Chapter 2

"Why don't you just try? Paulyn is such a beauty that it would be a waste to let her go just like that," Taft said as they faced each other and were both drinking.

Taft is his only cousin. He is the son of his father's only and younger sister. Both of them are the only child of their family, so they became close even though Taft is five years younger than him. He now considers Taft his younger brother.

"I am not crazy enough to do your suggestion," he replied to his cousin.

"Alfredo, it's not crazy to fuck a very beautiful and very sexy beauty. Do you know what's crazy? It is what you're doing, resisting and rejecting Paulyn. Alfredo, a gorgeous and sexy young woman kept on chasing you and any man would take that opportunity to get laid! Besides, you already fucked her and even if you don't admit it, I know you enjoyed it. So if I were you, instead of rejecting her again, why don't you just enjoy it and join the ride?"

Enjoy it? He hasn’t gone crazy yet to do that. And that is the reason why he is avoiding Paulyn. Because he is still in his right mind. Because the next time something happens to them, he may fall and drown in the desire he feels for the young woman.

"I came here to ask you for advice on how I can solve this problem of mine. But instead of you advising me sensibly, you are inviting me to sin."

Taft filled his empty glass with wine. "Alfredo, it is not a sin. You and Paulyn are not even related, so there is nothing wrong with you doing it with her. Also, she's the one chasing you, not the other way around," Taft said as he filled his glass with wine.

"She is my best friend's daughter," he said emphatically.

"Your best friend who has been dead for two years?" said Taft with sarcasm.

“To take care of and protect Paulyn is what I promised Roberto, Taft, and that is what I will do. So if I had to repeatedly push her away from me, I would. If I had to hurt her with words, I would. I would do everything just to wake her up from her illusion.”

Taft shook his head. "If you've already decided that you're not going to be in bed with Paulyn again, then why are you still asking me? What's the use of my answers to you if you've already decided?" He then drank a glass of his wine.

"All I'm asking you is what else should be done to keep Paulyn away from me forever, not whether I'm going to be with her or not." He said, then shook his head.

He drained the wine left in his glass before he stood up. "I shouldn't have bothered to ask you. I was not able to get a sensible answer from you anyway. You only made my head hurt even more," he said before he turned his back on Taft and walked towards the door out of his house.

"Hey, Alfredo! Wait, let's drink all of this wine first!" Taft shouted, but he didn't bother to look back at his cousin. Instead, he just waved his hand at him as if he's saying goodbye.

He shouldn't have asked his demented cousin. Why did he even bother asking Taft? With Taft’s personality, which could fuck any woman without caring who the woman is or where she came from or if someone would get affected, he should already know what Taft would tell him to do.

When he got out of Taft's house, he immediately went to his car that was parked just a few steps away from Taft's house. But even before he reached his car, he already saw a figure of a woman, her back on his and leaning against his car.

The woman was looking around as if she was looking for something or someone.

He walked towards his car. And as he approached his car, he also gradually recognized the woman that was leaning against his car.

"Paulyn?" He frowned as he said the young woman's name when he finally got near his car.

The young woman quickly turned to him. And she was right; it's Paulyn.

"Ah, you finally came out! I thought you found out I was here again so you wouldn't come out," Paulyn said while pouting as she approached him.

Paulyn was about to kiss him on the lips, but he quickly averted his face. So instead of his lips touching hers, her lips landed on his cheek, causing Paulyn to scowl even more.

"Oh, come on! It's just a kiss. It's just to make up for the almost half an hour that I waited here. My foot is so sore! I've been standing here since a while ago. And it's so hot!" Paulyn complained.

"What are you doing here? Don't you have class now?" He asked the young woman with his knotted forehead.

But Paulyn just wrapped her arms around his arm and leaned her head on his shoulder and did not even bother to answer his question.

"I miss you," Paulyn replied as if she were his girlfriend who he hadn't seen for days.

It's been a week since that night, and he's also been hiding and avoiding the young woman for a week now. But Paulyn has always been persistent. She didn't stop until she could talk to him, and now, the young woman finally had a chance.

He quickly removed Paulyn's arms that were around his arm and faced her.

The disgust was evident on his face as he looked at Paulyn, who was looking up at him and frowning.

"You skipped your classes just to follow me here?" There was a hint of anger in his voice as he asked her.

"Yes," Paulyn replied as if there is nothing wrong with what she did. "I've been going back and forth to your house for a week, but you're not there. I also went to the resort you're building, but you're not there either. You also don't answer my calls, and you don't reply to my messages. I was worried, so I went to see you here since this is the only place you go to if you are not in your house, in your bar, or at the resort."

