* Stuart's POV *I was standing near Marco's mini-bar when I heard someone coming. I thought it was Mago, so I glanced at the entrance, but I did not expect to meet her eyes. It was a brief exchange of glances because she immediately turned away and headed to the kitchen."Wait, am I imagining things, or did I just see Patricia avoid your stare?" I heard Kaz, who apparently wanted to annoy me."Tsk," I decided not to bother and instead sip some wine."Come on! Do you really have to treat her that way?" Kaz leaned on the counter, "by the looks of it, it shows that neither of you has moved on.""Our breakup was clear to me," I firmly replied. "I don't know about her. She still continued to follow me around.""She still follows you around?" he inquired.I did not answer, and that gave him the message that I was not interested in our topic. Kaz has spoken with Angelo while I continued to drink my wine. I saw from the corner of my eyes that she had gone to talk with her friends. There is s
"D*mn! I never thought that I'll get to date Patricia," Mago expressed when we entered the dressing room for men, "she is so d*mn hot, dude! And the butt," he tried to gesture as if he was holding Patricia's butt in his hands, "oooh fvck! She is the epitome of seduction, and I can't wait to see her grind on top of me."I tried to ignore him, but I could not take his last line for granted. I pushed him to the wall and clenched his collar. "Don't you dare disrespect Patricia that!""Hey! Take it easy, dude," Angelo tried to calm me down."D*mn it, dude! I thought you didn't like Patricia. Why are you acting like a protective boyfriend?" Mago said, "You have your own date, Stuart. I don't care what you would do with her, but take my word, bro! I wouldn't force myself on Patricia unless she wanted me to give her what you've been trying to deprive her."I do not know what to say, but all I know is I dislike what is happening now. Mago is known for being a man whore, and he likes to brag ab
*Patricia's POV I knew that it wouldn't matter if I sang a song for Stuart or not, but since Kaz asked me to choose a piece, I decided to choose a song that would help me express how I currently feel. 'At least, even with a song, I can convince myself that I am already over with him,' she convinced herself.She smiled bitterly at the thought. She knew that even if she intended to sing the song for Stuart, it would still not matter. Stuart never cared about her. She sighed as she remembered the past.* The flashback*One thing about being rich is that after graduation, we do not need to worry about being hired. We have our own company to fall back to. While Stuart was starting to learn how to handle their family business, I decided to put up my own online business. It was easy since I could get clients from my dad's friends. Besides having a stress-free job, I also have enough time to work on my top priority for this month, and that is to make Stuart love me.Call it desperate, but i
*Stuart's POV I wondered why Patricia's smile changed. Is it because of our divorce? But I could not be responsible for the change in her smile. What happened before was bound to happen. My agreement with Patricia was very clear, and whatever made it wrong, it was because Patricia crossed the line of our first agreement.* The flashback*Three weeks passed, and I am still having trouble naming the feelings I have for Patricia. I know she is special because she made me smile even with just a thought of her, but I want to be sure about this. I wanted to be sure that this was not just some kind of infatuation where I just got used to her presence. She showered me with so much attention and did not give me room to make an effort for her. What if I just got used to her cares? What if she is just filling the gap that Sandra left? What if Sandra returns, and then I will realize that I still love her and not Patricia?I wanted to make this right. I do not want to make this relationship offic
*Patricia’s POV – the flashback*I cannot contain my happiness because Stuart agreed to marry me. Although we decided it would only be for a year, at least I have one year to make him fall for me. When we reached Las Vegas, I convinced him to help me purchase what we needed for the wedding. I did not have to exert extra effort to make him agree with me because it was his father who pushed him to go with me.“Which do you think fits me best?” I said cheerfully as I showed him the line of displayed wedding dresses.“Pick any dress,” he said adamantly, “it wouldn’t matter anyway. It is not like it was a big wedding for you to prepare for.”I sighed when I heard his answer. He was right; it was not a big wedding. Only our immediate family and some of our parents’ business partners will be there. None of my friends will be coming due to personal reasons. I do not know why he did not invite his friends; maybe he does not want them to know.I chose the simple white long mermaid cut dress and
*Stuart’s POV – the flashback*All I want is to try to move on just like Marco, but I never expected that our relationship would escalate this fast. The angst I felt for marrying Patricia is indescribable. My heart still longed for Sandra, but I have decided to move on. This is why I chose to be in a relationship with Patricia. Still, she took things her way and plotted this arranged marriage. I planned to make things difficult for her. I want her to give up pursuing me when our one-year arrangement ends. She has to stop leading my life.I started by showing little interest in the wedding preparations. If it were not for Dad, I would not have come with her, but because I do not want to disappoint Dad, here I am. Acting more like her escort than being her fiancé.We were in a bakeshop when I received an email.Sender: Sandra SandovalHi, I heard you are marrying Patricia. Congratulations! I just messaged to let you know that I will attend your wedding. I would definitely take advantage
