Chapter 2
Adler has experienced tons of crazy things ever since he started going to college. As he was a pampered young master in his grade school days and a reserved young man when he was in high school, he became a wild man when he finally got his liberty to decide for himself and authorization of his actions when he got to college. Among all the senseless things he had discovered, he was often overwhelmed, occasionally surprised but rarely intimidated while to those that he had done, he felt guilty to some, enjoyed most of them, sometimes guilty while enjoying doing them at the same time. But compared to all the senseless things that he had done, he couldn't find anything more ridiculous, and flabbergasting compared to suddenly meeting your bride, especially on a rainy Sunday morning while suffering a massive hangover.
"I'm your fiancée." As soon as the woman's pale lips conjured those words, Adler's jaw to drop down to his carpeted floor as soberness took over his system, abandoning his hangover behind. He couldn't muster what he was currently feeling, it somehow felt like a combination of uttered surprise, confusion, and dismay and it felt worse as his aching body wasn't in the mood to read the situation and cooperate with his brain and he automatically thought that he heard her wrong.
"I-I'm sorry. I think I heard you wrong, can you please say it again?" he asked, stuttering while convincing himself that he might really have heard her wrong. He silently prayed, faithfully hoping that he heard her wrong.
"I am your fiancée. I'm Carylle Kaye Melendez, Don Miguel Augusto Melendez's daughter. We met on my dad's birthday three years ago." She repeated and he wished he was deaf.
Adler felt his world crack and crush to small pieces, turning into debris and powdery pieces that could be easily swept by a gust of wind. It's done. It's the end. His life as a bachelor is coming close to an end and his life as a father and an old man is coming close. He wanted to rub the bridge of his nose in vexation but stopped himself as the woman might find it rude. But at the same time, she relieved his wonders. No wonder she looked familiar, she's Don Melendez's daughter, the man whose wife made a promise of the womb with his mother that their children will get married. He remembered the time they first met on her father's 55th birthday. He was a fresh graduate at that time and was given a six-month break by his family before they let him work in their company, rendering him to have much time to spare and rest from college's hellish claws of stress and breakdown machines.
He remembered the time when they met and thought that the woman looked completely different compared to that time, he remembered her striding gracefully with a confident yet humble look on her face. Among the sea of people, she was the one who seemed to emit a strong ray of light that harms his eyes, like a divine being sent down to heaven and walking on the rough grounds of the Earth. She looked like an innocent angel who was too pure for the real world and a graceful succubus who snatches men's attention with her graceful beauty. One could obviously see that she was raised and groomed to be a rich man's perfect trophy daughter. That was also the first and last time he saw her, until today. But more than that, it doesn't change the fact that her coming is a mark that his single, free, and no commitment life trial is close to expiring. Though, he wasn't single, to begin with.
The woman's doe-like eyes looked at him as she was about to cry. He read the reaction, she thought he doesn't believe her because he acted bewildered. "If—If you're doubting my identity, I ca—"
"No, no need." Adler cut her off before she could speak further as her voice was getting thick and her eyes started to slightly water. He didn't want to see her cry and also upset her on their second meeting. He sighed inwardly, pushing all the mixed emotions out of his chest, reverberating it before slowly lifting lips into a wide and welcoming fake smile, the same smile he shows to his clients when attending meetings and conferences. "I was wondering why your face was somewhat familiar, turns out you're my fiancée. Come in, it must have been freezing outside." He stepped aside and opened the door wider, giving her enough space to come inside.
"Thank you," she said in a small voice, lowering her head a bit as if she made a slight bow, then turned her back on him and grabbed the two large suitcases behind her, Adler was about to open his mouth and stop her as he wanted to help her but he was too late as the woman dragged them as she set a foot inside the building then went on to his couch, placing them aside before sitting down. He then decided to offer help instead when moving the luggage inside her room.
