When I tore the note off, my Aunt asked, "Oh, someone sent you flowers and things; check the note to see who sent them."

"I already checked them. They came from the office." A white lie I told my Aunt.

"The flowers are your favorites, and they're also fresh. People in the office must like you very much."

'Yeah, a little more than I thought,' I said.

I stared down at the bouquet of black roses. I like them, and nobody knows this besides my Aunt and me.

I contemplated whether Philip knew I was conscious and saw and felt everything. Does he have feelings for me?

"William sits down. We need to talk." My Aunt said sternly. I could see the machines turning behind her eyes.

"William, after your parents, I adopted you. I'm your legal guardian." She said nervously, with both hands rubbing together.

I know she was nervous about something, but I couldn't put my finger on it about what?

"After your incident, the doctor firmly clarified that you must get married as soon as possible." She finally took a breath.

I was dumbfounded; she wasn't talking directly to me. Her eyes were dodging me.

"How can I get married? And now? I just started my work and What about you? I can not leave you." I said while holding back my voice.

"William's government is adamant about this; you must marry someone while still dominant."

"WHY SO I CAN BE USED AS A MACHINE TO GIVE BIRTH?" I burst out; my voice was coarse, barely holding back my tears.

I was about to cry; she didn't want to do this.

"William, this is best for you; these types of incidents will only occur more often if you don't get marked."

"I don't want to, Mariam; the concept of marriage scares me. You've seen what happened between my mother and Father. They were obsessed with Alpha's gene and forwent me. What if I'm like them to my children? What will happen then?"

"That won't happen. I'm with you because I raised you to be better than that; it doesn't matter who your parents were, I'm your parent, and I raised you to be better, and I will be there with you every step of the way."

She hugged me as I cried my eyes out while I thought of the future and what would happen if I got married.

We both were stressed, so we stopped talking about this and got back to our daily routine: watching TV and seeing reality shows.

PHILIP'S POV

I was idly sitting at my desk, thinking about William. I knew this was bound to happen sooner or later, but what if he resigned? No, that could never occur. He'd indeed decided to get married.

I should talk to Dad about him. If he approves, he'll take the marriage proposal to Mariam.

I'll finish the work later; I should call Dad's secretary. He picked up.

"Yes, young master, What can I do for you?"

"Ah yes, Raza, can you fix the appointment with my father for tonight's dinner? I have something to talk about with him."

"Young master, your father already has an appointment with Cj banks tonight."

"Tell him I'll take care of the Cj banks. This dinner needs to happen tonight."

"Young master, please pardon me; I'm not doubting your business skills, but why this urgent?"

"Secretary Raza, we'll have dinner at the family home. I have decided to get married."

He falls silent; what happened? Is the line still on?

"Hello? Secretary Raza? Are you there?"

"Ah yes, young master, you should've led the with that; great news, I'm thrilled, and Master Harald will be much pleased."

"Yes, yes, we all want to be pleased. Goodbye." I hung up.

Secretary Raza was the loyal worker my father had; I wanted someone like him to work beside me, but Alas, the one I got only made me want to hold him and never let go.

I called the head secretary's office and told them to move up the Cj Bank meeting.

I left my office to get some fresh air; I had nothing to do, so I'll stroll around the area.

As I was walking, William's face was in my mind putting a smile on my face, and I came across a jewelry shop. I didn't think for a second and went inside.

I saw beautiful jewelry and would buy them for William once we got married, but now I was most interested in the Emerald ring in oval cut surrounded by white diamonds. The salesman approached me and said, "Do you find anything interesting, sir?"

"Yes, the ring. Take it out and pack it."

"Sure, sir."

I gave him my card to pay for it and left. I gave the bag to my security.

"Take care of it, and bring the car around. It's almost time for the meeting."

I left for my meeting. At the meeting with the CEO of the Cj Bank:

"Philip, the offer your lawyers put forward is a billion short I can't put the offer in front of the board."

"John, we have known each other since the university, and if my father were here, you wouldn't even dare to say this."

"Philip, may I ask why your family wants a bank suddenly?"

"My little brother is graduating soon, and he has no interest in the family business, so Father thought he'll put down a business for him, and the family will get a private bank out of it."

"But why is it that it's your name on the majority share."

"He's still in university and doesn't know a fuck about the business. I'll supervise until he becomes competent enough to run a fucking bank."

"Ok, let's close the deal. I'll send the papers over to your lawyers tomorrow."

I left the meeting and called my driver. After I sat in my car, my driver asked, "Where to, sir?"

"Get me to the family home."

"Ok, sir"

I arrived at my family home. It's been quite some time since I've been here. The house was built on 100 acres of land. The place was built like a Victorian castle but didn't have towers or a fountain in front of the main entrance.

As you enter through the door, monumental staircases will greet you. You'll see the study and drawing room both leading to the second and on the first floor left.

The butler came rushing in as he was late for his colonoscopy.

"He's waiting for you."

To be continued...