"The Cost of Saying No"
"Problems?" he interrupted. "I have ninety days. Ninety days to marry or I lose everything. Everything my family built. Everything I've worked for. My grandfather's legacy. His company. The board will collapse. Forty thousand employees will lose their jobs. And all because of one man. My uncle."
I froze. "Ninety days?"
"Yes." His voice was flat. "Ninety days. And if I fail… no one will care about my life. Or yours. Or your father's."
I swallowed hard, my chest tightening. "And you think I can fix this by… by pretending? By… by being someone I'm not?"
"Yes." Calm. Precise. Dangerous. "I'm offering a solution. A contract. A façade. Six months. Pretend to be my fiancée. The board believes I need a partner. They approve of my inheritance. We protect everything."
I shook my head, voice rising. "No. Absolutely not! You think I'd… I'd"
"You would," he said quietly. "Because you're desperate. Because your father's life depends on it. And because you don't know any other way."
I stood up, trembling, fury and fear coiling in my stomach. "I don't care about your board. I don't care about your inheritance. I don't care about your contracts! I… I will not… I will never"
"You will," he said, calm. "Or you'll watch him die. And then you'll live with that forever. Can you handle that?"
I laughed again, bitter, trembling. "No. No, I can't! And I won't! I won't be anyone's pawn! I won't sell myself for money! I… I can't do this!"
Dominic didn't move. Didn't speak. Just watched. Calm. Like he had all the time in the world.
"Then what am I supposed to do?" I shouted. "Do you know what it's like to be powerless? To have someone you love… dying… and there's nothing you can do?"
"I do," he said quietly. "But you have options. You just refuse to see them."
"I refuse!" I snapped, shaking. "I refuse to compromise my pride. I refuse to be… I refuse!"
He leaned back, studying me. Calm. Patient. Dangerous. "Then leave. Walk out. And let everything burn."
I froze. "Walk out?"
"Yes. If you refuse… there's nothing left for you here."
I swallowed hard, fury and despair mixing into a tight knot in my chest. "You… you're impossible!"
"And yet, here you are," he said softly. "Still standing. Still talking. Still fighting."
I turned on my heel and stormed toward the door. My hands shook. My chest felt tight. My head spun. "I… I can't"
The door clicked behind me. I didn't look back. I didn't need to. I ran from the office, furious, shaking, heart racing.
I walked the streets aimlessly, the bitter laughter still on my lips. I couldn't cry. Couldn't stop. Couldn't… breathe.
And then the phone rang.
My father. His voice, weak, frantic. "Mira… I… I can't breathe."
My blood ran cold. I dropped everything, racing to the hospital. My hands shook as I pushed the elevator button, heart pounding.
I reached his room to see him pale, struggling, the oxygen mask barely helping.
"Dad!" I cried, kneeling beside him. "I'm here! Breathe, please! You have to hold on!"
He tried to smile. "I… I'm fine… just… tired…"
"No! You're not fine!" I shouted, panic choking my words. "You can't leave me! You can't!"
The monitor beeped erratically. Nurses rushed in, moving around him with efficiency I couldn't match.
I held his hand, feeling it grow weak in mine. "Please, Dad. Please. I'll find a way. I promise. I… I'll fix this."
One of the doctors stepped forward, grim. "Ms. Chen, we need to know if you have a way to pay for the surgery? Without it… he won't survive."
I froze. The words hit me like a punch. Two million dollars. Thirty days. My pride. My father. My impossible choices.
"No," I whispered. "I… I don't have a way. I"
The doctor's eyes were sharp. "Then we need options. Now. We can't wait. He's unstable. Every second counts."
I swallowed, trembling, tears threatening. "I… I'll find a way. I… I promise. I'll find a way."
The doctor nodded but didn't look convinced. "You better. Because time isn't on your side."
I sank into the chair beside my father's bed, holding his hand, staring at him, feeling utterly powerless.
All I could think about was Dominic. His calm, his control, his impossible solution. The contract. The façade.
Could I do it? Could I pretend to be someone else just to save him? Could I swallow my pride? Could I… risk myself?
The weight of it pressed on me like a storm. My chest ached. My hands shook. My heart raced. And I knew… I had no choice but to consider it.
But pride didn't die easily. My pride roared inside me, furious, defiant. I refused. I wanted to scream, to run, to hit something, to fight everything.
And yet… the clock was ticking. Every second brought him closer to the edge.
And I didn't know how much longer I could wait.
The doctor's eyes locked on mine, urgent, unyielding. "Ms. Chen… do you have a way to pay for the surgery?"