Chapter 4

In her previous life, Charlotte always thought Edward was just fooling around, flirting with everyone and never really falling for anyone.

That all changed on the day of Melissa's funeral.

Edward's eyes were red and swollen as he roughly grabbed Charlotte's collar and punched the wall right by her ear.

He shouted, "Melissa only just confessed recently that she was the one who stayed with me when I got sent to the small town.

"You really think being a Sinclair means I won't lay a finger on you?"

Charlotte shook her head desperately. "No, that's not true! It was me..."

She tried to explain, her voice frantic, insisting she was the one Edward had been searching for all along.

But after Edward dug into the truth, every piece of evidence pointed straight at Melissa, who was already gone. Charlotte was left branded as a fraud, accused of stealing someone else's credit.

Edward, enraged, had Charlotte tied up and left hanging in an abandoned construction site, abandoning her to survive on her own.

Back to now, while Melissa was suffering through her miscarriage, Charlotte was also locked up in a sanitarium.

As evening settled in, just after her calf massage, Charlotte glanced up to find Edward leaning against the doorway, arms crossed, watching her intently.

"Don't you have anything to explain?" Edward said.

Charlotte tilted her head up to meet his gaze. "If I said Melissa hurt herself, would you believe me?"

For once, Edward actually looked serious, sizing her up. "You gotta give me something that'll make me believe you."

Charlotte's lips moved, but she forced herself to swallow the urge to come clean to him.

She was afraid history would repeat itself, just like last time.

After a few seconds of tense silence, Edward, ignoring Charlotte's injured leg, roughly dragged her off the bed.

"Since you refuse to say anything, you're going to apologize to Melissa," Edward said.

Charlotte's forehead was slick with sweat from the pain as she gripped his wrist for dear life, but he shoved her hard into the hospital room.

Several bodyguards forced her to the ground. Her injured leg buckled and she fell to the ground. No matter how desperately she struggled, she couldn't break free.

In a last-ditch effort, Charlotte bit down hard on Edward's hand, blood filling her mouth. But her vision blurred, and she passed out in his arms.

In her dreams, it felt like Charlotte was back in those carefree days out in the small town.

Every day, she'd climb trees searching for bird eggs, or splash around in the river, catching tiny fish.

Then, one day, a boy even more mischievous than Charlotte started hanging around her.

They hit it off right away, always getting into trouble together. Even when there was a wedding, they'd grab their little stools and sit side by side to watch.

Charlotte was completely absorbed in watching the bride, when she suddenly felt a muddy hand press down on her arm.

The boy pointed at a crooked little mud town he'd built on the ground.

"Look, I built a mud city just for you," he said, grabbing Charlotte's hand and pulling her through the gate. "When we grow up, we'll walk in hand in hand, just like this."

A string of tears slid down Charlotte's cheek.

It turned out that after all these years, she was the only one still stuck in that little mud town from their childhood.

Charlotte had no idea how many days she'd been out cold. All she remembered was waking up and realizing her hotel booking was a week away.

She had just finished reading the messages on her phone when she caught sight of Edward stepping out from the corner.

"Where are you planning to go?" Edward asked.

Charlotte froze for a moment.

Edward jerked his chin toward her phone. "Your phone just pinged. Looks like your flight ticket went through."

Charlotte looked down. "I'm just planning to get out for a while, clear my head."

Edward's brows furrowed, but he didn't ask any more questions.

Once Charlotte's leg was mostly healed, she hobbled along the wall, making her way unsteadily to the hospital entrance.

She spotted Edward right away, carefully carrying Melissa, who was all bundled up, and gently placing her in the car.

He pressed a soft kiss to Melissa's forehead and told the driver to take it easy.

Charlotte kept her face calm as she turned and walked away.

Edward suddenly grabbed Charlotte's arm.

He silently glanced at her injured leg before speaking. "There's an orthopedic specialist here today. Let's get it looked at."

"No, it's fine," Charlotte said, not even pausing.

Edward's usually charming eyes suddenly flashed with impatience. "The shareholders' meeting is coming up soon. So, are you really planning to show up looking like that, sitting in Mrs. Foster's place?"

Charlotte pressed her lips tightly together and pulled away from him.

She had no intention of telling him in advance that, at the next shareholders' meeting, Mrs. Foster's spot would be left empty, just like he wanted.