Chapter 4

GIA

I just had a drink but I'm not drunk. It's him that's making me feel intoxicated. He's too close and I can't breathe. What was JL thinking and why is he in such a hurry? It was already fine. I'm not even hoping anymore to marry him. I'm willing to help his father. The problem is, I don't have that kind of money in the bank. All my money is in investments and if I have any, it might just be around a hundred thousand.

"You're kidding, right?" I turned my back on him and made my way over to the couch. I felt dizzy with what he said about us having a baby. If only staring at each other could make someone pregnant, then let's do it right away.

"I'm—" I didn't let him finish his sentence, he was probably caught off guard earlier. Besides, I don't want to hear any more insults from him. He might say that he was just joking and I was falling for it. It's hard to hope.

"Let me call my lawyer so we can get Tito Alfonso out. What time do we need the bail?" I asked him.

"Before five, but I'm—"

I put my finger on my lips and gestured for him to be silent. It only took a few rings and the attorney picked up the call.

"Attorney, it's Gia. How are you? Good. I called to ask if you could transfer half a million to my personal bank account as soon as possible. Preferably before five in the afternoon. Yes." JL stared at me intently and it made me uncomfortable. So I turned my back to him while I talked to the lawyer. He explained some things to me.

But I couldn't concentrate because of the irritating Jose Luis... sniffing my neck. I couldn't understand what the lawyer was saying.

"Gia, are you still there? I heard you breathing but you weren't saying anything for a minute there. Are you okay?" the lawyer asked me.

"I'm — I'm okay. Please repeat your last statement."

"I said, I can't release that large amount to your bank account. Your father had strict clauses with all the accounts. Only you can release the money. And you can only do that if you marry Jose Luis right now."

"Let me call you back in five minutes." I hung up the phone and turned around to find Jose Luis with his eyes closed and about to kiss me, so I held onto his chest to stop him.

When he opened his eyes, they were glassy. How much did he drink?

"How much did you drink?" I asked him.

"Three beers... a shot of vodka." He laughed. So that's why he's not in his right mind.

"JL, listen. I can't lend you money. The lawyer said—"

"We have to get married so you can take the money out and bail Dad. I know. I heard it all."

I was dumbfounded. He's the one who's not in his senses and yet he heard everything the lawyer said on the phone. Well, he was so close to your ear earlier, didn't you feel his lips on the side of your ear that's why you couldn't answer the lawyer right away?

"D-Do you have a friend that can lend you money? I have two hundred thousand in my account. How much do you have?"

"A hundred."

"That's already three hundred. We only need two hundred more." Just a little more. If only Cleo had money, I would borrow from her. But if she had savings, it would be just a small amount too. We need a rich friend and JL has lots of connections.

"Or we can just get married and get it over with. Do you really —"

"No. We don't have to do that. Don't you have rich friends? Or you can ask one of your girlfriends for help. I'm sure they won't say no," I urged him. Maybe he just needs a little push to ask for help from his friends.

"I don't want to," he replied directly. Is he ashamed to borrow money? Is that the reason?

"You don't want to? So you would just let your father rot in jail? JL!" I sighed in frustration. He is so frustrating. What's wrong with asking for help? Although he has a point, once money gets involved in friendships, they get ruined.

"Gia, I agreed to marry you. I will give you a child. And when we hear the other conditions, then we can talk about getting a divorce. I know you don't want to marry me. I don't want to marry you either. But somehow, fate is pushing us to get married. Do you really want to lose everything and start from scratch? Really? I know you don't have a problem working from the bottom, but what we're talking about here is your parents' hard work. Do you want to throw it all away?"

Does he think I haven't thought about that? Of course, I weighed everything. It's not really about the money. I can earn my own money. I'm not extravagant anyway, so it's not really the point. He's pointing out my parents' legacy and I admit—he's right.

"Let's just get married, please. So we can put an end to this problem... and your problem. I promise to be faithful while I'm married to you, and I believe you would do the same. I don't think you'll cheat on me."

It's as if he's just saying that no one would be interested in me, so he doesn't have to worry about me being with other guys. JL is the one who's messing up my system like this. One minute I am with who I am and the next minute, I'm full of insecurities because of him. I dialed my lawyer's number and gave him a message.

"We are getting married today. Please have the paperwork ready and call Judge Buencamino. Yes. In his private home. You can be a witness and bring your assistant. Just the two of us. No, his mom is not feeling well. Okay, I will see you there." After hanging up the phone, I looked at him. "You might want to change your clothes, we are getting married today. I'm fine with what I'm wearing."

"No, we are not getting married with you wearing that." He called someone and instructed them to bring clothes. "Size four. Cocktail dress. Yes. White. Ten minutes, Monique. Hurry. Thanks."

