Part 2Left in Fire, Reborn to Marry His Elder Brother

I stood in front of the two men, frozen.

Valerie glanced at me, pursing her lips.

"Forget it, I'll choose Julian Thorne. Sera isn't feeling well—she should pick a strong fiancé to protect her."

With that, she moved from Brandon Thorne's side to Julian Thorne's.

Brandon Thorne, impeccably dressed in his suit, tensed visibly, his fists clenching slightly.

I stood frozen, processing the shock of being reborn.

In my past life, I'd also hesitated after Brandon and Valerie chose each other.

Seeing my indecision, Valerie suggested we swap fiancés.

Looking at Valerie's face—so perfectly innocent and wounded—I genuinely believed back then that she wanted to give Brandon to me.

I was naive, thinking she cared about me, so I flat-out refused.

I didn't want Valerie to miss out, and I couldn't bear to see "disabled" Julian get sent back and scorned by the family.

Until the mansion fire, when Valerie’s fiancé Brandon had already reached her.

But Julian Thorne still rushed in to save Valerie first.

Valerie clung tightly to Julian Thorne’s neck, yet she was murmuring, "Put me down."

She was always like that—knowing she wouldn't truly lose anything, yet always managing to come off as sweet and kind.

But this time, I nodded.

"Okay."

Valerie, who'd been expecting me to refuse, froze.

She wasn't the only one shocked—Julian Thorne looked at me too.

His deep-set eyes held a mix of confusion and surprise.

"Absolutely not!" my father cut in.

"You're the eldest daughter of the O'Connell family—your safety comes first. Julian Thorne has a leg injury and barely speaks; he's not fit to be your fiancé."

I smiled.

So my father had known about Julian Thorne's condition all along.

Yet he still brought him here. It seemed letting Valerie and me choose was just a formality.

"But..."

Valerie secretly let out a relieved breath, dabbing the corner of her eye, about to speak. But then Julian Thorne spoke up, his voice low but perfectly clear:

"My leg works fine."

I looked up, shocked.

The man who hadn't walked normally in seven years in my past life—the one supposedly with a severe leg injury—was standing perfectly straight now?

Meeting the knowing depth in his eyes, I finally realized.

He'd been reborn too.

Typical. All that talk about making it right in the next life... but when he actually got a second chance, he was still scared to be my fiancé again.

But he had no idea I didn't want him anymore.

"As for protection," Julian Thorne continued, "Mr. O'Connell can reassess."

I didn't doubt Julian Thorne's abilities.

After I died, my spirit had watched him jump from the second floor of the burning building to save Valerie, using his body to shield her as they landed—his back badly burned.

The irony of it all. In my past life, I'd learned self-defense, terrified my father would send away this "broken, defenseless" fiancé.

Sure enough, once Julian Thorne dropped the act, he easily took down the top bodyguards sent to test him.

My father started to waver.

The wounded innocence vanished from Valerie's face.

Between the two, Julian Thorne was undeniably more handsome. If not for his supposed disability, Valerie would've picked him from the start.

"Very well, then Julian Thorne will be betrothed to you. Brandon Thorne, you'll be responsible for protecting Sera O'Connell."

At my father's decision, Brandon Thorne glanced my way.

When he saw the scar on my face, his brow furrowed noticeably.

He stepped forward.

"Mr. O'Connell, I must respectfully decline this arrangement."