Fresh blooms crowded around the two tombstones standing side by side.
Charlotte Lindsey stared blankly at her parents‘ black–and–white portraits, utterly disheartened.
A week ago, a car accident had killed her parents and her only son.
Her world had shattered. Yet her husband, Timothy Bradford, hadn’t even bothered to show up.
Worse, he had stolen their son’s remains behind her back–just to save his illegitimate children.
His illegitimate daughter had their son’s corneas, and his illegitimate son had their son’s heart.
Charlotte didn’t even get to see her son one last time. Her ten–year marriage turned out to be a total failure.
And that wasn’t even the most ridiculous part.
The woman who stole her husband was Jocelynn Stuart–the daughter of her family’s maid and her so–called best friend.
She had been living in a lie until she caught Timothy and Jocelynn in bed.
That was when the harsh reality dawned on her–Timothy had only married her for her family’s connections. Jocelynn had always been the one he truly loved.
“Mom, Dad, I’m so sorry. I should’ve listened to your advice. I should never have married Timothy…”
Tears streamed down Charlotte’s cheeks as stabbing agony overwhelmed her.
Her body trembled, too weak to stand up.
She had only recently discovered that Timothy had been poisoning her all along.
By the time she realized, it was far too late.
Blood trickled from her lips as she collapsed before her parents‘ tombstones, her eyes wide open.
***
When Charlotte came to, she found herself suspended in mid–air.
Then she realized she was in someone’s arms.
Before she could scream, the tall, beefy man hurled her onto a big, soft bed and then came on top of her.
She cried out, jolting awake.
He was so heavy. His scorching breath burned against her lips, his kiss so domineering that she couldn’t breathe.
“Let go of me! Who are you?”
She widened her eyes.
What came into her view was a chiseled, handsome face.
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“Gregory…”
The moment she recognized who he was, memories came rushing back.
Gregory Bradford was Timothy’s uncle, the Bradford family’s sole heir, and the one rival Timothy could never defeat.
Her mind spun back to ten years ago, the night of her engagement party with Timothy.
That night, someone had gotten her drunk and placed her in Gregory’s bed.
Gregory had been drugged.
Just when he was about to force himself on her, he recognized her. With his last shred of sanity, he stopped, locking himself in the bathroom under a cold shower until morning.
But she had been so blinded by love for Timothy.
To help him rise to power, she accused Gregory of rape at the cost of her reputation. The scandal exploded, landing Gregory three years in prison and branding him for life.
Timothy, however, had taken the chance to become part of the Bradford Group’s core executives.
When Gregory was in jail, he swiftly seized the initiative and dominated
the market.
Even though she told Timothy nothing had happened that night, he never believed her.
He married her, yes, but he always held her in contempt.
To him, she was just a tool to drain her family’s value. He had never loved her at all.
Fine.
Now that she was back to this fateful night, she was gonna rewrite her fate!
This time, she would never let Timothy have his way.
“Gregory… I want it to be you.” She wrapped her arms around Gregory’s neck.
Recognizing her voice, he froze.
Gritting his teeth against the surge of desire, he tried to pull away. “What are you doing here? Get out.”
Her eyes were brimming with tears as she clung to him harder. “Gregory, I’m more than willing to help you.”
She leaned in, pressing her lips to his in a clumsy kiss.
“Go away…”
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“Gregory, whatever happens tonight stays tonight. I’ll forget it when I wake up tomorrow. You owe me nothing.
His restraint snapped. With heavy breathing, Gregory lifted her and tossed her back onto the bed.
They didn’t stop until dawn.
Charlotte’s body ached, and she was so exhausted that she nearly fell asleep several times.
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But she bit her lip hard, forcing herself to stay awake.
