“So, who is she?” asked Dominic.“That’s Angie. She’s, my friend. She’s the one that hosted the party.”“Hmm. A fine friend you have there.” He said, his voice heavy with sarcasm.“What do you mean?”“Look, she could very well be the blackmailer.”“No, how can that be?”“Come with me.” He said and led her to his bedroom. There, he showed her the screen of his laptop where he still had Angie’s photo and SIM card registration details. Dominic patiently explained what she was seeing and Andra was distraught at the information. Still, she was doubtful.“Okay, but that’s not her phone number.” Angie pointed out. “The one on my phone ends with different digits from the one here. I’ll get it.”He waited as Angie left the room and quickly returned with her phone. He confirmed the difference but didn’t bother shifting his suspicions.“She should have another number.” He told her. “I mean, people have more than one number, right?”Andra saw his point. Maybe she just didn’t have the particular
Dominic returned to his car and drove into the compound. By the time he got out of the car, the gateman was closing the gate and Andra was heading in his direction. Good, he thought. Because they needed to talk. He folded his arms and relaxed against the car, waiting for her to reach him.“Now, tell me. What is this arrangement?” he asked when she was close enough.“What do you mean by that?” she asked.“I mean, you just brought in staff. So how do you intend to pay him?”She stared at him as though he had just spoken a foreign language.“I or we?” she asked.“We?” Dominic found her reaction preposterous.“Yes, we.” She confirmed as though it was a verdict. “Santus here is going to be opening the gate for us. Won’t that be great?”He ignored her question. “You know, I am trying to figure out or understand how you can make such a decision without first informing me.”“Because if I did, you would give me issues.”“Give you issues?”“Be antagonistic.”“Well, you judged correctly. I want
After carefully checking the contents of the contract, Andra finally spotted the term. It was at the back of the page as an addition behind the page she had signed. At the bottom of the signed page, she had missed the letter P.T.O. which meant Please Turn Over. She would have opened the next page and found the term if she had noticed that. It seemed to be a later addition to the terms listed in the previous section. The term read; The couple agrees to wed in a publicized ceremony four weeks after this contract is signed. Signatures appeared on the previous page over the additional term. Andra sighed. Gosh. And this was how people could easily get into trouble when they didn’t properly study a contract. Well, now her discovery of the term was useless, she reasoned. It was useless brooding over the issue. It didn’t matter anymore what time the wedding took place. The thought didn’t stop her from immediately developing a counterthought bordering on adjusting the wedding ceremony con
Andra didn’t waste time mincing words. She told him exactly what was having her worried.“Getting married even though it’s fake is still a huge step.”“I know.” He replied.“I do not want to bear the title of a divorcee just because of this contract.”“Me neither.” He admitted. “But we won’t be the first.”“You sound like you don’t care.”“We are only executing the terms of the contract.” He pointed out. “After all, we both knew what we were getting into.”“Well, I believe we ought to amend the terms in this current concern.” She suggested.“In what way?”“We can tell my dad that we want to stay as we are until the contract period expires.”“I don’t see him agreeing, especially not without a fight.”“Do you have a better suggestion?”“Yes.”She stared at him curiously. She could not wait to hear it. “Please tell me.” She said earnestly.“I’ll invite him to meet us and then I’ll explain our concerns. We’ll see if he can agree to a private and very secret wedding. Just us. No unnecessar
On the news, a political update was going on. The reporter was flashing headlines from a major newspaper publication. One of the headlines featured Duke Anderson and his opponent on the cover of the newspaper. The headline read; Duke Anderson and Abraham Wilcox. The battle for Mayor is heating up. Who will take over the city?***Later in the evening, Dominic returned home from work and met Andra engrossed in a video game. She was dressed in a boyish outfit and a beanie kept her braids together.“Welcome.” She greeted.“Thanks.” He replied. Dominic was pleased that they were now on cordial terms unlike when they would just ignore each other’s presence. He was proud of his work.Andra didn’t expect to be pleased about their cordial relations. But now she could not deny that it was better than living as enemies. If they would be sharing the house for the duration of the contract, they might as well live like civilized people.His eyes swept over her outfit as he paused. Then he looked
Andra stared at him, towering over her with his dominating presence. She was not sure of her stand before him right now.He could just grab her and she would find herself, butt in the air over his knee, getting spanked for real, but she stood her ground.He had promised not to do that and her hope was built on nothing less than his promise. Right now, she stood there putting on a confident front even if she was somewhat scared of retribution. Still, she was pleased with herself for getting back at him.Dominic saw a smug smile on her face. She was rejoicing over her triumph. Well, she had won. He had to admire her courage. The brat had the guts to lock him up and make demands.“You know I made those promises under duress, right?” his voice was low and ominous.Her eyes slowly widened and she took one step back. “You promised.”He took one step towards her and she took one step back.He paused. Then he smiled, calming her rising nerves. “Got you.” He said and laughed at her.“Haha. Ver
At his response, Andra stayed silent. She lacked words. She tried to speak but ended up swallowing hard. Then she cleared her throat and managed to find her voice.“Why would you do that?” she asked.“Why not?” he asked. “Are you not an attractive woman?”Her cheeks flushed at his compliment and she fought to look unaffected by it. She lost the fight and ended up with a faint smile of pleasure. Dominic was pleased to see it.“I thought I was a boy.” She said meaningfully and he laughed, remembering how he called her that sometimes because of her tomboy outfits.Andra joined in his laughter and after a few seconds of shared laughter, they suddenly stopped. It was as if, they were being cautious of the major reason why they were living together in the first place. They were not friends. They were there to honor a contract.“Goodnight, Mr. Dominic.” She said, using an official address. She was using that to help her stay with the goal of the contract.“Goodnight, Miss Andra.” He responde
Andra ended up at the gate and could not get it to open on time. Dominic’s long strides brought him over to her position, cornering her. She surrendered and leaned back against the gate.“Sorry.” She quickly apologized as he crowded her with his presence. “I said I’m sorry. Can’t someone joke with you?”His palms came up and rested on either side of her head, trapping her before him.“I don’t believe you’re sorry.” His gaze was intense upon hers.“But I am.” She assured him. “Besides, I was only playing with you.”“I know you deliberately taunted me but I’m serious. Don’t do that again.”“Fine.”“Now you can say sorry and mean it.”She stared at him challengingly for a few seconds and noticed he was not backing down, his expression remaining stern and expectant.“Okay, I’m sorry.”“Apology accepted.” He said but made no move to release her.“Release me.” She demanded.“If you really wish to be free, there are many ways, Andra. I’m not holding you, am I?”“Why do I need to try differen