Amelia Lawn's world is turned upside down when her father's life hangs in the balance. Desperate to save him, she accepts a contract marriage proposal from Nelson Hayes, the son of a wealthy business mogul. As expected, the proposal comes with a hefty price: a two-year marriage which will in turn help Nelson secure his inheritance. As Amelia struggles through her complex situation, she discovers yet another shocking truth - the man she's been desperate to save isn't her biological father. Still weighed by the dilemma from this revelation, Amelia's world is further complicated by the reappearance of her ex-boyfriend and an unexpected pregnancy. Will she escape the shackles of her contract marriage especially since the contract forbids her from falling pregnant or reignite a lost love with Alex? Will she get over the trauma that comes with her identity discovery? Will she save the dying man or watch him die since he isn't her biological father?
View MoreAMELIA'S POV
“Could you drive faster, please?” I screamed at the taxi driver carelessly.
“I am, ma'am. There's a speed limit around here, it is a Government Reserved Avenue,” the young man stated pleadingly.
It wasn't that the car was moving so slow but the urge to get to the hospital consumed my reasoning. I looked at my reflection through the interior rearview mirror and I could see pain and grief written all over my face.
The only thing which remained unchanged about me was my blood-red lip gloss. That has been the only lip gloss I apply whenever I go to work.
I sent a glance towards my wrist watch, I realized I was 35 minutes late for work. But that wasn't what mattered most now. I had almost gotten ready for work when my phone rang, it was the hospital number. “Come to the hospital now, your father's health keeps getting worse,” the voice said sharply.
“Arrgh! Finally,” I grunted as I alighted from the taxi, handing a note to the driver.
The strong aseptic scent of the hospital welcomed me. I could only think about my father as I galloped towards the doctor's office. I bent slightly in response to the sharp pain I felt across my stomach, but it was nothing compared to how much I wanted to know how my father was faring. ‘What if he's dead?’ a creepy voice rang in my head but I quickly discarded the thought.
"I'm sorry, Amelia," the doctor started, his voice a symbol of professionalism, “We might lose your father if we do not embark on a surgery on him.”
“What?” I yelled, eyes widely opened.
“Your father's health is seriously deteriorating. He now suffers from congenital heart defects which require multiple organ transplants,” he announced.
“Transplant?” I yelled. “How much would that cost?”
“I'm afraid, ma'am, it's quite expensive. If there are no further complications, we should be talking about $30 million dollars here.”
The weight of the doctor's word rested on my shoulder. The harder I tried to open my mouth, the harder the words refused to form. I was emotionless. I felt numb within myself. I wanted to cry but I seemed to have run out of tears.
“How urgent is it?” I finally managed to say, afraid of what his response would be, but silently praying to find some relief from them.
“The earlier the better, Amelia. But the latest it could be is in 72 hours. You know he's been placed on a life support system for a while, which means delay might be costly,” he concluded, his voice laced in empathy.
“But… But I can't get such a whopping amount in three days, doctor,” I stuttered, looking directly into his eyes. “I do not have anyone to support me, I've taken loans which I haven't even paid back and my salary has been taken in advance. Just do something and help me please…” My throat went dry, tears streaming out of my eyes.
“I'm sorry, but there's nothing I could do about this. It's best if you get the money or…”
I cut him short, standing to my feet and making to leave. I knew he wasn't the cause of my predicament but I unleashed my frustrations on him, “I would lose my father. That's what you'd say right?”
I didn't hear him say anything as I walked out of the office. I raced to my father's hospital room to see how he was faring. I was shocked to my marrow when I saw his body, laying almost lifeless on the bed. “You wouldn't die, dad,” I said, kissing his pale hands and turning to leave for work.
Soon I was at work, I tried to sneak into my office, hoping no one would notice my lateness except the receptionist who would always do.
“You are late again, Amelia?”
I knew the voice, it was Leo’s, the CEO. I turned back, wiping my tears with the back of my hands. “I'm sorry, sir. I needed to…”
“It's alright. Just go into your office,” he said, demonstrating with his hands.
As I pushed the door open, consumed by fear and anxiety, an idea struck me. ‘Why not talk to Leo about your father? He seems nice and might be able to help,” the voice whispered.
I threw my bag to the floor, running after him as he went into his office. Not even the noisy sound of my heels would make me relent in my pursuit.
