The Billionaire's Replacement Bride

Wyoming Wilson looked at her reflection in the vanity mirror that occupied the whole wall of the sparsely-decorated dressing room she was in.  A beautiful woman looked back at her - young and innocent -looking. 

But behind the innocence, a certain sadness lurks in her hazel brown eyes, and if anyone would look further, one could also see something more- desperation.  But then again behind that bleak expression, another emotion could be gathered - expectation. 

In her eyes, two emotions were fighting for dominance - despair and anticipation.  More so with the latter.  It poses a glimmer of hope for things that have yet to come. 

“You looked gorgeous,  darling!”  Max, the top stylist for the upper class, commented when their eyes connected in the mirror.

Wyoming smiled wanly and said nothing.  

She looked back at her reflection in the mirror and studied her face carefully, finding nothing spectacular about her looks that would warrant such an amazing comment from a top stylist of Max’s caliber.   

Apart from a new hairdo, she thought she still looked very much the same.  

She had on a “barely-there” make-up - light and natural, highlighting the soft features of her face and bringing out her best assets. Her hair was swept up, leaving soft tendrils to frame her heart-shaped face. 

The corners of her lips lifted before she shook her head, denying the claim.  No, there was nothing spectacular in her features. 

She was beautiful, true.  But not as beautiful as the top actresses whose names hogged the entertainment headlines recently.  She could not even call herself an actress because the roles thrown her way do not necessarily require acting skills. Most of which are two to three seconds of camera exposure and that would be it. If she gets unlucky, those two to three seconds shots would be cut to smithereens if the director suddenly decides to scissor her scene from the whole movie. 

The whole summary of her acting career.  

Wyoming sighed when she looked back at her three years in the industry. It had been a dismal stay, full of struggles and haggling for coveted roles that she had never been shortlisted for. 

And now she was here. 

After three years of no concrete results, she had been so ready to throw the trowel, so to speak.  Until a call slip came in the form of this audition.

It was so unexpected that she at first thought it to be a hoax.  No one from the entertainment business had seen her potential before, except her manager, Liz Anderson.  No one gave her a second look and gambled on her.  Only Liz.

For a long time, Wyoming eyed the call slip with conflicted emotions.  Her translucent face showed her disbelief.  

Her manager, seeing the hesitation on her face, tried to convince her to show up for the audition. 

“They specifically asked you for this role.  They just wanted you to do this audition for appearances, but you are as good as in.”  Liz assured her. 

Still, she had doubts.  Why her?

This seemed like something short of a miracle.  It is not how her reality works. No apple would suddenly fall on her lap, especially since there has been no Apple tree in sight. 

Seeing her skepticism, Liz prodded her, cajoled her, and threatened her.  Then she reminded her about her arrears at the hospital and that took the cake.  

Wyoming found herself finally giving in. 

She had two monthly terms in arrears at the hospital, with penalties climbing by the second. 

She had to earn to be able to pay the hospital. And this audition, if she made the cut, could help to at least pay for her arrears.  

So, she was in this dressing room, spruced up like a doll for the audition that would last approximately ten minutes. 

Wyoming stood up after getting instruction from her stylist. She made her body pliant as they turned her body from side to side.

They also pulled the sides of her hair back, letting a few tendrils fall to give herself a more romantic, softer look before capping it with a mantilla veil. 

“You better take care of the dress, dear. The shining rocks are real diamonds!” Max cautioned her in an indulgent voice.  

Wyoming’s eyes widened, causing her to whip her head around to face Max who stood a few feet away from where she was standing. 

Instead of being flattered that her producers are willing to dress her in real diamonds, it had the opposite effect on her. 

She looked anxiously at Max and said in a pleading voice.  “Can I wear a less-expensive one?  I can not very well afford to pay for the diamond if I lose it.”  

Wyoming bit her lip. In her head, she was willing for Max to agree with her.  When she saw nothing from his expressionless face, she panicked. 

“Why are you putting real diamonds on a dress when nobody could tell the difference? We are not filming yet. This is only an audition.” 

“Dear everyone who would look at you will know if you are wearing real or fake diamonds. Relax and do your part.”  Max patted her shoulder, trying to placate her. But she could not get her tensed body to relax.  She is so wound up at the thought that she’s probably carrying with her million-worth of shining, shimmering, splendid!

