The Stand-in Wife's Deception

s sound of panic, her knuckles white as she wrenched the fabric upward. The corset tightened, crushing the air from my lungs and forcing my posture into the arching, arrogant stance my twin sister ha

hissed, her manicured nails

Vivienne vanished, leaving nothing behind but a trashed penthouse, a pool of bloo

eady waiting in the hall. "You are her now. Do you understand me? If Caspian Croft finds ou

n the city was relentless, blurring the neon lights into streaks of bleeding crimson against the tinted windows. I sat rigid against the leather, the air ins

ld her champagne glass by the bowl, leaving smudged fingerprints. I knew she laughed from her throat, a breathless sound designed to make powerful men

sn't enough. I was walking in

ted with terrifying, clinical precision. Vivienne had thought she could play him. She thought she could take h

orning. I was a human shield, a living forgery to pacify a monster. Every block the car rolled forward felt like a step deeper into the abyss. I clamped my hands down on my silk-covered thighs, digging my nails in until the pain anchored me. The s

y to the glaring strobe lights of high-society galas. I had spent my life building a quiet, safe existence in the margins of my family's chaotic, debt-fueled drama. In a m

r. I had to inhabit the reckless arrogance of a woman who was likely already dead, while desperately searching the estate of the man who prob

n Croft saw everything. He monetized secrets. My only advantage was that he expected a shallow socialite, not a meticulous researcher who had spent the last three days memorizing his pu

hed on the cliffs overlooking the churning ocean. The engine cut out, plunging the cabin into an expectant silence. The rain battered the roof

n the opposite side

antly overpowering the cloying cherry perfume. A man slid into the seat b

ian

ating a cold, kinetic energy that made the hairs on my arms stand up. His eyes, a chilling, pale silver in the dim light of the streetl

eck, his thumb pressing directly over my racing pulse. He leaned

low, lethal hum that vibrated straight thro