chapter 2
Kama's voice cracked by the last few words. I hadn't even processed what she was implying when Neil stepped forward and helped her up. When he turned to look at me, his gaze carried something newhatred.
"This has nothing to do with Kama," he said sharply. "Why would you treat her like that?"
The accusation came out of nowhere.
"I didn't"
"You really were spoiled rotten, weren't you?" he cut me off. "So spoiled you think the world should bend to you."
Before I could even respond, someone nearby stepped up with an overly eager smile, holding out a gift box.
"Mr.Bauer, a little something to celebrate your engagement to Miss Edward"
Before he finished, Neil snatched the box and hurled it at me.
"Janet," he growled, "apologize to Kama."
"If you don't, I'll call off the engagement. I don't care if the Bauers aren't as powerful as the Edwards, I will not marry an evil woman like you!"
...
The box was beautifully wrapped, but one sharp corner sliced my chin open as it hit me.
There was a collective gasp around the room, but no one dared step forward.
I raised my hand to touch my face. Blood streaked across my palm.
The way Neil looked at mecold, furious, disgustedwas exactly how he'd looked in my past life whenever he humiliated me for Kama.
Something inside me froze over.
"I won't apologize for something I didn't do."
"Fine," he said. "Then don't come crying to me later!"
With that, he turned and walked out, his arm around Kama.
My parents were horrified when they saw the cut on my chin. They rushed me home and called our private doctor to treat it immediately.
Watching their anxious faces, I felt something I hadn't expectedrelief.
Thank God I was given a second chance. A chance to do things differently.
This time, my parents were still alive. The Edwards' fortune was still ours.
And I was going to stay as far away from Neil and Kama as humanly possible.
A few days later, the Monds sent over the engagement gifts. The boxes filled the entire first floor of our estate.
Among them was a family heirloom bracelet, passed down through generations of Monds. A clear sign of how much they valued this match.
I felt a sharp pang in my chest.
In my last life, the Bauers had known how deeply I loved Neiland still, they told people they didn't approve of me. Said I had begged and clung until they "reluctantly" let their son marry me.
There was no engagement party. No gifts. The "wedding" was just a meal shared between our two families.
I still remembered his parents mocking me at the dinner table. The way Neil looked at me like I was nothing.
Now, comparing that to how the Monds treated meI knew, without a doubt, I was lucky to have this do-over.
So I decided: I would personally choose Jared's engagement gift.
At a century-old tailor shop, I was discussing cufflink designs with the master craftsman when the doorbell rang.
Neil walked in, hand-in-hand with Kama.
He spotted me and immediately frowned.
"What are you doing here?"
The tailor answered on my behalf.
"Miss Edward wanted to personally design her fianc's engagement outfit. She has quite the eye for detail."
Neil glanced at the sketches on the table, then scoffed.
"I've told you a hundred timesI don't want to marry you. No matter what you do, I'm not changing my mind.
"And I hate initials on cufflinks. That's so tacky."
I looked at the sketch in front of me. The letter "L" was engraved into the design.
He clearly thought it was for him.
"Actually, those are for"
"Neil, this dress is gorgeous!" Kama suddenly gasped, stepping past me to run her fingers across a crimson gown on display.
Neil's expression softened. "If you like it, have the tailor make you one just like it."
"But I want to wear this dress tonight," she said sweetly. "You promised to take me to the concert."
His smile returned, and without hesitation, he turned to the tailor.
"Alter the dress to Kama's measurements. We need it ready for tonight."
I frowned. "Neil, that's my engagement dress."
He didn't even blink. "I'm busy. I don't have time for whatever party the Edwards are throwing."
"And honestly, Kama looks better in that dress than you ever could."
Kama had her back to him. The smug look on her face said it all.
Still, her words came out laced with guilt.
"Miss Edward, if you don't want to give it up, that's fine. A dress this elegant there's no way nobody like me deserves to wear it."
"Don't be ridiculous," Neil said without hesitation. "The woman I love could never be a nobody. Janet is just living off her parents. She's not so high and mighty herself."
With that, he handed the dress over to the tailor.
The old tailor didn't move. He stood there, calmly waiting for my instructions.
After all, the Edwards had been this shop's top patron for generations, going all the way back to his great-great-grandfather.
Neil clearly didn't like that.
"You"
"She wants it?" I interrupted Neil. "Then let Miss Sinclair have it."
Neil finally seemed satisfied.
"Since you're being reasonable," he said, smug as ever, "I'll have dinner with you once a month after we're married."
The way he said that was like he was doing me a huge favor.
In that moment, something clicked.
The change in his attitude had started the moment he learned the Edwards were the most powerful family in the country, while the Bauers barely made it into the top ten.
I used to love how fearless he was when we were younger, how he never measured a person's worth by money or status.
But after that, he started using "you Edwards" like a curse. Constantly reminding me that I was nothing without my parents. Always putting me down, always mocking me, and using my love for him as an excuse to say the cruelest things.
Truth was, he was insecure.
The thought made me laugh.
"Neil, what makes you so sure I'm going to marry you?"
...
Neil smirked, like I'd just told the world's funniest joke.
"You've been chasing me since we were kids," he scoffed. "Every birthday wish was the sameyou wanted to marry me when you turned twenty.
"Well, you're twenty now. Do you think you'll marry someone else?"
Kama snuggled into his chest, a smug edge in her voice.
"Though I guess with the Edwards' status, every heir in the country's probably fighting to marry her."
"She could have every prince on his kneesshe'd still only want to marry me," said Neil.
With that, the two turned and walked out.
Before leaving, Neil tossed one last order to the tailor.
"Have the dress altered and sent to my house. And those tacky cufflinksmake them square. No initials."
The tailor watched him go, then turned to me with a sigh.
"Miss Edward, should we"
"If she wants it, she can have it," I said, sitting back down and sketching again. "I'll design something new. And forget what he said about the cufflinks. He's not my fianc. He doesn't get a say."
That night, I had a friend's birthday party.
Halfway through the night, Kama finally arrivedlate, of course. One of Neil's bodyguards followed behind, carrying a red plastic bag.
He placed it down by my feet.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Miss Edward. I was going to return the dress right after the concert, but Neil insisted we stay a little longer in the car.
"But Miss Edward is famous for being generous. I'm sure you don't mind, right?"
I looked down at the bag.
The 3 million dollar dress was stuffed inside like a rag, crumpled into a wrinkled ball.
What's worse was the white stains that stood out starkly against the crimson fabric.
The people around me gasped. Some were angry for me. Others just watched with amusement.
"Kama's picking a fight with Janet right in her face, yet she's still keeping calm. Guess Janet really is head over heels for Neil."
"Janet can love him all she wants. Mr.Bauer only has eyes for Kama."
"Pathetic. The Edwards' only daughter being humiliated like that at this rate, the whole family business might as well belong to the Bauers."
I looked away, not even bothering to react and called for someone to throw it out.
"If Miss Sinclair likes it, that's all that matters."
My indifference made Kama's smugness fall flat. She clenched her fists and stalked off to the last table, the one reserved just for her.