chapter 2

Then she turned to me cautiously. "It's a big day, Ms. Stanley. I want to look my best. Is that okay?"

I nodded, and as I did, I noticed that her face was already fully made up.

Under her uniform, she was wearing special undergarments that made her curves stand out.

I looked up and motioned for the lobby manager, whispering something to her.

She gave a shocked look at the two women who were talking about makeup, then she immediately turned and left.

I watched coldly as Aileen did her makeup in ten minutes, changed, and grabbed Yelena's hand, excited to head to the wedding.

Anyone who didn't know anything would think she was the bride.

In the lounge, I watched the wedding on the big screen.

The bride was late because of the dress hunt, and the MC was already sweating nervously.

He kept staring at the door where the bride would appear. When he finally caught sight of two figures through the crack, he let out a sigh of relief.

Then, he announced, "The most beautiful bride deserves the best time. Let's welcome the bride, Joanna—"

Before he could finish, Yelena had already opened the door.

Seeing Aileen's shy, timid face, the MC was so shocked he stopped talking.

All the guests had the same shocked expression.

"Who is that?"

"Wasn't it supposed to be Ms. Stanley? What's going on?"

"This is insane. They're swapping the bride at the last minute?"

Only Jack's relatives, most of whom hadn't met me, clapped enthusiastically.

Thanks to them, it didn't feel too awkward.

Then I saw Jack. He stood there stunned, his expression stormy.

But once he saw it was Aileen, his eyes lingered on her curvy figure, and he just went along with it.

And Jack's parents? They watched from the main table, smug-faced—anything but suprised.

It was all clear now. They were totally in on it. All the gaslighting, all the efforts to stop me from finding out about the bride swap in my past life—it finally made sense.

I couldn't help but sneer, remembering the exact moment in my past life.

When I refused to let Aileen take my place, Yelena locked me in the lounge so Aileen could get married.

After the wedding, she cried and said she was only thinking about my reputation.

Aileen apologized on her knees, saying she only wanted to help and had just graduated, trying to save money for graduate school.

Even Jack and his parents took turns persuading me after that.

They played good cop, bad cop, and tricked me into letting the whole thing go.

I'd inherited a huge fortune and was a CEO.

My parents had died in an accident years ago, and I saw Jack's parents as my own. That's why they could manipulate me so easily.

I had done everything for the Harrisons, even getting jobs for relatives like Yelena.

In the end, they betrayed me, helping Aileen get into my house and into Jack's bed.

They even went so far as to poison me, leaving me to die at home.

And they inherited my fortune, living in luxury.

Just thinking about it made my eyes turn red with hatred.

I dismissed the thought and turned my attention to the big screen. Watching the perfect couple on stage, my eyes went cold.

Aileen wanted to marry Jack so badly?

Then let her marry him.

Little did she know, the real billionaire was me!

The change in the bride didn't affect Jack's parents' good mood.

They took turns speaking on stage, as if nothing had happened.

"Our son is the best kid in the whole village. Calling him a genius wouldn't be an exaggeration.

"He started his own business right after graduation and is now the young CEO of the Prosper Group. Just thinking about it makes us proud.

"Now that he's married, his father and I sincerely wish him a bright future and a happy marriage!"

Hearing this, Aileen accepted all the congratulations, with zero shame.