“Of course!” I replied confidently, giving him a reassuring smile.
His eyes brightened, and after a moment, with an almost hidden sense of resolve, he pressed on. “Then... will you marry me?”
4
“I... I’m not ready to get married,” I muttered, avoiding his hopeful gaze and feeling more uncertain with every word.
Charles’s eyes dimmed with disappointment. He loosened his grip on me, lowering his head as an air of sadness enveloped him. “Oh, I see…”
In the end, Charles chose to stay behind at the Shaw mansion, silently retreating to his room, while I returned to the Miller household alone.
The moment I stepped into the living room, my brother, Brandon, with his bright red hair sprawled across the couch, glanced over at me.
Seeing my defeated expression, he casually tossed aside his gaming console, propped his feet on the coffee table, and crossed his arms, ready to unleash his mockery.
“What now? Tried wrecking that jerk’s marriage again and failed?” he snorted.
The Millers were one of the most powerful families in the country, with influence that far surpassed the Shaw family. As the youngest daughter and the heiress, I was the apple of my family’s eye, protected by three older brothers who doted on me endlessly.
The original Elizabeth Miller always prided herself on being a refined lady from a prestigious family. Naturally, she never got along with her rebellious third brother, Brandon, who never cared about maintaining appearances.
Their relationship soured even more after Elizabeth became fixated on her childhood friend, Ethan, to the point of interfering in his marriage.
Ever since Brandon discovered that, he never missed a chance to ridicule her.
Ignoring his usual scolding tone, I slumped onto the couch beside him, reflecting on my choices.
The image of Charles retreating to his little room with tear-streaked cheeks haunted me, making my heart ache with guilt.
“Ugh…”
Noticing my uncharacteristic silence and repeated sighing, my brother frowned, his eyebrows knitting together like two fuzzy caterpillars. He reached out to feel my forehead, his expression turning into one of disbelief. “Did you get possessed or something?”
For once, I hadn’t called him a useless good-for-nothing or defended Ethan like Elizabeth usually did.