From the mirror, Wyoming saw the crew that assisted Max exchange meaningful glances before they giggled simultaneously.  

Frustrated at being made fun of, she faced Max, who was trying to hide his own smirk.

She was so ready to blow her top when he suddenly took her breath away with his announcement, 

“You got the major role.”  

Stunned, the diamonds were forgotten momentarily as she stood there looking at Max with her mouth agape.

Then, Wyoming unconsciously took Max’s large hands and enveloped them in her own small trembling ones.  

Her eyes lit up.  “Really?  I am in?”  

Wyoming could not believe her good fortune. Liz assured her that she was as good as in, but she would not believe her until she had some proof.

“I got the lead role?  Are you sure?”  

At her question, Max rolled his eyes and gestured for someone to come over.  

A woman dressed in a white pantsuit came forward with a sheaf of papers in her hands. 

When she reached them, she handed the papers to Wyoming who at first looked at them blankly.  

A hard nudge from Max roused her from her daze.  Abruptly, she took the handed papers, and did a precursory glance at the documents, her excitement building by the second when she noted the words CONTRACT in bold letters at the heading.

This is her proof, right in front of her. 

Wyoming could almost picture in her head the amount of money she would be getting out of this job for her talent fee.  And this makes her heave a sigh of pleasurable contentment. 

Not only did this project her major shot at stardom, but this would also solve her money problems!

Early this morning, just when she was about to come to this audition, she received a call from the hospital that left her worried and agitated. 

They called to inquire about the promissory note that she signed with them two months ago. Then, they dropped the bomb that she was delayed in her monthly amortizations.  

Like she did not know that!

Afterward, they capped it with the words that "they would be constrained to put the matters into the hands of their legal team, which would make it more ugly!", they told her in a chilling voice that Wyoming was sure employed for cases like hers. 

She wanted to rush to the hospital right there and then to confront their finance department and demand that they should not threaten ordinary people like her.

She intends to pay!

It was just that luck was not on her side. She is so down on her finances, and getting supporting roles is far and in-between. 

She could barely put food on our table now that her dad was still recuperating from his operation. 

He was involved in a vehicular accident a few months back, and his operation took away all their money with still a sizable amount left, which she promised to pay in six monthly installments. 

Two months have quickly passed, but she is still working on how to get the money for her first monthly installment, and to add to that picture, she is now two months delayed in her payments. 

And then, this role came - the answer to her prayers. 

It meant that she would have money to pay the hospital and maybe save some for her dad to start over. 

The woman in a pantsuit flipped the pages of the documents until they reached the last to draw a finger on the bottom part that stated her name in bold letters. 

“You can sign here.”  She instructed.

Wyoming took the pen handed to her and affixed her signature without reading the entirety of the contract.

After signing her name, the woman who introduced herself as Ms. Thea took the documents and carefully put them inside a black leather briefcase.   

Then, she asked for Wyoming’s bank details, and instructed her to check her account. 

She saw the number five with five zeros.  

“Five hundred thousand dollars! Gosh! Is this for real?” Wyoming looked around her wide-eyed.  

She noticed that the others left which left her alone with Ms. Thea and Max. 

Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine herself receiving an enormous amount for her talent fee. 

“Aren’t you paying me a lot?” She asked, trying to be sure. 

This time, she saw a ghost of a smile flitted across Ms. Thea’s ruby red lips.  

“If you do well on this job, Mr. Ellish promised to pay you another five hundred thousand dollars.” 

That got her attention. 

The name Ellish rang the loudest bell.  

Their family owned a consortium of big businesses, including one of the biggest film production outfits in the country. 

Oddly, it sort of made her feel secure inside.  If it’s an Ellish film, then there is nothing to worry about. 

She did not have much time to think further because Max squeezed in with her conversation with Thea to announce that it was her time to walk down the aisle. 

With trepidation in her heart, Wyoming took deep breaths to calm herself. 

Then she let Max’s crew assist her in her gown.  They walked the short trek to the facade of the grandiose church embossed with intricate details that spoke of tension and sensuous richness. 

Much like what she was feeling at the moment. 

The door was closed, blocking her view of the inside of the church. 

