CHAPTER 2

DIANTHA

Icarus looked our way, at ganoon na lamang ang muling pagbilis ng tibok ng aking puso nang panandaliang titigan ako ni Icarus mula ulo hanggang paa, not minding that his brother is with us.

I don't want it, ngunit hindi ko kayang pigilan ang biglang pag-init ng aking katawan the moment na pinadaanan ito ng tingin ni Icarus.

'Fuck, Diantha! Settle down!’ Piping pagkastigo ko sa aking sarili.

“Kuya,” pagkuha ni Ashton sa atensyon ni Icarus, looking oblivious at how his older brother was giving me the lustful desire.

Ashton looked at his brother and gave him his knowing smirk. He then asked in a mischievous tone, “Done?”

Kaagad na nag-init ang aking mga pisngi as I immediately understood what he meant with his question.

Icarus glanced at me once again, and because I cannot take the kind of gaze he was giving me, kaagad akong nag-iwas ng tingin. But then I felt Icarus' gaze slip to my hand that was wrapped around Ashton's waist, prompting me to look at him again, and there I saw a flicker of danger in his eyes, causing me to gulp and slowly unattach my hand from Ashton's waist. And the moment my hand was out of Ashton's waist, a small grin appeared on Icarus' lips, seemingly satisfied at what I did.

I silently scolded myself once more. Why did I do that? Why am I acting like I committed a fucking crime? Ashton is my fiancé, for goodness' sake! Why should I be bothered that Icarus was not liking me being affectionate with my own fiancé?

Ngunit hindi ko naman muli nasagot ang sarili kong mga katanungan dahil nakuha na ang atensyon ko ni Ashton.

“Stop it, Kuya. Diantha's already so embarrassed, so can we please stop talking about it?” Ashton's voice was calm but firm, an indication of how serious he was in asking his brother not to bring up that topic again.

Icarus grinned and shook his head. “Alright. But may I give the two of you some advice? Please refrain from doing such acts in the store. It is inappropriate, and I know you two are very much aware of that. Mabuti sana kung marunong kayong kontrolin ang mga boses niyo. Paano nalang kung may ibang customer na nakarinig sa inyo? That would be very scandalous and is bad for business.” Icarus sounded so stern, making it sound like he was scolding kids instead of us, adults.

Lalo akong nakaramdam ng hiya. Kung pwede lamang hilingin na sana ay lamunin na lamang ako ng lupa ay ginawa ko na. Sigurado din ako na pulang-pula na ang mukha ko sa ngayon.

Pero kung ano naman ang ikinahiya ko ay ganoon na kinasingkapal ng mukha ni Ashton na nakuha pang ngumisi sa kapatid niya habang sinasabing, “We know that, but what can we do? We can't help it. We are too in love with each other that we can't take our hands off each other.”

Hindi ko napigilan na sikuhin si Ashton at bigyan siya ng matalas na tingin, ngunit tinawanan lamang niya ako.

Ashton cleared his throat after that and then finally asked the most important question. “Anyway, what are you doing here, Kuya? May kailangan ka ba kay Dian?”

Mula sa hiya ay kaba naman ang naramdaman ko. At lumala pa iyon nang titigan ako ni Icarus, and a little bit longer this time.

Gusto kong i-iwas muli ang aking tingin, but for some reason, I can't. I remained staring back at him with my heart pounding in nervousness.

Thankfully, nauna si Icarus na mag-iwas ng tingin, and thankfully, Ashton was either too naive or too trusting of us that he couldn't tell the tension surrounding both me and his brother.

“I just have a few questions to ask to Diantha,’’ sagot ni Icarus habang nakatingin kay Ashton.

"Like what?" Nakakunot ang noo na muling tanong ni Ashton.

May pagtataka sa boses ni Ashton, at sapat na iyon upang lalo pa akong kabahan. Something inside me was telling me na kapag hinayaan ko pa na magtanong ng magtanong si Ashton ay baka tuluyan na talaga niyang mapansin ang kakaibang tensyon na bumabalot sa amin ng Kuya niya. Kung kaya't bago pa makasagot si Icarus ay sumingit na ako sa usapan nila.

Hinarap ko si Ashton at binigyan siya ng ngiti. “Gusto lang magtanong ni Kuya tungkol sa mga bulaklak. He wanted to fix the garden in the hacienda, remember? But he is not good with flowers, so humingi na siya sakin ng tulong.”

“Really?” Ashton said saka tiningnan muli si Icarus na tila ba humihingi siya ng kompormasyon mula sa Kuya niya. Ngunit hindi ko na hinayaan pa na makasagot si Icarus at muli na naman akong nagsalita. “Anyway, don't you think it's time for you to go back to work? Mamaya baka parating na ang mga ka-meeting mo. You don't want to be late and give them a bad impression, do you?”

I tried as hard as I could to sound casual. Pinilit kong itago ang kaba mula sa mukha at boses ko, not giving my fiancé even the slightest chance to doubt me.