"Yeah, Amelia. I'm all ears," Leo, the CEO of Rango Electronics said as I stepped into his office. Busy as ever, he never cared to look at my face. As if he wasn't the one outside the office a few minutes ago.
“I need assistance, boss.”
He nodded, an indication that I should go on.
"I need assistance. My father, and the only family I have left is at the hospital and he is about to die,” I paused to look at his face but he didn't appear to be bulging. “The doctor said he would be needing several organ transplants which need to be done in three days' time,” I said, resolving to emotional blackmail as I let my tears flow freely.
"I'm sorry about that, Amelia. But you know this is not the best time. The company is in a financial mess at the moment. The best I could do was give you a three months salary advance, which I already did.”
I kept quiet, letting my tears flow increasingly and thinking of potential way out.
“I hope you get the money you need elsewhere,” he finalized.
The weight of his words rested on my head. I couldn't control the tears that were already gushing out of my eyes.
As I stepped towards the entrance, I felt a sharp itching on both eyes, forcing me to rub my palm vigorously against them. With my hands still glued to my eyes, I walked absentmindedly towards the door. My legs heavy, my heart aching, and vision blurry, but my determination surged above my challenges.
“One more thing, Amelia,” my boss said again, his eyes filled with all seriousness as the words escaped his lips, “Do not let your problems weigh you down, this phase shall pass,” he concluded, eyes fixed on mine.
As I turned towards the entrance again, ready to continue my journey out of the office, I felt my body make a clashing sound against something.
I opened my eyes and I couldn't believe my eyes. A sudden rush of adrenaline rushed in my body. I didn't know what to feel as I stared in awe. Fear? Excitement?
Just again, I felt a cold touch on my shoulder, such that it shocked to my marrow.
AMELIA'S POV My head pressed against the window as the car drove away. A mixed emotion swirled within me as the city light blurred in the distance against the windshield. But my mid was elsewhere, entangled between the pleasure of victory and the weight of my own plans. It had been a very long day with thousands of unexpected events. From the news about my daughter's health, to the meeting with Nelson and then Alex's appearance like a thief in the night.Nelson had been easy, too easy. He had walked right into my hands, swallowing the same medicine he had dished out for years. It had been satisfying, watching him in his helpless situation- knowing he was not in control when, in truth, and the strings were mine to pull.But Alex...I exhaled sharply, pushing my head tighter on the backrest as that was where it now rested. With Alex, it wasn’t pleasurable. It wasn’t the same game. He had forced me into something I never wanted to do. But I would play along. I was ready to play s
ALEX'S POVAccomplishment.Revenge.The words echoed in my mind as I walked away, my footsteps firm against the pavement. Behind me, Amelia moved toward her car, or maybe she just stood there, watching me go.I didn’t turn to check.The night air brushed against my skin, cool and sharp, as if trying to strip away the weight pressing on my chest. Guilt still lingered, stubborn and unshaken."This isn’t how you treat someone you claim to love, Alex."The thought came persistent and uncounted, slicing through the satisfaction I should have felt.But what choice did I have?Amelia wasn’t making this easy. Every attempt I made to fix things, to bring her back, had met a dead end. She resisted, fought me at every turn, as if she couldn't see the truth buried beneath my actions. As if we didn't have anything together in the past. I wanted her to understand. To believe that everything I did was for the best. It wasn't my fault. But she wouldn’t.She refused to see past the walls she had bu
AMELIA'S POVA feeling of restlessness rushed over me immediately he left. I paced to and fro the office, my mind reeling with uncertainty. What if it wasn't an empty threat?What if Alex meant everything he had said?Someone who was able to get informations about my whereabout even when we haven't seen in years could as well be upto something terrible.I clenched my fist, my thought spiraling. The weight of everything was unreal, yet overwhelming. My mind reeled with doubt and possibility. Fear crawled in slowly.What if Alex carried out his threat?What if I ended up losing everything?I needed to act fast, to do something. But what could I do?“Instruct the security unit to restrict Alex's exit," I put a call to my secretary immediately my senses picked the point.But my heart sank when she called back a few seconds later. “He left before they got the instruction, ma." Then my phone buzzed, a message from the same number Alex had used in calling me earlier: "Check your mailbox. Y
AMELIA'S POV“You need to take caution, Alex. We're business partners not romantic partners," I said while we were outside.“You could have convinced me of that if your reactionh signified that you didn't enjoy it,” he smiled mockingly.Of a truth, I noticed the spark of jealousy in Nelson's eyes when Alex's hand rested behind me on my seat, and I could swear I never wanted the look to disappear. But I still needed to put Alex in place, to let him respect boundaries.“What do you mean?" I asked, feigning confusion. “Everything was clear from the onset, we're doing this because I'm entitled to fulfill my obligations to you and not because of any real interest.""Well, just so you know, I saw the satisfaction on your face when you sensed the jealousy in your husband's reaction, but If that's not the case, convince me so, next time.”Jeez!This guy was some freaking psychopath. How did he read my expression so fast despite how much I had tried to conceal it?“Sure, I will. But correctio
