One

CHAPTER 1

Isabella Swan stared at her reflection in the mirror, her hands shaking slightly as she smoothed her hair. She was dressed in a sleek professional outfit that mirrored the style her sister, Irene, was used to wearing. Her heart was pounding with a mixture of fear and determination. Irene had always been confident, a person who could overcome anything she faced. But now, Irene was missing, and it was up to Isabella to find her.

"Are you sure about this, Bella?" her best friend, Emily, asked from behind her.

Isabella took a deep breath and nodded. "I have no choice. Irene needs me, and this is the only way I can find out what happened to her."

It had been two weeks since Irene announced her engagement to Rudolf, a man Isabella knew was bad news. She had seen the bruises on Irene's arms, the fear in her eyes. And then, just like that, Irene disappeared. Phone calls went unanswered, and her apartment was untouched. Desperation led Isabella to make a drastic decision: she would assume Irene's identity and infiltrate her workplace, Alpha Company, where Irene worked as the personal secretary to the CEO, Felix Kingston.

The first day at Alpha Company was chaotic. Isabella kept her head down, trying to blend in and not attract attention. But Felix Kingston was not an easy man to recognize. Tall, with piercing blue eyes and an aura of authority, he was intimidating. Isabella had hoped to avoid direct interaction with him, but fate had other plans.

"Miss Swan," Felix's deep voice called out as Isabella rushed into the office. She froze, her heart racing. "A word in my office, please."

She followed him, her mind racing. Had the man already discovered her deceit? She had only been there a day. Once inside his spacious office, Felix closed the door behind him and turned, his gaze scrutinizing.

"You are not Irene," he said bluntly.

Isabella's blood ran cold. She opened her mouth to protest, but no words came out.

Felix leaned against his desk, crossing his arms. "Who are you, and where is Irene?"

Isabella swallowed hard. "I am Isabella, her twin sister. Irene is missing, and I must find her. Please, you have to trust me."

For a moment, Felix said nothing. His eyes softened slightly, but his expression remained guarded. "Forgery of identity is a serious offense. I could have you arrested."

"Please, Mr. Kingston," Isabella pleaded. "I have no other choice. Irene may be in danger. I must find her."

Felix stared at her silently, his jaw hardening. After what felt like an eternity, he sighed. "I believe you. But this situation is complicated. I have my own problems."

Isabella frowned. "What do you mean?"

Felix straightened up, his demeanor changing to one of determination. "My parents are forcing me to get married. They think I'm gay because I'm not established yet. I just broke up with my boyfriend, and I have no intention of starting a new relationship. But if you agree to a contract marriage, I will help you find Irene."

Isabella looked at him, surprised. "Contract marriage? Are you serious?"

Felix nodded. "One million dollars and all my resources to find your sister. In return, we pretend to be married until my parents back down."

The offer was absurd, but it was his best chance. "Alright," she agreed reluctantly. "I'll do it."

Felix extended his hand, and Isabella shook it, sealing their unusual agreement. Little did she know, this agreement would lead her down a path more complicated and dangerous than she had ever imagined.

And all this chaos began just a few days ago.

Isabella woke up in her bed, she blinked a few times to make sure the clock on the wall still pointed to two. Well, she had an appointment with her copy editor at four in the afternoon. She had slept since this morning because she finished her novel overnight. And it was really tiring.

"Damn, I have to get up and meet that chatty guy."

Stretching her arms out on the bed, Isabella's thoughts drifted to the messages she had sent to her twin sister, Irene. It had been two weeks since Irene had shocked the family by announcing her engagement to Rudolf, the bastard who always pretended to be nice in front of them all, Irene had been unreachable.

Isabella got up and checked her cell phone. Everything is still the same. Irene could not be contacted, did not reply to messages, did not reply to emails and was not even active on all her social media.

"I have to do something," Isabella said, but she was reminded of Peter, her very fussy editor and boss. "but I have to finish my business with Peter first."

After leaving the room, Isabella found her mother and father, Rose and Ben, sitting together in front of the television. They seemed to be relaxing watching a sporting event on the weekend. And this was the perfect time for Isabella to break the peaceful atmosphere.

"Hey, were you able to reach Irene?"

Mom and Dad turned to Isabella. "Aren't you the one always texting her, Bella?"

"Yep. And she's still unreachable," Isabella said, she sat on the sofa, then showed her cell phone. "He disappeared. Shouldn't we be looking for him?"

Ben picked up the voice. "She's engaged to Rudolf and you know that Rudolf asked our permission to take Irene to live with him."

"Dad, I already said that, didn't I? Rudolf's a terrible man, you can tell by his looks and tattoos!"

Rose patted Isabella lightly on the shoulder, she smiled a little. "Irene is all grown up, Bella. She's made her own life."

"Come on, Mom. You shouldn't trust Rudolf. He's an asshole!"

"Be careful what you say, Bella. You could hurt Irene if she hears." Ben warned. He muttered something long, then pointed at Isabella. "Look, if you're so worried, why don't you go to Rudolf's apartment and make sure that Irene is okay?"

Isabella looked at Ben, then at Rose in turn. "Apartment?"

"Yeah, they live together now. Irene must be at Rudolf's apartment, right?"

And after considering it, Isabella nodded in agreement to her parents. "Alright. I'll check on them after meeting my editor downtown."

"Sounds good," Rose replied enthusiastically.