BE MY OBSESSION

CHAPTER 24

•SHELBY•

I was grateful for one thing - even though we had no groceries, at least we had coffee. Starting the day without a cup of coffee was unthinkable for me, so having it in the house made me happy, although I couldn't help but wonder how we managed to have coffee but no groceries.

And speaking of last night, where the hell did William get that ice cream from?

I had already dressed up for work, wearing grey suit pants and a white halter top with a matching blazer. After making my cup of coffee, I took a seat on the barstool, gazing out the window at the huge swimming pool outside.

I still needed to familiarize myself with this place, so a house tour was on my to-do list.

Footsteps echoed from down the hallway, and without even looking, I knew it was William. I had no idea what time he came back last night, but I wasn't interested in finding out either.

He strolled into the kitchen and grabbed the coffee pot to pour himself a cup. I noticed that he was also dressed for work, but his tie was loose and hanging around his neck, signaling a rough morning.

Sipping my coffee in silence, I occupied myself with my phone while waiting for him. We were supposed to leave for work together.

"For fuck's sake," he groaned in frustration from the kitchen, and I glanced up at him.

I couldn't help but derive a little pleasure from his morning frustration, which was clearly amplified by a hangover he was dealing with, as evidenced by the coffee spill on his hand.

I smiled and raised my cup to take another sip. He looked at me and caught the smile on my face, giving me a glare.

"What?"

"Rough night?" I teased.

"I've had worse, alright? So wipe that stupid smile off your face."

I continued to grin at him.

"This is why you should've hired the house staff yesterday. If they were here right now, breakfast would've been made, and they would've prepared some magic soup or something to cure your hangover."

He narrowed his eyes at me.

"Gee, thanks for the reminder," he answered sarcastically.

Another set of footsteps echoed from the hallway, and this time I turned to look.

James appeared in the kitchen and greeted us with a friendly tone. I genuinely liked James; he was a good guy and great at making conversations, which made it easy to get along with him despite his relationship with William.

"I got the people you requested me to bring. It wasn't that hard to find people to work in the house for you. You can easily find job applicants like that on the internet," James announced before settling down on a stool.

"Great. Where are they?" William asked wearily, and James pointed over his shoulder.

"Outside, bringing in some groceries and other things they might need. So how do you like the place so far, Miss Falcon?" he asked, turning to me.

"It's nice."

"I know. I picked it," he stated confidently, and I smirked.

"I've been told."

"So, you guys share a bedroom together or what?" James asked William, almost choking on his coffee in surprise.

"I'm sorry, you think I bought a house with over sixteen bedrooms just to end up sharing one with her?" William retorted, and I rolled my eyes at him.

"Why not? I'd share a bedroom with her anytime," James said, shooting me an apologetic look.

"I meant no harm or any sexual meaning behind that statement," he quickly clarified, and I laughed.

"I appreciate the flattery, James, but there's absolutely no way I'd sleep in the same room with him. Or anyone, for that matter. I like my privacy, thank you very much."

"Yeah, she's conservative that way," William added sarcastically, and I gave him a glare.

The room fell silent, but it didn't last long as the house staff started coming in, carrying grocery bags and stocking up the fridge and pantries. There were more of them than I had anticipated.

"Just how many people did you hire again?" I asked James curiously.

"Thirty," he answered with a smug smile, and my eyes widened in surprise.

"Why thirty?"

"Well, you obviously need more than just kitchen staff. You'll need gardeners, cleaners, and housekeepers as well. I also hired a butler for you guys."

Geez, a butler too? I'd had enough of living with one my whole life already.

I grabbed my handbag off the counter and looked at William.

"Can we leave now? I can't afford to be late to work."

He looked at me over the brink of his cup as he finished his coffee before putting it down.

"Take care of everything here, and I'll see you at the office," he told James, who mock-saluted him in return.

I led the way outside, opened the door to my car, and got in. I had planned to use my own car and drive to work. If he didn't like the idea, I didn't care. He wanted us to go together, so he'd have to deal with it.

Surprisingly, he didn't say anything or complain when he got into the passenger seat. I put on my seatbelt, started the engine, and noticed he was still struggling to get his tie right.

I tapped my fingers on the steering wheel, contemplating the idea for a moment, waiting for him. When he groaned in frustration while messing it up again, I gave in and turned around to face him.

"Stay still," I told him, grabbing his tie and pulling him closer.

I focused on getting the knot right, fully aware that he was looking at me the entire time. I tried not to get distracted by his close proximity, making it harder to concentrate as he kept staring at me.

I finished the knot, adjusted his collar perfectly, and then finally met his gaze.

His face remained emotionless, and for a moment, I almost forgot where we were. His blue eyes seemed to search mine for something, probably a reason why I suddenly went out of my way to do something completely out of the ordinary, especially to someone I supposedly hated.

Breaking the intense eye contact, I faced the front and started driving, ignoring the weird tension lingering in the air.

OoO

We both walked into the company together, side by side, putting on a show for everyone. Today, I just wanted to focus on my work without any distractions. I wanted nothing to ruin my mood today, not even my father or William or anyone else, so I forced myself to play along with their expectations.

The minute we stepped foot in the building, I hooked my arm around William's and made sure my hand was on his bicep, flaunting the engagement ring.

He immediately looked at me in confusion but quickly recovered, putting on a smile as people greeted us along the way.

This was all for the sake of business, just to maintain a client's trust. So, this better be worth it when it's all over.