Feigned Marriage

chapter 5

Prapai's POV

"We're planning to acquire the following streaming services," Namtan tells me as she gives me a high-level summary of the deals on the table, but I can barely focus on her.

I run a hand through my hair as she prattles on about my schedule, movies I should invest in, sponsorship deals, and who knows what else.
I've always loved my fast-paced and high pressured job, but I need a fucking break. I haven't felt like myself for weeks now, and I can't pinpoint what's thrown me off so much. Is it my constant arguments with James and our approaching wedding?
Or is it Sky?

I keep trying to forget, but every time my thoughts wander, I find myself thinking of the way he sat in my lap, his entire body on display for me. I've never seen him look at me the way he did that night, and it's a sight I can't unsee.

I wonder who it is that had him so messed up that night. I'm not an idiot. It was obvious that he was hung up on someone, and I can't stand the thought of anyone causing him that much pain. What would have happened if I hadn't been there? Would he really have gone home with some random guy? Or with his agent, John? Or would he have gone to the man he can't seem to forget? The one he said he loves? Who the fuck is it, anyway? I haven't seen him with anyone in a long time. I sigh and force myself to focus on my work, taking my time to read through the reports in front of me.

My office door opens unexpectedly, and Namtan and I both look up in surprise. James walks in, a tight smile on his face. "I checked your schedule," he tells me. "And it seems you're free, right?"

I nod as he sits down in the chair on the other end of my desk. Namtan gathers the documents she brought with her and excuses herself, leaving the two of us alone.

"James," I say, surprised to find him here. I can count the amount of times he's come to my office on one hand. Being told that he owes his career to me is one of his biggest fears, so he's never allowed any rumors to form at all.
"What brings you here?"

He smiles tightly. We've barely spoken in recent weeks, and every time we do, we're arguing.
Even on his birthday, we only had an hour of peace before he blamed me for not making enough of an effort with his friends — the same ones he's keeping our relationship from, neither confirming nor denying our relationship status.

"We need to talk," he says, his voice soft.
I lean back in my seat and sigh. What fucking now? I get that the pressure is high for both of us, but I'm exhausted. I'm tired of constantly fighting with him. I just want to go back to a time when we were still happy together, when we were looking forward to our future together.

"What would you like to talk about?" I ask, my voice calm.

"Prapai" he says, his voice breaking. "I can't do this. I... I can't marry you."
I put my elbows on my desk and bury my hands in my hair as I let my eyes fall closed. "Our wedding is next week, James. You've postponed it three times now."

"Pai, I'm serious. The more I think about it, the more it torments me.
Because of your family's rules, we can't spend more than three consecutive days apart for the entire first three years of our marriage, but how is that supposed to work? You can't take time off from work to accompany me when I'm filming, and I can't take three years off. How many years do I really have left in my prime?
I'm at the height of my career, and I can't walk away from that now. Maybe the time will be right for us someday, but we both know it isn't now."

I look at him and take in the pain in his eyes. He really is serious this time, isn't he? "James," I say, my voice soft. "I hear you, honey. I do. But this marriage between us?
It isn't just a marriage between you and me. It's also one between our families, our companies.
We're lucky that we fell in love with each other, but ultimately, this is an arranged marriage. It's not something either of us can walk away from."