*Stuart’s POV – the flashback*After an hour of being convinced that Patricia was already asleep, I picked up my phone. I dialled Sandra’s number, “where are you now?” I asked as soon as she answered my call.“I am at the bar of the hotel,” Sandra answered.“Don’t go anywhere,” I said, “wait for me. I’ll pick you up.”“What? Are you out of your mind? You are not supposed to leave your wife on your first night,” she panicked.“She is asleep—““I don’t believe you!”“Please let me see you,” I sounded desperate.“What about Patricia?”“I made sure she fell asleep before making this call. I can freely leave the room without her noticing,” I explained, “we need to talk. We need to talk about us.”“Okay,” I heard her sad sigh again, “I’ll wait for you here.”I immediately left the room and headed to the hotel’s bar. I am determined to fix this mess, but I must ensure that Sandra will be there for me. Her love will make me endure my father’s anger. Sandra is everything to me now.“I didn’t k
*Patricia’s POV – the flashback*My spirits were high as we headed to our hotel suite. I admit that I anticipated something when we reached our hotel suite. I love Stuart, and I can’t wait to feel him tonight. I cannot deny the fact that I am both excited and nervous about our first night together. This will be my first time to share a bed with a guy. I have reserved myself for him, and tonight, I am giving my all to him.Stuart was silent the whole time, but it did not bother me. I do not know what he had in mind, but it doesn’t matter now. All I care for now is how to seduce him to fall in love with me. He has given me a year to do that, and I do not plan to waste any of that time. I heaved a sigh as I reminded myself that I would start seducing him tonight.We entered a nice, romantic honeymoon suite. The lights were dim, and the bed was big with see-through draperies that reached the floor. The aromatic scent of the room, plus the sight of the two wine glasses with wine on a round
*Patricia’s POV*I never expected what happened, but I am thankful that everything became clear. Because of the revelation, this is the right way for Stuart and I to start over again. We both love each other, and there are no more secrets. I could not say that I had already forgiven Sandra because I still hated the idea that she tried to manipulate Stuart so she could have someone to fall back on. But everything happens for a reason. What happened paved the way for Stuart to prove he truly loves me. He never gave up on me, even when I had already given up on him.As for Alexis, Xander came to take Alexis and Sandra. They have decided to continue Alexis’ treatment in the United States with the hopes that they will be able to find a donor there. I wish them well, and I hope that the experts in America will be able to help them.I do not want to think that everything will be perfect. Things will never be perfect in this world. What matters is that we learn to love, forgive, and change fo
*Stuart’s POV*I can’t measure my happiness while watching my wife sleep in my arms. I caressed her face as I admired her delicate features. She moved and tried to cover her face with a pillow, but I stopped her.”Stuart,” she complained, ”I am still sleepy.””What? I didn’t do anything,” I replied.”You are seducing me, mister!” she opened her eyes and squinted at me.”Seducing? I have not even started it yet,” I pulled her closer to me, ”but if you are already seduced, why don’t we do what we did last night.””You’re crazy!” he lightly punched me on my arm, ”I told you, I am still sleepy,” she pouted.”Hmm,” I kissed her forehead, ”I love you.””Love you too,” she said, now closing her eyes, ”but can your hands behave? They are being naughty.””Really?” I smiled, ”guess my hands now have their own minds.””Stuart!”Damn, that was sexy! I liked it whenever she uttered my name. I did not stop myself anymore. I held her chin and tasted her lips. She responded to my kiss and brushed her
*Patricia’s POV*A relieved smile was painted on his face as he said, ”Love, I love you too, but let me just finish my proposal, okay?”Tears flowed from my eyes as I shook my head, ”I love you so much that I can’t let you have a damaged heart.”His smile quickly faded, ”Love, please,” he pleaded.I was about to answer, but someone from behind interrupted, ”I will not allow you to embarrass my son to everyone, Patricia.”I turned to see the angry face of Stuart’s father as he said, ”Stuart, get up!”His voice was filled with authority that even when he was not holding a microphone, everyone could still hear him.”I-I’m sorry, Mr. Cordoval,” I blurted out, ”but I think this is what’s best for all of us.””Who told you that this is the best?” his voice roared across the hall, ”you signed a contract.””Is this about the contract wherein your son bought all my services?” I tried to make my voice firm.”I am not referring to that contract, Patricia,” he answered.I do not know what he was