Alfredo closed his eyes firmly. He also took a few deep breaths. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing from Paulyn.

She didn’t go to her classes just to find him and follow him.

When he opened his eyes, he looked at Paulyn with his cold eyes. "Go back to your university. Go to your classes and don't even try to contact me while you're in class," he firmly said.

He is not asking the young woman. He is telling her what to do. He is commanding her.

Paulyn crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him as she met the cold looks he was giving her.

"I don't want to. I'll come with you. I'll go wherever you go." Her tough answer to him.

He rubbed his temple.

It looks like another long discussion will happen between the two of them because of the young woman's stubbornness.

"Paulyn, just please, please, go back to your school. Or else this will get to your aunt."

Paulyn rolled her eyes. "And so? What now? Do you think you'll scare me with that? I'm not a kid anymore, Alfredo. That won't scare me at all."

He shook his head. "You're not a kid anymore? Then stop acting like one!"

"Ha!" Paulyn pointed to herself. "Me? Acting like a kid?"

She didn't seem to like what Alfredo said.

"Why? Isn't that right? The way you're acting now is not how a mature woman should act. You're acting like a little kid who wants everybody's attention. An attention seeker---" but Alfredo was not able to continue what he was about to say when Paulyn grabbed his face, and in just a flash, her lips were already pressed to his.

He was so shocked that he couldn't even react. His eyes just widened as his body could not move. It was a long time before his brain was able to process what was happening. But when Paulyn suddenly bit his lower lip and tried to insert her tongue into his mouth, that's when he violently removed the palms that were holding both of his cheeks, then firmly grabbed both of her hands and pushed her away. He then violently let go of the young woman's hands and wiped her lips.

"What the hell, Paulyn!" Alfredo exclaimed, unable to believe what Paulyn had done.

He gave her a sharp look, but Paulyn only grinned at him.

"Now, do I still look like a kid to you? Can a kid do that? Can a kid kiss you like that?" She said while still grinning.

Paulyn took a few steps towards him until they were close again. He thought she was going to kiss him again, so he quickly averted his face away from her, causing Paulyn to laugh.

Paulyn shook her head while still grinning. She then brought her face close to his again, and Alfredo, still thinking that Paulyn might kiss him again, was already ready to take a step back away from her. But Paulyn quickly grabbed both of his shoulders, stopping him from moving.

Paulyn tiptoed until she reached his right ear. He could feel her hot breath hitting his ear, making him shiver. "I'm not a child anymore, Alfredo. But I can make a child. And you know that very well." Paulyn whispered and then gently bit the tip of her ear, which made him gasp.

‘Holy shit!’ He silently cursed when he felt his body reacting.

‘Fuck, Alfredo! Get a grip on yourself!’ He told himself again.

He closed his eyes tightly. And the face of his best friend Roberto, who is also Paulyn's father, quickly entered his mind, causing him to open his eyes again.

He firmly grabbed both arms of the young woman, and then he gently pushed her away from him again.

He stared at Paulyn.

There was a glimmer of mischief to be seen in the maiden's eyes that seemed to indicate that she was not yet finished playing with him. But he returned sharp glances at the young woman while still firmly holding both of her arms.

"Stop this bullshit, young lady," he said through gritted teeth.

He let go of one of Paulyn's arms while his other hand, which was still holding Paulyn's other arm, slid towards her before he pulled her towards the door of the passenger seat.

Paulyn struggled. "Wait, what are you doing?" Paulyn said as she tried to withdraw the hand he was holding.

"I am taking you to your university." He answered as he opened the passenger seat door.

When the door of the car was finally opened, he then strongly pulled Paulyn and forcibly put her inside the car. He was almost pushing her in because she was still struggling. 

"No! I'm not going!" Paulyn shouted, but in the end, the young woman was not able to do anything as he shoved her body inside the car.

"What the fuck!" Paulyn exclaimed as he slammed the car door shut.

He took big steps and then opened the driver's seat door and immediately got inside the car.

"When are you going to listen to me, Alfredo? I already told you I don't want to go! I just want to be with you! I want to go wherever you want to go!"

He ignored what Paulyn said. Nothing will happen even if he argues with her anyway. So he just started the car and acted deaf to everything that Paulyn said.

He was driving so fast that it only took minutes for them to reach the university where Paulyn is attending.

