All Chapters of Five Years As A DoorMat Wife: Her Time To Shine: Chapter 1 - Chapter 4

Chapter 1The water was colder than Silver had imagined death would be.She'd always thought dying would be warm—like slipping into sleep, like the romance novels promised. But the Crystalbrook River in December was different, its icy rivers penetrating her body to cause ice cold damage to her lungs.Above her, the night sky fractured into pieces through the broken surface. She could see the bridge—the beautiful, bridge where she'd stood just moments ago, laughing. Actually laughing, because for once, for one single evening, Seris had looked at her like she was a person instead of an obligation."You planned this whole thing," he'd said, something almost like warmth in his voice. "The lantern release, the winter festival. It's... nice."Nice. Such a small word. But from Seris Ashford, it had felt like a declaration of love.Silver's lungs screamed. She kicked toward the surface, but her designer gown—the one she'd spent three weeks choosing because Kate had mentioned Seris liked emera

Chapter 3Kate Bridgerton had been awake since five in the morning, and it was entirely Seris Ashford's fault.Not that she'd ever tell him that. Seris had enough on his mind today without her adding to it. His wedding day. *Finally.*"Katie, if you don't stop pacing, you're going to wear a hole in the carpet," her oldest brother Darius called from the doorway of her bedroom, coffee mug in hand. "And Mom will kill you.""I'm not pacing," Kate protested, even though she absolutely was. "I'm... deciding.""You've changed outfits four times." Her second-oldest brother, James, appeared behind Darius, smirking. "It's not even your wedding.""Which is exactly why I need to look perfect!" Kate gestured at the explosion of clothing covering her bed, chairs, and most of her floor. "I can't upstage the bride, but I also can't look like I didn't try. It's a delicate balance.""You're overthinking this," Darius said, but his expression was fond. At thirty, he'd seen Kate through enough social anx