Chapter 1 · Betrayed, I Swap Bride at Wedding

The night before the engagement, I came home early to pick up my cufflinks.

The door to the new home was unlocked, and inside, I could hear my fiancée, Julia Carter, gasping softly, along with a man's whispering.

I didn't kick the door open.

I pulled out my phone and recorded everything for twelve minutes.

Then I called my dad. "Freeze the Carter Family's acquisition fund tomorrow morning. The wedding goes on, but the bride will be from the Lane Family."

"As for Julia..."

I looked at the video on my phone and smiled.

"She likes keeping losers around, right? Then let her go sleep under a bridge with her loser."

*****

It was December 28th, less than twelve hours before the engagement party.

I wasn't supposed to come back to this place.

The final payment for Grant Holdings' year-end acquisition hadn't come through, so I'd been at the office all day, planning to just crash there.

But Julia had sent me three messages that afternoon, pestering me.

[Honey, you still haven't picked up your cufflinks for tomorrow.]

[I had them custom-made for you, with our initials engraved on them.]

[Can you come by tonight to get them? I'll wait for you.]

I checked the time. It was 11:40 PM.

Whatever, it was on the way.

I parked in the underground garage and didn't have the driver come up with me.

The elevator took me up to the twenty-third floor, and the hallway was so quiet that the only sound was the hum of the emergency lights.

I pulled out my keys and was about to insert them into the lock.

The door wasn't locked.

I frowned.

Julia was obsessive about cleanliness. She never left the door unlocked.

I rested my hand on the doorknob and pressed down, and the door opened just a crack.

Then I heard it.

A woman's voice, delicate and laced with breathy moans.

It was Julia.

"Nathan, be gentle."

My hand stopped cold on the doorknob.

I felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over me.

But I snapped out of it after two seconds.

I didn't kick the door open.

I even stepped back, leaving the door barely ajar.

I pulled out my phone.

Started recording.

I peeked the camera through the barely open door. The living room was dark, but the bedroom door was wide open.

The floor lamp by the bed glowed warm yellow, lighting up every detail.

Julia was clinging to a guy's neck.

I recognized him instantly.

Nathan Bell.

Julia had been supporting this "poor college kid" for two years, every month, she'd swipe two thousand dollars from the card I gave her, saying it was for charity.

I actually thought she was being generous.

So much for being "kind".

Kind enough to let him into my wedding suite.

I recorded for twelve minutes.

The angle, the lighting, the faces, everything was crystal clear.

That was enough.

I turned off my phone and headed for the elevator.

The elevator was empty except for me.

My face in the mirrored walls looked calm, like I'd just wrapped up a board meeting.

I called my dad.

He picked up after two rings. "Edward? It's so late."

"Dad," I cut him off. "Julia cheated."

There was a three-second silence on the other end.

My dad's voice dropped. "What do you mean?"

"I've got the video. I'll send it to you tomorrow," I said.

I leaned against the elevator wall, watching the numbers above me count down.

"Three things," I told him.

"First, freeze the Carter Family's acquisition fund tomorrow morning.

"Second, the wedding still happens tomorrow. The invitations are out, we can't embarrass the Grant Family. Swap the bride, Olivia Lane. I met her last month. She'll do.

"Third, take back everything the Grant Family ever gave Julia, car, cards, house, shares. Not a single thing stays with her."

My dad was silent for five seconds.

Then he said, "Got it."

No questions, no explanations.

That's just how the Grant Family operates.

I hung up and stepped out of the elevator.

The cold wind slammed into me as I stepped outside, so I lit a cigarette.

The December night wind cut into my face like a knife.

I stood in the underground parking lot, finished my cigarette, and stubbed it out on the trash can.

Then I got in my car and headed back to the office.

The next day, the real show would begin.

Chapter 1

The night before the engagement, I came home early to pick up my cufflinks.

The door to the new home was unlocked, and inside, I could hear my fiancée, Julia Carter, gasping softly, along with a man's whispering.

I didn't kick the door open.

I pulled out my phone and recorded everything for twelve minutes.

Then I called my dad. "Freeze the Carter Family's acquisition fund tomorrow morning. The wedding goes on, but the bride will be from the Lane Family."

"As for Julia..."

I looked at the video on my phone and smiled.

"She likes keeping losers around, right? Then let her go sleep under a bridge with her loser."

*****

It was December 28th, less than twelve hours before the engagement party.

I wasn't supposed to come back to this place.

The final payment for Grant Holdings' year-end acquisition hadn't come through, so I'd been at the office all day, planning to just crash there.

But Julia had sent me three messages that afternoon, pestering me.

[Honey, you still haven't picked up your cufflinks for tomorrow.]

[I had them custom-made for you, with our initials engraved on them.]

[Can you come by tonight to get them? I'll wait for you.]

I checked the time. It was 11:40 PM.

Whatever, it was on the way.

I parked in the underground garage and didn't have the driver come up with me.

The elevator took me up to the twenty-third floor, and the hallway was so quiet that the only sound was the hum of the emergency lights.

I pulled out my keys and was about to insert them into the lock.

The door wasn't locked.

I frowned.

Julia was obsessive about cleanliness. She never left the door unlocked.

I rested my hand on the doorknob and pressed down, and the door opened just a crack.

Then I heard it.

A woman's voice, delicate and laced with breathy moans.

It was Julia.

"Nathan, be gentle."

My hand stopped cold on the doorknob.

I felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over me.

But I snapped out of it after two seconds.

I didn't kick the door open.

I even stepped back, leaving the door barely ajar.

I pulled out my phone.

Started recording.

I peeked the camera through the barely open door. The living room was dark, but the bedroom door was wide open.

The floor lamp by the bed glowed warm yellow, lighting up every detail.

Julia was clinging to a guy's neck.

I recognized him instantly.

Nathan Bell.

Julia had been supporting this "poor college kid" for two years, every month, she'd swipe two thousand dollars from the card I gave her, saying it was for charity.

I actually thought she was being generous.

So much for being "kind".

Kind enough to let him into my wedding suite.

I recorded for twelve minutes.

The angle, the lighting, the faces, everything was crystal clear.

That was enough.

I turned off my phone and headed for the elevator.

The elevator was empty except for me.

My face in the mirrored walls looked calm, like I'd just wrapped up a board meeting.

I called my dad.

He picked up after two rings. "Edward? It's so late."

"Dad," I cut him off. "Julia cheated."

There was a three-second silence on the other end.

My dad's voice dropped. "What do you mean?"

"I've got the video. I'll send it to you tomorrow," I said.

I leaned against the elevator wall, watching the numbers above me count down.

"Three things," I told him.

"First, freeze the Carter Family's acquisition fund tomorrow morning.

"Second, the wedding still happens tomorrow. The invitations are out, we can't embarrass the Grant Family. Swap the bride, Olivia Lane. I met her last month. She'll do.

"Third, take back everything the Grant Family ever gave Julia, car, cards, house, shares. Not a single thing stays with her."

My dad was silent for five seconds.

Then he said, "Got it."

No questions, no explanations.

That's just how the Grant Family operates.

I hung up and stepped out of the elevator.

The cold wind slammed into me as I stepped outside, so I lit a cigarette.

The December night wind cut into my face like a knife.

I stood in the underground parking lot, finished my cigarette, and stubbed it out on the trash can.

Then I got in my car and headed back to the office.

The next day, the real show would begin.