Chapter 2

The next morning, the Twyfords held a press conference.

They announced that the two girls had been switched at birth and that their biological daughter would marry Axel Alwyn.

The media went nuts. Everyone knew Axel was paralyzed, and the daughter the Twyfords had just found was already being shipped off to honor the engagement.

No one was fooled. Rumors about the Twyfords spread fast, and even their stock took a hit.

The lawyer handed me the share transfer papers. I checked every term, then signed.

With that fifteen percent officially mine, I'd gotten what I wanted.

As for what happened to the Twyfords?

'What did that have to do with me?'

The second the press conference ended, I grabbed my suitcase and headed out. Footsteps rushed up behind me.

"Thea, wait!"

Jared caught up and grabbed my wrist.

"Did you really have to go this far? Do you even know how long Rory cried backstage after what you did yesterday?"

I yanked my hand free. "Why would I care how long she cried? Are you seriously here just to give me crap about that?"

Jared took a deep breath, holding back his anger as he started lecturing me.

"I know you're pissed because I chose Rory over you.

"But think about it. If you take those shares and marry a cripple, you're throwing your whole life away!

"Axel Alwyn already has a bad temper. Now that he's paralyzed, he'll only get worse. How long do you think you'll survive in that family?

"I chose Rory because she has the Twyfords' connections. She can help Pritchard Corp. But you..."

His tone softened. "If you go back now and apologize to Rory, you can still fix some of the damage from the press conference.

"Then if the Alwyns treat you badly, for old times' sake, maybe I'll help you out behind the scenes."

I stared at the guy I'd grown up with. He used to swear I was the only girl he'd ever marry, but the second it benefited him, he tossed me aside.

Just looking at him made me sick.

"Save the fake concern." I cut him off with a cold laugh. "You picked Rory because she's easy to control and the Twyfords will clear the path for her. Stop acting like you're some great guy."

"As for helping me?" I looked him up and down. "Maybe worry about yourself. A freeloader who uses women to get ahead has no business lecturing me."

"You!" I'd clearly hit a nerve, and Jared opened his mouth to argue.

Just then, a black Maybach with repeating digits on its license plate pulled up in front of me.

An Alwyn bodyguard got out, opened the door for me, and took my suitcase.

I got in without hesitation. One look at Jared's conflicted face in the rearview mirror instantly put me in a better mood.

The car drove into the Alwyn estate. Every servant and bodyguard we passed kept their heads down, and the whole place was dead silent.

The butler, Owen Kane, led me into the main house and opened a pair of heavy wooden doors.

"Ms. Twyford, Mr. Alwyn is waiting inside."

Owen quickly slipped out and shut the doors behind him.

Blackout curtains covered the bedroom windows.

Once my eyes adjusted to the dark, I spotted a man in a wheelchair in the middle of the room.

With his back to the light, half his face was hidden in shadow.

"The Twyfords must have a death wish, sending some small-town nobody they just found to humiliate me."

I didn't answer. I was too busy staring at his legs.

Right before the door closed, I'd caught the muscles under Axel's pants twitch.

I knew nerve rehab inside and out. If his nerves were completely dead, there was no way he'd have that reflex.

So his legs weren't actually paralyzed—or at least, the nerves still worked.

My heart jumped as an idea hit me.

I smirked, grabbed the steaming cup of coffee off the table, and dumped it straight onto his thighs.