The Fake Wife

Chapter 3: The Offer

Anthony's Pov:

"This is my life, Dad. I'm the one who will decide who I marry and spend my life with. I don't like Isabela. I like someone else, and she's not the type of woman I want—" I couldn't finish what I was saying when Dad slapped me in the face.

"You have no respect!" Dad said, and stood up. I immediately stood up and spoke.

"I want to marry someone else, Dad, not Isabela. I won't let you control my life anymore." I immediately left for my office, leaving them all at home. I quickly drove away in my car. I won't let him have his way in everything, even in my marriage. How about me? I have my own life, my own decisions. Since I was a child, he's made all the decisions. I dreamed of becoming a doctor, but he made me take a different course because of his business. Everything, even my life, is trapped by him and revolves around Dad's hand. That's why I won't let him decide my marriage either. When I arrived at the office, I went straight to my office room and smashed the glass on my table. I held my temples and looked at my reflection in the building's glass. I closed my eyes and clenched my fists because of the anger I felt towards Dad.

Julia's Perspective:

It's another night shift at the coffee shop because I need to save money to pay the bills at home. I'll be paying tuition again because the second semester is starting. Ugh, I'm working double time. I'm thinking like I have a family already. Suddenly, a familiar face entered the coffee shop—Anthony.

"Hello, Anthony, coffee?" I said while typing on the computer.

"I need 2 iced Spanish lattes, double shot," he said.

"Okay, sir," I said to him.

"I need to talk to you too, hehe," he said and sat in his usual spot, facing the street, and it looked like it was raining outside. I quickly served the two coffees at his table and sat beside him.

"Here's your coffee, Sir Anthony," I greeted him with a smile and sat beside him.

"How are you?" I asked him.

"Okay, a little sad," he said to me.

"Why is Sir Anthony sad?" I asked him, and it was obvious he was sad because of his eyes.

"What happened? Do you have a problem?" I asked him.

"Um, I had a fight with Dad," he said, sounding sad.

"You can tell me your problem, Anthony, if you're comfortable telling me. Feel safe," I said to him.

"All my life, Dad has always controlled everything, even my dreams, career, everything I want to do in life is contrary to what he wants to happen. So I let him control me. It's suffocating. Even in choosing the person I'll spend my life with, he still wants to control me. What about me? I'm grown up. I have my own life and decisions. I don't want him to control me in that part of my life," Anthony said as he spoke. He was clearly sad, evident in his voice and every word that came out of his mouth. His eyes were sad and he was staring into space.

"You could talk to your father or Dad properly," I said to him.

"Dad's different. He wants all his plans and desires to be followed," he said to me.

"Why? What happened?" I asked him again.

"He wants an arranged marriage for me, for our company, so that the Elegant Group of Companies will become wider and more successful if I marry the daughter of the other company that we have a partnership with. Which I don't want. I don't like that kind of woman," he said, clearly angry. I was suddenly shocked by the arranged marriage he was talking about. I felt a pang of sadness for Anthony's story.

"What are you going to do now?" I asked him. He immediately looked seriously into my eyes, his jaw clenched, and he looked even more handsome in his seriousness. My eyes widened at what I was seeing. I was a little nervous and scared of him, but he was really handsome. I didn't know what to feel at that moment, whether I should be thrilled or scared of him.

"Julia, can you be my fake wife?" he asked me, and my eyes widened even more at what he said.

"Um, good heavens, Anthony, get a grip," I said to him.

"I offer you 50 million pesos just to be my fake wife," he said, which amazed me.

"This is a big help for you, Julia. I know your family is struggling financially, and I think this is a big help for you and for me. Just help me to be free. I don't want my Dad to control my life," he said to me seriously. Immediately, my cell phone rang. It was my mom.

"Hello, Mom?" I asked on the other line.

"Sister, Mom was rushed to the hospital," Bibo said on the other line, crying.

"Take me to the hospital. Can I ride in your car?" I asked Anthony while taking off my apron and rushing out. Anthony immediately drove his car.

"Inside the hospital, I couldn't stop myself from feeling nervous and scared because of Mom. I just hoped she'd be okay. Tears started to stream down my face.

We quickly got out of the car and rushed into the emergency room. I found the doctor and Bibo at Mom's bedside. Mom was unconscious and on oxygen.

"What happened, Doc?" I asked the doctor.

"Miss, your neighbor found your mom collapsed on the bathroom floor. She had a heart attack, and she needs surgery as soon as possible. There's a blood clot in her heart's arteries. We need to operate on your mom," the doctor said. My eyes widened at what he said, and tears immediately streamed down my face.

"The operation will be quite expensive, miss, so you need to decide and act quickly to save your mother's life," the doctor said and then left. I felt like my world had crumbled with what the doctor said. I felt weak from his words. I didn't know where I'd get the money; I didn't even have a single peso, not even for fare. I immediately sat down on the side of the hospital lobby. Anthony immediately hugged me and patted my back. I closed my eyes and cried in his tight embrace. After the hug, we looked at each other.

"Okay, Anthony, I'll agree to be your fake wife for the sake of my mom's life. I don't have anyone else to turn to or ask for help. Anthony's offer to be his fake wife is my only option now, and I'll agree to it to save my mom's life because I can't bear to lose her. I love my mom so much, and I can't bear to see her in this state. It's heartbreaking."