She closed her eyes to say a short fervent prayer of thanks and when she opened her eyes, the gigantic doors were swept open bringing her into full view of everyone. 

A hush fell over the entire church when she came into view.

Hearing the silence, Wyoming’s body started to shake. At that exact moment, heads turned one by one in her direction, until everyone’s eyes were on her. 

An unbidden shyness assailed her. Wyoming bit her lip then she took a deep breath. 

She felt her lungs expand and when it deflated, releasing air, Wyoming squared her shoulders and in character let the adrenaline kick in,  ignoring the tiny tremors that wracked her body in fright. 

Wyoming felt her body tremble uncontrollably. 

Then, an image of her father struggling in his bed crossed her mind and she was suddenly emboldened. 

She had to slay this role.

This is her one shot to stardom, the break she was looking for.  She had to make a stellar performance to carve a niche for herself in this cutthroat industry. 

Squaring her shoulders, Wyoming gingerly stepped her right foot forward, followed by her left. Then, she found herself walking in slow measured steps on the carpeted aisle in time with the piano rendition of Pachelbel’s Canon in D. 

As she walked, her eyes did a study of her surroundings and were surprised at the elaborate preparation for this scene. She noted how the film production did not scrimp on this one.  

She decided to match the production’s effort with her own. 

One Take. 

One Take.  

One Take. 

She murmured in her head. 

She resolved to ace this scene in one take. 

Wyoming let her eyes roam the beauty around her and was stunned.

The place looked awesome. It looked dreamy. Wyoming felt she was walking in her own fairy tale.   

Hydrangeas were everywhere in their stunning colors - pink, white, purple, and blue.  

She gripped the bridal bouquet Ms. Thea handed her before she started her bridal march. They also showed a combination of white, pink, purple, and blue, which she failed to notice earlier. 

Their soft hues are very easy on the eyes.  

For a while, Wyoming lost her gaze on them and felt a bit calmer as she continued her ascent to the altar, where the actor playing the role of her groom was waiting. 

The whole place hummed with vibrancy, but it did not detract from the solemnity of the occasion.   

Wyoming could not understand why she felt like crying real tears in this scene. 

It was as if the production designer took out that dream inside her heart and made it real!

Her gaze flew to the altar where she saw a handsome man in a three-piece suit standing broodingly. 

His eyes were fixed on her.

The tenderness in his gaze moved her. 

It felt all too real that tears smarted her eyes.

Wyoming let the enormity of the situation overwhelm her.  It filled her heart to the brim that she felt like exploding in real happiness.

She closed her eyes to blot out the assault of feelings, and when she opened them, she was already standing face-to-face with her groom. 

At close range, she was awed with her groom’s attractiveness, and was startled for a while, too stunned at the beautiful man before her. 

Her steps faltered.

The man reached out a hand to steady her but did not release her.  

Instead, he leaned his head close to her head and whispered to her ears. 

“Good job.  Maintain that look. Make everyone believe how happy you are to be marrying me.”  He whispered in a breath fanning the side of her ear and cheek. 

His chilled voice sent a shiver down her spine. 

But his words made her smile inwardly. 

He was pleased with her performance!

Wyoming felt a jolt of satisfaction. But when they moved again with her pretend groom at her side, she realized that his words sounded odd coming from someone as nameless in the industry as she was.  But then, she shoved these thoughts aside and concentrated on perfecting the procession with her groom beside her. 

They stopped when they faced two middle-aged people standing near the altar, a  male and a female whom Wyoming presumed were the actors portraying his parents in this scene. 

Wyoming’s eyes squinted when she recognized them. 

They are Mark and Alicia Ellish, stalwarts of the Ellish Group of Companies that primarily operates the Ellish Film Production Limited, the same company that hired her for this job.

Her mind whirred with so many questions. 

Why are they here in the set?  

Were they in the cast, too?

Then the mass celebrant started to talk.

“We are gathered here today to witness the joining of Cayden Ellish and Wyoming Wilson in holy matrimony.

Sheez!

Wyoming’s eyes widened in alarm, and her heart thumped so fast that it nearly got out of her ribcage as realization dawned on her. 

“Is this a real wedding?”   She hissed at the man standing unconcernedly beside her.