I spent a lifetime with Carter. We had a son and a daughter, stayed together until our golden anniversary. But on his deathbed, gravely ill, our son asked him if he had any final wishes. "After I die, bury me next to your aunt Bella. That is the only thing I have ever truly wanted." The room went silent. Everyone looked at me with pity. I nodded, my face numb. "Do as he says." People whispered behind my back. I had spent fifty years serving his parents, raising his children, and being a perfect wife, yet I couldn't even keep his heart in his final moments. I was a joke. But they didn't know that if I had a second chance, I wouldn't have married Carter in the first place. When I opened my eyes again, I was back. It was my wedding day. Just as I remembered, Carter had run away, leaving me at the altar to face the humiliation of the crowd alone. I didn't feel shame. I felt relief. I exhaled a breath I felt like I'd been holding for a lifetime. My gaze drifted slowly to a man in a black suit sitting in the corner. "Damon," I called out, my voice steady. "I'm short a groom. Are you willing to fill the spot?" 1 My words dropped like a bomb. The entire ballroom went dead silent. Even the man chugging whiskey in the corner froze. He looked up, eyes wide with disbelief. "What did you just... say?" The corners of Damon's eyes were slightly red. When he looked at me, a flicker of hope ignited in his dark gaze. I smiled. Ignoring the gasps of the guests, I walked firmly toward him. "I said, I want to marry you. Do you want to marry me?" Damon stared at me, stunned. His lips trembled slightly, unable to form words. Before he could answer, Carter's mother rushed forward, grabbing my arm. "Layla, honey, I know that idiot son of mine hurt you today, but I've already sent people to drag him back." "He's just being immature. He's acting out." "Don't worry. As long as I'm here, you are the only daughter-in-law I'll accept. Don't let your anger make you do something stupid. You can't just marry someone else out of spite!" I smiled gently and pulled my hand away. "Mrs. Sterling, you can't force love. I don't have to marry Carter. You should just let them be together." In my past life, I knew Carter's heart belonged to my younger sister, Bella. But Bella had a wild history. She’d dated a string of boyfriends and had health complications that left her unable to have children. Mrs. Sterling, obsessed with lineage, refused to let her in the door. Plus, Carter and I were childhood sweethearts. Our families had arranged the marriage, and I had loved him since we were kids. It made sense for me to take the role. Everyone thought we were a model couple who made it to our golden years. But only we knew the misery behind closed doors. In sixty years of marriage, we slept in separate rooms for fifty-five of them. 2 Carter hated me. When I was in the hospital, suffering through a difficult labor, he didn't show up once. Every year on our child's birthday, he spent the entire day at the cemetery. He drank himself into a stupor constantly, calling out Bella's name in his sleep. I thought feelings could grow. I thought trauma could fade. But year after year, we just became two ghosts haunting the same house. It wasn't worth it. Now that I had a do-over, I was letting him go. And freeing myself. Mrs. Sterling looked frantic seeing me hold Damon’s hand. "Layla! You are the wife I chose for my son! How can you marry him?" "I've never liked Bella's manipulative little acts. I don't care why she called Carter away today, I will not let him bring that woman into my house!" In my past life, on this very day, Bella committed suicide by jumping into the ocean when she heard we were actually getting married. She left a note and a video. "Carter, I have to call you 'brother-in-law' now. But I love you, and I can't say those words." "I envy my sister. She gets you so easily. My luck always runs out." "If there is a next life, Carter... let me be the one to marry you." Mrs. Sterling had thought she was bluffing and forced the wedding to continue. But Bella really jumped. By the time the reception ended, her body had been pulled from the water, cold and lifeless. This time, Carter wasn't going to let her die. When he got Bella's video message, his eyes went bloodshot, and he sprinted out of the church without a backward glance. In my last life, I was devastated. Now? I felt nothing but relief. I turned back to the man in front of me. "Damon, if you want to marry me, come up to the altar." 3 "This wedding belongs to us now," I whispered. Damon smiled, a genuine, dazzling smile, and gripped my hand tight. "Okay." The room exploded into chaos. Carter's groomsmen were whispering frantically, texting Carter. "Bro, you really messed up this time. Layla is marrying someone else." "I thought Layla was obsessed with Carter? Why is she swapping him out so fast?" "And why him? Of all people, she picked Damon Vance. The notorious playboy." "She's probably just doing it to make Carter jealous because he ran off." I walked Damon down the aisle, our fingers interlaced. Damon’s hand trembled slightly. He lowered his head. I knew why everyone was whispering. Damon had a terrible reputation. He was known as a trust-fund baby who spent his nights in clubs, surrounded by scandals and models. His name was mud in our social circle. Decent families wouldn't let their daughters near him. There were even vicious rumors that his promiscuous lifestyle had left him with incurable diseases. But I knew the truth. That wasn't him. "Layla, are you acting on impulse?" Damon asked, his voice low. "If you just need to save face, I'll play along. I'll help you." "But don't ruin your life just to win an argument." My heart ached for him. Just as I was about to reassure him, the church doors were kicked open with a bang. "Layla! Stop this nonsense!" "Marriage isn't a game! You can't just swap the groom! Get your ass over here!" My father stormed in. He must have heard the news. Guests stood up out of respect, some trying to curry favor with him. But he only had eyes for me, and they were filled with rage. "Why are you standing there? Are you deaf?" Damon frowned, whispering to me, "Go. Don't embarrass your dad." I stood my ground. As a child, I was terrified of that look. Whenever he glared at me, I folded. He told me to give my favorite toys to Bella. I did. He told me to give the biggest bedroom to Bella. I packed my bags. 4 Even when he told me to marry Carter, I dutifully tried on dresses and took etiquette classes to be the perfect Sterling wife. But today, I was going rogue. "Dad, I'm marrying Damon." My voice was calm, cutting through the tension. "I've listened to you my whole life. But this time, I'm choosing the person I want to spend my life with." Slap! The sound echoed through the high ceilings of the venue. The room went dead silent. "You ungrateful brat! If you marry Damon today, you are no daughter of mine!" I looked at him, touching my stinging cheek, and smiled. "Fine. Let's sever ties then." No one expected the obedient Layla to say something so rebellious. My father’s face turned white, his chest heaving. "You... you're disowning your father for this piece of trash?" "I spoiled you too much! That's why you're so out of control!" Since my mom died and he married my stepmother, bringing Bella into the family, hitting me had become normal for him. He raised his hand to slap me again. But before it could land, a hand with prominent knuckles caught his wrist in a vice grip. Damon stepped in front of me, his expression icy. "Touch her again. I dare you." He growled the words. Tears pricked my eyes. Growing up, no one had ever protected me like this. Everyone thought I was crazy for marrying the "playboy." But only I knew the truth. In my past life, on the day I was dying in childbirth, it was the anniversary of Bella’s death. My husband and my father were both at the cemetery, mourning her. No one cared if I lived or died. The doctors issued a critical condition notice.
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