Chapter 1
After his first love–died, my husband spent the next ten years resenting me.
No matter what I did to win him over, he’d just sneer and say, “If you really want to make me happy, why don’t you just die!”
His words cut like a blade.
But the moment a truck came barreling toward me, it was Logan who leapt in front of it. He died right there in the street, lying in a pool of blood.
His final words haunted me: “If only… I’d never met you.”
At his funeral, his mother, Eleanor, broke down sobbing. “I should’ve let him be with Madison. I never should’ve forced him to marry you!”
His father, Charles, stared at me with nothing but hatred. “Logan saved your life three times. He was a good man–why wasn’t it you instead?”
Everyone regretted that Logan had married me. Even I did.
Overwhelmed by their accusations and my own guilt, I left the funeral, my heart heavy with shame.
Three years later, a breakthrough was announced: the Quantum Temporal Projector. A device capable of sending people back in time. And I knew exactly what I had to do.
This time, I would cut Logan out of my life completely. I’d make sure everyone got their happy ending–without me in it.
As the machine powered on, blinding light flooded my vision. I squeezed my eyes shut.
Then I heard his voice–sharp, familiar, and full of disdain.
“My parents said they’d cut me off if I didn’t marry you, Emily. You really are something else. But even if we go through with this wedding, what do you think you’ll gain? You really think we’re going to be happy?”
I snapped my eyes open.
There he was. Alive.
Logan stood just a few feet away, hands in the pockets of his tailored dress pants, that same smug scowl on his face. The Logan from the future had grown colder, more restrained. But this
Chapter 1
version of him–the younger one–was still cocky, restless, and devastatingly handsome.
A lump formed in my throat.
My eyes stung with tears.
The time jump had worked… just not the way I’d expected.
I hadn’t returned to when we first met.
Instead, I was back ten years–on the day we were supposed to obtain our marriage license at
Cresthill City Hall.
Still, it wasn’t too late to fix everything.
I swallowed the ache in my chest and met his gaze.
“You don’t want to marry me because you’re still in love with Madison, right?”
He flinched–just barely–but I caught it.
His expression turned to ice.
“So what if I am? We’re already here, standing on the steps of City Hall. You think there’s a
way out now?”
I nodded. “There is.”
Logan gave a bitter laugh.
“I don’t have time for your drama, Emily. Just sign the license application, get this over with,
and be done with it. I’ll wait outside.”
He turned on his heel and walked off.
The sharp sting in my chest told me he still didn’t know how much I’d once loved him.
In both my past life and this one, I had loved Logan for years.
He’d saved me from death twice before, and I’d clung to those moments, thinking maybe-
just maybe he cared about me, deep down.
–
His parents had only added fuel to that hope: “Logan’s not cruel. If he didn’t care, why would he risk his life for you?”
So I believed them. I married him, full of hope.
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But after Madison died, the truth became impossible to ignore–his heart had never belonged
to me.
And in the end, his last words destroyed me: “I wish I’d never met you.”
My decade of love had been his decade of misery.
Before I stepped into the Quantum Temporal Projector, a spiritual counselor warned me: if I wanted to break the cursed bond between Logan and myself, I’d need to resolve his three
greatest regrets.
Only then would I be able to stop him from dying at thirty–three–and finally set us both free.
I lowered my gaze and quietly filled out the marriage license application. In the field for the intended spouse, I hesitated, then wrote: Madison Cole.
I still remembered the regrets he’d written in his diary:
He regretted marrying me.
He regretted never standing up to his parents.
And most of all, he regretted not saving Madison.
By altering the form, I hoped to erase the first regret from his life.
I stepped out of City Hall, clutching the completed application in my hands. Logan was leaning
against a pillar, waiting.
He reached for the papers, but I gently stopped him with a hand over his.
“Don’t look just yet,” I said, smiling faintly. “There’s a surprise.”
He narrowed his eyes at me. “What’s with you today? You’re acting weird. Don’t tell me you’re
so thrilled about marrying me, you’ve gone completely insane.”
In a way… I was thrilled.
Because for the first time in three years, I was seeing him alive again.
I smiled. “I think you’re the best man in the world. Whoever ends up with you… they’ll be really lucky.”
He rolled his eyes and turned away, walking off like he couldn’t get away fast enough. If 1 didn’t know better, I might’ve mistaken his reaction for bashfulness.
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Nearby, a young couple walked past, hand in hand.
“There’s supposed to be a meteor shower tonight!” the girl squealed. “They say couples who watch it together will be in love forever. Let’s go!”
Their voices faded behind me, but their words lingered in my mind.
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Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Recalling this day in my past life, I had clung to a faint hope that Logan might come to love
me, coaxing him to watch the meteor shower with me.
