Clarissa’s face blushed scarlet.
How did we end up here?
Clarissa frowned and prodded Matthew’s face that seemed to be inching towards her.
“I’m being serious.”
“So am I. Clare, let everyone know that I am yours. I guarantee that nobody will call me for such banal reasons ever again.”
Clare was stunned into silence.
Is he thinking of going public with our relationship?
I don’t think it’s the right time. Especially now.
Clarissa smirked and gave him an awkward smile. “I think Mr. Smallwood is aware and that he did it on purpose. This has got nothing to do with everyone else. Forget it. You refused, so I don’t really care anymore.”
As she said this, she got up and left, muttering to herself about how tired she was after a long day.
Matthew looked at Clarissa’s hurriedly retreating figure and laughed. “Coward.”
It wouldn’t be too much of a hassle if Matthew chose to let the cat out of the bag. The worst of the opposition would come from the Tysons themselves, but that did not matter to him at all.
However, he still had to consider how stressed Clarissa would be. A public proclamation would definitely come with its own host of problems.
It was precisely because of this that Matthew was willing to temporarily hide his love affair with Clarissa. He wanted to give her a chance to adapt.
This was not meant to be a permanent solution.
She was to become his wife, sooner or later.
Of this, Matthew was certain. He thought that he was simply infatuated by her in the beginning, but he now realized that he could not fathom falling in love with anyone else. He was determined to be with Clarissa, and she was the only one for him.
She was the only one who could bring him the contentment he so desired. Besides, who else would he rather call Mrs. Tyson if not Clarissa?
Shermaine did have quite a bit to drink, but she was not completely inebriated. This was all facade.
She tried to use this ruse to get Matthew to attend to her, but it failed miserably.
Finally, all she could do was feign unconsciousness and was promptly sent home to the Smallwood residence by both her assistant and Jeremy.
Shermaine suddenly opened her eyes the moment Jeremy left, shocking Kayla who was helping her get ready for bed.
“Shermaine, are you awake?”
Shermaine took one look at her mother and hugged her tightly. She then burst into tears out of heartbreak, all while accusing Matthew of cruelty and indifference.
Kayla could not help but feel sorry for her daughter as she too started crying.
Kayla was a very sentimental woman of gentle temperament who also cried quite easily. Seeing her daughter so upset was more than enough to make her upset.
James happened to hear the commotion and came out to look. He sighed when he realized that those were the sounds of both his daughter and wife.
“What happened?”
“Oh, James.”
Kayla immediately threw herself into her husband’s arms, seeking comfort. “Oh, why does Shermaine have to suffer such a horrible fate? It’s all my fault! All she did was fall in love with a man. Is that a crime now? I can’t help but recall our circumstances when we fell in love.”
Why did she have to bring fate and circumstance into this?
However, James understood what his wife meant.
All of that was in the past, but it hurt her as if it were a fresh wound. Even James felt helpless, watching them.
“It’s alright, don’t cry. What happened? Didn’t you have an audition today?”
A teary-eyed Shermaine then detailed everything that had happened, including how Matthew practically ignored her when she was at her most vulnerable.
Shermaine knew exactly what to say to play the part of the wronged little girl. Naturally, she hoped that they would come running to her aid when she needed it.
“Dad, it’s like she has bewitched Justin, and I can’t do a thing about it. I reached out to Matt, but he won’t answer my calls. Who on earth did I provoke? All I want is to act in a good film and fall in love with whoever I please. Is that so wrong?”
When James heard that his daughter was possibly being bullied, he also grew angry.
However, there was little he could do about Matthew. The screenwriter, on the other hand, was a different story altogether. If she had a bone to pick with his daughter, he would do anything in his power to stop it.
“Shermaine, what is the screenwriter’s name? Tell me, and I’ll have a word with Justin.”
Shermaine hesitated briefly but shook her head.
“Dad, let me sort this out on my own. It won’t do if you interfere.”
“But can you handle this?” asked James.
“I can, Dad. Don’t worry. If you intervene, it’ll probably affect my relationship with Justin. However, can you maybe help me deal with the Tysons? Old Mrs. Tyson tried to force Matt to date me for half a year, but he has refused to agree. I’m not asking for anything else! All I want is a chance with him so that maybe he’ll fall in love with me. But he is being very stubborn, and I can’t do anything about it.”
“But if Matthew disagrees, there is very little we can do to change his mind,” said James thoughtfully.
“There might be another way,” replied Kayla. “Should I seek out my mother?”
Shermaine was a little surprised to hear this.
Whose mother?
James shook his head. ”Can you actually do something like that over a matter like this?”
“What do you mean? I have a grandmother? Why have you not mentioned this before, Mom?”
