I remained silent, averting my gaze as he buckled my seatbelt. "I'll go back to the market later—" "Why? Because of your cousin and ex?" I cut him off, staring intently. "Why did you even take me from there? Prioritize what you need to. I'm going back to Raf." I was about to get out when he suddenly pushed me back against the seat. A tremor of fear went through me at the intensity of his stare, but I refused to show it, instead meeting his gaze with equal defiance. "Why? Do you like that man?" I swallowed hard. His voice was cold, devoid of any emotion. The aura he radiated screamed danger. How did I end up in this situation? "W-Why do you care?" I shifted my gaze away, unable to bear his cold eyes any longer. I felt as if he was draining my energy, leaving me weak. "It doesn't matter to me if you prioritize them. I'm just nobody, Raze. You just made a deal with me, that's all it is." My mouth fell open as he gripped my jaw, forcing me to face him. "Nobody cares, Lylia? The
"What are you doing here? I thought you were in Canada? When did you get back?" Raze asked in quick succession, his voice laced with disbelief at seeing the woman. "Why didn't you call me? I would have picked you up at the airport." The woman chuckled softly. "That's exactly it. You always end up fetching me. It's time for a change." Raze's hand tightened slightly, a subtle gesture indicating his displeasure at her words. "In that case, who picked you up? Ashel?" The woman shook her head, a gentle smile playing on her lips. "No. Your cousin, Nicole. She's actually with me—oh, there she is." Both Raze and I followed her gaze to a woman waving in our direction. "Girl, over here!" "Surprise, coz!" Nicole exclaimed cheerfully as she approached and wrapped her arms around Raze from behind. "Do you like my surprise?" Nicole asked, her smile widening as she playfully pinched Raze's cheeks. "You two can finally continue your interrupted wedding." I froze, my mind reeling. W-Weddin
"J-Just stop it," I pushed his face with my palm. "Whatever you think I want to 'taste' from you, keep it. I'm not interested." "Can you still say that when we're married?" he said after lowering my hand. "I'm just kidding, Lyl, but it seems I like what's on your mind." "You're so lewd!" I hissed at him. He chuckled. "So, you really do have lewd thoughts?" I froze. I was caught, oh my God! "No!" I defended, my eyes wide. "Just get out of here! I can't breathe properly!" "Fine, fine... stop pushing me," he said, laughing as he moved away from me. "I didn't know you knew about that kind of thing. You're not that innocent. It's possible." I glared at him. "What's possible? You want to taste something?" "I already offered earlier, but you refused," he said with a smirk. I gave him a sharp look. "One more, Raze. You still owe me an apology." "For not coming back last night? Like I said, I was taking care of our wedding." "Are you in a hurry?" "Yes, you might still get away." A m
"Yie! Lylia's getting all lovey-dovey! Just a while ago you two were fighting, and now there's a kiss? What's your deal?" Love teased. I'd probably tell them about it later. "Don't make a big deal out of it, it was nothing!" I hissed at her. "What were you two talking about earlier? Why did you stop?" She and Lira exchanged knowing glances. "We were just intrigued about your score with Raze. I mean, we're in a VIP room now, and I overheard Doc earlier that he paid for Lira's bills and medicine, and now he's even buying our food. Spill the tea," Love teased again, and she and Lira giggled. I could only sigh. I'd just tell them to get it over with. I told them about my deal with Raze, and they both stared at me, mouths agape, in disbelief. "Shocks!" Love exclaimed. "You agreed?" "I had to," I said, scratching my head. Nothing good would come of keeping it a secret from them anyway. They'd find out eventually. It was better if they knew from the start rather than assume we were in
"I agree." Even now, my words echoed in my head, followed by my own agreement. Almost unconsciously, I found myself holding his hand as we walked towards the pharmacy. The people who knew us couldn't help but whisper. "A-Aren't you uncomfortable?" I asked shyly. I wanted to hide behind him from the eyes that followed us, as if seeing us holding hands was a grave sin. My gaze fell to our clasped hands, and he tightened his grip even more when I was about to pull away. I felt my face flush crimson with embarrassment. I couldn't bring myself to look at him. I kept my head down the whole time we were together. I didn't know if this was part of what he wanted—that deal he mentioned—so I just went along with it rather than resist. "Let them overthink," I could hear the amusement in his voice. "They're just busybodies." I secretly chuckled. I didn't expect him to know that word, which I often heard from millennials. "What if they spread rumors that—" "That we're in a relationship?"
I narrowed my eyes at him before stepping back. "Are you out of your mind?" He stared at me seriously, and after a moment, the corner of his lips lifted as if he was holding back a smile. "If I said yes, would you believe me?" "Completely crazy," I muttered. "I heard that, miss." He chuckled softly. I caught him staring at my slightly sweaty chest, so he quickly looked away and cleared his throat. Even I felt embarrassed because I only now realized that my cleavage was visible. "Look, I'm offering you a deal. The demolition should have started earlier, but because I'm kind—" I laughed. "Wow! Kind? You call that kind, Captain?" I asked, my voice dripping with sarcasm. His brows furrowed, and he crossed his arms, meeting my gaze head-on. "Isn't it? So I shouldn't have even told you about it?" A playful smirk danced on his lips, which only annoyed me more. "Very well..." He reached into the pocket of his slacks for his phone, but I quickly snatched it away as he was about to ma