Chapter 1

To pay for his deceased first love's daughter's study abroad, my husband sold the house my parents gave us behind my back.

When I confronted him, he justified it without remorse. "We can live without the house, but Melissa can't miss this chance."

Given a second chance at life, I divorced him without hesitation and rekindled things with my own first love.

After all, everyone had a past worth revisiting.

*****

I overheard my husband David Lee sighing as I stood outside the door. "If your mom hadn't turned down my proposal back then, I would've married Sophia instead."

Our adopted daughter Melissa Hart's gentle voice drifted out, offering comfort. "David, don't be sad. Even though my mom's gone, in my heart, you're just like my dad."

Her words hit David right in the feels. "I always knew you were a good kid. Don't worry about school. Even if I have to sell the house, I'll make sure you get to study abroad."

Melissa spoke up, her voice timid. "Sophia never really liked my mom. I don't think she'll agree.

"Going abroad isn't that big of a deal, but I'd hate it to cause problems between you and Sophia.

"Maybe we should keep this from Sophia for now, so she won't get upset with you."

In my previous life, Melissa wasn't much of a student. After she flunked the SAT, she suddenly decided she wanted to go study abroad.

She talked David into it in no time, and he went behind my back to sell the house.

It wasn't until I got home and saw all those boxes stacked by the door that I realized David had sold the house without telling me.

I went ballistic. "You sold the house? Where are we supposed to live now?

"Is Melissa really that important to you? You'd give up our home for her?"

David shot back, sounding all self-righteous. "It's not like we don't have anywhere else to go.

"Melissa's studying abroad now. Once she makes it big, buying us a house will be a piece of cake."

He glared at me. "You only care about yourself. You're so narrow-minded. I don't even want to waste my breath on you."

After we moved, David saw how down I was and tried to sweet-talk me. "Trust me, once I get my project bonus, we'll save up for a couple of years and buy the house back, no problem.

"This time, I'll handle the savings. Your money will just be used for the day-to-day stuff."

I actually bought it.

The Lee family always had their hands out, and David's mother Rachel was constantly dropping by to bail out her youngest son. After two years of this, I was left flat broke.

But when my mom got sick and had to be hospitalized, and I asked David for some emergency cash, his attitude did a complete 180.

"Why should I give you money just because your mom's sick? She's your mom, not mine," David shot back.

I was shaking with fury.

I took our bank card to the bank, only to find the account was wiped clean.

The printer churned out a fat stack of transaction slips; all of them transferred to Melissa overseas.

I was devastated, but David got all worked up. "She's just a kid, all alone in a foreign country. If I don't look after her, who will?

"Sophia, why do you have to be so petty about this?"

In my previous life, that was when I finally saw my husband's true colors.

Now that fate had given me a second chance, I wouldn't be fooled by him again.

I listened to the sounds inside as I turned the key, and as soon as the lock clicked, the living room went completely silent.

Melissa was sitting on the couch, giving me a timid look. She whispered, "Sophia."

David glared at me. "You're home so late. Didn't you realize Melissa's been waiting for you to have dinner? That's really out of line."

But Melissa was not even my real daughter.

I tossed my bag onto the table and headed straight for the bedroom, not bothering to look at either of them. "I'm tired. You two go ahead and eat without me."

David followed me in, his tone sharp. "What's your problem? If you don't want to make dinner, why didn't you tell us earlier? We've been waiting for you forever.

"By the way, I need some money. Melissa's still growing, and the food out there isn't clean. I want to take her to a good restaurant."

He shot me a resentful look. "Melissa is trying so hard to please you, and this is how you treat her?

"You don't deserve a daughter like her. If her mom were still around, she'd be devastated to see you treating Melissa like this.

"Don't you have any sympathy at all?"

I turned to David and gave him a faint smile. "You know, she's not my real daughter."

"What do you mean, 'not your real daughter'?" David's face darkened. "If you weren't barren, do you think I'd have had to bring Melissa into this house?

"I basically gave you a child, and you still act like this. No wonder Melissa keeps her distance and is terrified of you."