Thankfully, again, it worked. Ashton bought my lie and smiled at me so innocently and full of trust, causing my heart to ache in guilt.

I am a bitch; I know that. But what can I do? I can't tell him the truth, hurt him, and lose him. Because despite this lust I am feeling towards his brother, I still love Ashton.

“You're right. Then, I'll see you this evening?” Ashton said, still smiling.

Full of guilt, I nodded as an answer while trying to put up a fake-as-fuck smile.

Hinalikan muna ako ni Ashton sa noo bago siya bumaling muli sa kapatid niya.

“As much as I'd love to stay a little longer and listen to you two talk about flowers, I can't, as I need to be in the meeting. So, mauna nalang ako, Kuya. Ikaw na muna ang bahala sa fiance ko,” nakangiti pa rin na sabi ni Ashton kay Icarus, still sounding so trusting, making me guiltier than I already am.

“You can trust me on that,” tugon naman ni Icarus.

For Ashton, that simple answer of Icarus might be nothing, but for me, I know what Icarus truly meant by his words. And it scared me. I am scared of what Icarus would do, but more than that, I am scared of myself.

Kung hindi lamang ako natatakot na maghinala si Ashton, ay hindi ko siya hahayaang iwanan kaming dalawa ni Icarus o hindi kaya ay paalisin na lamang si Icarus. Because honestly, I don't trust myself anymore when it comes to Icarus.

Nang makaalis na si Ashton at ang sasakyan niya ay saka lamang ako umatras upang lawakan ang distansya sa pagitan naming dalawa ni Icarus. I can't be near him. It was already proven and tested that I can't be near my fiance's older brother.

Napakalakas pa rin ng tibok ng puso ko. And now that Ashton's not with us anymore, ay lalo lamang na lumakas ang tibok nito, and I am well aware that it wasn't just because I am nervous. It's more than that. Ngunit tinibayan ko ang loob ko. Kahit pa halata naman na ay sinubukan ko pa rin na tapangan ang boses ko habang sinasalubong ang mga mata ni Icarus na ngayon ay halata ng punong-puno ng kapilyuhan.

“Ano ang ginagawa mo dito?”

Tumaas ang isang kilay ni Ashton. “So you are not shy anymore now that my brother's not around?”

I balled my fists as I took a deep breath. I am still courageously meeting his eyes as I speak again. “Kung wala kang kailangan o importante na sasabihin, then please leave. Marami pa akong dapat asikasuhin.” Then, without waiting for his answer, I turned around and was about to march back to my office when Icarus stood and, with fast strides, made his way to me, grabbed me by the arm to make me face him, and then quickly wrapped his arms around my waist, not giving me even the slightest chance to unattach myself from him.

Nanlaki ang aking mga mata sa gulat dahil sa kanyang ginawa. At lalo pa na tumindi ang gulat ko nang inilapit ni Icarus ang kanyang mukha sa akin, which made me gasp and almost lose my breath.

There was no mischief in Icarus' eyes anymore, and instead, it was replaced with seriousness and desire, causing my throat to go so dry that I had to gulp twice. He then asked me with his sexy and husky voice, the same voice that he used on me that night. “Paano kung sabihin kong ikaw ang kailangan ko? Will you do something about it? Will you give yourself to me?”

It was just like that night. The desire and the need in Icarus' eyes were so visible and were so tempting that I couldn't take my eyes away from him. Idagdag pa ang hindi ko mawari na tensyon na palaging pumapalibot sa aming dalawa kahit noong wala pang nangyayari sa amin. And that tension was so strong and so crazy that it's making me lose my senses. But not this time. Not anymore. One mistake was already enough. I can't commit another one, or else I will really end up burning in hell.

Kung kaya't inipon ko ang lahat ng lakas na meron ako saka ko tinulak si Icarus. At nagtagumpay naman ako sa pagkawala mula sa kanya, which caused me so much relief.

Being too close with Icarus is freaking bad news.

I took a few steps backwards, creating a distance between us again. Then I gave Icarus a very sharp gaze, but the crazy handsome man only smirked as if he was finding this situation amusing.

“Umalis ka na kung ayaw mong makarating ito kay Ashton,” pagbabanta ko sa kanya.

But Icarus just laughed coldly. It's as if he already knew that I can't do that.

“Tell him then. I don't mind. Sabihin mo sa kapatid ko kung paano tayo napunta sa sitwasyong ‘to. Tell him that it's because you ended up having sex with me—”

“That was a mistake! Just one fucking mistake!” Nanggigigil kong sigaw, my teeth are gritting. “It is a mistake that's bound to never happen again. I will never sleep with you again—”

“And do you think I would let you do that?” Putol ni Icarus sa aking sinasabi. “The moment you allowed me to touch you, kiss you, and have sex with you was the moment you allowed yourself to be mine, Diantha. And trust me when I say this: I will never hand you over to anyone else, kahit sa kapatid ko pa,” seryosong saad ni Icarus na nagparamdam sa akin ng ibayong kaba.