Bride To Be Not Me (Janice and Simon) novel Chapter 1

"Janice, Amy is in such a bad state now that she can't even walk on her own. Why don't you be her bridesmaid and help her up the stage? You know her condition.

"We still have a long way to go. I'll make up for this by preparing a more splendid wedding for you once her wish has been fulfilled."

The man leaned against the gray leather couch as he took a drag of the cigarette. He said those words without a hint of emotion.

Janice Smith hadn't expected the request from her boyfriend, Simon Fitzgerald, whom she had dated for seven years. They had built their business together from nothing.

It was harder for her to imagine that the wedding that everyone had been paying attention to wasn't for her but for Simon and his childhood sweetheart.

A month ago, Amelia Burnett had gone to Simon and told him that she had lung cancer and that her days were numbered. Her only wish was to have a wedding.

They were childhood friends. Janice knew that Simon had a crush on Amelia when he was young. Hence, Janice felt her heart had been torn apart when Simon agreed to Amelia's request without hesitation.

Another woman would take credit for everything she had done. Yet, she dared not retort a word. She would be called selfish if she made a fuss about it or rejected it since someone was dying.

The wedding invitation cards had been sent out, and she would be the bridesmaid instead of the bride on the day after tomorrow. She would probably become a topic among the wives of the rich tycoons in Greenfield City.

Janice could feel the bitterness surging from her heart and occupying her mind. "I've been preparing for this wedding for more than eight months. I sewed the wedding gown myself. The jewelry is my family's heirloom. What can you do to make up for this?"

"Janice Smith, are you talking to me right now?" Simon frowned. "I've explained everything to you. You've always been thoughtful. Why are you being so fussy with me now?"

Was she fussy? Seemingly sensing that she was displeased, Simon stubbed out the cigarette and leaned in to hold her hand.

"Janice, you know her days are numbered. Let's not make a fuss about this with her, okay? Could you just take this as helping me out?"

He was prideful and arrogant. Janice was stunned to see him begging her like this because of an outsider.

What was she going to help him for? Was she going to help him marry another woman? Had she not done enough, though?

Throughout the years, whenever the company faced a financial crisis, Janice would secretly participate in competitions and sell her work. Then, she would use the prize to support Refined Threads Co., the company they founded together.

Simon had no idea that Janice was the globally renowned seamstress who was skilled in doing double-sided crochet. He also didn't know that Refined Threads Co. had only received many orders because the other bosses thought highly of Janice.

Besides, he didn't even know that many big companies in Greenfield City, including Prosper Stitch Group, the pioneer in the crochet industry, were poaching Janice. Janice mentioned nothing about all this because Simon disliked a woman who was stronger than him.

Warm tears filled her eyes, hurting her skin. All the hard work and struggles in the past seven years flooded her mind.

"Okay, I'll be her bridesmaid." Her voice was so soft that she sounded like she was mumbling. It seemed as though she had used up all her might to say that.

Simon smiled delightedly. "Janice, you're so kind."

"Mr. Moore, I found it."

At the overseas divisional branch of Prosper Stitch Group, the man at the desk was still working. He paused and lifted his eyes.

Harrison Cullen gathered himself and said, "The top seamstress who won the global crochet competition this time was actually Ms. Smith from Refined Threads Co."

Edward Moore stopped writing. "Janice Smith?"

"Aside from this competition, the five crochets that were bid at tens of millions of dollars last year and the Reversible Crimson Pheasant that the museum took were also done by Ms. Smith. It was just that she had joined the competition using her cousin's name, Shirley Olson."

The globally renowned top seamstress, Shirley Olson, was actually Janice.