Chapter 1

My daughter fell for a small-time thug and wanted to dump her boyfriend, a graduate student, to be with him.

I threatened to kill myself to stop her, and in the end she cut ties with the thug. Her married life was comfortable, wanting for nothing.

Twenty years later, I lay sick in a hospital bed.

My daughter pulled out my oxygen tube with her own hands.

"All because I didn't come down that day, Ryder drank himself sick and died in a car crash!"

"You killed him! You should have paid with your life long ago!"

I wanted to tell my daughter that the thug got drunk to catch another girl's attention, that he'd picked a drinking contest with someone else on purpose.

But I couldn't get a single word out before I stopped breathing.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day the thug stood downstairs shouting my daughter's name.

My daughter was glaring at me, vicious.

"Don't even think about stopping me this time. I'm going to be with Ryder no matter what!"

Had my daughter been reborn too?

Then this time, I'd let her have exactly the life she wanted.

As long as she never regretted it.

…

Stacy Whitney's eyes were red-rimmed, her voice shaking.

"You keep saying it's for my own good. You just want Garry's money, don't you? You want to ride on me!"

"You don't love me, you're selling me!"

"You want to trade my happiness for your fortune. Keep dreaming!"

The Stacy in front of me blurred into the Stacy who had ripped out my oxygen tube.

I fought down the urge to slap her and unclenched my fist.

She wanted to jump into the fire. Fine, I'd let her.

I slid my hand into my pocket and started the recorder on my phone.

"Stacy, you can be with whoever you want. I won't interfere."

Stacy froze for a second, then let out a contemptuous laugh.

"Good. At least you know better."

She changed her shoes to head out. I stepped in front of her.

Her expression turned nasty.

"I knew you were faking. Everything out of your mouth is worthless!"

"Isn't this where you put on your jumping-off-the-building act? Go ahead! I'll stand right here and watch you jump."

I shook my head. "I'm not trying to stop you. I just haven't finished talking."

Stacy sneered.

"So now you're going to lecture me about consequences, scare me with all the suffering?"

"You just look down on Ryder because he's got no education and did time. People can change!"

I didn't answer her. I took out a formal disownment letter.

"You're free to date whoever you like, I won't interfere. But you have to sign this first. From now on, there's nothing between you and me, nothing between you and this family."

"I won't give you another cent, and I won't look after you anymore."

"Even if one day you can't afford to eat, I won't give you a single grain of rice."

Stacy took the letter, and a flicker of hesitation crossed her eyes.

She dared to throw everything away and fall into that thug's arms only because the family was there to catch her.

That Ryder didn't even have a job. Without me as her safety net, Stacy had no ground under her either.

I pressed her, impatient. "You keep saying you don't care about money. What is it, then? Still can't stomach going hungry with him?"

That line worked. It doubled her urge to defy me.

She laughed, too big for it.

"I was wondering why you dropped the suicide act. So it's money you're using to threaten me into backing down?"

She scrawled her name across the page, then spun around and shoved the letter in my face.

"Fortunes turn. When Ryder and I make it big, don't come crawling back with a smile begging us for anything!"

I put the letter away. "You can go now. Send me your address later and I'll mail your things to you."

Stacy gave a cold laugh, her face saying, Let's see you keep this act going.

She reached for the door. I turned and walked back into the living room.

Stacy froze for a second.

The next second, the front door slammed shut with a bang.

I stood by the window and watched Stacy race down to Ryder below.

The two of them fell into a kiss.

Ryder really wasn't bad-looking, with a hint of that bad-boy swagger.

Stacy was small and pretty, laughing sweetly in his arms.

If I didn't know that in the last life Stacy never went down, that Ryder had his arms around another girl that very night, it would have been a genuinely beautiful sight.