Chapter 2: The Announcement That Should've Never Been Made

Jerome barely slept.

He spent most of the night lying awake in his apartment, staring at the ceiling while questions twisted like thorns in his mind.

Why was Vanessa’s voice so strange?

Who was that man in the background?

Why did his mother suddenly back down from telling him whatever she planned to say?

By 7 AM, he gave up on trying to rest.

He showered, dressed in a crisp charcoal suit, and headed straight to his office before rush hour even began. The quiet building didn’t comfort him today. It felt hollow, cold, echoing the uncertain beat of his heart.

At 8:12 AM sharp, his phone buzzed.

Mother: Come to my office. Now.

He inhaled deeply.

So she hadn’t changed her mind after all.

Jerome walked across the executive floor with measured steps, but his heartbeat was anything but composed. He stopped at Miranda’s door, took a breath, and knocked.

“Come in,” she called.

He entered, and immediately sensed a shift. Miranda stood near the window in a tailored ivory suit, her posture poised, eyes sharp with determination. Something about her looks… triumphant. And that scared him.

“You’re early,” she said.

“You asked for me.”

Miranda nodded and motioned for him to sit. He didn’t. A heaviness settled in the room, suffocating, anticipatory.

“Mother,” he said quietly. “What’s going on?”

Miranda pressed her hands together, shoulders lifting with a controlled inhale. “I wanted to tell you last night, but you were… distracted.”

Jerome stiffened at the reminder.

“I’m telling you now,” she continued, voice firm, calm, terrifyingly certain. “I’m getting married.”

There it was.

The words hit Jerome’s chest like a hammer.

Silence rang in the room, thick and sharp.

“…Married?” he repeated slowly, struggling to process it. “To who? When? Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

Miranda lifted her chin, eyes steady. “You’ll meet him soon enough. His name is Akihiko Tanaka.”

Jerome froze.

That name,

He didn’t remember where, he didn’t remember how,but something inside him lurched violently at the sound.

“Tanaka,” Jerome echoed carefully. “As in Tanaka Holdings?”

“Yes,” Miranda said proudly. “One of the most powerful business families in Japan. This marriage is an opportunity we cannot waste.”

Opportunity.

Not love.

Not companionship.

Not happiness.

Just strategy.

Jerome clenched his jaw. “You barely know him.”

“I know enough,” Miranda replied. “He is influential, respected, and our companies will merge into an unstoppable empire once we seal this alliance.”

Alliance.

Marriage.

A merger disguised as romance.

He swallowed. Hard.

“When is the wedding?” he asked.

Miranda hesitated. “Two weeks.”

Jerome’s eyes widened. “Two…? Mother, that’s insane.”

“It’s necessary.”

He stared at her, disbelief swirling with frustration. “Why are you rushing this? Why didn’t you talk to me before deciding on something, this huge?”

“I am the CEO, Jerome,” she said, voice clipped. “I make decisions quickly. Efficiently.”

He shook his head slowly. “This isn’t a corporate move. This is your life.”

“And yours,” she countered. “Your future will benefit immensely from this union.”

The word union felt like poison.

Jerome took a step back. “I don’t even know the man. And you’re marrying him in two weeks?”

“You’ll meet him at dinner tonight,” Miranda said, her tone final. “Be there at seven.”

Jerome’s pulse hammered in his ears. “You expect me to play along? Smile? Pretend like this is normal?”

“Yes.”

“No,” Jerome said, voice trembling with restrained anger. “You’re treating this like a business deal. Like,like some acquisition. But this is marriage, Mother. Yours. Shouldn’t that mean something?”

Miranda’s gaze softened, but only slightly.

“I have lived long enough to learn that love is a luxury,” she murmured. “Stability, power, protection… These keep a family alive. Not romance.”

“Mother…” Jerome whispered, almost pleading. “Are you sure he’s someone you can trust?”

She stiffened.

A tiny, tiny crack he almost missed.

Jerome narrowed his eyes. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“Nothing,” she replied too quickly.

He caught it.

She was hiding something.

He felt the same cold coil of dread he’d felt last night.

“Jerome,” Miranda said firmly, “I expect your support tonight. Don’t embarrass me. You’ll be polite. Respectful. Presentable.”

He stared at her, the woman who raised him alone, shaped him, loved him in her own fierce way and for the first time, he felt distance stretch between them like an ocean.

“I’ll come,” Jerome finally said, voice hollow. “But I’m not promising you anything else.”

Miranda’s expression flickered,a mix of irritation and disappointment , before she exhaled and dismissed him with a wave.

“You may go.”

Jerome left her office with stiff steps, his mind racing, his heart pounding with conflicting emotions.

Outside Miranda’s office

He leaned against the wall, letting the truth sink in.

Miranda was getting married.

To a man Jerome didn’t know.

But something about this entire situation felt wrong.

Very, very wrong.

Later at Jerome’s Office

A soft knock interrupted his spiraling thoughts.

“Come in,” he said tiredly.

Hana entered with a small stack of envelopes. “Here are the documents you requested. Also… your mother sent this up earlier.”

Jerome frowned. “What is it?”

Hana handed him a black, gold-embossed envelope.

He opened it.

It was an invitation card.

“Engagement Dinner: Miranda Liu & Akihiko Tanaka”

Tonight.

7 PM.

Formal attire required.

Jerome’s throat tightened as the room spun just slightly. Hana looked at him with concern.

“Is everything okay?”

Jerome swallowed. “No. But it will have to be.”

She nodded slowly and left him.

Jerome stared at the shimmering gold lettering on the invitation.

Two weeks from now, his mother will be married.

And tonight, he would finally meet the man she chose.

His fingers tightened around the card until it bent.

Something told him that this dinner…

would change everything.