Chapter two
881 Words
Emily paced around her father’s office in disbelief. “You can’t be serious,” she said, gripping the edge of his desk. Her father, Richard Thompson, didn’t even look up. He slid a folder across the desk, his tone firm.
“Stop acting like this is a surprise. We have talked about this already, he said. You know our families have ties with the Willows. Business has been rough, and we need every help we can get. Emily, this decision is for the good of our family, can’t you see it?" he added, sitting back in his chair like the matter was closed.
Emily kept her voice even. “Dad, you're asking me to marry a man I don’t know to save a business deal?” Her voice cracked halfway through the sentence.
“I’m asking you to do your duty,” Richard said, adjusting his glasses. He didn’t raise his eyes. He just kept reading the papers in front of him as though her life wasn’t being signed away.
Her voice rose. “Dad, what do you mean by do my duty?”
“Yes Emily, do your duty,” he said again, this time firmer. His voice carried the weight of command.
“You will have a good life. Jason is a well-brought-up man, educated, capable of taking care of you and your mother is in support.”
Emily shook her head slowly, tears burning behind her eyes. “And if I say no?”
Richard finally looked up. His stare was cold and unflinching. “You won’t dare.”
The silence between them grew heavy. Emily looked at him and for a moment she didn’t see her father — she saw a businessman sitting across a table from a deal he refused to lose. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
“I need you to be at the house tomorrow for dinner. You’ll be meeting your fiancé and his family. The engagement has already been announced publicly. The details of the proposal will follow next week.”
Emily froze, her throat tightened. “You’ve already told everyone, and I’m just finding out?”
Richard didn’t answer. His silence said everything.
“You’ve always told me that family comes before business,” she said, her voice shaking. “So what is this, Dad? Which one am I now — family or business?”
Richard looked away, his expression unreadable.
Emily stepped back, her heart pounding. The room felt smaller, the air thicker. The desk that once felt like part of her childhood now looked like a wall between them.
“Is that what I am to you?” she asked quietly. “Something valuable to trade?”
He didn’t respond.
Her eyes filled with tears. “How I’m I supposed to be happy with a man I don’t even know?”
She didn’t wait for an answer this time. She turned around, stormed toward the door, and pushed it open hard enough that it echoed down the hall.
“Emily—” her father called after her, but she didn’t stop.
Her heels clacked against the floor, loud and angry. She pushed through the front door and stepped outside into the evening breeze, feeling defeated by the one person she thought would protect her.
Outside she stood still for a long moment, breathing hard. Her phone buzzed in her hand, a message from her mother, “Be patient with your dad Emily, he wants what’s best for you.”
Emily let out a shaky breath. What was best for him, she thought. Not for me.
She started walking down the driveway, wiping her face. She needed air, space, something to help her think. Her future was already being planned for her, down to the color of her dress and the man standing next to her.
When she reached the gate, she stopped and leaned on the cool metal— thinking about her father's words to her.
She whispered under her breath, “You’ll regret this, Dad.” It wasn’t a threat. The pain turned into a quiet promise.
Her phone buzzed again — this time a news alert. She clicked it, and her heart sank.
“Possible marriage between billionaire heir and mystery girl”
Her own picture flashed beside Jason Willow’s, a man she had never met, standing tall and expressionless in a suit. She studied his face for a long moment. He didn’t look cruel, but he didn’t look kind either. He looked trapped, just like her.
She switched off her phone and sighed. “Guess we’re both prisoners,” she muttered to herself.
The night stretched long and restless. She laid on her bed staring at the ceiling, wondering what kind of man Jason was — and if he was also sitting somewhere feeling the same weight on his shoulders.
Sleep left her eyes. The thought of dinner tomorrow filled her with dread.
But deep inside her, under all the fear, a small spark flickered — not hope, but defiance.
If she had to marry a stranger to save her family, she would at least keep one thing for herself; her dignity.
And no one — not her father, not Jason, not the entire business world — would take that from her.
- Writer
