Chapter 4 Julian's point of view

It's a shame that I was kicked out of Alexandra's office and I couldn't do anything about it.

I should have terminated the call if I knew Mabel was going to ruin it. On second thought, I figured that Alexandra would be suspicious if I had done that. She already suspected that I was hiding something from her. Terminating the call when Mabel wasn't done talking would only confirm her suspicion of me.

"What do I do now?" I asked in curiosity.

The Chinese investors already gave me a two-week ultimatum to get married, or they would have to terminate the contract and award it to another company.

Nine billion dollars is a lot of money for me to lose. It could benefit my company in diverse ways. Losing this contract to another firm won't be good for my company's image because I just inherited the company from my parents.

My Father was a bit skeptical about appointing me as the CEO after his retirement, but my Mom gave him a thousand reasons to believe I was the right man for the job. If I lose the deal, it would confirm my father's suspicions about me, and I don't want that to happen.

With everything that's happening now, it's just a matter of time before I lose the company.

Mabel had refused to accept the proposal, while Alexandra, whom I thought would be the easiest catch, turned me down, too. I thought she could be easily manipulated, just like the old times when I had her under my control. She worshiped the ground I walked on.

Five years after we broke up, she evolved into a better person just when I needed her the most. I was this close to convincing her until the conversation with Mabel happened. I was pretty certain that Alexandra would have accepted my proposal if it weren't for that telephone conversation. I could see the look in her eyes. She was quite vulnerable. She couldn't even get her eyes off me for a second.

"You have got less than two weeks to seal this deal, or we will be forced to take it elsewhere," the words from the Chinese investors kept echoing in my head. For every second wasted, I stand a chance of losing the company.

I still have seven days left to fix this, but for me, it's more like seven hours. So far, Alexandra is the perfect person for this job. She fit the description given. She's beautiful, smart, intelligent, and a CEO.

Unlike Alexandra, Mabel doesn't fit into anything. She was a bad choice. I didn't know what I was thinking when I approached her with the contract.

All she cared about was how much she was gonna benefit from the deal. That was a sign that she was a bad choice. She requested that I pay her five million dollars from the deal. As if that weren't enough, she further requested an eighty percent upfront before accepting my demand. I know Mabel very well. She's very conscious of money. What's the assurance that she would fulfill her end of the bargain after paying her eighty percent upfront?

My parents would be waiting for me to come home with the good news. They were aware that I was visiting Alexandra's office despite warning me not to go.

This is not the right time to go home. Lying to them that Alexandra accepted the offer is not an option either, because they're still going to find out anyway.

My phone rang. It was a call from my Father.

"Not now, please.

I would rather not do this," I panicked.

I felt a tiny shiver down my spine.

I haven't felt that way in a long time.

The pressure was getting worse. I haven't recovered from the way Alexandra treated me in her office. And now, it's my father.

"Will I ever come out of this? I pray not to develop a heart attack," I told myself.

I had no plans to answer the phone. I don't intend to ignore it either. I was stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea.

The call came in again, and this time, it was accompanied by a text from my Father. It wasn't enough for him to call, he still went further to text me.

"Are you practically snubbing my calls? I know that you're next to your phone. Don't act like you didn't see my calls. You know how much I detest it when you ignore my calls or fail to return them," that was the text I received from my Father.

The call may seem urgent. I've never received such a text from him before. I needed no one to talk to me about doing the right thing. It was clear that Father was upset that I ignored his calls, knowing that he detested that. I would further be complicating matters by failing to return calls.

I took my phone to call my Father and the unexpected happened. My hands were shaking. I was pressured to speak with him. Immediately, I dropped the phone. I couldn't risk speaking to my Father in that tone of voice. It won't take too long for him to notice that something is wrong.

"Julian, you can do that. Take your time and breathe in. Find your balance and be certain of your utterances before calling your Father," I assured myself with words of encouragement. I was losing it. I needed something to keep me going and it worked. I was able to regain my confidence again quickly.

Like a fearless soldier, I grabbed my phone to call my father.

"Dad, how are you doing?" I spoke with a bit of enthusiasm. I bet he would fall for that.

"How did it go with Alexandra? Did she accept the proposal?" My father went straight to the point without mincing words.

"Just like that? You didn't care about the whereabouts of your son? Show some courtesy, Dad," I retorted.

"Should I be bothered about that? I believe you're old enough to be wherever you want to be. The only thing I care about right now is the outcome of your meeting with Alexandra. I am going to ask you again. How did it go?" My father repeated the question.

"It went well.

She needed more time to think about it. Nonetheless, I am quite certain that it would work out just fine," I lied to my Father. It was the only thing I could do at that point.

While growing up, I was made to believe that the truth would always set you free. However, in this scenario, speaking the truth would get me in trouble.

"I am not satisfied with your response. I thought she had already accepted your demand. What's there to think about? Is she aware that you only have seven days to make it work? Listen to me, son, I don't care how you do it; ensure that you seal this deal for the company." My Father ordered me. It didn't just sound like he was ordering me. It was more like a warning.

"Don't worry, Dad.

I got this," I assured my father in a baritone voice while my facial expression was saying otherwise. If my Father was seated next to me right now, he would see the fear hoarding my face.

"That's up to you.

Failure is not an option.

This deal means a lot to the family," my Father reminded me. He won't stop reminding me how my mother convinced him to appoint me as the CEO. It was more like a challenge to me. I knew I needed to act fast before it escalated into something beyond my control.

"Away from that, Mabel is here to see you. She's in the living room as we speak," My Father disclosed.

"Mabel is here to see me?"

My voice skipped.

"Why does she want to see me?

I have no business with her. Please ask her to leave," I pleaded with my father.

"Why should I do that?

I can't ask her to leave.

She's your guest. If there's anyone that should do that, it's you. You know what to do about this," my father ended the call before I got the chance to speak further.

I lost touch with reality after getting off the phone with my father.

"What does Mabel want from me this time?" I muttered succinctly. She was the reason I missed out on Alexandra, and she had the guts to show up at my place afterward