The question made Kayla weep in anguish. James knew that this was an uncomfortable subject for his wife and decided not to elaborate. Instead, he helped Kayla back to their room to comfort her.
Shermaine was left standing in the hallway with more questions than answers.
The next day, Kayla told her something that she had kept concealed for many years.
It turned out that Kayla was the heir to the Wynters, a prominent family in D City. But because she fell in love with James, who did not come from wealth, she decided to elope and sever family ties. It wasn’t as if James had no motivation at all. He managed to start his own company from the ground up. After this, he returned to D City. When Kayla was pregnant with Shermaine, she had reached out to her family, but they chose not to engage. They believed their daughter died the day she turned her back on them. Even though they now lived in the same city, they were for all intents and purposes, strangers.
Only some of the elders were aware of Kayla’s past, but many were not aware of her true heritage as a child of the Wynters.
Shermaine was shocked at the end of this revelation. “You’re really a member of the Wynters family, Mom?”
The Wynters name conjured very specific images in Shermaine’s mind. They were a powerful family with old ties to politics and business. She had not expected that her mother came from such proud stock.
This surprised Shermaine.
“Why didn’t you go back even after so many years? Family is still family. Can they still keep rejecting you for long? I hear that Old Mrs. Wynters is getting old. I figured most old folks would want some kind of closure or for the family to be reunited. Why don’t you try again? Maybe they will accept us, now that Dad is no longer the same poor man you married. It’s not like we’re expecting property from them, so there is no reason for them to reject us.”
For Shermaine to be so eager for her mother to return to the Wynters, it was no surprise that it came with her own selfish intentions.
However, the mere suggestion of this made Kayla seem even more deflated than she already was.
“Well, wait until your father comes back, and we’ll discuss this again. You should head to work.”
Shermaine could sense her mother’s obvious hesitation. While she did not understand why it was so, she then decided to let the matter slide for now. Shermaine still had to go to work.
After she left home, Shermaine had a meeting with Lizzie.
“So, I’ve got so many good scripts with me today, many of which are likely to win awards. We also have some new endorsements to consider—”
“Forget it, Lizzie. Call Justin’s studio and make the confirmation. I’m accepting the part.”
“What?”
Lizzie couldn’t believe that Shermaine would actually agree to play a supporting role.
Not after Justin Yates’ blatant refusal to cast her in the lead, at least. Perhaps this was truly an attempt to shame her, and Shermaine was right after all.
But why was she still so insistent on going?
“Do I need to repeat myself, Lizzie?”
Shermaine’s voice had a hard chill, despite her downcast eyes.
“No, I heard you the first time.”
Lizzie hurriedly left and called Justin’s studio. Despite confirming this with them, she could not shake off the discomfort that she felt.
All this while, Lizzie had thought of Shermaine as just any other artist. Despite the company’s seemingly preferential treatment for her, Shermaine had not made her job much easier.
She realized that she could not just rely on Shermaine alone for work. Something big would happen one day, and Lizzie needed to find a way out before it was too late.
After Justin hung up, he turned around to speak to Clarissa. “Shermaine has agreed to play the supporting role.”
Clarissa was shocked.
Shermaine agreed? This seems to be out of character, even for her.
Justin chuckled lightly. “Are you surprised?”
Clarissa nodded.
“I was not too surprised.”
Clarissa smiled. “Well, you’ve known her for some time, so it’s only natural that you know what her temperament is like as well.”
Justin slowly explained, “Apart from the last award-winning film I put out, she hasn’t had any good roles in the last few years. Her popularity has suffered as a result. Although she has received several international endorsements, she’s still quite young. If she doesn’t improve, the industry will naturally move on to the younger and more talented. I have confidence in my own movies, and so does everyone else. Shermaine is trying to boost her own career to the next level through this role. Even if she isn’t the lead actress, the supporting actress is still a fabulous role. There’s no way she can’t know that.”
Clarissa nodded, but Justin was not done. “Listen. You should just keep your distance from her the moment we start filming officially.”
Clarissa raised a finely arched brow but recalled the time when Shermaine had played a nasty trick on her in the studio. “Mr. Yates, you needn’t remind me. I’ll definitely keep my distance.”
They did not say much, but she knew that he was referring to that incident with Shermaine.
“In addition, we’ll be filming outside of D City for a few months. You needn’t—”
“I’m tagging along too.”
“I supposed. Does Matthew know?”
Justin smiled at the silence that followed. “Well, do keep him posted.”
After that, Justin went off to busy himself with work. Does he mean I need to inform Matthew? Or ask him for permission, maybe?
This is work-related.
The only thing that could be said about Clarissa’s thinking was the oversimplification of everything. Matthew was anything but that.