Adler noticed the way her back curved, sitting only on 1/3 of the couch, her back and tailbone barely near the backrest with her knees and heels together side-by-side and her feet slightly slanting, doing a Duchess Slant while resting her left hand in the crease between her thighs and putting her right hand on top of it. She really was raised to become a proper lady, not like he minds however she sits though but it was too inconspicuous not to notice that despite being extremely damped, she still looked graceful.
Damped, Adler thought as he pursed his lips, and a thought immediately came across his mind. "Hold on, one second," he told her before turning on his feet and heading back to his bedroom with quick yet profound footsteps.
Chapter 3Damped, Adler thought as he pursed his lips, and a thought immediately came across his mind."Hold on, one second," he told her before turning on his feet and heading back to his bedroom with quick yet profound footsteps.When he arrived, he hastily grabbed his phone from his nightstand, opening his lock screen then started dialing his mother's phone number, the pressure of his thumb pressing on the screen gets harder and harder as well as his rising vexation. He finally pressed the call button and placed the phone on his ear while heading to the bathroom to grab one of his towels. Adler grit his teeth strongly while listening to the dialing sound produced by his phone, impatiently waiting for his mother to answer the call from the other end as he relentlessly took the towel hanging on the tiled wall then left the bathroom, hurrying downstairs.When he arrived, his irritation faded and like a strike of lightning, pity immediate
Chapter 4"Hi, ma—""Aiya! Show me my daughter-in-law! I'm sick of seeing your face!" she immediately demanded, Adler had no choice but to leave the kitchen and show his fiancée who was quaking in coldness in the living room while gripping the thick towel around her shoulders using her gelid hands."Hey." He lightly tapped her shoulder, and she instantly turned her head in response. He handed her his phone and mouthed. "It's my mom, she said she wants to talk to you.""Oh." she lightly gasped. "Okay, okay," she whispered before taking the phone from his large, veiny hands and gently placed it on the stents attached to the coffee table."Hello, Tita," she greeted with a small smile on her face."Oh my! Carylle, dear. It's so good to see you agai—" his mother's jolly greeting was soon cut off and Adler saw how her eyeballs almost jumped off her eye sockets because of how they widened. "Oh my! You look like a
Chapter 5"What do you mean?"She was silent for a moment, rubbing her arm whilst looking in a different direction. She looked like she was mentally debating with herself about something. "You don't look so well, carrying them might give you a hard time."Thinking that she doesn't trust him and is worried that he won't be able to handle her things well, he grabbed the handles as he decided to lighten the heavy, awkward atmosphere surrounding them by chuckling softly. "I may look like some snowflake right now but "strong" is my middle name," he said wittily that made her give off a small giggle, and he had never thought he would hear something so beautiful."Is that so? Then I'll leave them to you, strong sir," she replied jokingly, going along his pretense while striding behind him and he thought that the atmosphere between them seems to have gotten lighter. "Please lead me the way," she told him with a small smile that made the corner of
Chapter 6 "I think you should rest right away!"she answered, her voice rising to pitch higher than the small and timid voice she used earlier. He inwardly laughed and thought that she sounded like his mother when worried. Maybe just a few parts to take note of and a little more practice, and she would be able to copy his mother's high-pitched fretting voice perfectly. "But I need to show you to your roo—" "I just need to head straight to the door at the end, right? You don't need to worry, I can handle myself just right," sensing her nape moving back and forth, he learned that she was nodding at him. "And where's your room?" he heard her ask. "Let's just take a 180-degree turn and head straight. My room's just on the opposite side," he answered, and they both turned on their heels, moving in sync, and then began walking. "Are you sure?" he asked her once again. "Yup yup, very sure." She nodded continuous
