KATE POVAFTER A WEEKWhen I got to my room, first thing is did is that I update my Mom that I had arrived at our flat. I didn’t expect them to reply right away since it was also my sister’s wedding to Michael on this day. To reverse my mind from thinking, I occupied myself by cleaning my room, rearranging the furniture to attract good luck in my life. Once I finished, I started dividing the souvenirs I brought for my friends and colleagues here in Dubai.The truth is, I was really trying to avoid my cell phone today; I didn’t want to see what was happening in the Philippines. No matter what anyone says, I would still feel hurt seeing my sister marry my ex-fiancé. Even though I blocked Michael and Charlotte , I am sure that my Mom or any of our neighbors would post updates about the wedding. I also told Nikka and my younger sibling not to inform me about the wedding.As I was unpacking my suitcase to organize the souveni
AT THE HEAD OFFICEWhen I arrived at the Head Office, I headed straight to the reception area. I was wearing simple jeans and a t-shirt paired with doll shoes and a sling bag, with my hair tied back to match my casual outfit. I didn’t wear formal attire since Ma'am Isabel didn’t tell me that it was for a meeting when she messaged me yesterday.“Hi Zel,” I greeted our receptionist, handing her a bag containing the gift i had for her from my vacation. “Has Miss Isabel arrive?”She smiled as she opened the gift I brought. “Yes, she’s in there; you two almost arrived at the same time, Oh wow! You went on vacation. Thanks for this! .”“Alright, I’ll go see her first. We will chat later?” I replied to her“Sure!” she smiledI walked inside. She opened the door for me since I didn’t have an access card for the door, but once inside, I knew my
JAMES’ POVFor months, my mom had been relentlessly nagging me to agree to the arranged marriage with Scarlette. No matter how firmly I opposed their wishes, I felt powerless due to the gravity of my past mistakes. One reason I didn’t want to marry Scarlette was that I couldn’t see myself being intimate with her; since day one, I had treated her like a younger sister. With a five-year age gap, she felt far too young for me, and I knew I couldn’t deceive her because I understood myself—I wasn’t capable of being serious with one woman.The complication was that Scarlette’s parents were close friends with my dad. She was often at our house during family casino, where we all grew up playing together in our garden with other childhood friends.Despite my objections, Mom persisted in wanting me to marry Scarlette, especially since I hadn’t introduced any other woman to them yet. They took it upon themselves to decide who I should marry. I could easily agree and just negotiate with Scarlette
As soon as our meeting ended, I immediately called Daniel, knowing that his call was important because he doesn’t usually disturb me during my meetings. He knows that if I don’t answer his call even once, it means I’m busy with work at the office. But with the kind of missed calls he was sending, I knew it was trouble again. He probably saw something again.“Bro! We just finished our meeting. What trouble have I gotten into this time? I’ve seen the number of missed calls you have!” I asked him.“Bro, I have something to tell you! Can we meet tonight at our favorite hangout spot? Or how about at your resort, just at the bar? I’ll explain everything to you there,” Daniel said.“D*mn bro, I’m starting to feel nervous . It sounds like I’ve really messed up this time. Did I get someone pregnant?” I joked with him.“Hahaha, we’ll talk about it later, bro! I’ll tell William too so that after work we can head straight there. We can get free drinks since you’re the one who will be worried abou
“CONGRATULATIONS!” Alexander shouted loudly.“Wohoooo, this calls for a celebration!” Daniel said, waving a bottle of wine he was holding. They were all laughing and teasing me. It seems I did something foolish this time.“Bro, congratulations to you! Hahaha!” William chimed in. From their smiles, I could tell they weren’t joking. There was something behind each of their grins.“Hahaha, come on bro, you didn’t even invite us to your wedding! So unfair, I thought we were friends?! Why did you go solo?” David added and laughed“This is what the fortune said, so what now, bro? You can’t see Ms. Monday, you’ve got bitterness with Ms. Tuesday, and what about Ms. Wednesday? Does that mean Ms. Thursday and Ms. Friday are gone too?” Seb teased me.I felt weirded out by my friends’ comments. “What do you mean?! What nonsense are you talking about? You guys just brought me here to tease me!” I replied.“Bro, we’re the ones you didn’t invite when you got married. Hahaha! The question now is, who
