CHAPTER 6

Dolly’s POV

Isang katok mula sa pinto ang gumising sa mahimbing kong pag-idlip. Nuba, inaantok ako, oh. Nakakapagod kaya yung naging byahe ko kanina. Nakakainis naman.

Napakamot ako sa aking ulo at padabog na bumangon. Magbubukas pa lang sana ako ng ilaw nang biglang bumukas ang pinto pumasok si Mr. Damonier sa silid ko.

“H-Hey! Ano ba? Hindi ka ba marunong kumatok?” sigaw ko, mabilis na tinakpan ang sarili ko ng kumot kahit hindi naman ako naka-hubad. Wala man lang abiso. Kahit simpleng “Can I come in?” hindi man lang nagawa. Ano bang nakain ng mokong na ‘to?

He didn’t even flinch.

Nakasalpak lang ang mga kamay niya sa bulsa, seryoso ang mukha, parang hindi niya ako naririnig. His eyes scanned the room before landing on me—messy hair, half-asleep, mukhang bagong s***k sa panaginip.

“You’re awake.” he said in a calm tone. Himala.

“DUH?! Obviously oo. Napagod kaya ako sa byahe ‘no.” inis kong sagot. “You can’t just walk in—”

He exhaled sharply this time—hindi na soft, kundi yung tipong I’m-losing-my-patience-with-you na buntong-hinga. Tumukod pa yung isang kamay niya sa doorframe, parang pinipigilan ang sarili na hindi ako sermunan.

“Miss Mendoza,” he said, jaw tightening, “is it your hobby to move this slow? Get dressed. We have things to discuss. Now.”

Napakurap ako. “Grabe ka naman maka-command. Kakagising ko lang—”

“That’s obvious,” he muttered, eyes dragging from my magulong buhok down to my rumpled shirt. May kita kong kumikibot yung panga niya—annoyed. Very annoyed. “Next time, try not to sleep like you died.”

“ANO?!”

His gaze met mine again, cool and unreadable. “You look… unprepared.”

Gusto ko siyang batuhin ng unan.

“Huwag mong problemahin kung prepared ako o hindi,” sagot ko, tumayo ng tuwid kahit inaantok pa. “This is my room.”

“For now,” he replied simply.

Napakagat ako sa dila ko. Putek. Tama naman siya—THIS is his mansion. His domain.

“And Dolly,” dagdag niya, turning toward the door. “Five minutes.”

Nagtaas ako ng kilay. “For what?”

He looked over his shoulder, sharp and annoyingly composed.

“To get dressed so we can talk about our agreement.”

Then he walked out.

Leaving the door slightly open—parang sinadya niya talagang i-remind akong hindi ako dapat komportableng sobra dito.

Pagkasara ng pinto…

Napahampas ako ng unan sa kama.

Tangina. Sino ba ‘tong lalaking ‘to?!

Bakit parang… gusto ko siyang sakalin pero sabay kinabahan ako?

Ever since nung nangyari sa office nung isang araw, naiinis na talaga ako sa kanya. Sino ba siya para umasta nang ganun? Para bang… para bang papakasalan ko siya para sa pera niya. Kala mo naman kung sinong diyos-diyosan.

Hoy, Dolly. Kumalma. Isipin mo — pumayag ka. Wala kang choice. Oo nga naman… pumayag ka, so tiisin mo. Argh.

Harwinn’s POV

“Mr. Brighton, the papers.” I leaned back on the sofa in my study, arms crossed, jaw tight. The clock on the wall struck seven-thirty—late, even for my standards.

Brighton adjusted his glasses and handed over a neat folder. “The agreement has been finalized, sir. I only need your signature on the last page. Miss Mendoza must sign today to proceed with the arrangement.”

I hummed in acknowledgment, flipping through the pages. Everything was in order. Everything should be moving smoothly. Should.

But no.

Because the moment the door to the dining hall opened, there she was—Dolly, still wearing the same damn clothes she used the entire day. Hair magulo, mukha antok, expression clueless as ever.

My eyebrow twitched. Unbelievable.

“She didn’t dress up,” I muttered under my breath, loud enough for Brighton to hear.

Brighton cleared his throat, clearly trying not to react. “Sir, perhaps she—”

“No,” I cut in sharply. “I told her to be ready for dinner. And this is what she considers ‘ready’?”

I shut the folder with a soft thud. The irritation sat heavy in my chest—partly at her, partly at myself. I hated that she could disrupt a schedule I had designed down to the smallest detail.

Brighton straightened. “Should I remind her, sir?”

I exhaled slowly, eyes glued to the woman now looking around like she wandered into the wrong house. “No. Leave her. I’ll deal with her in a minute.”

Because if she thought I was going to let this slide, she clearly had no idea what she agreed to.

Dolly’s POV

Right after umalis si Mr. Arrogance sa kwarto ko kanina, umupo lang ako sa kama… then ayun, wala pang limang minuto, kumulo agad sikmura ko.

As in malakas.

Putek. Hindi pa pala ako nakakapag-merienda.

Tumingin ako sa paligid ng sobrang lawak na kwarto. Walang kahit man lang biskwit. Ni candy, ni isang kape. Wala. Anong klaseng bahay ba ‘to?

