A Love Lost in the Years

After my father passes away, my mother—now married into the wealthy Hawthorne family—brings me to live with them.

Everyone laughs, saying I'm being groomed to become either of the Hawthorne brothers' bride.

Even I start to believe it.

But later, when I try to marry one of them, both reject me.

The older brother says, "I'll need to marry for business one day. Why would I marry her?"

The younger one scoffs. "She's older than me. Who'd want an old woman?"

But the very next day, the two of them propose—together—to my assistant. I instantly become a joke.

After that, I call my mother. "Mom, I'm willing to marry into the Grant family."

Just as I stepped out of the office, my phone buzzed. It was Wesley Hawthorne.

His voice was cold, laced with irritation.

"Savannah, why did you leave without saying anything? Didn't I tell you to wait for Jade?"

From the background, Nathan Hawthorne couldn't help but chime in. "Yeah, why didn't you tell us you were leaving early? Jade's still at the office. Now that you're gone, who's supposed to take her home?"

I caught my reflection on the phone's screen.

My complexion was ghostly pale, and my body felt so fragile that a breeze might carry me away.

I was born premature and struggled with ongoing health problems from the very start.

When I first came to live with the Hawthorne family, both Wesley and Nathan showered me with care and attention.

As a child, they watched over every meal I ate, carefully managing my diet.

Whenever I fell ill, they never left my side, doing everything they could to comfort me and lift my spirits.

There was a time when Wesley was halfway across the world on a business trip. The moment I mentioned a headache, he booked three connecting flights just to get back overnight.

However, everything shifted after Jade Aldridge came into the picture.

Suddenly, my migraines were met with indifference.

When I fell sick, their worry had all but disappeared.

I ended the call quietly.

Once inside the car, I called my mother, Tina McCurdy, saying, "Mom, I've made my decision. I'm ready to go through with the marriage into the Grant family."

There was a pause before she asked, "Savannah, are you sure about this?"

When I was little, my parents divorced, and I stayed with my father, Henry Lockwood.

He passed away from illness when I was eight. After that, my mother who remarried into the wealthy Hawthorne family brought me to live with her.

I still remembered what she said to me back then. "Savannah, if you want to remain in this family, you have to please Mr. Francis Hawthorne and his two sons."

Later, she added, "Mr. Hawthorne wants to form an alliance with the Grant family. You should give serious thought to marrying their son."

At the time, I couldn't understand why she was pushing me into an arranged marriage, especially after all her efforts to bring