"I can't loose you"

Ryan sat before Catherine. He stared at her without a word. His mind kept playing back his father's words in his head, and when he couldn't take it anymore, he gulped down the bottle of wine that stood on the table before them. Alarmed, Catherine reached out to stop him

"What are you doing Ryan?!" She asked as she grabbed the bottle from him.

"I'm sorry Cathy..." Ryan apologized.

"What's wrong?" Catherine asked worriedly.

"What do I do Cathy?" Ryan cried

"I don't want to loose you, but I'm in such a mess right now " Catherine was obviously confused. She reached out to Ryan from across the table and cupped his face in her palms.

"You're not going to loose me Ryan, tell me what the problem is please" she pleaded.

"It's my dad Cathy, he's interfering in my life again"

"H...he wants me to woo Sophia Walker for the sake of a contract worth billions." Ryan blurted out

"S...Sophia Walker?" Catherine muttered in shock.

"He...he said he'd never approve of our wedding if I don't do as he says, what do I do Cathy?" Ryan said as a tear rolled down his cheeks. Catherine couldn't find the right words to console him. The news had also hit her hard in the face. She knew Sophia Walker was the only daughter of Jay Walker, the president of Walker Airlines. Sophia was a spoilt brat, but she possessed the beauty, brains, and physique that could tempt any man.

"This can't be happening" she muttered to herself

"Mom doesn't like Ryan either, but what do I make of this? I'm confused on what to do at this point." She thought to herself. She stood up to her feet and drew Ryan into a hug.

"I'm just a puppet in my dad's fingers. I'm a looser Cathy, am I not?" he cried as his grip around her tightened.

"You're not a looser Ryan, you're my fiance." She said.

"Y...you should heed your father's words, that's the only way out of this" she said as tears welded up in her eyes. Ryan broke free from her grip.

"W...what?! You can't be serious Cathy"

"I can't leave you" he said.

"Please don't cry" he begged

"Just give me sometime to fix this. I promise I will clear this up quickly and come right back to you." He said, but Catherine was lost in her own thoughts.

"I better not tell him about my mom's refusal, he is already in a bad state as it is. I guess I will figure out a way to handle mom my own way."

"Cathy are you listening to me?" Ryan asked caressing her hair.

"Y...yes Ryan" she replied forcing a smile.

"My first date with Sophia Walker has been scheduled for next month. Please don't think much about it okay?" He said

"I love you Cathy, just you, I promise I won't hurt you in anyway okay? You've got to trust me" He said again as he reached for Catherine's lips. He kissed them passionately, running his hands through her hair as he did so.

Gregory on the other hand was under a lot of pressure from his parents as well. They didn't approve of Kyla and were determined to talk Greg out of getting married to her.

"How in the heavens am I to break this news to Kyla?" He thought to himself.

"Maybe Ryan can help out" He thought to himself as he reached for his phone in his pocket.

"I'm also in a fix right now Greg." Ryan spoke from the phone with a tone that expressed his anger and frustration.

"My dad doesn't totally disapprove of Cathy, but he's indirectly marrying me off to someone else all in the name of business. It's quite disheartening." Ryan said rubbing his temples in exhaustion.

"Do you suggest I discuss this with Kyla?" Greg asked.

"Yes, that's the best thing to do" Ryan replied

"That way, you both can figure out a solution together..."

"We can elope, afterall we have already graduated college" Greg said

"Seriously Greg, I thought about that as well, but I can't, I'm trapped here. I kinda envy you you know" Ryan said

"You can go ahead and discuss things with Kyla, maybe you'd be able to get out of this mess." Ryan said. He was about to hang up the call when something suddenly struck him

"Wait...how is it that your parents don't like Kyla?" He asked.

"She's beautiful, classy and from a respectable family, did they really disapprove of her?" He asked

"Yeah!" Greg replied in frustration

"They recommend Catherine" he said.

"What?!" Ryan exclaimed

"Catherine possesses all the qualities of a perfect woman. They said."

"She's pretty, rich, humble and easy going" he said. Ryan blushed.

"...but I told them she belonged only to you, and I couldn't betray you" Greg said. Ryan took in deep breaths.

"We've got to figure out a way out of this." He said

"That dinner was a huge mistake" Greg complained

"Yeah! I regret it too" Ryan replied. They both fell quiet for a while before Greg broke the silence.

"So...you aren't gonna marry Sophia are you?" He asked

"I can't Greg you know that." Ryan replied

"I just have to figure out a way to break off this marriage with Sophia in a subtle way that won't affect my dad's business deal with Mr Walker" Ryan said

"Okay, you do that. I'd go discuss this with Kyla" Greg replied before hanging up.