Chapter 7 While Adler started to sleep soundly in the comfort of his sovereignty of pseudo-clouds and the ice pack she brought him, Carylle rested her back against the door she had recently closed and heaved a sigh whilst thinking how eventful the entire morning was. For one moment, she was freezing like the Philippines' hell-like temperature dropped to negative zero degrees that she felt like she was going to get frostbite, and now she is in a warm room, she feels awkward being left alone. But she doesn't mind, the excuse was reasonable anyway. Remembering her fiancé's appearance made her facepalm inwardly, his dazed self who was completely disheveled, obviously perturbed and taken away from his ecstasy and his reaction when she introduced herself to him, the chaos between him and his mother when he called her. It wasn't his fault though, she came to his house unannounced. Their meeting was a fiasco, and it was beyond disappointing
Chapter 8 "Hey,Kuya," she immediately greeted him after answering the call, a small smile tinkering on her lips. She's been away from home for hours and she misses everyone already. The servants who take care of their house and assist her with every move she makes, the farmers in the hacienda who she delivers snacks to as a token of thanks for their hard work every single day, and most of all, her loving brothers who spoil her as if she was a princess. "Have you arrived safely, Carylle?" her brother's low voice asked sweetly, causing her small smile to widen. The wind passed through her, causing her hair semi-dry hair to swish slightly while she felt chilly and suddenly had the urge to drink coffee. She hummed as she remembered the coffee given to her by her fiancé that she left on the lounge’s coffee table. "Yes,Kuya. I just arrived at his apartment," she answered as she started walking out of her room,
Chapter 9 Adler woke up with the scent of spices tickling his nose like a pungent finger poking into his nostrils. He opened his eyes and indulged in the strong, spicy scent of spices but not too spicy that it hurts his nostrils, it was just mildly tangy and pleasantly aromatic that it comforts his stinging anterior naris and oozingly strong that he can almost taste it in his mouth, particularly his tongue. The fragrance made his stomach growl. His headache was gone but his head still a little heavy, and the swirling dizziness, which he often likened to a fish being twisted and twirled by the roaring ocean’s waves was gone while his muscles that were too heavy to boot earlier felt a lot better, but the stinginess still remained. Driven by the spices’ scent, he somehow felt nostalgic when the spices’ fragrance invaded his nostrils, it was a scent that he had
Chapter 10 The shower he had was refreshing and he felt reborn, Adler left the glass shower with a satisfied smile on his face and a towel tightly hanging on his waist, accompanied with steam and heat from the glass enclosures. He was about to grab his other towel to dry his wet, dark hair speedily dripping endless tiny droplets but then realized that he had given it to his fiancée earlier because she was cold, and he had nothing else to think of giving her. Deciding to dry his unruly tresses with the spare towel he had in his closet, he left the bathroom to get it. When he finally did, he closed his closet and looked at the view outside his room’s large windowpane and noticed that the rain had already stopped but the same dark grey cumulonimbus clouds remained. The sound of his phone ringing stopped him abruptly from indulging himself in staring at the vie
Chapter 43"Nothing at all, sir," he said for the nth time while at the back of his mind, thought that this is was like an investigative interrogation and why this goddamned old man asking him such questions. Was this his way of showing that he didn't fully trust his son in handling his job or was he just being a nosy prick? After all, he could see the signs of progress and escalations in the issues through the reports."Good," was what he only replied while nodding. "It gratifies me reading..." he trailed off, lifted a thick wad of papers in the air, and harshly slammed it on the desk with a loudwhack!"You have improved after countless failures, executive.
