BE MY OBSESSION

CHAPTER 19

•SHELBY•

Last night, I couldn't discuss the deal with Mr. Nakamura with Dad, so I woke up early the next morning in the hopes of finding him available for a conversation. Unfortunately, I discovered that he had already left for work. Knowing how packed his schedule usually is, I understood that he wouldn't have any spare time unless it was something truly important.

Considering the significance of this matter, I didn't care how busy he was. He needed to listen to what I had to say. Hastily finishing my breakfast, I jumped into my car and headed to work.

The idea of a fake engagement with William was still lingering in my mind, but I refused to entertain the thought. I had to remain open-minded about alternative solutions to make the deal work with Mr. Nakamura. Accepting the fake engagement would be my last resort.

Upon arriving at the company, I entered the elevator and pressed the button for the 16th floor, where Dad's office was located. As the numbers on the elevator display increased, I couldn't help but fidget nervously, overwhelmed by a new wave of apprehension.

My father was the type of man who seized any opportunity that came his way, always striving to be the first to claim it. I worried that if William had suggested the fake engagement idea without considering other options, Dad would immediately embrace it. He wouldn't explore other possibilities; he would simply go with the first available option that appeared uncomplicated.

My heart sank when I entered his office and found William already there. He had beaten me to the opportunity to divert my father's attention from the fake engagement idea, and without a doubt, he had already proposed it to him.

Closing the door behind me, I approached William, and together we looked down at my father, lost in deep thought, staring into space with his arms propped on the table and hands clasped together in front of his face.

"What do you think, Mr. Falcon?" William inquired, and I shot him a questioning glance, wondering what they had discussed.

Dad leaned back in his large leather armchair and tapped his pointer finger on the table, creating a rhythmic sound.

"It's not an ideal idea, but since you've already spoken to Mr. Nakamura, it seems like the only option we have to go along with," Dad finally responded to William's question. My curiosity grew, as did my frustration.

"I'm glad we're on the same page," William chimed in, and I exchanged puzzled looks between them.

"Well, I'm not. So what have you two agreed upon?" I interrogated them both, and Dad glanced at me awkwardly.

"We've decided to proceed with the fake engagement, but only until the merger ceremony is over."

My eyes widened at his words.

"Excuse me? Why on earth would the two of you agree to that without involving me?"

"You don't have a say in this," Dad replied casually, and I clenched my fists tightly.

"This directly concerns me! I have every right to reject this absurd idea. We have other means of persuading Mr. Nakamura to work with us without resorting to a fake engagement," I argued defensively while directing a scowl at William.

"Then please enlighten us with those alternative ideas. Mr. Nakamura has already heard the news and seen the ring on your finger. If we back out now, what impression will he have of us? How will we convince him in another way that we take these relationships seriously? If we withdraw, he'll immediately refuse to work with us because we deceived him and failed to demonstrate our commitment," William reasoned, and I glared at him throughout his explanation. 

He was right, but I hate the fact that I had no choice but to play along with this foolish plan.

I hated him, and that was an understatement. Pretending to be engaged to him just to maintain an important client's trust? It felt like my life was spiraling out of control.

"Mr. Fontane is right, Shelby. It's only temporary, and all you have to do is act. You're quite good at that," Dad remarked, offering a double entendre with his words. He grinned at me, stood up, and extended his hand to William.

"You're a brilliant man, Mr. Fontane. Mr. Nakamura is a demanding client to please, so if this is the only way you believe we can keep him on board, then so be it. Even if it means you two pretending to be a couple. I'm willing to take the risk."

I stood there in shock, my jaw dropping at his audacity.

How dare they?

"But Dad, I—" He silenced me immediately with a glance.

A glance I knew all too well. It clearly communicated that he could easily take away my position and criticize me in front of William.

That's what I despised most about him.

The fact that he still had control over the one thing I cherished, which he could easily snatch away.

Also, the last thing I wanted was for him to speak ill of me in front of the person I hate the most.

I sealed my lips shut, gazing at the floor as he turned back to William with a smile.

"I'll arrange a press conference to announce the engagement news before someone else learns of it from Mr. Nakamura and complicates matters. You two should start preparing a story about how you met, how the proposal happened, and all the details. Reporters will likely ask those kinds of questions. Give her the ring, work on your acting skills, and my secretary will inform you when the reporters have arrived."

He instructed William, then looked directly at me.

"Try not to mess this up, Shelby. We all know how you can overreact at times. This could actually benefit the company, so play nice if you don't want to tarnish your own reputation."

I remained silent, glaring at them both. He patted William on the shoulder, turned around, and walked out of the room.

Once the door closed, I raised my hand and slapped William across the cheek.

His face turned to the side from the sudden impact, and I noticed the muscle twitching in his jaw before he slowly faced me.

"What the hell was that for?" he snapped angrily.

"You said we would discuss this today, but you went straight to my father and told him instead?" I confronted him.

"He called me in this morning because Mr. Nakamura contacted him last night, asking for confirmation directly from your father. Your father had to maintain the story, so this morning, he wanted to speak with me to find out what happened. I had no choice but to tell him," he explained.

"You could have at least asked him to wait for me," I retorted.

He laughed sarcastically.

"Yeah, as if you would have agreed to this even if we did wait for you."

I scowled at him and started walking towards the door to leave.

"He's right, you know. If we want to sell this story and retain Mr. Nakamura as our client, you better not mess this up. Both our reputations are at stake, Shelby. I'm willing to go through with this, but you need to cooperate and make it easier," he advised.

I gripped the doorknob tightly, his words echoing in my head.

Fine, so be it!

This was solely for the sake of business, and I would play my part. Dad was right—I was proficient at pretending, so this should be a piece of cake, even if I felt like screaming internally.

Without saying a word, I left the office and retreated to mine to calm myself before the press conference commenced. That was yet another daunting challenge. If we wanted people to believe that we were a couple, we had to be on the same page and put on an outstanding performance to persuade them.

All of this was happening because of Mr. Nakamura, and I couldn't shake off the feeling that my life had spiraled into a chaotic mess.