***

JL took a shower while I made two black coffees. Maybe later we won't get married and we'll both be drunk. This is insane. I told him that we will get married but on one condition. We won't let other people know that we got married. They don't need to know. I was even surprised when JL asked me about getting pregnant in the future. It was the second condition and the third one we will only know once we've accomplished the first two. I simply told him that it's a trend and I don't care about what others will say. Worse comes to worst, I can always fly to the States and stay there while I'm pregnant. That way, I can avoid gossip. I can still manage the business even if I'm far away. I won't be the first one to run a business remotely. Besides, my staff can be trusted.

There was a knock on the front door and when I opened it, I saw a nineteen-year-old girl. She was wearing jeans, a black top, and had her hair tied up. Simple but beautiful. Is she one of JL's — I don't think so. JL's type is older than this girl in front of me.

"You must be Monique," I said to her. She was holding the white dress JL asked her to buy.

"Yes, Ma'am. I'll leave it here on the couch because my boyfriend is waiting for me. I was just tasked by Kuya JL to buy it. Alright then."

She quickly said goodbye and I picked up the dress. I was sipping my coffee and almost choked when JL came out wearing only a towel around his waist. I almost spilled the coffee because his abs were so visible. The magazines didn't do him justice. It was already afternoon but why does pandesal still taste so good? Plus, his hair was slightly wet.

"You like what you see?" he asked me with a smirk. I didn't know if it was just my imagination or it really happened but I saw him wink at me.

"Get dressed already or we might not make it to the bank on time. I've already arranged everything with the attorney so that after the wedding, we can receive the marriage certificate and the money will be released. We'll go straight to your dad's place after that."

"Here, do you want me to take off my towel here?" I threw a throw pillow at him and he dodged it.

I finished my coffee and picked up the white dress he bought. Hopefully, it fits. I was annoyed that he didn't even ask about the style I liked and he knew my size. Luckily, my shoes matched. They weren't white but black works too. It's a civil wedding anyway. I went to the bathroom and quickly changed. I even smelled myself to make sure I didn't smell like sweat. I think I smelled fine.

However, I had coffee breath so I used his mouthwash without asking. My hair looked messy and I wanted to put it up nicely. I can't do anything about these glasses, and if I don't wear them, my signature on the marriage contract might be questioned. It might even be invalid. I combed my hair and was about to put it in a bun when my hair tie snapped.

I closed my eyes in frustration and looked for a hair tie in his cupboard, but there was none. My hair had a little bit of waves and it looked okay. I let it down. Luckily, I had lipstick and mascara with me. That's all I knew how to use. I didn't have blush or eye shadow. I fixed my lipstick and it wasn't too red. Just enough to not make me look pale. I used the mascara for my eyelashes and for my eyebrows as well. This is fine. It's not like JL is going to run away if he doesn't like how I look. The dress looked really nice. It fit me perfectly, but I could only reach halfway to zip it up.

"Gia, are you done? We have to go," he said from outside the door. He even knocked.

"I need your help." I opened the door and turned around. "Zip me up, please." But he didn't move and seemed to be in a daze. So I turned to look at him. "Hey! What's wrong? Aren't you in a hurry? I can't leave if only halfway of the zipper is closed," I reminded him.

"Right. Sorry." He immediately held the zipper, and his hands seemed to be shaking. It was like it was his first time zipping up a woman's dress. If I know, he's quite experienced. "It's okay now."

"Thanks. Did you drink your coffee? We can't get married if you're drunk," I said to him.

"I'm not drunk. But yes, I drank it and I also brushed my teeth."

Judge Buencamino's house was close to JL's place. Just two blocks away and we could walk if we weren't in a hurry. But if we did that now, we would end up looking like wet chicks. We would definitely be drenched in sweat.

When we got there, the attorney and his assistant were already waiting. The papers were all prepared, as if they had been done a long time ago. It's funny in a way because it's as if they knew from the very start that we were going to get married sooner or later. Five minutes later, we were married. JL kissed me softly on my right cheek. The marriage certificate was signed. We only had a copy for the bank, and if they asked for the original, we could request it on Monday.

I am officially Mrs. Genovia Ganfornina Betances. I hate to say it... but it suits me. It has a ring to it. Now off we go to the bank to get the money. We still have half an hour to bail out Tito Alfonso. I mean, Dad. It's going to take time getting used to. The attorney will meet us on Monday to further explain the last will. And now... we just bailed my father-in-law out. I saw the happiness on JL's face, and while we were waiting for my father-in-law to come out, he held me and gave me a kiss on the forehead.

"Thank you, hon. I owe you."