CAMILA POVWhile resting on our coach “Damn it! Who does he think he is, ringing the doorbell? Don’t you have a doorbell at your house?!” I yelled as I approached our gate. “Just a moment!” I shouted again. I was surprised when I opened the gate. A big smile spread across my lips when I saw the man who rang the doorbell. A foreigner had wandered into our house. I called George to talk to this handsome young man instead because I couldn’t understand what he was saying. It sounded like he was eating his words; I was worried my nose would start bleeding from the confusion. “Hi Ma’am, good morning! I’m Jay. I just want to ask if Kate lives here?!” he asked me. “Oh! Wait. You wait; I’ll call my son,” I replied. “Okay Ma’am, I’m her friend. Sorry for disturbing you,” he said politely with a smile. “Damn it, I can’t understand what this guy is saying!” I whispered
“But please don’t tell Kate about my visit here. I know she will get mad,” he said. “Okay, no problem. I know Kate,” I replied. “Bro, I gotta go ahead; I need to catch my flight. Ma’am, I will go now if you don’t mind!” he said to us. “Okay, that’s so sweet of you,” I responded. I wasn’t sure if I was saying the right thing; I only heard it in movies. I chuckled to myself a bit. “Once you graduate, George, let me know, and I will help you get into the army if you want?” he said again to George. “Thanks, man!” George replied briefly. “Oh, you see, he’s even offering to help you join the army. At least you have backup. Many are eager to get in there,” I told George. I saw him shaking his head. “Okay, Ma’am, I really have to go. Hope I can come b
JAMES SANTIAGO;I’m happy in going back to Cebu with the news that Daniel told me. Now, I won’t have to struggle to come up with a reason to break up with Scarlette if our wedding goes through. But since I still don’t know where to start in looking for Kate so I decided to hire a private investigator; the more people to search for Kate, the better. To expedite finding her as soon as possible. I’m running out of time if I’m just relying on Daniel to help me look at her. I have only two weeks left to find Kate.“Hello, Detective Ivan, good morning. This is James Santiago,” I greeted him.“Hi, Mr. Santiago! Nice to hear your voice again. How have you been?” he replied.“I’m good, Detective. I need your help again. But this time, I need it as soon as possible,” I said.“Not a problem, Mr. Santiago. You know me. You won’t regret hiring me again,” he assured me.“I know, Detective. That’s why I contacted you; I know the quality of your service. But this time, Detective, I have someone I wan
THE NEXT DAY AFTER MY DINNER DATE WITH JAY KATE’S POV The first thing I did this morning was call James to talk about what Mr. Ismail mentioned to me. I was confused by his sudden decision, especially why he paid for two years’ worth of the Villa we were staying in if he was planning to move me to Europe. Was James just wasting money? But then I remembered, this was nothing to James Santiago. With all the income he makes from the showroom and his other businesses, it’s not surprising that he’d let go of the fully paid villa so easily. “Yes Kate, you miss me? That fast, really?” he teased me. “James, what is this I’m hearing from Mr. Ismail about me transferring branches again?” I asked him irritably. “Relax, Kate! I’m just doing you a favor. It’s not a joke to be offered a COO position. And it’s in Europe, Kate. It’s a great opportunity for you,” he answered arrogantly. “James, I didn’t ask for this
KATE’S POV HR DEPARTMENT KATE AND MR. ISMAIL’S CONVERSATION I received an email from Mr. Ismail asking me to come to the Head Office for a proposal. I didn’t ask what it was about just yet. When I arrived at the Head Office, Mr. Ismail was already waiting for me at the front desk. Ever since he found out about James and me, his attitude toward me had changed. He became more approachable, and every request I made was granted right away. After all, how could he refuse when the wife of the owner made a request? This was one of the privileges I enjoyed in the setup James and I had. Despite everything, there were benefits to my agreement with James. I agreed to pretend to be his wife for two years in exchange for 10 million and the freedom to be free from the legalities of our marriage. I accepted because I felt I had no other choice. James constantly threatened that he wouldn’t sign our annulment and would strip me of everythin
KATE AND JAY’S CONVERSATION A few days after returning to Kuwait, Jay visited me at the showroom. I was surprised when he arrived holding a bouquet of roses. My Filipino staff couldn’t help but smile widely—after all, they knew Jay well since he frequently visited me at work. He also loved bringing small gifts from his base to win over my staff, especially when he was looking for me. Despite feeling a pang of regret knowing that this charade of mine would only last for two more years, I couldn’t help but smile. I knew that when this ended, I’d also have to distance myself from James’ parents, who had treated me with such care and value as both a child and a person. Still, I couldn’t ignore the fact that Jay had been consistent in his efforts to win me over—from my time in Dubai to now in Kuwait. “Hi, brat! Welcome back!” Jay greeted me. “Thank you, Jay. You didn’t have to do that!” I replied shyly.
