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48. Dorothea Gatchalian
Last Updated:
2025-04-16 11:37:34
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His Hired Lover 49. Cold Cases
The rain came in sheets that afternoon, turning the dirt roads of Sta. Lucia into rivers of reddish-brown sludge. Eli Mendoza parked his beat-up motorbike beside the police outpost, water dripping from the brim of his cap. He shook off the rain, wiped his boots on the mat, and stepped on that same squeaky floorboard. Almost immediately, the familiar sour scent of instant coffee and old paperwork greeted his nose.In a town like this, things didn’t move unless you shoved them. And he had been a tired police officer for too long.He took a seat at his desk, which was a thin wooden table marked by cigarette burns and ink stains. His battered leather notebook was already open. Its pages were lined with observations, dates, and names that kept circling back to one: Dorothea Gatchalian.It had been four years, but the woman was still nowhere to be found. He still remembered that day. He could picture the way she sat there in the station, perfectly composed and not struck with grief for her
Last Updated : 2025-04-16His Hired Lover 01. He Was Trouble
SOFIA’s POVSince the restaurant opened this morning, I hadn’t had a second to breathe. I moved like an acrobat—pacing the room with both hands and balancing trays, my mind constantly reminding my feet to avoid slipping on the tiled floor.By the time the clock crept toward a quarter to twelve, the place had erupted into a war zone. Orders flew in, and customers endlessly waved for attention. Their hunger was seemingly commanding their brains to be impatient. My skin itched just by looking at their sulky lips and bored faces. Normally, every staff in Lorenzo’s Restaurant would be happy to receive so many costumers, but when you’re waiting tables to rude patrons, it would only make you wish for your shift to end already.The kitchen’s aromas had found their way onto my uniform. I scrunched my face upon realizing that. I spent an hour doing my hair, only to expose it to the greasy scent of garlic butter and grilled meat.But a 24-year-old woman like me, with no prospects, had to endure t
Last Updated : 2025-01-28His Hired Lover 02. An Envelope, A Dingy Apartment, and An Email
SOFIA’s POVEver since I started working for Mr. Lee as his escort, he had always made sure to book me as his favorite girl. The job was simple; he’d dress me up, pay me cash, then I would provide him company at social events and give his ego a little boost whenever I clung to his arm like some kind of trophy wife.Tonight, the company event we attended turned out to be one of the many splendid parties so far. And as we pulled up near my apartment, the gentle hum of Mr. Lee’s luxurious SUV faded into the background, his kind eyes lingered on me as we sat comfortably in the buttery-soft leather seats in the back of his car.“You… very beautiful tonight, Miss Sofia,” he said in his broken English, his Chinese accent curling around the words. He reached for my hand, planting a soft kiss on it before flashing his signature toothy smile.This 71-year-old Chinese man may have been short in stature, but his gentlemanly charm reached the rooftops.“Good company. I feel good… good…” he added, n
Last Updated : 2025-02-02His Hired Lover 03. Marriage Is Out of the Picture
Running an empire that straddled both the legal and illegal required precision, accountability, and a solid foundation to play the dangerous game. But Rios Estrada Alcaraz was a man of duality.To the public, he was a refined businessman. With his thriving media network called Star Channel Studios, he had been named the ultimate Kingpin of his generation. A media mogul whose name graced charity events, luxury hotels, and high-stakes investment portfolios. He moved in elite circles while shaking hands with politicians and rubbing shoulders with CEOs and dignitaries, all while keeping his true empire hidden beneath the surface.Behind closed doors, he was a chess master. His only goal was to win the long game of deception. He laundered his wealth through legitimate businesses, making it nearly impossible for authorities to pin anything on him. His hands, which were always impeccably clean in the eyes of the law, were stained with the blood of those who had dared to cross him. His reach e
