Chapter 5

As I stood in the middle of the parking lot, I watched his retreating figure. I gripped the strap of my bag tightly as I remembered what he had said.

"I'll make sure you still come home to me."

"The nerve," I muttered to myself, desperately pushing away the shiver crawling through my entire body.

He is a billionaire, yes. Powerful. But I was no longer the young and foolish student who simply followed whatever he told me to do.

"Hey, Kathryn! What are you still standing there for? The first coaster is full, we're taking the second one!"

I snapped back to reality when I heard Ayc's voice. She was waving from the door of the second coaster. I quickly composed myself, pretending nothing had happened, and followed her. As soon as I got on, I immediately sat by the window, while Ayc kept studying my face.

"What was that scene about, huh?" she whispered, narrowing her eyes as she tried to catch some gossip. "I saw you and Sir Knoxx at the back. It was like you had your own little world, girl. What did he say to you?"

"Nothing," I lied, looking out the window as the vehicle started moving. "He just said my outfit was too revealing."

"Yeah, right! Protective Daddy!" Ayc teased, elbowing my side. "But seriously, Kath. Look at Sir, he rode in the front of the first coaster. I've been watching you for a while now, and you look anxious. I thought you were the one doing the seducing? Why does it look like it's backfiring on you?"

I didn't answer her because what she said was true. Damn it. My plan was supposed to be teasing him, provoking his jealousy until he was the one who backed out of his wedding with Mommy. But every time Knoxx opened his mouth, I felt like I was the one slowly being cornered.

After almost three hours of traveling, we finally arrived at the resort in Batangas. And I wasn't wrong about what I expected from Knoxx Madrigal. The place was a high-end, exclusive paradise. A private cove with white sand, huge infinity pools, and luxury villas facing the sea. The entire resort had been exclusively booked just for our batch.

Did he book this, or did he actually own it?

"Damn, things are really different when the sponsor is a billionaire!" I heard our former classmates shouting as they unloaded their luggage.

We were immediately brought to the central pavilion for the distribution of the villa keys. Since there were many of us, four people were assigned to each villa. Naturally, Ayc was with me, along with two other former classmates from our course, Karen and Jessa.

"Excuse me, everyone," the resort coordinator said, getting everyone's attention. "For the room assignments, our villas have been perfectly distributed. Except for one request." The coordinator looked in my direction, making my heart pound. "Ms. Kathryn, special instructions from Sir Knoxx. You will be staying at the VIP beachfront villa. He said it's closer to the function hall for the assembly tonight."

The surroundings went silent. My classmates' eyes, especially the women's, immediately turned toward me. Some looked envious, while others looked confused.

"Wait, why is Kath the only one getting a VIP villa?" Karen whispered beside me, loud enough for me to hear.

"Ah, maybe because... because she came from New York and her family has some business with Sir Knoxx?" Ayc quickly made up an excuse to save me. "You know, their families are partners."

I gave a fake smile and simply nodded, but inside, I wanted to strangle Knoxx. Was he doing this to embarrass me? Or to separate me from everyone else?

"Come on, just get the key," Ayc urged, pushing me forward.

After getting the key, I took my things toward the supposed VIP villa. The moment I stepped inside, my jaw almost dropped. It was a big, single-detached villa with a private plunge pool. It was incredibly spacious, and the bed was king-sized with sheer curtains. But what made my heart beat even faster was the door on the side, with another villa right beside it.

And on the other deck stood Knoxx. He was wearing shades, holding a glass of liquor, and lazily looking at me as the breeze blew against his polo shirt.

Our villas were neighbors. And it looked like the two of us were the only ones staying in this part of the resort.

"Are you trying to annoy me, Knoxx?" I asked directly as I stepped out onto the veranda of my villa, not caring if anyone heard.

He lowered his shades slightly, looking over my entire body before answering. "I'm just making sure my future stepdaughter is comfortable. Is that so bad?"

"Don't use that word with me! We both know why you did this!"

"Really? Why did I do it, then?" He stepped closer to the edge of his deck, with only a small garden separating his deck from mine. "I did this because I know you like wearing clothes like that. And I don't want other men looking at your back while you walk around the resort."

I froze. He sounded so possessive! He had been exactly like this with me back then, especially whenever it was just the two of us in the social hall!

"You have no right to care who looks at me. You don't own me," I said firmly.

"Not yet... for now," he replied meaningfully.

Before I could answer, my phone suddenly rang. My child was calling. Still annoyed and angry at Knoxx, I answered it, a video call.

"Mommy!" My son, Nero, greeted me with a smile. I noticed his forehead wrinkle as he looked behind me, where Knoxx was standing. "Oh, who's that behind you, Mommy?"

"Oh, him?" Without shame, I put my arm around Knoxx. "He's your daddy! Handsome, right?"

"D-Daddy?" my son asked in confusion.

"Yes, baby, your Daddy Knoxx," I replied with a smile.

I felt Knoxx's body go rigid after I said that.

"W-What do you m-mean, Kath? That he's my s-son?"