AFTER ONE MONTH BACK TO KUWAIT Mommy Samantha and Daddy Eddie hugged me tightly. My one-month vacation in the Philippines flew by so fast. Even though I didn’t get to see my real family, I felt like my days in the Philippines weren’t enough because I truly enjoyed bonding with James’ parents. It wasn’t because I wanted to be with James, but because I experienced what it felt like to be cared for by parents—something I never felt with Mama and Papa. I knew I would miss their care and affection when I returned to Kuwait. At first, I had doubts about going to the Philippines with James, fearing his parents wouldn’t like me or that they might be snobbish because of their wealth, while I was just an ordinary employee working for their son’s business in Kuwait. But I was completely wrong. Everything I had worried about was the exact opposite of what happened. To make things easier, James and I told his parents everything about me—exce
AFTER TWO WEEKS BACK IN THE PHILIPPINES Time flies so quickly. It feels like just yesterday we arrived in the Philippines, but now two weeks have already passed. I’ve grown fond of James’s parents, especially his mom. She visits us almost every day, always bringing home-cooked meals for me. They constantly joke about wanting us to hurry up and give them a grandchild, which makes me smile every time the topic comes up. Sometimes I wonder if James is adopted because his personality is so far from theirs. His parents treat me like their own daughter, doing things for me that my own parents never did. Every time I talk to my mom, the only thing she ever mentions is my remittances. When I think about the two-year contract James and I have, I can’t help but feel sad. When our arrangement ends, so will the warmth and kindness his parents show me. For the first time, I’ve felt what it’s like to have parents who genuinely care ab
KATE’S POV I jolted awake when I saw James lying beside me on my bed, sleeping soundly while we were wrapped in each other’s arms. He stirred slightly as I pulled away, breaking the embrace. Memories of last night came rushing back—how we ended up sleeping next to each other, the foolish things I did, and the anger I felt before I left the house, especially after hearing from Nikka what my parents had done behind my back. If I hadn’t come home, I wouldn’t have known that I no longer had my condo because they meddled with it again. Nikka even told me how furious my parents were with me for keeping the condo a secret. I stared at James’s peaceful face as he slept. I remembered how he took care of me last night and how he didn’t take advantage of me while I was drunk. I was grateful to discover that, deep down, he had a kind heart. A small smile crept onto my face as I watched him, but then he suddenly wrapped his arms around me again, pulling me back down
JAMES’ POV I turned away from Kate and started walking out of her room. Once again, she teased me. She flaunted herself in front of me, and I didn’t understand why I didn’t take the bait. Kate is incredibly sexy and beautiful. She has a well-proportioned figure—ample breasts, a flat stomach, and wide hips. Her face is angelic and naive-looking. If she were any other woman, I probably would’ve given in by now. “Isn’t this what you want? You’re just like every other man! You’re horrible!” she snapped at me. “Kate, enough!” I said calmly. “Get some rest; you’re really drunk!” I had no choice but to return to her room and hand her a loose shirt I found in her closet. Thankfully, she didn’t argue and put it on right away. She even laughed and teased me while taking off her bra and waving it in front of me. I turned away until she was fully dressed. I helped her lie down on her bed, and she collapsed onto it carele
JAMES SANTIAGO As Kate closed the door, I stood up from my seat. I tidied myself up and quietly followed her to see where she was going. She hadn’t gotten into a taxi yet, so I got into my car and kept an eye on who she was leaving with and where she was heading. I didn’t see anyone leaving with her. Once Kate got into the taxi and it drove off, I followed it to see where it was going. It stopped at a disco club. As she entered, I immediately parked my car. I called Chandler, our childhood friend who also lived near this area. He came right away; I didn’t have to say much. He was reliable when it came to places like this. He wasn’t always with us during our outings because he was going back and forth to France, where he had established his business. I quickly went inside and took a VIP lounge where I could see where Kate was sitting. I also planned to wait for Chandler there so Kate wouldn’t see me.
KATE’S POV I was staring at James while he casually walked into his unit. I was waiting for him to at least apologize for what he said, but it seemed like he didn’t care about me at all. He just went to the kitchen and grabbed a beer he had chilled in the fridge earlier. I exhaled in frustration. He sat down on his sofa and glanced at me. “WHAT?! What’s with that look, Kate? Did I do anything to you?” he asked. “Remember, Kate, I’m your husband. Don’t think about backing out just because you signed our contract; you have no choice but to follow the two years in our contract, or you’ll lose everything!” he said with a smirk. I raised an eyebrow at him, and tears started to fall as I began to respond to his arrogance. “Who do you think you are?! I didn’t agree to this because of your money; I’m doing this for my family! I don’t want everything I’ve worked for to go to waste just because of a one-night mistake!” I replied. I cou