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Rios checked his watch for the third time in a minute, but the sleek silver wrapped around his wrist only mocked him. Only five minutes had passed, yet it already felt like an hour. Exhaling slowly, he adjusted the cuff of his tailored blazer, the muscle in his neck constricting against the fabric.The luxurious restaurant hummed with quiet conversations. He had specifically told Sasha to make a reservation at this high-end place to impress Sofia Morales. Not that he wanted to prove anything to that woman. He was heir to both the empire of the Estrada and Alcaraz families. If he wanted to, he had all the resources to make her obey him. And yet, Rios wouldn’t do that to her. She seemed like a challenge. Nowadays, he felt he needed Sofia to stay that way.However, first impressions still mattered. If Sofia showed up, she should see him as a man in control. But this agonizing waiting left him with a little anxiety. He attempted to divert his attention by listening to the clinking of plate
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SOFIA’s POVThe bell at the restaurant door jingled again. I barely looked up as I fumbled through my notepad, thinking it was just another hungry customer. Sliding my pencil behind my ear, I grabbed a menu and forced an excited smile. But as I approached the table, hesitation crept in. Something about him set me on edge.The new customer sat unnaturally still, fingers laced together on the table like he was waiting for someone. His all-black outfit, which consisted of a black shirt, black leather jacket, and black gloves, looked intriguing enough. Despite my unease, I relaxed and acted professionally.“Hi! What can I get you?”His lips curved slightly, but the smile never reached his eyes. “No need for the menu, Miss Morales.”I stiffened. My name tag only showed my first name. How the hell did he know my surname?“Have we met?” I asked, my fingers fumbling with the pencil still tucked behind my ear. He tilted his head but didn’t answer. Instead, he pulled out a phone, tapped a few ti
Last Updated : 2025-02-16His Hired Lover 06. Blood and Bargains
SOFIA’s POV“Hey! I-I know you. What are you doing in this poorer side of the city?”I could hear the quiver in my landlord’s voice as he watched Rios walking toward us.“I’m afraid you don’t look familiar,” Rios said coolly, one hand tucked in his pocket jeans, the other slinging a tailored coat over his shoulder.Even now, as his dead eyes stabbed like daggers at the already shaken Donato, the butterflies in my stomach refused to settle. Why on earth would he come here looking like a hot character from a steamy novel? In a snap, my curiosity about him only grew.“Ah, I know now!” my pervy landlord exclaimed as if trying to hold himself together and regain the upper hand. “You’re here for this slut!” he added, grabbing my arm roughly.“Fuck you!” I spat, yanking myself away from him. Instead, Donato pulled me closer, my backside pressing against the huge bulge under his jeans. Honestly, that size might’ve been impressive if only he understood basic hygiene.Rios stopped walking. “I sp
Last Updated : 2025-02-18His Hired Lover 07. Off to A Hotel
SOFIA’S POVWe drove around the city in silence as the low hum of the car’s engine filled the space between us.My hands still shook. The worn-off adrenaline left a dull throb in my fingers, and the strains in my legs made it hard to appreciate the car’s soft leather seat.Every so often, I could feel his piercing eyes checking on me. He was probably thinking I was a psychotic bitch. A violent little stray he picked up off the street. Good. Let him think that. After all, that was the least of my concerns right now.I had just beaten up my landlord. The weight of that realization pressed against my chest, but before I could even begin to process it, Rios’s voice cut through the silence.“I don’t mind you getting your hands dirty, but next time, let me handle it.”That only intensified my annoyance. “You saw me there, Rios. I don’t need a savior.”“You bet,” he said, smirking. “You almost killed him.”I rolled my eyes at him. I did not like how he inserted himself into my already chaotic
Last Updated : 2025-02-19
Latest chapter
His Hired Lover 49. Cold Cases
