Chapter 10

Mabilis lumipas ang oras at ngayo'y nagdidilim na. The street lights started to light up on the streets across the lady's apartment. 

It was around 6:00 pm when she stood up from the couch. Having a lot of time to rest, she felt refreshed and perturbed. She cleaned up her mess on the table and took a quick bath. She was getting ready to return back to the villa when her mobile phone vibrated on her coffee table. When she peered at her screen, she smiled widely from ear to ear.

Mrs. Mitchell was calling her…

She answered and aligned it on her ear as she greeted cheerfully. "Mrs. Mitchell,"

"Roselle dear, how was your day?" The older woman sounds interested in her whole day escapade.

"It's fine, Mrs. Mitchell. I'm going back to the villa right now." Nagmamadaling sabi niya.

"Dear, I called to tell you that you can stay at your home tonight. Don't hurry to come back and enjoy your time being with your mother." Mrs. Mitchell blurted out softly.

"Sigurado po kayo, Madam?" She asked. Nagtataka man, she pushed aside the suspicious thought and just confirmed what she heard.

"Yes, dear. We have a guest coming right now. I'll see you tomorrow, Elle. Sleep well." Mrs. Mitchell dropped the call in a hurry after wishing the lady a goodnight.

"Sige po. Kayo po ang bahala, Madam." She politely responded.

Napangiti ang dalaga after hearing the loud beeping on the other end. Nakahinga siya ng maluwag sa kadahilanang hindi niya kailangan makaharap ang binata sa mga oras na ito. She still feels embarrassed about what happened between them. She wasn't the one who was drunk and she was in her right state of mind last night but she gave in to him and sa tingin niya, siya ang may kasalanan kung bakit naganap un. She was responsible for it! Hiyang-hiya siya sa sarili when she imagined the guy's expression when he look at her. He might also think that she seduced him even if she wasn't. Now she was desperate to hide from him.

Roselle shook her head and nagpalit ng damit. She gets rid of her jeans and shirt, changing into a black large shirt then she goes to the kitchen for her dinner.

Mitchell's family Villa…

"Tita, it's time for dinner." Sofia was all smiles since this morning during her arrival until now. 

She looked elegant and sophisticated with her choice of clothing but that didn't change the older woman's impression about her. Knowing how much Sofia's craziness about her son, Mrs. Mitchell remains adamant about her words. For some unknown reason, she even felt more disgusted with her. After knowing that the lady won't be getting home anytime soon, she immediately dialed Roselle's number to prevent her from coming. She wanted to protect the poor woman's heart and the least she could do is to hide her son's madness from her. She really can't imagine her poor caregiver's reaction when she came to realize that the person she trusted to take her precious thing was such a scumbag and a jerk. She felt genuinely ashamed of her son.

Last night, when she was about to go to the kitchen for a glass of water but she spotted her son's door was slightly ajar. It didn't take long before she came to know what happened inside because she intentionally heard their conversation. That's when she slowly closed the door and went back to her room. If only she tried to stop them from doing it, then she would never feel guilty right now. She blamed herself for being such a tolerant mother when it comes to her son and furthermore, she noticed that Roselle also took a secret liking to her son so she just let them be. It never occurred to her that Oliver was just playing around. Now she was bothered by the incident. She didn't expect that her son will still hold on to Sofia for commercial benefits. She was crestfallen.

With eyes turning cold, she looked at the woman and went, "I'll be there in a minute."

"Come on, Tita. Let me assist you, please. We will become a big happy family soon and we should start getting along for Oliver's sake, right?" Sofia suggested enthusiastically.

"Alright." Mrs. Mitchell stood up from her seat elegantly pushing aside her boiling temper. "But you don't have to assist me. I can walk towards the kitchen. I'm not crippled yet." She snorted coldly before she walked past her and went down ahead of the stairs.

Sofia was left behind, clenching her fists hard. She glared at the older woman's back menacingly as she followed from behind. 'And I'm gonna make you one if you keep on pissing me off!' she thought inwardly while grinding her teeth in hatred.

***

Dinner time was done.