Okay, so kailangan ko maghanap ng pagkain. Hindi naman siguro masama mag-ikot, bahay ko na rin ‘to… on paper.

Huminga ako nang malalim, tumayo, at sinimulan ang mission.

Mission: Hanapin ang kusina sa bahay na mukhang may 89 na pinto.

Door #1: closet. Door #2: banyo. Door #3: hallway. Door #4: probably storage. Door #5… bakit may second living room??

After five minutes of wandering:

“…asan ba dito yung kusina?!”

Napahawak ako sa tiyan ko habang naglalakad. “Sige, Dolly, konti na lang. Laban lang. Hindi ka susuko sa gutom.”

Hanggang sa may naaninag akong maliwanag na hallway. At amoy pagkain.

AYUN NA ‘TO.

Naglakad ako nang mas mabilis, halos parang nawawala sa mall. And then—

Pagdating ko sa dulo—

BOOM. Dining hall.

Long table. Warm lights. Expensive food. Naka-set up. May pa-wine pa.

At nandoon si Harwinn.

Nakatingin. Nakaangat isang kilay.

Mukha siyang hindi makapaniwala kasi obviously hindi ako naka-bihis. Shirts and pants pa rin ako. Parang lutang. Parang… nawawala.

Which is—well—yes, nawawala ako, gusto ko lang mahanap yung kusina.

Napatigil ako. Tumayo ako straight, kunwari confident.

Pero sa utak ko?

Oh thank God may pagkain. Pero hindi ‘yan yung hinahanap kong kusina, putek.

Naglakad ako papunta sa table like nothing happened, pero ramdam ko tingin niya mula ulo hanggang paa. At bago pa niya maubos tingnan outfit ko, nauna na akong napapikit nang may slight.

Jusko, makakain man lang sana ako nang tahimik before ako pagalitan.

Tumikhim siya, parang naiirita. I crossed my arms and glared back, pero deep inside?

Tangina Dolly wag ka mahimatay sa gutom please.

Harwinn’s POV

I walked into the dining hall with controlled steps, every tap of my shoes reminding me to breathe.

Dolly was already seated—slouched, legs crossed, picking at the edge of the tablecloth like she was in some karinderya and not in my mansion’s formal dining room. She didn’t even look up when I approached.

Typical.

I took my seat across from her. “I thought I told you to dress properly.”

She finally lifted her gaze, looking at me with those half-lidded, annoyingly calm eyes. “I am dressed properly.” I scanned her from head to toe. Same shirt. Same jeans. Same attitude.

“You look like you just rolled out of bed.”

“Well,” she shrugged, “I was trying to sleep when you barged in. So maybe.”

My jaw tightened. “This is a formal dinner. You should respect that.”

“And you should respect that I’m tired,” she shot back, like it was the most reasonable answer in the world.

I stared at her, speechless for a moment—because never in my life had anyone talked to me like this. Business partners feared disappointing me. Board members bent their rules for me. Investors begged for my approval.

But her?

She poked at the untouched soup in front of her and continued, “If you want a mannequin you can dress up and pose beside you for dinner, you picked the wrong girl. Too late to return me now though. Sayang effort mo.”

I felt my eyebrow twitch again. She’s doing this on purpose.

I leaned slightly forward, voice low. “You’re testing my patience.”

“And you’re testing my limits,” she countered, leaning back in her chair with the smugness of someone who knew exactly what she was doing. “Quits lang.”

I inhaled slowly, trying to keep my control. “I need cooperation, Dolly.”

She pressed her lips together, then shrugged lightly. “You wanted me as your bride on paper, right? Then tiisin mo ako. Fair trade.”

My fingers curled slightly against the tablecloth. I wasn’t used to being challenged—much less by someone wearing a five-hour-old shirt and bed hair.

Brighton, from the side of the room, pretended not to hear anything… but I saw his eyes widen once.

I cleared my throat, straightened, and forced myself to focus. “Fine. We’ll discuss the agreement after dinner.”

She smirked. Smirked.

“Okay. But don’t expect me to dress like a trophy display every time you call.”

My eyes narrowed. “You’ll dress appropriately when necessary.”

“Then define ‘appropriate,’ Mr. Damonier,” she teased, lifting her spoon lazily. “Para sure tayo.”

Was she mocking me? Yes. Did I have anyone to blame but myself for choosing her? …Unfortunately, also yes.

"Oh, and additional..." Sumandal siya sa kanyang upuan at tumitig sa akin. "Ayoko nang inuutusan with arrogance." Death stare, that's what I got.

For fuck's sake, Harwinn. Retain your composure.

I exhaled slowly. “Eat.”

“Make me,” she muttered under her breath. "Total boss naman kita 'di ba?"

I'm done.

I heard it. She knew I heard it. She didn’t even flinch.

"You know hindi uubra sa akin iyang pagiging matigas ang ulo mo, Miss Mendoza." I said in a calm tone.

"Pwede ba? Nagugutom ako, oh. Respeto naman, kumakain yung tao."

Hindi na ako nagsalita. I stepped back.

I took a long sip of water, praying—for the first time in years—for patience.

Because for the first time, I realized something very dangerous:

Dollivienne Mendoza might actually drive me insane before this contract ends.