The rain came in sheets that afternoon, turning the dirt roads of Sta. Lucia into rivers of reddish-brown sludge. Eli Mendoza parked his beat-up motorbike beside the police outpost, water dripping from the brim of his cap. He shook off the rain, wiped his boots on the mat, and stepped on that same squeaky floorboard. Almost immediately, the familiar sour scent of instant coffee and old paperwork greeted his nose.In a town like this, things didn’t move unless you shoved them. And he had been a tired police officer for too long.He took a seat at his desk, which was a thin wooden table marked by cigarette burns and ink stains. His battered leather notebook was already open. Its pages were lined with observations, dates, and names that kept circling back to one: Dorothea Gatchalian.It had been four years, but the woman was still nowhere to be found. He still remembered that day. He could picture the way she sat there in the station, perfectly composed and not struck with grief for her
His Hired Lover 48. Dorothea Gatchalian
Thea had been in this police station for almost an hour. The plastic chair beneath her was starting to bite into her skin, and the white walls weren’t doing her any favors.Across the table, the police officer leaned back in his chair, one eyebrow ticking up as his fingers drummed a sharp, impatient rhythm against the clipboard. The silence between questions was starting to stretch too long.“So, again,” SPO2 Eli said in a calm but thinning voice, “when was the last time you saw your uncle alive?”Thea crossed her arms. “I already told you. I saw him last Monday. At dinner. He wanted fish, so I cooked fish. We didn’t talk much. It’s always like that between us.”Eli nodded slowly. “And you didn’t notice anything strange? Nobody was lurking around, no fights, or no weird calls?”“No.”He flipped a photo onto the table, making Thea flinch at the image before her. Her uncle’s face was barely recognizable. It was swollen, and the skin stretched and marbled with the early signs of decay. M
His Hired Lover 47. An Anonymous Sender
SOFIA’s POVRios had me rest for a week before I was allowed back into training with my acting coach. During those days, the wound in my arm began to heal gradually. My ribs still ached, but I could breathe again without flinching.Rios stayed busy. He would visit my house, but we wouldn’t really talk. He would only instruct Valeria and Kyle about some important tasks about me and also converse with the house helper he hired for me. We would catch him having meetings at odd hours, with his men coming and going. Then, one night, he’d explain things over dinner. He told me how the family built their empire, the layers behind their so-called businesses, the money, and, of course, the risks. It took me three days to say a full sentence to him. Even now, it felt like too much. So, I focused on training. It was Valeria who pitched the idea. “A Mafia wife must know how to defend herself,” she said. I figured she was right. We couldn’t take any chances anymore. I kept my head down and worke
His Hired Lover 46. Control and Punishment
(TRIGGER WARNING: torture)It took them a minute to speak after the father-and-daughter tandem exited the house. Now that the problem had been laid out, the cunning Rodulf Sandoval made it clear that Rios had to give up his marriage with Sofia and tie the knot with Beatrice instead.But Rios stood firm. It hadn’t been his plan to get serious with the aspiring actress, but she’d already cast her spell on him, pulling him in deeply. Now, he was stuck at the precipice, staring into a future that made sense only if she was in it. A few months ago, he wouldn’t have pegged himself as the hopeless romantic type. But here he was. Still, no matter how badly he wanted to escape this life, reality always came to push him to the edge of the cliff. He looked at his beloved family, the word beloved rolling through his head like a bitter joke. Their faces looked grim and defeated. But who could blame them? Twenty percent was twenty percent. And he was sure those greedy and manipulative Sandovals wou
His Hired Lover 45. Debts and Consequences
With Sofia in the hospital, Rios hadn’t planned on coming home so soon. But his last phone call with Sasha informed him that an emergency family meeting was happening at his grandfather’s mansion. He figured it was also the right time to break the news about marrying another woman.He exhaled sharply, then killed the engine and stepped onto the familiar gravel drive of the estate. The cloudy mid-afternoon sky hung low, mirroring the chaos spiraling through his head and his life in general. The doors creaked open as he entered. His mother stood stiff in the foyer, arms folded, and lips drawn into a tight line. He leaned in to kiss her cheek, but she didn’t move. He then turned to his father, lowering his head out of habit to kiss the man’s hand, but Demitre’s fist cracked across his jaw before he could touch it.“Who the fuck do you think you are?” his father roared.“Demitre, calm yourself, boy! This is a family meeting,” the old man growled from his place in the hallway.Rios pushed
