1: Betrayed and United

“How are your wedding plans coming along?” Fabian asked his eldest daughter after finishing his red wine. Citrine came to a halt, putting down the knife and fork she was using to cut her steak in order to give her father her full attention.

“Everything is fine; we’re planning to send out the invitations next week,” she replied before turning to face Gael, who was sitting next to her. “Right, love?”

“Huh?” Gael looked at her, surprised as if his mind was elsewhere. He cleared his throat to regain his composure and replied with a smile, “Y-Yeah, that’s right.”

“I see, if you need any help with it or anything, let us know, alright?”  Fabian offered, forcing Citrine to smile.

“Yes, Dad,” she answered before continuing to eat. She’s having trouble getting used to Fabian being nice to her. After all, she knew it was all a ruse to keep his fatherly image.

“I can’t believe you’re really getting married, Citrine,” Trisha, her half-sister said excitedly. She is three years younger than her because Fabian got Citrine’s mother pregnant first, but her mother isn’t a mistress—she was raped.

“Right, who would have thought that someone would marry her despite her illegitimacy?” Olivia, her stepmother, remarked. Citrine clenched her fist as she gave her a quick look. She was already used to Olivia’s hurtful comments about her since she never really concealed her hostility toward her even back then. Still, she couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable, especially since she was with Gael.

She despises the fact that Olivia will not hesitate to make fun of her, whether in private or in public. She felt humiliated.

“Mom, stop that,” Trisha said as she looked at her older sister and apologized. Citrine was about to say something when Gael grabbed her hand from beneath the table and squeezed it.

Citrine’s illegitimacy is no secret because, despite her biological father’s status as a well-known businessman, he did not hesitate to take her from the orphanage after learning that the maid he’d sexually assaulted had given birth to his first daughter. Fabian dressed Citrine and brought her home, but he never once treated her like a real family. For him, she’s just a tool, one that he can discard when no longer useful.

“Legitimate or not, Citrine is someone I admire for who she is, so, Auntie, I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but I’d appreciate it if you would stop mocking my fianceé,” Gael said, causing Citrine to look at him with surprise. She wasn’t expecting him to respond to Olivia’s mockery of her. He is usually a calm and collected person, so what he did took her by surprise. And... It makes her happy.

“I’ll apologize on my wife’s behalf; she isn’t usually this rude, but the mistake I made in the past has changed her.” Fabian apologized as he wiped his mouth with a napkin. 

“It’s all right, Uncle. But I hope it doesn’t happen again,” Gael said, and Citrine just pursed her lips. She glanced at Trisha and noticed her cheeks were flushed. On the other hand, Olivia avoided looking at them, clearly having no intention of apologizing for the behavior she displayed in front of the guest.

“Don’t worry, it won’t happen again. Anyway, let’s not spoil the mood,” Fabian said before quickly changing the subject, “Oh right, I forgot to ask, have you closed the proposal with the Soldevilla Group, Citrine?”

“Ah, my meeting with Reva—I mean, the CEO of Soldevilla is scheduled for tomorrow,” she cleared her throat and accidentally knocked the spoon off the table. She drew back her chair and lifted the tablecloth to get the spoon from under the table, but she came to a halt when she noticed Gael wasn’t wearing one of his shoes. She was about to ask if his foot hurt, but she could see Trisha quickly fixing her dress.

“Are you uncomfortable in your dress?” Citrine questioned as she sat properly and set the dirty spoon on the table.

“Yes, a little,” Trisha replied before smiling and looking at Gael, who swallowed violently and was startled when his fianceé turned to face him.

“Does your foot hurt?” Citrine asked.

“M-my shoes are new, so I’m afraid I’ll get a blister, but don’t worry, I’m fine,” Citrine frowned as he stammered nervously. Trisha smiled mischievously at the couple but said nothing.

“Are you sure?” Citrine inquired, and Gael simply nodded before kissing her on the forehead.

Throughout the dinner, they discussed Gael and Citrine’s wedding preparations and their post-wedding plans, as well as some business-related topics. Their conversation flowed with ease but Citrine couldn’t help but think about Gael’s strange behavior earlier. She kept remembering his nervous expression  

“See you tomorrow, babe,” Citrine smiled but was surprised when Gael grabbed her waist and leaned her against his car. “W-what are you doing? Someone might see us.”

“Who cares? We’re getting married soon,” he said softly before touching and lifting her chin. Citrine simply shook her head before closing her eyes and allowing him to kiss her. His tongue brushed across her bottom lip, asking for entrance and she granted it with ease. She felt him smile as her mouth opened wider under his.

“Mmnn!” She moaned when he pressed his body against her, his breath hot on her skin and she felt a smile crawl onto her face as they kissed, both of their hands tangled in each other’s hair and bodies. 

And before they could lose control, Citrine gently pushed Gael away from the kiss. He bit his lip and adjusted his glasses, causing Citrine’s cheeks to turn bright red.

“Come on, stop seducing me. We have work tomorrow; you need to go home and rest,” she said, and Gael smiled mischievously before kissing her again.

“All right, good night, babe.”

“Yeah, be careful driving. Message me when you get home,” Citrine reminded, and he simply nodded while smiling. He was about to get inside the car when he realized he had forgotten to say something.

“You mentioned meeting with Revan Soldevilla tomorrow, right?” he asked, causing Citrine to flinch slightly. “Be careful around that jerk; he’s dangerous.”