While Roselle enjoys her peacefulness at her cozy room, the Mitchell's family villa turns out opposite. The atmosphere was suffocating and depressing.

"I want to sleep here tonight." Sofia grinned, sitting at the edge of Oliver's king size bed.

"You can't spend the night here." Oliver was like being stabbed by pins and needles. He was peering on his wristwatch anxiously and became worried that Roselle might arrive anytime soon and witnessed them together inside the place where they actually slept together. He didn't want her to know about him and Sofia for some reason. At least not just yet. As selfish as he was, he just wanted his heart to feel at ease and pissing off Roselle won't do any good to the both of them. 

Well… his mother never informed him that she specifically ordered her caregiver to spend the night outside just to make him feel secretly anxious and a little bit of guilt for what he has done. She shut him off completely since they were having a heated argument. Furthermore, she has her reasons as to why she refused to face him again for a talk. After their silent dinner, the latter went to her room and locked her door.

"But, mahal. We're getting married anytime soon. Why can't I spend the night with my boyfriend?" Sofia whined like a spoiled child thinking that she could get his approval to spend the night with him.

"I told you to wait for the right time, Sofia. Don't try to piss me off, will you?" He suddenly lost his patience as his heart skipped a nervous beat. It was past 7 in the evening, and he assumed that Roselle might be on her way back to the villa. "I'll send you home. Let's go." Having said that, tumalikod na siya at nagmamadaling lumabas ng kwarto. Left with no choice, Sofia followed him out reluctantly.

He drove her faster to their family villa and dropped her outside without hesitation. "I have to go. Get inside." He demanded before he drove off.

Sofia gnashed her teeth in pure anger while watching her boyfriend leaving her alone outside their residential gate. She suddenly felt suspicious of him and she thought of looking into it.

******

Roselle opened her mobile phone and set her alarm as usual before she turned off the lampshade and closed her eyes. She immediately fell asleep and by the time she stirred on the other side, her mobile phone started ringing, snapping her out from her reverie.

With eyes remained shut, she stretched out her hand and rummaged her little nightstand to take her phone. Without peeking on its screen, she tapped the answer button and lazily aligned it on her ears. She assumed that it was her best friend, Andrea, calling her to apologize about her unannounced out of town trip which took for a month already, therefore she carelessly spurted out.

"Andrea," She groaned.

"It's me." A man's deep and husky voice berated in her ears.

Roselle suddenly opened her eyes and pulled the lampshade's switch on. She peered on her mobile screen and found Oliver's number displayed on it. Her face suddenly turned red in embarrassment. 

"Mr. Mitchell, is there… any problem?" She faltered.

"Where are you? It's late!" Oliver's voice sounds cold and indifferent.

"Ahm, I was informed not to come back tonight by your mother. So I…" She was about to say something more but the doorbell began to buzz loudly. She frowned and wondered who could have been there behind her door at this late.

Ding! Dong! Ding! Dong!

"Open the door." Oliver demanded through the line.

Roselle suddenly panicked. "Mr. Mitchell, it's… it's late." She mumbled shakily.

"Roselle, please open the door. I'm picking you up right now." He demanded again.

Buntong hininga na sinagot ng dalaga ang binata. "Okay, please wait a second." Even if she refused to face him, he would still bug her off therefore, she went out from her room to let him in.

Makalaan pa ang ilang segundo ay naroon na sa pinto si Roselle at pagkabukas ng pagkabukas ng lagusan ay nagulat siya rito. Oliver rushed towards her and hugged her tight. Na-shock siya sa ginawa ng binata and she failed to move and struggle. She just stood there, frozen, wrapped in his arms like a teddy bear.

"I've been waiting for you for almost three hours." He grumbled under his breath.

Roselle's heart raced like a horse's gallop thumping loudly inside her chest. In addition to this, her stomach also fluttered with his words. "Why… Why did you wait for me, Mr. Mitchell?" She murmured questioningly. There was a tinge of eagerness in her voice and she was looking forward to his answer with a slight expectation brewing within but then his answer was…

"I was… I was worried that something bad might have happened to you so I came to pick you up."