Chapter 1

My last breath was a ragged gasp in a sterile, white hospital room. I was 48. My heart just gave out from exhaustion. The final image burned into my mind was Matthew, my husband, laughing at a lavish birthday party. He was celebrating with Stella, his mistress, who had become a millionaire from a real estate boom.

Then, I woke up.

Sunlight streamed through the familiar floral curtains of my small bedroom. My calendar, a freebie from the local hardware store, read "1998." I was 23 again, just weeks away from my wedding.

I sat bolt upright, my heart pounding, but this time with adrenaline, not failure. I was back. I had a second chance.

In my first life, I was a fool. I gave everything to Matthew Scott. I sacrificed my own future, my career, my health, all for a man who saw me as a convenience. He drained me dry.

Not this time.

This time, I had a plan. A simple, two-point plan.

First, I would protect my assets. Every single penny.

Second, I would get as far away from Matthew and his parasitic lover, Stella, as humanly possible. I would live the life they stole from me.

I threw off the covers. The first test was right here, in this room. Under a loose floorboard beneath my bed was a small metal box. Inside was my entire life savings: $10,000. It was money for the wedding and a down payment on a future we never really had.

In my previous life, Matthew had come to me with a sad story about a "can't-miss" investment opportunity that went bad. He claimed he'd lost all our money. I, the trusting idiot, believed him. I spent years feeling guilty about that "lost" money.

The truth? He gave every last dollar to Stella Todd. She used it to buy a small house in an up-and-coming neighborhood on the edge of town. That house was the foundation of her future wealth. While she got rich, I was stuck caring for Matthew's disabled mother, working dead-end jobs, and raising our children in a cramped, dilapidated house we could barely afford. I had labored myself to death for them.

Now, my hands trembled as I lifted the floorboard. The box was there. I pried it open.

Ten thousand dollars, in neat stacks of twenties and fifties, stared back at me. It was all there.

A cold, hard smile spread across my face. The game had just begun, but this time, I knew all the rules.