Chapter 1

The lucky charm, a small, intricate knot of red silk and jade, dangled from David Chen' s fingers. He was younger here, his face less worn by the years of regret I knew were coming. He was about to hand it to me, just like he did before.

This was the moment. The beginning of a lifetime of misery.

"Sarah," he began, his voice the same smooth tone that had once soothed me.

I flinched and pushed his hand away. Not hard, but it was enough. The motion was sharp, instinctive.

The world seemed to snap back into focus for him. The gentle look in his eyes vanished, replaced by a flicker of confusion, then irritation. He retracted his hand, the lucky charm swinging between his fingers. He turned, and without a moment's hesitation, he offered it to my stepsister, Chloe.

"Here," he said, his voice flat.

Chloe took it.

I didn't watch them. My gaze lifted, moving past David' s shoulder, past Chloe' s triumphant little smile. I found another pair of eyes in the crowd, a familiar face that watched me with concern. Mark Evans. This time, I would not ignore him. This time, I would live for myself.

The memory of my death was still fresh, a phantom ache in my chest where the knife had gone in, again and again. Lucky, my sweet dog, had died. My husband, David, the man who was now giving my engagement gift to another woman, had lost his mind. He' d found a young artist named Chloe, someone who he claimed looked just like his dead dog, and brought her to a gathering of our friends.

"Sarah, let' s get a divorce," he had announced, his eyes wild. "I want Chloe to be my wife."

Everyone was shocked. They didn' t understand. But I did. After he killed me, after he took his own life in front of my fading eyes, I understood everything. His obsession wasn't with a woman, but with a ghost.

And now I was back. Back at the charity gala meant to celebrate our arranged engagement. The outcome was supposed to be set in stone, a merger of families and fortunes. But this time, I had changed the script.

"That' s enough, David! What did I tell you?"

David's mother, a formidable businesswoman whose sharp tone could silence a boardroom, glared at him. Her anger was a palpable force in the opulent ballroom.

Chloe, ever the actress, immediately dropped to her knees. She held the lucky charm above her head with both hands, her face a mask of humility.

"Mr. Chen... this charm is too precious. I' m not worthy. Please give it to Sarah."

It was a brilliant performance. She looked demure, self-sacrificing. But I saw the calculating glint in her eyes.

David, however, was completely captivated. He didn't act like the man from my past life, the one who would have at least pretended to listen to his mother. He rushed to Chloe's side, pulling her up from the floor and shielding her with his body as if protecting her from his mother's wrath.

"Why aren' t you worthy?" he declared, his voice ringing through the hushed room. "With me by your side, you' re worthy of the stars!"

"Mr. Chen..." Chloe whispered, her eyes filling with what looked like genuine tears.

Their heartfelt drama enraged David' s mother. The vein in her temple throbbed.

"Separate them!" she commanded her security detail.

Before they could move, David did something even more shocking. He knelt on the floor, his gaze fixed earnestly on his mother.

"Mom! I don' t love Sarah. I love Chloe. They' re both from the same family, so what does it matter who I marry?"

He was referring to the fact that Chloe was my father's illegitimate daughter. It was a scandal, not a point of pride.

"No matter what, this time I will marry Chloe!" he shouted, his voice echoing. "As for Sarah... I can accept her as a mistress."

A wave of gasps rippled through the guests. A mistress? Me? The woman his mother had handpicked for him, the woman she loved like her own daughter?

David' s mother looked utterly bewildered. "What is all this about past and present lives? What are you talking about?"

"You don' t understand, Mom," David said, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper, loud enough for everyone to hear. "But I, David Chen, swear today that if I don' t marry Chloe, I will become a monk!"

This was new. In my first life, his obsession had festered in private for years. Now, it was a public spectacle.

Chloe looked at David, her eyes wide with disbelief and adoration. Then, she turned her performance on me. She approached and knelt at my feet, her tears now flowing freely.

"Sister, it' s not that I stole your engagement. It' s fate. I met Mr. Chen first, and my heart was captivated. But I don' t dare aspire to be the wife. I' m willing to be a mistress to serve both you and Mr. Chen!"

The sheer audacity of her words left me cold. She wanted to be his mistress, serving us both? The humiliation was the point.

Seeing her kneel before me seemed to trigger something in David. His face contorted with rage. He stood up abruptly and shoved me, hard.

"Get away from her!"

I wasn't expecting the force of his attack. I stumbled backward, my balance gone. The world tilted, and the sharp corner of a marble-topped table met my forehead with a sickening thud.

Pain exploded behind my eyes. A warm liquid, thick and sticky, immediately gushed down my face.

The room erupted into chaos.