All Chapters of The Replacement Wife : Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

CHAPTER 1: THE REPLACEMENT WIFE I've always been the spare daughter, but I never thought they'd actually use me as a replacement part. The wedding dress hangs on my closet door like a ghost. White silk, imported lace, probably worth more than everything I own combined. I didn't put it there. I wouldn't touch Felicity's things even if someone paid me. "Iris!" Mother's voice cuts through the brownstone like a knife through butter. "Iris, get in here. Now." Seventeen steps from my bedroom to Felicity's. I count them without meaning to, the way I count everything. Numbers make sense. Numbers don't lie or disappear two hours before their own wedding. Felicity's room looks like a hurricane hit a department store. Makeup scattered across her vanity, shoes everywhere, her actual wedding dress crumpled on the floor. The window's wide open, curtains billowing in the October wind. Mother stands in the center of the chaos, still in her dressing gown, a champagne flute dangling from her fing

CHAPTER 3: THE WEEDING NIGHT The Laurent Estate looks like it's made of moonlight and glass. We drive for two hours in silence. Dominic spends most of it on his phone, typing emails with his jaw clenched. I watch the city lights fade into darkness, then reappear as we hit the Hamptons coastline. The house sits on a cliff overlooking the ocean. Floor-to-ceiling windows reflect the stars. Everything is sharp angles and clean lines, more museum than home. A woman in her fifties meets us at the door. She has kind eyes and gray hair pulled into a neat bun. "Mrs. Chen," Dominic says. "This is my wife." The word sounds foreign in his mouth. Wrong. "Welcome, Mrs. Laurent." Mrs. Chen's smile is warm. "I've prepared the master suite and the guest room next door." My stomach twists. Guest room? Dominic catches my expression. "I thought you'd prefer your own space. At least initially." "Oh." Relief floods through me, followed by something else. Something that feels uncomfortably like di

CHAPTER 5: IMMERSION The numbers make sense in a way nothing else does. I've been in the library for eight hours straight. Papers cover every surface. My notebook is filled with calculations, arrows connecting one idea to another. Coffee rings stain the margins where I've set my mug down without thinking. The Pacific division keeps bleeding money, and for seven hours I couldn't figure out why. Revenue is steady. Labor costs are normal. But something's draining capital like a wound that won't close. Then I see it in the shipping manifests. They're routing everything through Singapore. Every single container from their Taiwan factory goes to Singapore first, then to Los Angeles. It adds three days and forty thousand dollars per shipment. But there's a direct route. Taiwan to LA, straight shot across the Pacific. Half the cost, half the time. I grab my pen and start calculating. Twelve shipments per month. Forty thousand per shipment. That's almost six million dollars a year in unn

I wake at dawn, body sore from yesterday's marathon work session, mind already racing with numbers.Dominic is already gone. His bedroom door stands open when I pass it on my way downstairs, the bed made with military precision. Of course he's an early riser. Men like him probably consider sleep a weakness.Mrs. Chen has coffee ready and a knowing smile. "Mr. Laurent left at five-thirty. Said he'd be at the office all day."So much for our moment on the terrace.I take my coffee to the library and lose myself in spreadsheets. The restructuring plan is coming together, but there are gaps. Questions about supplier contracts I can't answer without access to the company servers. I make notes, highlight sections that need Dominic's input, and try not to think about how his eyes looked last night when he recognized my work.By noon, my vision is blurring. The numbers are starting to swim.I need air.The estate grounds are bigger than I realized. Manicured lawns give way to wild gardens, th

I changed outfits four times before settling on a navy suit I found in the back of Felicity's closet. It's the most conservative thing she owned, which means it's still tighter than I'd prefer, but at least it doesn't scream look at me.My reflection in the mirror shows someone I barely recognize. Professional. Put-together. Terrified.The car ride to Manhattan is quiet. Dominic scrolls through emails on his phone while I mentally rehearse my opening lines. My hands are ice-cold despite the heated seats."Stop overthinking," he says without looking up."I'm not overthinking.""You're running through the presentation in your head. I can see your lips moving." He sets down his phone. "You know this material. Trust yourself.""Easy for you to say. You're not about to face twelve strangers who think you're a trophy wife playing dress-up.""No. I'm facing twelve people who are about to discover they were wrong about you." His gray eyes meet mine. "Let them underestimate you. Makes the vict