Chapter 7 Forced Into Marriage
Julian’s tone was calm, but it carried the authority of a man used to being obeyed.
The doctors and nurses immediately filed out, leaving the room to the two most powerful members of the Watson family.
The old matriarch—Madam Yoon—lifted her head and studied her grandson.
Julian was her pride, her chosen heir, the one who had turned the Watson empire around.
Since taking over as CEO, he had increased the company’s market value by twenty-one percent and restored innovation to a family long accused of stagnation.
To the world, he was a man of precision and control—Mr. Watson.
But in front of her, he was still a grandson.
⸻
“Grandmother, why are you here?” Julian’s voice softened once they were alone. “If you weren’t feeling well, you could’ve had the doctors come to the house. Why trouble yourself with a hospital visit?”
“Don’t play games with me.” Madam Yoon’s smile was radiant, her tone bubbling with excitement. “When it concerns the fifth generation of the Watson line, how could I not come personally?”
Julian’s expression stiffened. “Fifth generation? You’re mistaken. Dina isn’t planning on marriage anytime soon, so what child could you possibly mean?”
Madam Yoon reached out and rapped him lightly on the head. “Stop pretending! If that girl doesn’t want to marry you and insists on chasing her career, let her. But I won’t let the Watson family line wait any longer.”
“Grandmother,” Julian said sharply, his jaw tightening, “you’re not suggesting that the woman inside give birth to this child, are you? That’s impossible. Absolutely not!”
Her eyes cooled. “Still waiting for Dina?” she said evenly. “Julian, I’ve tolerated your feelings for that girl for years. But look at reality—she’s kept you dangling all this time. You’re thirty-two. How much longer do you plan to wait?”
His tone grew harder. “You promised me that once I became CEO, you wouldn’t interfere in my private life.”
“And you promised me you’d be married by thirty!” her voice rose, the matriarch’s authority cutting through his defiance. “What’s so special about that Dina? Years of waiting, and she still won’t give you a home or a family.”
⸻
Outside, their voices carried through the hall.
Inside the suite, Cora stirred.
Her eyes fluttered open to a lavish room she didn’t recognize—ornate crown molding, silk drapes, gold-trimmed furniture.
Where am I?
Had she dreamed it all? For a moment she thought she heard someone say “Dina.”
That couldn’t be right. Dina was in Milan.
Just as she tried to sit up, a nurse’s voice came from outside.
“The young madam is awake. Prepare for the chairman.”
Before Cora could process that, the door opened.
An elegant elderly woman entered with regal composure, followed by a small entourage of doctors and nurses.
Cora froze, completely lost. She remembered fainting at work—she had a meeting, didn’t she? Oh god, she’d missed the meeting!
She started to get up in a panic, but the refined old woman stopped her gently, smiling with satisfaction.
“Don’t move,” the woman said warmly. “Let the doctors check you again. You’re a benefactor to the Watson family now—let others do the work.”
Cora blinked in confusion. “I’m sorry… ma’am, who are you? And why am I here?”
The woman laughed softly. “I’m the chairwoman of the Watson Group. Julian’s grandmother. And you are?”
“Cora,” she stammered. “My name is Cora. Chairwoman, I—I didn’t mean to cause any trouble. Please don’t fire me. I’ll go back to work right away. I promise I’ll never make another mistake!”
The matriarch raised a finger, silencing her.
Cora fell quiet, wide-eyed.
“Rest,” Madam Yoon said, her voice kind but commanding. “As long as I’m here, no one in the company will dare fire you.”
Her eyes softened, glinting with satisfaction as she added,
“As long as you give birth to the Watson heir safely, you’ll be well rewarded.”
She turned and swept out of the room, leaving a stunned Cora sitting upright in bed.
Give birth… to a child?
What child?
