The sequence of events is changing.

"Pardon?" I asked. Did I hear her right? She spoke of a marriage proposal and Ryan Evans in the same sentence, and that was something I was not going to get involved with.

" Sister, you have been chosen to marry Master Ryan. This is what you have always wanted, right? I heard this from your maids, but why did you go to such lengths to do so? Why did you kidnap young master Jack?" Sofia said.

I had the urge to roll my eyes but chose not to when I heard all those murmurs and whispers of the crowd behind her.

If she wanted to act, then two could play that game.

I took a deep breath and got into character. Action!

" Sister, how could you accuse me of such?I only saw a little boy being bullied outside and decided to help him. How could I have known that he was young master Jack?" I said, looking down and literally pinched myself so that I could look like I was about to cry.

" On top of that, I was coming to the kitchen to make food for myself but then after I saved little master Jack his tummy rumbled showing that he was hungry and I could not bear to leave him out there alone and hungry so I took him with me." Now the tears were coming down perfectly. This was also an opportunity to refuse the marriage proposal.

I turned to my mother and the marquess and said, " Father, Mother, I am so sorry. I did not know that my actions would cause such a problem for you. I have disgraced you! I do not deserve to marry an important figure such as the Duke, I am just not worthy!" Lies, I, Charlotte Carson, would never look down or talk down on myself, but this situation was unique! I had to do it if it meant that i could avoid this marriage! I would not marry Ryan again in this life, I mean, how could I go back to the same person who killed me in my previous life? Rather than revenge, I would rather avoid the storm. Call me a coward, I can leave with that.

My mother looked so broken over my current state, but there was not much I could do. Better this than imagining her broken and helpless state after she would have seen my lifeless body sprawled on the ground after Ryan had fallen victim to my step-sister's plot. But I still averted my eyes because I just could not look her in the eye. I know she must have been over the moon that her 19 hear old daughter would finally get a groom, but I just couldn't, not Ryan!

"Nonsense, this has got to be a misunderstanding! Charlotte, you are my daughter, and I know you would never do something like that!" The marquess spoke up for me.

" Father, you only have met her a few times. That's not enough to know her well enough!" Sofia said

" Sophie, at my age, first impressions last, and my first impression of Charl over there was enough to show me the kind of young lady she is. She is honest and kind, and I know that she would be a daughter who would make me proud because of the way she is." The marquess said.

His honesty caught me off guard, and I felt guilty because it seemed like I did not pay attention to him in my past life, and so I never saw how he actually saw me as his daughter.

I thought he just pushed the marriage to me because perhaps he wanted to get rid of me.

" You don't know that, father." Sofia murmured, but we all heard her.

"What if -" She started but was immediately interrupted by my eldest step-brother.

" That's enough, Sofia. Father is right. He would naturally know more." Carlos said, giving her a stern look, making her instantly shut up. Sofia looked like she had swallowed a sour fruit, victory!

The little exchange between the siblings caused an uproar amongst the guests who naturally had come here for gossip. My step-sister and step-brother miscalculated on this one!

Sniffing, I said, " Thank you, Father. I feel so honored to be your daughter. But perhaps Sofia would actually be a better candidate for this marriage, I think she should be the one to accept this honor." Though grateful to him, I was still not going to marry Ryan!

" Nonsense, I think you are the perfect candidate!" Someone else roared, and my heart shook.

" Are you Charlotte Smith?" the old man asked as he came closer to me, and I nodded.

Little Jay Jay jumped to him and said, "Father." What? I thought Ryan was his father, and though this man had some resemblance, he was not Ryan. I frowned

Seeing this, the old man laughed and said, " My grandson took my horrible son's habits. He calls me father along with my son, so people sometimes get confused." I did not know that because Jay Jay's grandfather died while on a mission in my last life, and I never got to spend time with him and Jay Jay together.

In the Duke's household, I stayed with Jay Jay most of the time and Ryan sometimes when he came back from his missions. But was it me, or was the sequence of events changing?

What was going on? Things did not happen like this in my past life. The marriage proposal was announced at a later stage in the past, and in this life, I thought I'd have plenty of time to execute my plan to avoid it. But who would have thought that things would change like this!

" We chose you, Miss Charlotte. You are the eldest daughter, and it is tradition for the eldest son of a family to marry the eldest daughter of the other family. It has been done this way for generations! Miss Charlotte, do you have other reasons for not wanting to marry my son?" Old master Evans said, and I could not refute him.

I searched my mind vigorously to find something else to say that would not sound suspicious, but I could not find anything concrete. Old master Evans had driven me into a corner!

To make matters worse, little Jay Jay looked up from his grandfather's shoulder and said, " You don't want to marry my daddy?"

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