Sleeping Beauties

[Tags: Interstellar, Soul Matching, Beastkin, Succubus, Reverse Harem (All male leads are virgins), Alpha Rivalry, Jealousy War, Regret & Groveling Arc] They say that once you awakened as an esper, you were entitled to nine bonded matches. Lara White transmigrated during her freshman year. From that moment on, she had only one goal: become an esper, no matter the cost. Five relentless years in the interstellar era later, the universe finally paid her back. She matched with nine extraordinary prodigies. Unfortunately, these nine prodigies were either trying to unbind the match, pretending she did not exist, or actively scheming to drain her wallet dry. Match One, the interstellar wealth titan, sent her a message. [Matriarch, all my star credits were stolen by scammers. I don’t even have travel money to see you. Could you spare a little?] Match Two, the heir of the third-largest family on the Central Star, texted her. [I already have a female I like. I can’t be with you. Please terminate the bond.] Match Three, lord of the Three Major Domains, texted. [Females will only slow down my conquest of the interstellar realm!] Match Four, the world-weary leader of the Snow Domain, had something else to say. [Matriarch, kill me, and I will belong to you.] Match Five, a prodigy from the succubus race, was even stranger. [Matriarch, let me devour you, and we can be together forever.] As for the rest, they looked as if they had died inside the list. They were as silent as sleeping corpses. Lara notified the photon computer. [Unbind them all. Every single one. Let them bid their farewells. The next nine will be better behaved.] Later, the wealth titan texted her. [Matriarch, all my star credits are yours. I beg you, don’t unbind me!] The heir texted. [Matriarch, I realized it only now. The one I have always liked is you.] Domain Ruler knelt before her and said, “The entire interstellar realm cannot compare to you. Please choose me…” The Snow Domain’s Heir texted her. [You are my only reason to keep living.]

After I was reborn, I dumped the cheating bastard and married his older twin brother. But as it turns out, I still picked the wrong man. In my past life, I married Maxwell Vaughan, the younger twin. Not long after our wedding, he started sleeping with Kelly Sloan, the maid's daughter. For her, he set the house on fire while I was sleeping. I woke up burned beyond recognition. Amoura, the world-famous lingerie brand, dropped me overnight. Just like that, my modeling career was over. This time, I chose Charlie Vaughan, the older twin. We were in sync and deeply in love. I thought I'd finally made it, that I'd rise to the top and become the supermodel I was meant to be. But the night before my Amoura runway show, my face was burned again. Charlie uncovered the truth quickly and had Maxwell arrested. For a moment, I thought I'd made the right choice this time. Six years later, I overhear something I was never meant to hear as Charlie tucks our sons, Declan and Dylan Vaughan, into bed. "Dad, Uncle Max already took the fall for Kelly. So why did she have to leave the country? Couldn't she have stayed here with us?" "Yeah, Dad. We still want Kelly to be our mom. We hate that freak!" Charlie pulls Declan and Dylan into his arms. His gaze softens with sorrow, then hardens with quiet resolve. "I already betrayed your mom once for Kelly. I'll spend the rest of my life to make it right." A rush of emotion surged through me, the pain cutting deeper than the fire ever did. For six years of marriage and eight years of love, I've been nothing more than a joke. Only now do I see it—Charlie loved Kelly all along, just like Maxwell did. Our marriage was nothing more than a matter of convenience. Even Declan and Dylan call me a freak and wish Kelly were their mother. If that's how it is, then so be it. I'm done with all three of them.