Chapter 7 Seven

STELLA

I could see the worry written all over his face after James heard my words and he ran his hand through his hair in frustration.

"From now on, you're not allowed to go anywhere without security. This is the only way I can guarantee your safety." He said sternly and I frowned in confusion at his sudden order as I crossed my arms over my chest.

"What?"

"You heard me. You're not getting dragged into this. This is my mess, not yours. And you shouldn't get into danger because of me." He replied and I scoffed in annoyance before sitting on the chair in front of him.

"I don't think it's that serious. Why would I need to carry security around just to protect myself? I'm not some important billionaire's daughter." I huffed in response and he ran a hand through his hair as he stared at the computer in front of him.

"It's not that serious? Come take a look at this." He said and I walked over to his side with a skeptical expression on my face as I stared at the screen of his computer.

James and I were all over the internet. I had become famous, whether I liked it or not.

I stared at the computer screen in front of me, rereading the latest article about us for the third time. Somehow, the press had already found out my name and background.

The mysterious girlfriend was now an orphan-turned-secretary-turned-ceo's-lover. I was definitely beyond famous now. The reporters weren't backing down on this at all.

"Is it weird that I kinda expected this?" I muttered softly and he turned to look at me with an amused expression on his face as he poked my cheek.

"Did I tell you that it's only going to get worse?" He added, and I rolled my eyes in annoyance before moving away from him, but he grabbed my hand back.

"You should be trying to make me feel better, not worse. You're not helping at all, Mr James." I mumbled in annoyance and he chuckled softly before pulling a chair beside me as he made me sit.

"Think about it. The more we act like we're in love, the more they'll dig. Are you still sure you wanna do this?" He asked and the way I glared at him made him throw his hands up in surrender.

"You're asking me this now? After I've been turned into a media headline, after you proposed in public, you're asking me if I wanna do this?" I asked in annoyance and he laughed softly like he found this whole situation very amusing.

There was silence for a while. Just the both of us staring at the screen with no words to say. Until he finally spoke.

"You can back out anytime, you know." He said softly and I raised a brow at him in confusion.

Why was he so hot and cold? Making decisions and then backing away like a damn child. I should fuck that childishness out of him. If only.

"Who was the one who begged me not to quit last night? You were willing to quadruple my salary and now you're telling me to back out?" I asked with a hint of annoyance in my voice as I moved to stand up but he held me back.

"I didn't know it'd get this dangerous. I don't want you to back out but if it gets too ugly, I wouldn't want you to be dragged into a mess I created." He asked and I could genuinely see the fear and worry written all over his face. But I couldn't back down now.

"It's a little too late for that now, don't you think?" I muttered softly and he let out a resigned sigh as he leaned back into his chair.

I could tell that he was worried. Hell, he looked like he regretted ever coming up with this idea. He was going to say something when he turned to look at me, but just then, his phone buzzed on the table, and he turned away from me.

The moment he glanced at it, his gaze darkened and I shuddered when I realized how cold the room suddenly got.

"What's the matter? Another headline?" I asked softly but he didn't reply. His gaze lingered on the phone for a while before he finally handed it to me and my brows raised when I saw it was a message from an unknown number.

"Have fun while you can, but be wary because she's back." I read the message out, a look of confusion on my face as I turned to look at James. "Who's she?"

"I'll take care of it. You should get back to work now." He replied coldly as he snatched the phone out of my hands and then left the office in an instant.

What was with his sudden change of attitude? Who sent that message? I was even more confused as I stared at the door that he had slammed on his way out. Just then, my phone buzzed and I flinched in fear, wondering who it was.

My heart skipped when I saw it was a call from James' mom and I swallowed hard before taking the call.

"Mrs Hawthorne, what can I do for you this pleasant morning?" I said cheerfully, even though I was shaking inside. I still felt the sting of her slap that day and I didn't want to piss her off anymore.

"Do you really love James?" She asked out of the blue and I froze, wondering why she was asking all this all of a sudden.

"I really love James, ma'am. I'm really sorry I didn't tell you about this on time." I apologized and she sighed in response.

"Do you know how dangerous James is? Do you know what he can do to you?" She asked, and I blinked in confusion, wondering what she meant by dangerous.