NELSON'S POV My fingers drummed against the smooth surface of the table in front of me. My eyes darting towards the entrance every passing minute. I had arrived early not because I was eager to discuss business, but because I needed to rehearse and compose myself before facing Amelia again. Five years. That was how long it had been since we parted ways. Since I let her go, convinced that I was making the right decision. I had told myself then that I had moved on, that I made the right decision by choosing Rose over Amelia. Amelia was just another chapter in my past, reason why I told her to get rid of the baby when are told me she was pregnant. I never thought I would be seeing her again. But sitting down here, helpless and frustrated, as the clock ticked and anticipation built in my chest, I knew he was lying to myself.Then, she walked in, causing me to blink severally in order to process what I saw. Amelia was stunning. She had always been beautiful, but now, she carried hers
AMELIA'S POV Immediately he left, I turned to Sophie, my secretary, snapping my hand to necessitate the urgency in my voice. The picture of Nelson looking both stunned and surprised replayed over again. Satisfaction coursed through me and I scoffed. Then I said to Sophie:"Right away, we need to start planning on how to bring a significant change to the company financial situation in the next few weeks.""The company financial situation is excellent at the moment, ma'am. We should only focus on creating a unique brand strategy that could easily convince individuals to buy shares in our company."I smiled, patting her on the back. "You're always full of intelligence, Sophie. But I was referring to Rango group.""oh! I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. What do you want us to start with?" she asked."First we'll need to get the record of past and recent financial situation from them, then we'll look into how we can improve the situation especially through networking."Getting at Nels
AMELIA'S POV"Is she awake?" I asked again when the nurse wouldn't give an answer. She kept moving until we were only inches apart, then she stood right in front of me. Her face was masked in professionalism, then she said, "Congratulations, she's awake now?"A wave of relief washed over me. I had thought it was going to be a negative response especially with the nurse's expressionless face. "Can I see her now?" I asked, already moving towards the room. "She's sleeping at the moment, and it would be better if you let her rest for now. She has lost so much energy and she needs to regain it. But..." she shrugged. "...if you think you really need to see her, I advise that you don't do or say anything that would wake her up."With that, I didn't wait to hear anything she had left to say. I dashed towards the room, and Cynthia crawled after me, scrubbing her feet against the floor. When I got into the room, my daughter was sleeping peacefully. She looked so exhausted and I couldn't h
NELSON'S POV"What?" I screamed, eye flipped open in bewilderment. "Why the hell would they think I will allow someone else share my position all in the name of a freaking partnership?"Emily and Benita sat across from me, their gaze both resting on me, making the pressure from everything sink deeper into my body. I hated the fact that I was in this mess of a situation. I couldn't contain the rage that bubbled within me as my secretary and CFO came with the report stating the condition attached to the partnership proposal. Operating as a Co-CEO means we are going to have almost, if not equal rights in the company and we would both be involved in the decision making. "What other conditions are attached?" I asked. "They must have thought so high of themselves and their goddamned company to think of such condition."But what more could an helpless CEO do? "No other condition. That was the only condition given. But as it is, they appear strict and not ready to amend the requirements,
NELSON'S POV"What?" I screamed, eye flipped open in bewilderment. "Why the hell would they think I will allow someone else share my position all in the name of a freaking partnership?"Emily and Benita sat across from me, their gaze both resting on me, making the pressure from everything sink deeper into my body. I hated the fact that I was in this mess of a situation. I couldn't contain the rage that bubbled within me as my secretary and CFO came with the report stating the condition attached to the partnership proposal. Operating as a Co-CEO means we are going to have almost, if not equal rights in the company and we would both be involved in the decision making. "What other conditions are attached?" I asked. "They must have thought so high of themselves and their goddamned company to think of such condition."But what more could an helpless CEO do? "No other condition. That was the only condition given. But as it is, they appear strict and not ready to amend the requirements,
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