His Grandfather Chose Me But I Chose His Dying Cousin Chapter 01 (Continue)
When I turned twenty, my grandfather’s former service buddy, billionaire Mr. Crawford Sr., set photos of several of his grandsons in front of me and told me to choose one to marry.
Without a second’s hesitation, I chose Harrison Crawford, the sixth Crawford grandson.
Everyone in the room stared at me in disbelief. After all, everyone knew I had been hopelessly in love with Evan Crawford, the third Crawford grandson, and had once sworn I would marry no one but him.
In my previous life, I got my wish and married Evan. Because of that marriage, he inherited most of his grandfather’s personal fortune.
But after the wedding, he started hooking up with my sister.
Mom and Dad were furious and sent Lily overseas for school.
Evan decided I had been the one who stirred up trouble behind the scenes, and he hated me for it.
From then on, he kept one beautiful woman after another by his side, and every one of them looked like Lily.
It drove me into severe depression.
Then he secretly replaced my medication with a slow-acting poison, killing both me and the baby I was carrying. I died with hatred burning in my chest.
Now that I had been given another life, I decided to let them have each other.
But I never expected Evan to be reborn too.
…
I had just walked out of Mr. Crawford Sr.’s study when I ran into Evan and the other Crawford cousins.
The moment they saw me, the cousins scattered in a noisy rush. Even as they left, they did not forget to mock me.
“Clara Bennett is here for Evan again? You really will do anything to chase a man. Aren’t you afraid your late war-hero grandfather would be ashamed if he knew how desperate you were acting?”
Evan looked me up and down with cold contempt.
“What are you doing at my house? Are you trying to get my grandfather to put in a good word for you? Are you going to bring up how your grandfather saved my grandfather’s life in the war again? Your family has been trying to cash in on that old life debt long enough.”
“And save it. You’ve already turned whatever is going on between us into a public spectacle and humiliated me enough. I still have to think about whether I want to marry you at all, so begging anyone won’t help.”
His eyes were full of disgust and disdain.
Just like in my previous life, my love had never moved him.
I let out a long breath and said calmly, “What does that have to do with you? Mr. Crawford Sr. asked me to come. Tomorrow, he’s personally hosting my birthday party.”
As soon as I said that, the Crawford cousins froze in shock.
“Granddad is personally throwing you a party?”
I knew exactly why they looked that way.
Mr. Crawford Sr. had not involved himself in family affairs for a long time.
If he was stepping in personally, it clearly was not just for a birthday party.
He had once said that on my twentieth birthday, he would let me choose one of the younger Crawford men as my husband.
The man I married would inherit most of Mr. Crawford Sr.’s personal holdings and become the next head of the Crawford family.
After the initial shock, everyone began congratulating Evan with smirks that barely hid their envy.
“Congratulations, Evan. Don’t forget to look out for us once you’re in charge.”
“With Granddad backing him, Evan can finally show what he’s capable of.”
Evan shot me a smug glance and said mockingly, “Congratulations to you too. After chasing me for so many years, you finally got what you wanted.”
“You must be thrilled.”
Then he leaned in, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.
“But to keep the same tragedy from happening again, there are a few things I need to make clear first. If you want me to marry you, you have to agree that after the wedding, we’ll both be free to see other people, and you won’t interfere in my private life.”
“Only then will I agree to marry you.”
My heart jolted. I had not expected him to make such an absurd demand, so I looked him over suspiciously several times. Had he been reborn too?
Just then, a soft, sugary voice came from behind me.
“Clara.”
My sister, Lily Bennett, walked toward us in a tiny pleated miniskirt, looking shy and delicate as she coughed now and then.
Evan immediately went to meet her.
“Why did you come out when you’re sick?”
Lily lowered her head, looking wounded.
“Evan, Dad asked me to come with Clara. He was worried she’d be lonely by herself.”
Evan clasped her hand tightly and shot me a sideways glare.
“Why are you so spoiled that you need someone to accompany you just to leave the house? Can’t you see Lily isn’t feeling well?”
With that, he led Lily away. Before he left, he even looked back with a dismissive scoff.
“Clara, if you keep being this self-centered and childish, I will never marry you.”
I smiled.
Wasn’t I the one who did not want to marry him?