BE MY OBSESSION

CHAPTER 36

•SHELBY•

I stormed towards my father's office, my heart pounding with a mix of anger and determination, and I couldn't care less about his assistant's pleas to stop. Ignoring the surprise on the faces of the gentlemen sitting with my father, I walked in, unapologetic for the interruption.

As my father slowly turned to face me, his annoyance was evident, but I couldn't let that deter me.

"Dad, can I borrow you for a minute?" I said firmly.

His eyes narrowed at my audacity. "Can't you see I'm in the middle of a meeting?"

I held my ground. "This can't wait."

He huffed, but he acknowledged his guests before begrudgingly standing up and approaching me with a glare.

"I do not appreciate this behavior, barging into my office and disrupting my meetings."

Remaining calm, I glanced at the men behind him.

"I told you, this can't wait."

As he reached to escort me out, I pushed his hand away.

"If you're too busy, then I guess the press would love to listen to what I have to say instead."

His cold look turned calculating, and he stepped out of the office with me following closely.

He closed the door behind us before asking impatiently, "What do you want now?"

"I want you to cancel the agreement and announce that we've broken up," I asserted.

He chuckled sarcastically.

"Have you lost your mind? There's still one more month to go."

I nodded resolutely.

"I know, but I can't wait that long. This charade needs to end."

He smirked, trying to test my resolve.

"Feeling jealous because of William's ex-fiancee? Is that why you suddenly want out?"

My anger flared, but I took a deep breath to maintain my composure.

"That's not the point. None of this is right, Dad. It's all fake, and I've had enough."

"We're not canceling anything just because you've had enough," he retorted dismissively.

I couldn't hold back anymore; I needed him to understand how I felt.

"Do you even care about how I feel? Are you that heartless?"

His eyes softened momentarily, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Stop this emotional drama and get back to work."

Infuriated, I decided to confront him about his actions.

"Why can't you be a father for once and see how wrong all of this is?" I raised my voice, trying to keep my emotions in check.

At this point, I was planning to shed some crocodile tears, but I couldn't hold back my genuine pain any longer. Tears flowed down my face, smudging my makeup, but I didn't care. He needed to hear this from me, to understand the impact of his actions on my well-being.

"Sometimes I wish you would change, become a loving and caring father that most girls wish for. A normal father would never let a man put his daughter through a fake engagement. But you... you're a monster."

His eyes reddened, and I knew my words were getting through to him.

I continued, "You treat Mom terribly and ignore Shanelle as if she doesn't exist. Even when she ended up in the hospital due to drug addiction, you did nothing! And Shay? You can't even be happy for your youngest daughter's upcoming marriage. And the way you've pressured Shawn here, it's no wonder he's gone."

He raised a finger, anger written across his face.

"You've gone too far."

"And you haven't?" I countered. "You've pushed us into this mess, and now you're holding us hostage."

"Don't pin this on me! You two got yourselves into this mess first." he snapped.

"That's true, but I'm still your daughter, and you could've done something to get us out of it. Instead, you encouraged it, showing how much you only care about yourself and this damn company."

He sighed heavily.

"What do you want me to do then? Announce your breakup and lose important clients who have invested in this company. We're talking about billions of dollars at stake, Shelby."

With my voice trembling, I wiped away the tears that had escaped.

"I honestly don't care about the money, Dad. I'll gladly give it all up for my own peace and happiness."

He smirked, trying to manipulate me once more.

"Are you sure? Last time I checked, you were willing to do anything to have Shawn's position. Are you ready to put your true obsession in jeopardy?"

Fighting back the tears, I stared him down.

"If you cared for your daughter, you would prioritize my happiness over everything else. But I guess that's too much to ask from someone like you."

With that, I turned away and walked towards the elevator. My emotions threatened to overwhelm me, and as soon as the doors closed, I let myself break down in solitude, my silent cries echoing within the steel walls.

But I knew I had spoken my truth, and I refused to be trapped any longer in the web of lies my father had spun. It was time to find my own path, even if it meant leaving behind everything I once held dear.