Trampled To The Bottom, Now I'm At The Top

Chelsey Clark rushed home and froze at what she saw as soon as she stepped inside.

Emily Clark sat comfortably in Damien Lawson's arms. Her designer dress fit her perfectly, and her soft features made her look harmless and pitiful. Tears gathered in her eyes as she put on the appearance of someone who felt guilty and wronged.

"Mom, Dad, Damien... can't we just drop this?" she pleaded. "Marrying Dylan Warren is dangerous. Everyone knows that, and nobody wants anything to do with him. This was supposed to be my responsibility, so I can't just dump it on Chelsey."

After a pause, Emily continued, "She's had an easy life since she was young, and she doesn't know how cruel the world can be. If she leaves this family and loses Damien, she won't even know how to take care of herself. I'm a Clark by blood, so I should deal with this myself. I'll marry Dylan Warren."

She lightly pulled at Damien's sleeve. "Damien, I know how much you love me, but I..." she whispered before her voice broke into quiet sobs.

Damien gently ran a hand over her hair, and his expression softened. "You're too good for your own good. You're always worrying about everyone else," he murmured.

His attention shifted to Chelsey. "Emily and I are together now, Chelsey. Please don't blame her for this. I'm the one who fell for her," he said.

Chelsey didn't move. Her clear gaze stayed calm, yet a sharp chill spread through her chest.

Now she understood. Her fiancé had been cheating on her.

Her adoptive father hadn't called her home in a hurry because he wanted to talk about her wedding to Damien. He had brought her back because he expected her to marry in Emily's place.

Emily had taken her fiancé, and now she wanted her to accept a nightmare of a marriage for her. Somehow, Damien still saw that selfish and cruel behavior as kindness.

Damien's mother, Eleanor Lawson, sat nearby and quietly sipped her coffee. She looked Chelsey over with open disdain before saying, "Chelsey, don't take this out on Damien. The marriage arrangement between our families was always supposed to involve the Clark family's real daughter. We have our reputation to think about. I know this sounds harsh, but you're not related to your parents, no one even knows where you really came from, and you've spent your whole life doing nothing. Someone like you isn't suitable for our family."

Chelsey scoffed inwardly. Eleanor really didn't think much of her.

At five years old, she had been sent to live with her grandmother in the countryside because the Clarks claimed work kept them too busy to care for her. Even the money for her daily expenses rarely came unless they reminded them, and most of the time, they acted as though she barely existed.

For years, she had believed their jobs were the reason they had paid so little attention to her. Only after her grandmother died and she moved back to the city did she discover what had really happened. She had been switched at birth. She wasn't their daughter. Emily was.

Seeing how differently they treated Emily finally made everything clear. The Clarks hadn't kept their distance because they were busy. They simply didn't see her as one of their own because they didn't share the same blood.

She had grown up in the countryside, and over the past few years, most of her time had gone into treating patients and working on scientific research. That hadn't left her much time to spend with Damien, but she had still believed what they had was real. She certainly hadn't expected him to betray her when Emily had only been back for two months.

What made it worse was how easily he ended their engagement while acting as if he had done nothing wrong.

Still, there was nothing left to argue about. It had already happened.

Chelsey showed no emotion as she looked at Damien and Eleanor. Even her voice stayed calm. "Fine. We're done. Just don't come crying to me when you regret it," she said.

Damien hadn't expected her to accept it so easily. He had been prepared for tears or an angry scene, yet she gave him neither.

His eyes lingered on her beautiful face, and for a moment, he found himself unwilling to give her up completely. That hesitation soon turned into a far less decent thought.

Eleanor gave a mocking laugh. "Regret it? You really do think a lot of yourself. What exactly would we have to regret?"

Harold Clark, Chelsey's adoptive father, cleared his throat and pretended he was only looking out for her. "Chelsey, we still haven't found your real parents. Now that you and Damien aren't getting married, there's something else we need to discuss. You and Dylan are a very good match," he said gently, although there was little room for refusal in his words.

Everyone knew about Dylan Warren. He had lost the use of both legs, and his reputation was enough to make people stay out of his way. He was known for being ruthless and cold, and he never showed mercy when dealing with anyone who crossed him.

There were even rumors that he had an illness no doctor could cure and that he wouldn't make it past thirty. Very few people were willing to risk getting on his bad side.