Chapter 3

I stared at Joanna’s message for five seconds before calling her back.

“What photos?”

“The ones in the group chat! The Sterling heir's wedding―the bride's name is listed as Winona Lynn.”

“But the person in the photo…” Joanna’s voice shifted from excitement to hesitation.

“That’s not you, is it? Is that your sister? Why is she using your name?”

“I got it. Thanks, Joanna.”

I hung up and opened the Sterling Group’s official website.

The third headline on the scrolling news read: “Heir of Sterling Group, Cillian Sterling, Weds Former Investment Director of Starling Capital, Winona Lynn.”

I clicked on it.

Yara was wearing a white wedding dress, standing next to a tall man.

That man must be Cillian―the sole heir to the Sterling fortune.

In the photo, he was tilting his head slightly, as if listening to her.

Yara’s smile was perfect. So perfect it looked like she had practiced it a hundred times.

I scrolled down to the guest list.

Arthur Sterling―Chairman of Sterling Group. Cillian’s grandfather.

I pulled the phone closer.

Arthur Sterling. The man I had exchanged three emails with, held two video conferences with, and finally signed a hundred-million-dollar merger contract with in person a year ago.

The night we signed the deal, he treated the team to dinner.

When the party ended, he pulled me aside and said one thing.

“Ms. Lynn, your proposal is the best I’ve seen in ten years.”

He was talking to me. Not Yara.

I stared at Yara’s wedding photo.

I looked at her Vera Wang gown and the three-carat diamond on her finger.

I looked at the Sterling estate behind her―a place where my monthly salary couldn't even cover the property fees.

I looked at Cillian, leaning in to hear her speak.

Fine. In this entire picture, everything was hers―except for those two words at the bottom: “Winona Lynn.”

The light from the screen reflected on my face.

I caught the scent of my own detergent on my collar―the discount brand, nine dollars a bag.

Then, I stood up.