Chapter 59 You Dont Deserve to Be Called My Brother-in-Law
Elsa glanced at Alexander, pulled her hand away, and tried to leave.
Alexander dragged her around the corner of the corridor.
His eyes searched her face.
"Elsa, we're husband and wife. What did you mean by what you said to Serena just now?"
Elsa stopped.
"You give Serena all your love and trust without conditions. You have a child together. Tonight, you hurt my brother right in front of me for the woman you love. What kind of husband and wife are we?"
Alexander reached for her hand again.
"Serena is kind by nature. She hates conflict. She went to see you because she wanted to show goodwill and live peacefully with you."
Elsa laughed in disbelief.
"The wife and the mistress living peacefully together? Alexander, do you hear yourself?"
He was silent for a moment.
Then he said, "You are my wife. Serena is in my past. I checked the surveillance footage from tonight, and there was a witness. I didn't falsely accuse Noah."
Elsa looked at him with growing coldness.
The witness had been questioned afterward.
The surveillance footage had been checked afterward.
When Alexander first entered Serena's room, he had walked straight past Elsa and Noah and listened only to Serena.
Alexander continued when Elsa didn't respond.
"I'm responsible for Noah's injured wrist because I used too much force. But none of that was Serena's fault. Don't take your anger out on her."
Elsa's eyes grew wet.
"With you protecting her this fiercely, would I dare?"
Alexander's gaze faltered.
He lowered his eyes and changed the subject.
"How is Noah's hand? I'll go see him with you."
That response hurt her all over again.
She remembered Noah's humiliated face and injured wrist.
Her heart broke for him.
Slap!
Elsa struck Alexander across the face.
The crisp sound left the corridor dead silent.
Alexander's head turned with the impact.
He stared at Elsa in disbelief, anger flickering in his eyes.
Elsa's eyes were red.
"Noah admired you from the time he was little. He trusted you and treated you like family. And you hurt him like this for another woman. You don't deserve to be called his brother-in-law."
Elsa walked away.
Alexander did not stop her.
Back home, Elsa could barely look at Noah's pale face without guilt tearing at her.
She left his room with tears in her eyes.
"Dad, Mom... this is my fault."
Margaret turned away to wipe her tears.
Harold lowered his head helplessly.
"Your brother has a temper. Maybe learning a hard lesson will keep him from acting so recklessly next time."
Elsa retreated to her bedroom.
Once the door closed, her tears finally fell.
While crying, she took out her phone and messaged Attorney Coleman.
If Alexander refused to sign the agreement, she would take this divorce to court.
At Alexander's new apartment by the bay, Lucas stood beside him on the open balcony.
Both men were smoking.
When Lucas heard what had happened to Noah, he repeatedly gave Alexander a sarcastic thumbs-up.
"You even managed to injure your brother-in-law. I'm impressed. Truly."
Alexander's face was black with irritation.
"I didn't hit him. He forced his way out of my grip and dislocated his wrist."
Lucas rolled his eyes.
"Serena knew Elsa already misunderstood her, and she still showed up at Elsa's home. If I were Noah, I'd have kicked her too."
Alexander disagreed.
"Serena only went there to make peace. She wanted to persuade Elsa to come home and repair our marriage. She had no bad intentions."
He paused.
"You know Noah has been spoiled since childhood. He's rebellious and fiercely protective of Elsa. He was willing to swing at me. Of course he wouldn't be polite to Serena."
Lucas put out his cigarette and looked at him patiently.
"All right, Alexander. The Winters family has no real power anymore, but every single one of them has a temper. Elsa is spoiled, dramatic, and troublesome. Apart from her face, she can't compare to one finger on Serena's hand. So why don't you divorce Elsa and tell her to disappear?"
Alexander slowly turned his head.
His expression could not have been darker.
Lucas kept going.
"Serena is practically a saint. An angel. She has no ordinary human desires and certainly no bad motives. You get a wife and a ready-made son in one package. What are you waiting for?"
Alexander leaned his forearms against the railing.
"Your reverse psychology won't work. Elsa and I are not divorcing."
Lucas decided the conversation was hopeless.
"Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Bring Elsa home for the holiday first. Then you can tell me again how you're 'not divorcing.'"
After Lucas left, Alexander remained alone on the balcony for a long time.
He and Elsa had known each other since childhood for more than twenty years.
Even as a joke, Elsa had never raised a hand to him.
Even after he stayed away for a month because of Serena, she hadn't struck him.
Tonight, she had slapped him.
Alexander touched the side of his face with his fingertips.
All he could see was the cold, decisive look Elsa had given him.
He couldn't sleep.
He wandered from room to room without knowing what he was looking for.
His feet wouldn't stop moving.
Neither would his thoughts.
At noon the next day, Thanksgiving, Elsa had just finished changing the medicine on Noah's wrist when Alexander arrived with gifts.
Although they were in the middle of a divorce dispute, they were still legally married.
Elsa's parents tried to preserve some dignity between the two families.
But after Alexander injured their son while defending another woman, their attitude toward him had clearly changed.
Margaret could no longer contain herself.
"You hurt my daughter because of that woman outside, and now you've injured my son. Why are you still coming here?"
Harold pointed toward the door.
"Our home is too small for someone as important as you. Please leave."
Alexander stared toward Elsa's bedroom door.
"Dad, Mom, what happened last night was my fault. I came to see how Noah's wrist is doing."
Margaret's face hardened.
"Noah doesn't need your concern. Go."
Seeing that Elsa's parents were too emotional to reason with, Alexander kept his tone calm.
"Dad, Mom, I know you misunderstand me, but Elsa and I aren't divorced. We are still legally husband and wife."
Elsa heard the exchange and finally came out.
She walked up to him.
"You've received the letter from my attorney. You and Serena are already living as husband and wife in everything but name. If you keep pressuring me, I don't mind making your affair public."
Alexander didn't react to the threat.
"It's Thanksgiving. Grandfather called and told me to bring you to the estate."
"There's no need."
Alexander remained calm.
"Elsa, I'm giving you two choices. Either you come to the estate with me, or I reserve a private dining room and both our families spend Thanksgiving together."