Chapter 1

Charlotte Sinclair was hailed as Ashford's top socialite. From childhood, she was raised to believe that she should never let the Sinclair family lose face.

After marrying the notorious playboy, Edward Foster, Charlotte obediently gave up her own career and focused all her energy on taking care of Edward's parents.

She would always wait for him at home, and after his business dinners, she'd make him a special soup to help sober him up.

She would even handle Edward's mistresses who showed up at their door.

But on Christmas Eve, Charlotte suddenly did something completely out of character. She sat alone at the table, savoring a lavish dinner all by herself.

She didn't spend Christmas Eve with Edward, nor did she go to look after her ailing mother-in-law.

The door burst open with a bang, breaking the silence of the night.

Edward's veins stood out on his forehead as he forced each word through gritted teeth. "Why didn't you go to the hospital? If the nurse hadn't noticed something was wrong with my mom, she could've died tonight!"

Charlotte acted like Edward's anger didn't even exist, helping herself to another bite.

She said, "I called you yesterday. You told me you were out of town with Melissa for work, and not to disturb you."

As she spoke, her hand shivered slightly, as if she were back on the day her whole body was shattered.

Charlotte never told anyone that she had time-travelled back.

In her previous life, she devoted herself to being Mrs. Foster, living her whole life under that title.

When Melissa Wynn appeared, Charlotte handled her just like all of Edward's other mistresses. She offered money to make Melissa leave.

But she never imagined that Melissa, unable to endure the humiliation, would jump off an abandoned building while carrying Edward's child.

From that moment on, Edward that playboy suddenly settled down.

He forced Charlotte to get pregnant, and then orchestrated accidents to make her lose the baby, again and again.

It all came to a head on the anniversary of Melissa's death.

Edward tied Charlotte's hands with a rope and hung her up.

He hooked his finger through the rope, smirking as he looked at her. "Charlotte, you owe Melissa a life. Tonight, you're finally paying your debt."

For the first time ever, Charlotte's always composed face twisted in utter disbelief.

She tried to scream, but her voice was choked and muffled. She could only watch as Edward cut the rope right in front of her.

The wind roared past her ears as she slammed into the ground, dying in the exact spot where Melissa had lost her life.

But when she opened her eyes again, Charlotte realized she was back in the year when Melissa first entered Edward's life.

This time, she was determined not to spend her whole life playing by the rules, and definitely not to get caught up in their tangled love mess ever again.

As the memories faded, Charlotte's shoulders shook with lingering dread.

Edward flipped the dining table over, his fist pounding hard against the corner.

He snapped, "Everyone was at the hospital tonight with my mom, except you, her daughter-in-law. Don't you think you owe me an explanation?

"If you're just sulking because you're jealous I went on a business trip with Melissa, maybe you should just quit being Mrs. Foster."

Charlotte tilted her head up, meeting his gaze with steady, almost indifferent eyes.

She found herself remembering Melissa's bold, lively attitude, and, without meaning to, felt a hint of envy.

If she hadn't been brought back to the Sinclair family, maybe she would've been just as carefree and optimistic as Melissa.

Charlotte thought for a while and then suggested, "If you think someone else is better suited to be Mrs. Foster, I'm happy to quit whenever you want."

Without another glance at him, Charlotte turned away to clean up the spilled soup and food on her clothes.

Edward watched her walk away, her steps as elegant as ever. His anger faded, replaced by curiosity and amusement. Then he let out a mocking laugh. "Playing hard to get, huh?"

He remembered how, back then, this famous heiress in Ashford had rejected all the other advances from the city's elites and only chose him, the infamous playboy who never settled down.

Edward didn't believe that Charlotte would willingly give up on the position as his wife.

After cleaning herself up, Charlotte stepped out and saw Edward sitting on the couch with one leg casually draped over the other.

"Go apologize to my mom tomorrow, and that'll be the end of it," Edward said coolly.

Charlotte refused without a second thought. "I have plans tomorrow."

Edward had just handed her an easy way out, but she didn't take it. His brows knitted together in frustration.

"All you ever do is go to socialite parties or hang out with other rich wives looking at flowers. What could possibly be more important than spending Christmas with your family?" Edward snapped.

Charlotte glanced at him, offering no explanation.

Moments later, the only sound was the door being slammed shut with force.