"Get out," he said in a tough voice.

But Paulyn did not budge, and instead, she crossed her arms and leaned her back comfortably against the backrest of the seat.

"No."

"Will you come down on your own, or will I push you out?" He said with a threatening tone.

Paulyn looked at him while raising her brows. "Can you do that?" She answered back in a challenging tone.

He didn't say a word. Instead, he reached for the car door and opened it, then he pushed Paulyn out.

"Alfredo!" Paulyn exclaimed as she held on to the open car door and forced herself to balance so that she wouldn't fall over. "Stop pushing me!" She screamed, but he didn't stop. He kept on pushing her.

He didn't push the young woman that hard, just enough to get her out of his car.

"Fine! Fine! Fine! I'm getting out! Stop pushing me—ah! Shit!" She said as she quickly got out of his car. She then fixed her dress. "Are you crazy?" her angry promise.

"Enough with your bullshit, Maria Paulyn Mapa." He spoke its full name. "Go into your classes and stop following me!" He continued before closing the door of the passenger seat and quickly starting his car, leaving Paulyn with her mouth hanging.

His grip on the steering wheel of the car tightened. He was pissed with the young woman. She's making him lose his patience.

Paulyn has done this several times. She doesn’t go into her classes just to follow him wherever he is.

He didn't know what kind of explanation he had to say to stop her, to make her think of her future. Her future where he wouldn't be a part of.

He was still driving when he received a message from Rosario, Paulyn's father's older sister and the one who was taking care of the young woman after her father died. Rosario asked him to come to her house.

—

"Alfredo, I'm begging you. I don't have anyone else to trust, just you. It's just a month," said Rosario in a begging tone.

After he received the message from Rosario, he then went straight to her house. He thought she would just ask something, but it seems she needed more than that.

"Is there still a need for this set-up? I'm sure Paulyn can handle herself very well. Rosario, Paulyn is twenty years old already. She can take care of herself." He replied to Rosario.

"You know that girl, Alfredo. You know I can't leave her alone. Just yesterday, I found out that she hasn't been attending her classes. She's neglecting her studies."

He suddenly got nervous at what Rosario said.

"Did you talk to her?" he asked nervously.

Rosario sighed. "I did. But as usual, I didn't get an answer." She sighs again. "I can't understand that girl anymore. I give everything to her. Everything she wants, I always try to give it to her no matter how hard it is. I also give her the attention she needs even when I'm busy with my work. I am doing everything just so she won't feel that she's alone. But she still does all this. I can't even reprimand her because she doesn't listen to me either." Rosario leaned her back against the backrest of the couch, and a small smile appeared on her lips. "But no matter how stubborn that girl is, I still can't leave her alone. I love that girl, Alfredo, even if she didn't come from me. She's the only one I have, so I'll do everything just to keep her safe. Because I was not able to do that to her father," Rosario said, then looked at him.

She met his gaze. Her eyes are pleading. And when that is the look that Rosario gives him, he can no longer refuse.

Since Roberto's death, Rosario has become Paulyn's legal guardian. And even when Roberto was still alive, his sister, Rosario, has become his friend's partner in raising Paulyn because Paulyn's mother also passed away after she gave birth to Paulyn. And he is the living witness to how Rosario supports then-sixteen-year-old Paulyn to move on with life even without her dear father. He also knew how much Rosario loved Paulyn. Just like she said, she always tries to give everything that Paulyn wants and needs. Rosario also did not fail to pay attention to Paulyn no matter how busy she was in her job as a police officer. Rosario loves Paulyn more than anything in this world, just like how she loved her younger brother. That was another of the biggest reasons why he couldn’t be with Paulyn. Rosario wants the best for Paulyn, and he is not the best for her. Heck, he's not even good for her.

"Alfredo, it's only a month. I just need to make sure that Paulyn will be okay and safe while I'm on the mission. After this mission, I plan to retire so I can take better care of her. Also, I know she'll be safe when she's with you since you can control her stubbornness. And you can protect her."

It's me who has to protect myself from that young woman.

But just like he said, he couldn't refuse Rosario, especially when she was already begging him.

He sighed. "Okay. But just for a month, okay? Just like what you said, you know her very well. She might cause me problems too," he said in a giving-up tone.

Rosario laughed. "Nah. That won't happen. She's more obedient to you than to me," she said while shaking her head.

He just smiled back at Rosario.

If she only knew what her niece was doing to him.

Prepare yourself, Alfredo. This one month is going to be one hell of a bumpy ride.