His Hired Lover 44. Waking Up in a Hospital
SOFIA’s POVMy memory of being sick or having a brutal fever always brings back the feel of my mother’s gentle hands brushing my burning forehead, only to be replaced by a cold compress or a cloth soaked in water and vinegar. She would then gather wild leaves and plants only she knew the names of and boil them into a lukewarm natural medicine for me to drink. They always tasted bland, sometimes bitter, but my young heart never dared to complain. My mother had always been so good to me and lived her life wanting what was best for me.Today, instead of waking up to the warmth of her hands, my fluttering, hazy eyes caught two bodyguards, who were sitting in each corner of a room that smelled like rubbing alcohol and was painted white from floor to ceiling. I felt my head resting on a soft pillow while my back sunk into a firm cushion.Kyle was slouched in a chair, dozing with a hanky over his face and arms crossed over his chest. Valeria sat to my left, flipping through a pamphlet that r
His Hired Lover 43. Search and Rescue
The remnants of what had happened where Sofia and Valeria were last seen by Rios painted a grim picture: somehow, they could confirm both women had fallen into the darkness below.“We can’t go in there now, Boss Rios,” Jestone said, holding his phone above his head. Its small light cut through the dark landscape, but they could barely see anything. “We might need a chopper, but—”“Shut up! Shut up, I’m thinking!” Rios snapped, punching in a number on his phone. Jestone and Kyle traded glances at their usually composed boss’s attitude, his calm peeling away into a frantic frenzy.“Sasha,” he barked when the line connected. “What the hell is happening? I thought there’d be reinforcements? No one came! My wife and her bodyguard just fell off a fucking cliff!”His grip tightened around the phone as Sasha’s voice chattered on. He could feel himself trembling and falling into the pit of monstrosity. He realized all those trips he had taken for expensive therapy abroad weren’t helping.“I al
His Hired Lover 42. Deep Conversations
SOFIA’s POVI don’t know what to make of this unfortunate situation. What Rios and I shared in this city felt truly magical and unforgettable for a honeymoon. But now, I sat sobbing and desperately trying to ease the cold biting my skin and the wound in my arm.I was just crying the whole time we were huddled in this small cave. Valeria wasn’t saying anything, but her presence somehow proved comforting for my wretched soul. I wish I could take back what I said about not needing a bodyguard. Right now, this lady felt like heaven sent to me.I stifled a sob before heaving a deep sigh. Indeed, Valeria was right. We were in a misfortune, and I needed to get my shit together.“I’m sorry,” my words spilled, mingling with the sound of cackling from the small bonfire.“For what, Miss Sofia?” she replied. Her voice sounded gruff and already tired.“For dragging you into this mess. And for saying I didn’t need a bodyguard. Now, here we are.”A faint smile tugged at her lips. “No worries, Miss S
His Hired Lover 41. Losing Sofia
Without hesitation, Valeria fired at the man who was blindly spraying bullets their way.“Valeria! Get Sofia to safety now!” Rios shouted, crouched behind a crumbling wall with Sofia. They’d lost their tail after fleeing the packed market and ended up in a quiet part of Baguio. The road ahead was bare, lined with looming balete trees, but the silence was broken by fresh bursts of gunfire. The ex-marine realized more of those goons who were after them were coming.“Got it, Boss,” Valeria said, sprinting over. “Come on, Miss Sofia.” She said as she grabbed the woman’s wrist.“I’m not leaving you here, Rios!”Valeria didn’t wait, raising her gun and firing again while the other two argued behind her.“What the fuck is happening?” Sofia’s voice cracked.Valeria could see the panic settling in. The always-composed woman was gone, replaced by someone frantic and dragging them down with her endless questions. It was starting to piss her off. Prison taught her that every second counts, especia
