CHAPTER 4.
1351 Words
The noise in the conference hall felt like a storm.
Reporters were shouting from every direction, cameras flashing so brightly that my eyes stung. Microphones stretched toward the stage like sharp claws, desperate to capture every word Xavier Blackwood said, but I couldn't hear any of them.
All I could hear was the sentence he had just announced to the entire country.
Elara Vale is my fiancée. My fiancée?
My heart pounded violently as I stood frozen beside him.
I hadn't agreed to this, he hadn't asked, he had simply decided, and now the whole world believed it.
“Mr. Blackwood!” one reporter shouted. “When did the relationship begin?”
“Is this connected to the Vale scandal?”
“Miss Vale, did you approach him first?”
Questions flew through the air like arrows.
Xavier didn’t look bothered.
He stood beside me calmly, one hand resting lightly at my waist as if this was the most natural moment in the world.
I, on the other hand, felt like I had been dropped into the middle of a nightmare.
I leaned closer to him, forcing my lips to move without attracting attention.
“You didn't warn me,” I whispered through clenched teeth.
His expression remained perfectly composed.
“I did,” he replied quietly.
“No, you didn't.”
“You knew there would be a press conference.”
“That’s not the same as announcing our engagement.”
For the first time, he looked slightly amused.
“It was the most efficient solution.”
My stomach twisted. Efficient?
That was the word he used for turning my life into a public spectacle.
Another camera flash exploded in front of us.
“Mr. Blackwood!” a woman called from the front row. “Is this marriage connected to the old Vale-Blackwood conflict?”
The entire room seemed to lean forward at that question. The old scandal, the one that had destroyed my family.
My chest tightened.
Xavier paused for a moment before answering.
His voice was calm, controlled.
“History is complicated,” he said smoothly. “But today is not about the past.”
His hand tightened slightly at my waist.
“It’s about the future.”
The reporters erupted into more questions.
“When is the wedding?”
“Is this a business alliance?”
“Miss Vale, are you moving into Blackwood Estate?”
My breathing became uneven, because this was moving too fast, too public, too permanent.
“Xavier,” I whispered again. “You need to stop this.”
He turned his head slightly toward me.
“Why?”
“Because this isn't real.”
His dark eyes studied my face carefully, then he said something that made my stomach drop.
“It will be.”
The press conference ended minutes later.
Xavier answered a few more questions with practiced ease before security finally moved in to escort us away from the stage.
The moment we stepped into the private hallway behind the conference room, the noise faded instantly.
Silence replaced the chaos, but my heart was still racing.
I turned to him immediately.
“What was that?” I demanded.
Xavier didn't look surprised by my anger.
He removed his suit jacket slowly, draping it over his arm like nothing unusual had happened.
“A press conference.”
“Don't do that,” I snapped. “Don't pretend this was normal.”
He met my gaze calmly.
“It was necessary.”
“For who?” I asked.
“For both of us.”
My hands clenched into fists.
“I never agreed to marry you.”
“That’s true.”
“Then why did you tell the entire country that we’re engaged?”
His expression didn't change.
“Because now you can't refuse.”
The words hit me like a slap.
“What?”
He walked past me toward a nearby office.
“Come inside,” he said calmly.
“I’m not going anywhere until you explain what you just did.”
Xavier stopped at the door and turned back toward me, and for the first time since we met, his expression hardened slightly.
“You wanted honesty, Miss Vale.”
My pulse quickened.
“So here it is.”
He opened the office door.
“Step inside.”
Something in his tone made my stomach twist.
Slowly, I followed him into the room. The office was large and quiet, with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the entire city, but what caught my attention wasn’t the view.
It was the large television screen on the wall.
It was playing the news.
My breath caught when I saw the headline.
BREAKING: XAVIER BLACKWOOD ANNOUNCES ENGAGEMENT TO ELARA VALE.
Images from the press conference were already everywhere; my face, his hand around my waist.
The moment he announced the engagement, it was spreading across every channel, every website, and every social media platform.
Within minutes, the entire country would know.
My chest tightened painfully.
“You've ruined me,” I whispered.
Xavier stood beside me, watching the screen calmly.
“No,” he said quietly.
“I've protected you.”
I turned toward him sharply.
“Protected me from what?”
He picked up a remote control from the desk, then he pressed a button.
The news broadcast disappeared, then another video appeared on the screen.
My breath stopped.
The same footage the bodyguards had shown me earlier.
It was my father, arguing inside an office.
Richard Blackwood standing across from him, but this time the clip continued longer.
Long enough to hear their voices, and long enough to understand what they were arguing about.
My heart began pounding violently.
“Where did you get this?” I whispered.
Xavier didn't answer immediately, instead, he let the video play.
My father’s voice filled the room, desperate, and angry. Then the recording suddenly ended, and the screen went black.
Silence filled the office, then Iturned toward Xavier slowly.
“If that video goes public,” I said quietly, “my father will be blamed for everything again.”
“Yes.”
My stomach twisted.
“You're blackmailing me.”
He didn't deny it, instead, he walked to his desk and picked up a folder, then he placed it in front of me.
The same contract from earlier, marriage agreement, one year, public relationship, and absolute loyalty.
My hands trembled slightly as I looked at it.
“You already told everyone we're engaged,” I said quietly.
“So why do you still need this?”
His answer came without hesitation.
“Because I don't trust you.”
My chest tightened.
“And I should trust you?”
“No.”
His honesty stunned me.
“You shouldn't.”
The room fell silent again.
I stared down at the contract, one year, just one year, but something deep inside me warned that this deal would cost far more than time.
“What happens after the year is over?” I asked.
Xavier's eyes darkened slightly.
“That depends.”
“On what?”
He held my gaze for a long moment, then he answered quietly.
“On whether you survive it.”
A chill ran down my spine.
I looked back down at the contract, the pen rested beside it, waiting.
My hand slowly reached for it, but before I could touch it, my phone suddenly vibrated in my pocket.
I frowned and pulled it out.
A new message had arrived from an unknown number.
My heart skipped when I read it.
DON'T SIGN THAT CONTRACT.
Another message appeared immediately after.
XAVIER BLACKWOOD IS LYING TO YOU.
My pulse began racing, then a final message appeared.
The words made my blood run cold.
I KNOW WHO REALLY DESTROYED YOUR FAMILY.
I slowly lifted my head. Xavier was watching me carefully, waiting for my decision, but now my mind was spinning with a new question.
Who had just sent that message, and how did they know what was happening in this room?
My phone vibrated again, and a new message appeared, with just three words.
CHECK THE VIDEO.
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