Chapter 1

Right after Lily and I graduated from college, our family went bankrupt. My father, Logan Summers, gave us two options—marry into the Whitmore family, or stay behind and clean up the company's mess.

In my previous life, my younger sister, Lily Summers, chose to marry into the Whitmore family, dreaming of a life of luxury. Instead, Brandon Whitmore tortured her until she was left disfigured and crippled.

I relied on my business instincts to bring the company back from the dead, and for a while, I was on top of the world.

Lily's jealousy drove her insane. At the company's IPO launch, she stormed in with a can of gasoline and burned me alive.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at the moment Logan laid the choice before us. This time, Lily stepped forward before I could say a word.

"Just let Evelyn marry into the Whitmore family. She's always been too delicate for hard times. I'll stay with Dad and ride this out together."

I couldn't help but laugh. Oh, Lily. Foolish, predictable Lily. Staying with the company was going to be far worse than marrying into the Whitmore family.

*****

"Mom, Dad, I'm the youngest in the family. I shouldn't be running off to have a good time while the company's falling apart. I'm not gonna abandon you guys."

That familiar voice dragged me out of the suffocating darkness. I opened my eyes to a scene I knew all too well.

Lily clung to Logan's sleeve, her voice trembling with theatrical sorrow.

A flicker of guilt crossed Logan and Hazel's faces.

I had been reborn. And Lily had made a different choice this time around. She had been reborn too.

In our previous life, right after Lily and I graduated from college, our family went bankrupt. Logan called us both home with an urgent phone call. Once we arrived, he got straight to the point and laid out two options.

The first option was to marry Brandon Whitmore, the most eligible bachelor in the city's elite. Our families had arranged a betrothal years ago. One daughter marries in, and they invest enough to bail us out.

The second option was to stay and clean up the company's mess.

Back then, Lily didn't think twice. She jumped at the chance to marry Brandon.

The truth was, the engagement had always been meant for me. But Logan and Hazel couldn't bear the thought of their precious youngest daughter suffering alongside them, so they disguised their favoritism as "letting us choose for ourselves" to pressure me into giving in.

I had always been the one who valued family above everything. They knew that about me. So under the weight of their guilt-tripping, I handed the comfortable life over to Lily.

But after Lily married Brandon, she turned her back on us completely. When I brought Logan and Hazel to ask Brandon about the promised investment, Lily stepped in and shut it down.

Dripping in gold and jewels, Lily looked down at me with disdain, her red lips curling as she spoke.

"Evelyn, you've always had better grades and more talent than me. You can turn the company around on your own. The Whitmores look glamorous, but we're actually tight on cash. You wouldn't drag me down with you, would you?"

I expected Logan and Hazel to be furious. Instead, they turned to me with that helpless, pleading look in their eyes. Their tone begged, but their gaze left no room for argument.

"Evelyn, Lily and her husband have it tough too," they said. "The Whitmores kept their word and married her in. Let's not make trouble for them. She still has to live under their roof."

The rage hit me like a fist to the chest. In this family, I was always the villain. To make sure Lily could hold her head high in the Whitmore household, I gritted my teeth and shouldered the company alone.

There were nights I drank until my stomach bled just to close a deal. I ripped out my IV needle the second a client called, still half-conscious as I ran out the door. All that sacrifice eventually paid off.

Meanwhile, Brandon tortured Lily into disability. At the company's IPO event, Lily burst in carrying gasoline and set me on fire.

Through the flames, I saw her twisted, hateful eyes glaring at me. "Evelyn, why do you get to be a big successful woman while I'm stuck rotting in the gutter? You're coming to hell with me!"

Fire devoured every inch of my skin. But even through that agony, I could see Logan and Hazel rushing past me to save Lily. My heart turned to ash, and I closed my eyes.