Chapter 42 "Executive,"said a low, baritone voice as soon as Adler opened the doors. Right in front of him was a full view of the rear of a towering leather office chair, on its arms, he could see someone's elbows resting on it, which he figured belonged to the man who spoke. He looked around and examined the entire office. It looked nothing different from his previous visit. It was still reeking off the scent of burned sandalwood, a scent that'd make his nose itch, a trait that he inherited from his mother. Everything was still had the same furniture, with each right on their spot. As if they were never moved at all. "Chairman," he greeted back with a slight nod, and the swivel chair immediately turned. It revealed a man looking in his early 50s wi
Chapter 41 "We're talking.We're talking, all right?" Elis asked, nodding relentlessly. "We're patching things up. I know I made a mistake. I should have known my place at that time." He didn't answer her and only gave off a heavy sigh, staring at the dull walls emptily while she continued to explain herself. "But what's with the strong reaction? We just had a good time the other day," she asked frantically with anxiousness painted all over her face. Her forehead held multiple creases, her eyebrows frowning, her frenzied eyes looking at him widely and her lips were wide agape. "I'm sorry if I didn't realize that you were serious. But come on, don't get mad at me. You didn't have to embarrass me earlier too," she con
Chapter 40It was Elis, and she was rubbing her feet on his hard groin!Adler prevented himself from groaning loudly in front of everyone. It was obvious that the woman was doing her crazy lust-driven antics again. She tended to do this whenever they were together in meetings and she was becoming sleepy or bored. She started it off first by mildly running her hand across his, and he would hold her hand in response. It would then end up with them twisting and playing on each other's fingertips. It felt fun, and it woke him up from sleeping on the meeting like how it did with her. The small electrifying sensations running across their fingers felt pleasant. Days went by that time and meetings became more frequent and holding hands and playing fingers gradually became slides on the inner legs and caresses on each other's privates but it d
Chapter 39 "You seem to beenergetic these days, Sir," Morgan said sternly while handing out the organized files to Adler, who was busy reading business proposals and conference invitations on his email. It was another busy day for Adler. Unlike his usual days, he was able to do paperwork efficiently and at a faster pace than his usual. Since his conversationwith Carylle, Adler had been like a wake-up call for him to change his ways. To him, she was right. He realized that he really did need a break, and as they said: Rome wasn't built in a day. However, it did not change the fact that his sleepless nights and endless hours of work with no breaks brought him t
Chapter 38 "I'm okay.Thanks for worrying." "Are you sure?" Carylle asked, her eyes looking at him as if she was asking for reassurance. Adler nodded in response, giving her the reassurance she needed. "Yeah, I'm sure." He figured nowadays that she was such a worrywart to every organism in this world, whether it was alive or dead. Once, she stepped on a pillow while cleaning up. He saw her anxiously brushing it off before putting it back in place. He found her adorable checking on the pillow if it still had blemishes left. She also nudged him slightly just last night as well, and she immediately reacted, asking him if he was all right, and just like right now, she asked for reassurance. It took him a
Chapter 37 It had beentime immemorial since Adler had ever felt comfortable, even in his sleep. For years, he had been alert, restless, and in his keenest senses all the time. He never let his guard down, even less than a second. However, it was what brought him to the position he was in right now. But in exchange for all his continuous success in slowly achieving his goals was the feeling of ease. He had never felt an ounce of comfort since he started dedicating himself to his personal vindication. But right now, there he was, on his bed, sleeping comfortably, unknowingly embracing his pillows with his limbs and sinking into the ultrasoft mattresses like a high-strung being that never had a wink of sleep ever since. He had the most comfortable feeling so far as h
Chapter 36 "No problem,I'm happy to share thoughts deeper than trivial talks." Carylle suddenly said, lifting her cup of decaf for a sip. "I'm enjoying this kind of conversation as well." It was true. Adler never expected he would be having a conversation with her that would hit a level so deep that it went to the point he could reflect and ponder on her opinion. He thought that they would be having trivial conversations for some time, but him opening up brought a door for them to become intimately close, at its slightest, though. Moreover, it proved one of the things people told him before: it would feel good if you open up to strangers because they didn't know you. He s
Chapter 35"Why? What happened?"Carylle asked, obviously intrigued.Adler fell silent for a moment, hesitating once again. He wondered why he hesitated for the second time when he had already made up his mind, and he shouldn't back down from it. "You see..." he started and began pouring what he had been holding back since earlier, telling her that he was upset over unfinished work because he slept on it plus the pressure of the anniversary coming. This time, while he was telling her about it, he felt like a child telling his mother that he was bullied by other kids at school. And it felt good, like something heavy was lifted off his chest."Hmm," she hummed when he finally finished telling his story. "I see," she then