you married Ethan, have you?"
’It was true,’ Serena Yardley thought, ’she had never stayed the night here.’
’At first, it was because Ethan was afraid she’d be intimidated and find it hard to get along with his family, so they left right after he introduced her.’
’Then, just a few days ago, things had gotten unpleasant, and they had left right after dinner.’
’In the six months since she’d married Ethan, this was only her third time at Yardley Manor.’
"Come on, I’ll take you to see the room."
Sophia Quinn stood up and led Serena Yardley away by the hand.
As the two of them passed the living room, the three men—grandfather, father, and son—all looked over in unison.
Averting his gaze, the old master rapped Ethan Yardley with his cane.
"I’ve already made myself perfectly clear. Since you married her, you need to live a proper life with her and have a few children. As for that girl from the Schuyler family, I will handle it for you."
Ethan Yardley sat there with his head down, his expression dark.
’Did his affairs really need his family’s meddling?’
"Ethan, you’re thirty years old. She’s only twenty and married you before even really starting her own life. If you waver now, what is she supposed to think?"
Mason Yardley chided.
Ethan Yardley was sick of hearing it. He stood up and said, "It’s getting late. Grandpa, Dad, you should both get some rest."
Knowing he wouldn’t be able to leave tonight, he had no choice but to go to his room.
Upstairs, he happened to run into his mother coming out of her room.
Sophia Quinn met her son and asked, "Ethan, going to bed?"
Ethan Yardley nodded. "Yeah. You should get some sleep too, Mom."
Sophia Quinn nodded, but couldn’t help reminding her son, "Be good to Serena. That girl is a bit sensitive and insecure. She doesn’t feel safe. Spend more time with her when you can."
Ethan Yardley, "..."
’Her? Sensitive and insecure?’
’She acted more self-righteous than anyone, and her temper was fiercer than his.’
’He’d never seen any sign of insecurity in her.’
"I know. Good night."
After replying to his mother, Ethan Yardley pushed open the door to his room.
Serena Yardley had just come out of the walk-in closet in her pajamas. When she saw Ethan come in, she pretended not to notice him and began spreading a blanket on the rug beside the large bed.
Then she took a throw pillow from the bed and lay down on the floor to sleep.
Ethan Yardley stood watching from a distance, an inexplicable anger flaring within him.
"Serena Yardley, is there nowhere else for you to sleep in this huge house?"
Serena Yardley turned her back to him, pulled the blanket over herself, and ignored him.
Ethan Yardley walked over to stand before her, growling, "Who are you guarding against? You think I’d still touch you?"
Frustrated, Serena Yardley sat up and met his gaze. "Can’t I sleep on the floor if I want to?"
’She wasn’t familiar with the manor. Her mother-in-law had brought her to this room, so this is where she would sleep.’
’How was she supposed to know Ethan would come here too?’
’Now that they’d reached this point, they certainly couldn’t share a bed. Wasn’t it enough that she was giving the bed to him?’
"Fine. If you like sleeping on the floor, then sleep there. Take your time. No one will bother you."
Furious, Ethan Yardley turned and got into bed.
He rolled over after lying down, and when he saw that Serena was actually sleeping on the floor, he felt an inexplicable surge of irritation.
Remembering what his mother had said—that this woman was sensitive, insecure, and lacked a sense of safety—made it even harder for him to sleep peacefully.
Finally, he sat up again and yelled at her, "Serena Yardley, get up here."
Serena Yardley didn’t listen, pretending to be asleep.
Ethan Yardley got out of bed, roughly bundled up her small frame, and tossed her onto the bed.
Before Serena Yardley could even react, she was lying on the large bed.
Looking at the man standing before the bed, she suddenly didn’t know what to say.
Ethan Yardley didn’t say anything more either. He turned to leave.
’He really was so disgusted that he refused to sleep in the same bed as her.’
But when he tried the door, he found it was locked.
He cursed under his breath and turned back to stand by the bed.
Looking at the person on the bed, his gaze flickered. He awkwardly sat down on the other side of the bed and said coldly,
"Don’t worry. Even lying in the same bed with you now, I have absolutely no interest in you."
With that, he lifted the covers and lay down.
Serena Yardley felt a bitter ache in her heart. Without another word, she slowly turned her back to him and forced herself to sleep.
Perhaps it was because she hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in a long time.
Or perhaps it was having Ethan by her side that finally made her feel secure. Surprisingly, she fell asleep very quickly.
Ethan Yardley, on the other hand, couldn’t fall asleep at all.
He turned his head to look at the person sleeping not far from him on the next pillow, his heart filled with a complicated mix of emotions.
He turned away, trying not to look at her and forcing himself to sleep, but the person beside him rolled over and bumped into him.
She bumped into him and began to murmur in her sleep, "Ethan... Serena’s in pain..."
Her delicate voice reached his ears, inexplicably stirring a protective instinct within him.
But then he remembered her actions, and he raised his hand in disgust, wanting to push her away.
"Ethan... a hug..."
Serena Yardley was fast asleep.
She was dreaming. She dreamt that she and Ethan hadn’t fought yet, that Sylvia Schuyler hadn’t appeared, and she habitually snuggled into his embrace.
Ethan Yardley’s hand, raised mid-air to push her away, froze.
Watching her soft, small body burrow against him like a little caterpillar, he desperately wanted to lower his hand and hold her tight, to let her sleep peacefully.
But...
’How could he, Ethan Yardley, ever forgive a woman who had deceived and betrayed him?’
’Her actions were unforgivable.’
In the end, Ethan Yardley still pulled away from her, got out of bed, and sat on the balcony, smoking for the rest of the night.