*Stuart’s POV*I swallowed my pride and stayed persistent because I did not want to give up on pursuing Patricia. For more than four years, she has been my stalker, not giving up no matter how I tried to drive her away; now that the table has been turned, I cannot just give up this easily. Seeing her in my office daily was good, even if she treated me coldly. She wants everything kept on a professional level, so I decided to assign the preparations for the company’s anniversary party to her. That way, she will be too preoccupied to notice me watching her. There is still pain in her eyes, and I hate it because I know that I was the one that caused her all those pain.I wished I could turn back time. I wished I could undo everything I had done to her. I wished I had known better before.”Is the mini stage ready?” I heard her ask her assistant, ” How about the menu? Is everything ready?”She gave out a relieved smile every time her assistant confirmed positively. She obviously loved what
*Patricia’s POV*”Good morning, Miss Pat,” the secretary greeted me, ” Sir Stuart has been waiting for you since he arrived this morning,” she continued as she opened the door for me.”Love,” Stuart stood as soon as he saw me.”Stay right there,” I said, ”first condition, stay away from me. It would be much better if you maintain a certain distance between us.””If that will make you stay, I will do it,” he answered.”That’s another one,” I pointed out, ”I am here to work, so if it is time for work, don’t do anything that will make my work awkward. Treat me as an employee. And lastly, I demand a break. That means I should not be with you all the time. If you agree with my conditions, I can start now.””Everything’s clear,” he said, ”but I already have a secretary, so you’ll do your usual work assignments besides being a secretary.”I don’t know why I felt jealous, knowing he kept his secretary even if I was already there. I should be glad my workload will be lessened, but why am I dis
*Patricia’s POV*”Patricia Sandoval,” the agent called my name. I have tried applying for a job but to no avail. I have not received any invitation for an interview. This is why I tried relying on a job placement agency. This way, I could probably get a chance to land a job that suits my qualifications.”I am sorry,” the agent handed me my application, ”we cannot hire you.””W-what? What do you mean?” I was confused.”I am not authorized to tell you the details,” she lowered her head as if she was guilty of something.”Don’t you have anyone whom I can talk to? I need to know what is wrong with my applications. Why am I rejected? This seems to be the same with the other companies I have applied for.””I will be honest with you,” she whispered, ”your resume is good, but I think there is a problem with your employment history. When we entered your name, it says there that you are blacklisted.”BLACKLISTED. Only one person came to mind when I heard the word. Stuart is the only person capa
*Patricia's POV*I never thought I'd cause Kaz and Vivienne so much trouble because of the kiss I gave Kaz in front of many people. It speculated about their fake relationship, which is why Kaz and Vivienne are now doing whatever they can to solve the problem. Vivienne even went further by kissing Mago in front of all the cameramen to prove that kissing among our circle of friends is normal. On the other hand, Kaz has decided to bring their fake relationship to the next level, which is to pursue their fake wedding.Everyone in the house was busy preparing for their pre-nuptial photoshoot. As expected, all my friends, including Stuart, were there. I tried to keep myself away from him, even though he had tried all means to talk to me. I love him, but it is not enough for me to forgive him and my cousin." Just let me ex-"" Explain?" I stopped him." Explain what? There is nothing to explain, Stuart. Your explanation can never change the fact that both you and my cousin cheated on me on
*Patricia's POV* It didn’t take long for Kaz to arrive. I told him what happened and asked him to take me to a bar. “Patricia, that’s enough,” Kaz tried to stop me from drinking another bottle of beer. “Don’t you dare stop me, Kaz Legaspi! I simply want to get wasted. Do you hear me?” I drunkenly uttered. “What do you want me to do just for you to stop drinking?” he desperately asked. “Sing to me a song, Kaz. I want you to sing me a song you will dedicate to me only for me.” Kaz did as I asked. He went to the mini-stage and dedicated Enrique Iglesias’ “Why Not Me” to me. I watched him sing passionately to me. Kaz often proved his love to me, but I continuously fell for the wrong guy here. Why can’t I just love Kaz? He is also a good catch – rich, handsome, very thoughtful – but the best of all is HE LOVES ME. Everyone in the place thought that he was singing the song for his fake fiancé, Viviene, so I felt like being a bitch. I stood from my place and walked towards the mini
*Patricia’s POV* “Sandra!” I couldn’t contain the happiness I felt upon seeing her. “This is Alexis, my daughter,” she introduced the kid next to her. “Hi, Alexis,” I lowered myself to greet the kid and invited them both to get inside the house. I am sure Stuart would be happy to see his best friend. Her arrival is timely since I do not have a maid of honor for my wedding. “Love?” Stuart called but froze upon seeing Sandra with me. “Love,” I smiled lovingly, “Sandra’s here. Look, she has a cute little kid.” I couldn’t tell if Stuart was happy, but I think it was because Sandra’s visit was so unexpected. Besides, we have not talked about her since he came back. “I- I think we should better go,” Sandra uttered, “we may have disturbed you.” “What are you thinking?” I stopped her, “You’re my cousin, and you are the best friend of my fiancé.” “F-fiance?” she obviously could not believe what I just said, so I got so excited to announce to her our engagement. “You’ve been so away s