"Joanna, my dear daughter, our family is in serious trouble. Your father's company is on the brink of collapse. The financial manager has disappeared with all the company’s money, and the police haven't found him yet. This has resulted in a significant loss for us. Many of our partners are behind on their payments, and we can’t meet our loan deadlines. If we don’t settle our debts soon, the company will go bankrupt—and your father could end up in prison..."

In the lavish living room of the Harris family villa, Joanna Harris listened to her stepmother, Morgan, who was now in tears. Watching her façade of empathy, Joanna felt a wave of impatience wash over her.

"What do you want me to do?" Joanna interrupted, eager to cut through the theatrics. She couldn't stand the anguish anymore.

He hesitated. “The rumors about him aren’t great. I understand how that sounds, but please believe me; they’re just rumors. I’ve met him, and he’s a gentleman—polite and noble. Plus, he's extremely handsome and charming.”

Morgan paused, clearly searching for words, before glancing towards her husband, Dominic Harris, who sat silently beside her, looking both worried and defeated. Dominic straightened up, his expression grave,

"Joanna, there is a way out of this mess," Dominic began, his tone heavy with urgency. "I need you to marry Eric Turner, the son of the Turner family. They are well-connected and could save us. But..."

He hesitated, weighing his words carefully. "There are rumors about him that aren't great. But I assure you, they're just that, rumors. I met him once at a gathering, and he struck me as a true gentleman, polite and noble. I can tell that he is a man with a great sense of responsibility. Plus, he's extremely handsome and quite charming."

Despite steeling herself for the worst, Joanna felt a pang of sadness at his proposal. Her mind went back to a conversation she had overheard an hour ago outside her father's study.

"Are you out of your mind? Our daughter Joanna marrying Eric Turner? Haven't you heard he's considered a devil? Cold, ruthless, and violent! Have you heard about all the women he’s divorced? Our daughter is still so young; do you really want her to suffer?"

It was her mother, Cynthia Lane, who had that fierce, protective tone that meant business. She was known to have a bad temper.

"You think I want this?” Dominic shot back, frustration evident in his tone. “But the company owes too much. Without a source of capital, it won’t last long. If it fails, our family will be over, and I’ll go to prison! Eric may have divorced six times, but Joanna is kind and well-behaved. I’m sure she can win his love, and we can settle the debts.”

Dominic's voice grew more irritable, their situation had him feeling like a defeated warrior.

“Joanna is well-behaved, but with someone like Eric, she could be in for a world of pain. Just a few months with him, and he’ll toss her aside. Who would want to marry her then? Her life would be ruined!” her mother had protested.

“Even if you need someone to marry for money, it doesn't have to be her…”

“Who else can I ask?” Dominic replied, voice tinged with desperation. “I only have Joanna to make this work.”

“You have another daughter, Dominic! What about Melanie? Let her take on this 'glory' mission”

Joanna shook her head, pulling herself back to the present. She looked at her parents as they continued their desperate plea. A mocking smile crept onto her face. They who had always seen her as an afterthought. Barely treated her as part of the family, but now they were leaning on her when it suited them.

They wanted to sell her off like a piece of merchandise in a desperate bid to save what was left of their family name.

They didn't want Melanie to marry the infamous Turner heir, but were willing to sacrifice Joanna on the altar of their financial troubles.

Eric Turner was undeniably a cold-hearted devil, yet her father painted him as if he were a prince. The hypocrisy made Joanna’s blood boil. Despite sharing the same blood with Dominic, she had never respected him as a father.

"So, he's been married six times?" Joanna asked, her tone calm and steady.

In all these years, for the sake of successfully growing up in the Family, she had endured all types of unfair treatment. She would never expose her true emotions on her face.

"Yes," Morgan replied, sniffling and taking Joanna's hands in hers, her face filled with remorse. "Joanna, I know you’re not my biological child, but I've always treated you like my own. Now that your father's company is on the verge of collapse, and your sister is still so young, I can only turn to you."

A cold smile flitted across Joanna's lips. "But Melanie is only three days younger than me."

Their mothers had been pregnant at the same time; Morgan's due date was in March, while Cynthia’s was in April. If things had gone according to plan, Joanna would have been the younger sister. Instead, due to her mother's premature labor, she arrived first, just three days before Melanie.

As Joanna thought about the injustice of it all, the bitter reality set in. By mere days, Joanna was the elder sister, yet she had spent years in her younger sister's shadow, seeing Melanie receive the love and affection she had always hoped for.

Meanwhile, Joanna had always been ignored by her father, and she had never enjoyed the treatment of a Harris family's child.

All this was because her mother was a dancer. She was the illegitimate daughter born to Dominic and a dancer. As an illegitimate daughter, Joanna was destined to live in abuse and disdain all her life. She would always be treated as a dirty rag by others and be abandoned at any time.

Now, they still wanted to let her play the last of her value before abandoning her. They said they were here to ask for her opinion when, in fact, they had already made this decision for her. Whether she agreed or not, she must marry the demon, Eric.

As that thought sank in, Joanna steeled herself. She would no longer let anyone treat her life as a pawn in their game. The stakes had never been higher, and it was time for her to redefine her fate.

Thinking about this, the smile on Joanna's face became even wider.

"Okay, I'll do it," she said calmly.

"You agree?" Morgan looked at Joanna in disbelief. Then, she turned to Dominic next to her and saw that her husband was also shocked.

They hadn't expected that Joanna would agree so quickly.

Before coming to her, they had also discussed that if she refused to marry Eric, they would promise to give her a large sum of money to ensure that she lived her entire life comfortably.

"Of course. You've been raising me for so many years. I should make some contributions to the family as well." Joanna's voice was still calm.

"Joan, you're really my precious daughter. If you're as obedient as I am, I won't have any regrets in my life." Morgan said happily.

Joanna continued to smile, internally laughing at this hypocritical woman.

No regrets? Nah, everything has just begun.