Four

I was sick of it.

Being a content creator meant I lived for the camera, but this time I wanted nothing to do with pictures or social media posts. Mia, however, was having the time of her life.

“I need to talk to Reid,” I said as she took yet another shot of my engagement ring.

“How many pictures do you even need?” I grumbled, snatching my hand back.

“Patience, sis. This is gold,” Mia said smugly, snapping one last shot.

The worst part? She’d already made Reid and me take several photos together, all lovey-dovey like we were a real couple. I’d wanted to gag the entire time.

“Eager to see your hot fiancé, I see,” Mia teased, wiggling her eyebrows.

Rolling my eyes, I ignored her as I strode toward Reid and our fathers, who were deep in conversation about business.

Before I could speak, Mr. Callahan pulled me into a warm hug. “Welcome to the family, Fallon.”

“Thank you,” I forced out with a polite smile. “Reid, can I talk to you for a moment?”

“He’s all yours,” my father said with a knowing wink, making both older men laugh as if they shared some inside joke.

Suppressing my irritation, I gestured for Reid to follow me. We walked outside in silence until we were a safe distance from the house.

“We need to talk,” I said firmly.

“We sure do,” he replied with a wry grin that made me uncomfortable.

I exhaled sharply. “Reid, I don’t want to marry you.”

“Me neither,” he said bluntly.

His response caught me off guard. I hadn’t expected him to be so direct.

“Um…” I faltered, unsure of what to say next.

“Listen, this isn’t the best time to talk. How about you stop by my office at lunchtime tomorrow?” he suggested, pulling a business card from his pocket and handing it to me.

Still in a daze, I took the card.

“See you tomorrow,” he said, walking off without waiting for a response.

I stood there, stunned.

Later that evening, back at my apartment, I paced my living room while on the phone with Mia.

“He’s so rude!” I fumed.

“Chill out, sis. Personally, I don’t see anything wrong with what he said,” Mia remarked.

I narrowed my eyes, even though she couldn’t see me. “Are you taking his side?”

“Relax. I’m just saying—if someone rejected me like that, I’d probably feel relieved.”

“Whatever,” I muttered, dropping onto my couch.

“So, are you going to see him tomorrow?”

“I don’t have much of a choice, do I?”

“You didn’t post anything about the engagement,” she reminded me.

“I’m still processing,” I admitted. That was only half true. The real reason was that I wanted to be sure there was no way out of this mess before announcing it to the world.

“Girl, Reid is hot, and you two would make such a cute couple. Your babies would be adorable,” Mia gushed.

“Mia! Snap out of dreamland. None of that is happening,” I said flatly.

“Never say never,” she teased.

I groaned loudly, hating how Mia always saw love as some fairytale adventure.

“Good night,” I said, ending the call before she could continue her fantasy.

The next day, I arrived at Reid’s office impeccably dressed in a navy-blue corporate dress and stilettos. I wasn’t going to be fashionably late today.

He ended a call as I walked in, gesturing for me to sit across from his desk.

“You’re early,” he noted.

“I know. Can we get straight to it?”

“Take the lead,” he said, leaning back in his chair.

I exhaled slowly, placing my hands on the table. His gaze followed the movement, briefly lingering on my fingers before meeting my eyes again.

“Our parents want us to be together, but neither of us wants this. Isn’t there another way?” I asked, hoping for a solution.

“The only way is for you to step up and save your father’s company by finding new investors. Are you ready for that?” he asked, one brow perfectly arched.

I frowned. I had no idea how any of that worked.

“Thought so,” he chuckled.

“You don’t have to mock me,” I snapped.

“Calm down, tigress. I have a proposal for you.”

Rolling my eyes, I crossed my arms. “What now?”

He pulled a stack of papers from a drawer and handed them to me.

“What’s this?” I asked, skimming the front page.

“It’s a contract stating that our marriage will be automatically annulled after two years. That’s enough time to get your father’s company back on track under my leadership.”

I stared at him, stunned. He’d already thought this through.

“Are you sure about this?” I asked, skeptical but intrigued.

“You get to keep your freedom. We’d only be married on paper. Same goes for me.”

“But we have to keep up the act for our parents,” I pointed out.

“Exactly.”

“Okay. I’ll have my lawyer review this,” I said, picking up the bulky document.

“Great.”

And just like that, the meeting was over.