006

Sophia De Santos

I should have walked out. It would’ve been easier that way because not only was the darkness making my hands tremble unnoticeably, but I was also beginning to sweat. Still, for some unknown reason, my feet stayed rooted to the ground.

My hand slipped away from the doorknob as I debated leaving. I was about to ask him a question when his voice echoed behind me again.

“How about five bills for sitting here with me? Of course, I won’t demand anything obnoxious from you.”

I gulped. The offer was tempting, too tempting really. I needed money, as much as I could get, but I couldn’t help but wonder why someone would pay five hundred dollars just to sit with them.

“How about a grand then?” His voice came again before I even had a chance to respond.

Turning slowly to face the man, his features still hidden in the darkness surrounding us, I said, “Do you really mean you’re going to pay me five hundred dollars or a grand for staying?” My voice sounded desperate, but there was no way in hell I’d reject an offer of a grand. Especially when the requirements didn’t cost a head.

“I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it.” His reply was simple, but the amusement in his tone was unmistakable, even if I couldn’t see his face.

“Then what do you want me to do?” I asked, gulping as I took small, hesitant steps toward the table.

“Just sit. Until the bottles are empty.”

I sat across from him on the opposite seat. As he leaned forward, I noticed something I hadn’t earlier. His cologne carried a distinct, sophisticated scent—a blend of clean and sensual musk, the ones you can smell from any wealthy man.

There were small movements from his side, and soon I heard the glug-glug of wine being poured into a glass.

“Miss?”

Startled by his voice, I looked up from my trembling fingers. My gaze flicked in his direction, but all I could see in the dim light was his rough profile. Just who was this man? Was I sitting with some weirdo? Or was it too late to back out already?

My worries didn’t last long when the light in the room flickered on suddenly.

He slid a remote across the table. “Comfortable now?” He raised his eyebrows and I couldn’t help nodding.

“Yes… sir.” I had no idea why he decided to turn the lights on, but I was grateful he did. I probably would’ve lost it if he hadn’t.

With the light on, i could now see the unveiled look of the man before me, he was regal and tall, sitting there in his tailored suits, he has his steel Gray eyes on me just as much as I have my black ones on him. He's unexpectedly good looking, very.

He leaned forward to pop open a wine cork and poured some into the glass in front of him. “Do you drink?”

Actually, I occasionally took a few swigs from cheap bottles back in my apartment when I was breaking apart, but that didn’t count, right? “Ah… no,” I denied, shaking my head.

He nodded, amused, leaning back into his chair. He crossed one leg over the other casually. “Then you don’t have to. So, miss—before anything, what may I call you?”

“Sophia,” I muttered, realizing too late that I’d just given him my real name.

He curved his lips into a small smile. “Leo,” he introduced himself simply, picking up his glass and taking a sip. He set the cup down and glanced at me. “Go ahead, you can talk.”

“How do you know I was going to say something?”

He shrugged. “You look like you have a question or two. Like I said, I needed someone to talk to. Someone who isn’t afraid to.”

“Umm, sir… I was wondering why you would offer a huge amount like that over nothing but just talking.”

“Let’s just say I like talking to new people. It’s easier to speak your mind when there’s no baggage, right?” He put down his leg and smiled slightly. “Have you ever felt completely invisible, even when people are looking right at you?”

I thought for a while before muttering, “Every day.”

“Then you’ll understand why I prefer strangers. Because there's no expectations. No need to prove anything.”

“Do you do this often, Mr. Leo? I mean paying random people to sit with you.” I couldn’t help asking.

“No. You’re not the first person I’ve made this offer to… but you might just be the most interesting I've came across.”

“You might be kind of wrong on that one, though. I’m not interesting.” I mumbled more of to myself as i adjusted myself on the chair.

“I don’t need you to be interesting. In fact, you don’t have to. As long as I find you interesting.”

He heard that? “Do you come here often, Mr. Leo?”

“Just today,” he said simply, sipping his wine again. “And you? Have you been working here for long?”

“Not until recently.”

We were just sitting in that silence, not because I couldn't talk, but the lack of what I'm going to say.

He kept filling his glass and gulping down the contents. I couldn’t help but wonder why he wasn’t drunk yet, despite how much he’d had.

Clearing my throat, I asked, “Umm… why do you drink so much if it doesn’t get you drunk?”

“Because it keeps me from remembering,” he said, raising his eyes slightly as he sipped again.

I shouldn’t have asked, but I did. “Remembering what?”

His hand paused on the glass, his gaze hardening suddenly. He set the cup down with a heavier thud than before, making me startled, i look away and mutter, “I shouldn’t have asked. I’m sorry.”

His expression softened almost immediately. “Why apologize? You shouldn’t apologize for doing nothing wrong.”

His tone was so soft that it threw me off. And there it was again—that nagging sense of familiarity. His voice… it sounded so familiar. “Have we met before?” I asked suddenly.

“Would you remember me if we had?” he asked with a smirk.

“Your voice… it sounds familiar.”

He chuckled, grabbing another bottle of wine and cocking it open. “Are you trying to say you've seen me before, miss Sophia?”

I gulped at his answer, studying his face again. But no, he didn’t look like anyone I’d ever met. I probably guessed wrong.

Gina must’ve been looking for me by now, but I’d explain everything to her later.

I was still lost in my thoughts when his voice startled me.

“I'm sure you must know one or two things about contract marriage, so what do you think about it Miss Sophia?”

His words hit me so hard that I couldn’t help taking a second look at him. “Why marriage? Why not just… hire someone to be your girlfriend or something?”

He clicked his tongue. “Because girlfriends come and go. A wife, even if it’s on paper, stays long enough to make people believe.”

“Well… I have nothing against it. I believe everyone has a reason that drives their decisions. And if anyone entered a contract marriage without any reason, I still believe everyone is entitled to their choices.”

“Then, can you consider one, Miss Sophia?”