“Okay,” she replied, smiling because even if he didn’t remind her, she knew what kind of person Revan was.  After all, he was a big part of her life during her teenage years.

THE NEXT DAY, Citrine couldn’t help but take a few deep breaths as she read the sign on the door that read ‘CEO’

This isn’t her first time in this company, but her heart couldn’t stop racing. She wasn’t sure if she was nervous about not being able to close the deal or because she’d be meeting the man who had betrayed and broken her heart for the first time in 6 years.

“Sir, the general manager of the Lustrio Hotel is already here,” said the secretary who led Citrine into the office. 

“Let her in.” Citrine flinched when she heard that familiar icy voice.  The secretary looked at her and then opened the door for her. Citrine smiled and thanked him before finally entering the office and turning around when the door shut behind her. 

“It’s been a while.” she swallowed hard and slowly turned her attention to the front, where Revan was currently leaning on his desk. Citrine clenched her fist and smiled professionally, ignoring the way he looked at her as if she were prey that had wandered into the predator’s territory.

“Yes, it’s been a while, Mr. Soldevilla.” Citrine walked closer to him and was surprised when he did the same. It’s been six years since she saw him this close to her. He’s changed a lot, from the bad boy who was always in trouble to someone much more mature and dignified. His demeanor has changed as well, but he’s still intimidating like a gangster. His hair has grown long enough to reach his shoulders and is currently neatly tied into a man bun. His gray eyes were still piercing as she remembered them. And, no matter how hard she tries, she can’t deny that he’s uselessly attractive.

‘Ugh! I can’t believe I’m still such a sucker for looks.’

Citrine cleared her throat. “As you know, I’m here to talk about the business projec—”

“Have you eaten yet?” Revan interrupted her, causing her to frown.

“I’m sorry?”

“I haven’t eaten yet, and I don’t think I can focus when my stomach is grumbling; shall we take our meeting outside?” Revan said casually and Citrine blinked one after another as he walked past her; before she knew it, he had already left his office and she was alone inside.

“What the hell?! He still does whatever he wants,” she grumbled. Mature and dignified? Who was she even kidding when she thought of that?

“Are you sure that’s all you’re going to eat?” Revan questioned when Citrine only ordered pasta. She doesn’t think she’ll be able to eat much with him; she hasn’t even begun yet, but she already felt having an upset stomach. She was dumbfounded by how things were escalating casually after they reunited.

“Yes, Mr. Soldevilla. You see, I’m balancing my diet because I’m getting married soon and I can’t afford to gain weight now that my wedding gown has been made,” she replied, faking a smile, but frowning when she noticed that he didn’t seem interested in what she was saying. She just took a deep breath before shifting the conversation to business, but Revan cut her off again before she could even open her mouth.

“Hmm, isn’t that him?” he wondered aloud, staring behind him.

“Who?” Citrine looked where he was looking and was surprised to see Gael with Trisha. They walked into the restaurant together, laughing happily.

‘When did they get so close?’

“Gae–” Citrine couldn’t call her fiancé because Revan covered her mouth. She looked at him, but he simply placed his finger on his lips, as if telling her not to call Gael’s attention. She swallowed hard and kept her gaze fixed on the two until they were seated on the other side. 

Since there was a screen divider, they didn’t notice them but Citrine still grabbed Revan’s hand that was covering her mouth, she removed it and then pulled him to bow as she did. She wasn’t sure why she was hiding, but those two had been acting strangely last night, and she had a bad feeling about it.

“Are you sure we don’t need a private room? What if someone recognizes us here?” Gael asked, his voice trembling as if he was afraid someone would see them together. As if they were doing something wrong. Citrine clenched her fists; she had no idea what was going on.

“It’s okay, what else are you afraid of?” Trisha asked, “We’ve been dating behind my sister’s back for a year and have never been caught; we’re even doing dirty things under the table at dinner last night while you were standing up for her with mom—”

Citrine turned pale and couldn’t bear listening to their conversation any longer. She stood up and left abruptly. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to keep the tears at bay. Her heart felt tight in her chest, and all she could do was hug herself trying to comfort her own pain—she was betrayed by the people she thought were her allies.

“Are you really crying?” Revan asked when he caught up with her. Citrine had no idea how she managed to enter an empty private room, but that didn’t matter. She just wiped the tears that escaped her eyes and turned around to face Revan.

“Did you expect me to laugh after that?” she asked in disbelief.

“Why are you upset? You were already aware that all men are jerks,” he scoff which made her furious. Citrine clenched her fists to keep herself from punching him. It infuriates her that he was the one who had to see that her fiancé was cheating on her with her half-sister.

“Right, all men are jerks like you,” she sneered, running her fingers through her hair and glaring at him. “Do you enjoy seeing me like this again? That I looked like a fool crying over a man? Does it make you feel good?”

Citrine pushed Revan’s chest repeatedly until he grabbed her wrists. She tried to break free, but he was too strong for it to work. She knew she shouldn’t lash out at him, but he had provoked her.

“Why are you mad at me? Am I the one who cheated on you?” Revan asked calmly as he let go of her. Citrine couldn’t believe he was asking her such a question. Is he really acting without any knowledge? Or has he completely forgotten what he did to her?

“You’re wondering why I’m angry with you?” Citrine gritted her teeth as she grabbed Revan’s necktie and pulled him closer. Her skin burns like fire against him, his breath hitting her mouth. “Why don’t you try and guess?”

Revan raised a brow, 

“Hmm, because I dumped you six years ago?”