However, his response had been a cold slap of sarcasm.
“Do you seriously believe watching a meteor shower together guarantees a happy marriage? By that logic, if the whole world looked up at the sky tonight, no one would ever get divorced. What kind of fairytale are you living in?”
This time, I had no such fantasies.
I’ll go
go with
you.
And yet, to my surprise, Logan said, “If you want to see the meteor shower, I’ll Just don’t expect a honeymoon–I’ve got work, and I don’t have the time.”
I blinked at him, startled that he’d even offer. But a second later, I understood.
For all his sharp words and cold glares, Logan had always been kind beneath the surface. Why
else would he have risked his life for me–not once, but three times?
The first was when I was eighteen, cornered in the shadowed, refuse–strewn Eastwood Alley
by a robber. Logan stepped in to save me, taking a knife to his right hand that severed his
radial nerve. From that day on, he could no longer lift anything heavy, and his dream of
becoming a pianist was shattered.
The second time, we were trapped under the rubble of a collapsed building after an earthquake.
He made me eat the last of our food and water, pretending he’d already had some. If the rescue
team hadn’t shown up in time, he would’ve died there without hesitation.
The third time, it was the truck–coming straight at me. Logan threw his arms around me and took the full impact. Shards of glass embedded deep into the back of his skull. But wrapped in
his embrace, I came away with nothing more than a few scrapes.
Three times, he’d put his life on the line for mine. How could I ever stop loving him?
“Are you going to stare off into space all day,” Logan snapped, “or do you want to watch that stupid meteor shower?”
Snapped out of my thoughts, I gave him a small smile. “Yes. Let’s go tonight.”
His expression relaxed just a little, and he flagged down a cab. “I’ll drop you at home first. I’ll come get you later, then we’ll head to Ridgeview Observatory.”
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Just as I reached for the cab door, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen and frowned before
answering.
“Madison hurt her hand. I’m going to check on her,” he said. “You go on home.”
I nodded. “Alright.”
He hesitated, clearly surprised. “You used to throw a fit every time I went to see her. What’s changed?”
I opened my mouth, but before I could respond, he let out a humorless laugh. “Right. I forgot.
We’re supposedly ‘married‘ now. Guess you don’t see her as a threat anymore. Text me when you get home. I’m heading out.”
He climbed into the cab and left, never noticing the quiet disappointment behind my smile.
The truth was, I’d never tried to stop him from caring about Madison. But in my past life, I saw
her kissing an older man in Cresthaven’s plaza, with Charles and Eleanor watching in shock.
That prompted me to investigate, revealing Madison’s entanglements with wealthy men behind her innocent façade. To protect Logan, I did all I could to keep him away from her.
He never knew the truth. And after she died, he suffered for a decade.
o choose, I’d rather see him with Madison–alive and well–than watch him be
ed by sorrow and die because of me.
uilt and self–blame could crush a person.
With a heavy heart, I headed to Cresthill University to confirm my direct admission offer. Then I made my way home.
Charles and Eleanor had prepared a full spread for dinner. Eleanor greeted me warmly, taking my hand. “Emily! Back from City Hall already? Where’s Logan?”
“He had to take care of something for work,” I replied calmly.
Eleanor’s smile faltered. “Seriously? He couldn’t take one day off to be with you?”
Charles chuckled beside her. “That’s Logan for you–always chasing the next big thing. Don’t worry, now that you’re married, there’ll be plenty of time for dinners and family nonsense.”
Eleanor sighed, muttering something under her breath.
The kindness in their eyes, the warmth of the moment–it stung.
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I hesitated, then spoke. “Charles, Eleanor… Logan and I didn’t get the license. Instead, I finalized my paperwork for my study abroad program. I’ll be leaving for Cambridge in a few days.”
Eleanor froze. “What do you mean you didn’t get the license? Did Logan say something to upset you? You know how he is–all bark, no bite. He cares about you deeply, even if he doesn’t show it. He’s completely smitten with you, Emily.”
She clasped my hands tighter, her voice earnest. “You taught yourself psychology just to help him. We saw how much you cared–staying up all night, worrying over him, doing everything you could. You two love each other. You belong together. And we all know Madison isn’t right for him. We can’t let her ruin this.”
Charles nodded. “Logan’s always been stubborn, but give him time. Get married. Be patient. He’ll come around. You’ll see.”
Their words were almost identical to the ones they’d said in my past life.
But forcing love had only led to heartbreak–for everyone.
I gave Eleanor’s hand a gentle squeeze. “Please don’t be upset. Just hear me out. As hard as it is to say… you can’t force something that isn’t there. The truth is, Logan’s never loved me.”
Chapter 2
