Mayen suddenly stopped moving her feet when she recognized the place they were heading to. It was the same building where she was abducted, maybe kidnapped, or actually kept? She could not find the perfect word to describe what happened to her as up until now it was a puzzle.

“Déjà vu?” Seth asked.

Her legs started trembling and wanting to run. “Hmnn. You know what...I think I should go.”

“Don’t you ever remember every single thing you did here? In my pad?”

That I did? It kept on echoing in her mind. Her jaw dropped and she covered it with her both hands so as not to be so obvious that she was literally embarrassed right now of her drunk self that night. Everything was getting clearer. “So it was you?! That’s why you had my notebook? Oh, Boy! D-Did..did something happen between us?”

“Something? Hmnnn…define something.” She ran towards him to the elevator and its door closed weirdly quick. Her hand automatically pressed a button - tenth floor. “I’m impressed.” Seth commented while watching her lead the way.

“Shit,” she realized that what she just did was a compliment for him. Damn her finger for listening from the back of her memories.

“This is a very dangerous place to talk dirty, Honey...I have no control here.” He whispered, then, a feeling of static-like sensation flowed all over her body. Those hot flares she could clearly feel from her ears, neck and down to her spine and more down there. Strange but sensational! Damn, it was so hot in there! Stepping away from him, the source of hotness, would be a little help to save herself from being hypnotized. She stepped backward and held the handrails to get support as her legs were turning into jellies. Her imaginative mind was also not cooperating as it could not stop collecting erotic scenes in the elevator from movies she watched and books she read. Some were romantic and some were only coquettish. Nowadays, her body parts lacked coordination and it was not good at all.

“F-Fine. I just woke up that morning and I did not remember anything. All I knew was I came from a bar...drunk and I was with my friends from work.” They reached the tenth floor without any interruption. From behind, she watched him put on the codes to unlock his pad’s door. “Also, I remembered that we were playing truth or dare…”

Before entering, he looked at her intently. “So you just partied like no tomorrow and not giving a fuck what will happen to you after that?” He sounded like a protective father to his only child.

“Hey! It was once in a blue moon. I don’t usually go to clubs nor drink alcohol.”

He threw her car keys on the sofa and sat there like a king. “Oh, yeah?”

“Oh, yeah, Mr. Judgmental! I was invited by my co-writers and since I was so stressed that day because of your Auntie Monster, I decided to go with them. At least for once. And those margaritas and cocktails that I put in my mouth, believe me, were terrible!”

His upper lip twitched. “Why do you need to explain yourself? You partied and enjoyed, as simple as that.”

“What is wrong with you? You just condemned my recklessness!” He even acted as if he cared.

“Who cares? You don’t have to think of what others may think of you. Do whatever you want and never regret any of them. Just don’t give a fuck.”

She heard a lot of different versions of that advice. But, his version was more straightforward and simple. His honest words moved her. Sadly, it did not apply to her league and current situation. She needed to live her life that followed ideal notions of what perfect people think. That way, she would secure her family’s future. And, that was her only priority.

“Well, I do give a f-fuck.”

He was a little awestruck with what she uttered. “See? You managed to say a word you’re not used to. Did anything bad happen? No, right?” He removed her white shirt very manly and comfortably in front of her flexing naturally his demi god-like body. She swallowed hard and struggled to keep her eyes away from his six-pack abs. Holy yummy wow! For sure, Seth was intentionally destructing her to keep her mouth shut. Was it working? Try harder, the liar's side of herself echoed.

“Let me tell you. If I became more cautious that night in the club, or maybe, if I did not go at all, I will never meet you, lose my notebook and will not be trapped here with you.”

Seth was coming naked towards her. She was supposed to be running away proactively but her body suddenly became a statue. She found herself sitting on the sofa with heads up smelling Seth’s fresh breath. His strong arms were holding the armrests sandwiching her tiny body. Her lips were the center of his attraction and she can clearly see the desire from his stare.

“Me, trapping you will be the best and most satisfying thing that will happen to you.” He emphasized the word “satisfying”. He touched her chin with his right hand. She noticed how big and capable his hands were. Capable of what Mayen, she must be under his spell again. “The next time you’ll get wasted, make sure you’re not going to make anyone crazy over you like what you did to me.”

She was left speechless, flattered and bewildered. And, scared of what troubles Seth could bring. The puzzle from that night was slowly being solved and she could not stop cringing. It was a consolation, and not a cliché, knowing that she did not vomit on his shirt.

“B-But nothing happened between us...right?”

He smiled confidently with an intense desire in his dark eyes channeling his natural self of being a living tease. “You’ll never forget any part of it when I do.”

“Perv!”

SETH DID NOT take his eyes off Mayen. Like those sandwiches, burgers and shakes on his dining table, she was an eye-candy. Totally ravishing! Now, he wanted to taste something different. When was the last time he got laid, he asked his inner demon. After that hot encounter they had a while ago, he needed to keep the moment cool, before it was too late, so he asked her to order any food she wanted. Disappointed, Seth knew that it was better to make everything crystal clear first before pleasuring her.

“So how did you know my boss?” She asked in between sipping her favorite iced drink. That little slurpee looked delicious as he could see in the way she was moving her mouth. Like the way he could not stop adoring her lips, Mayen could also not stop sipping. Before answering her, he took the drink from her hand and sipped it. It was bursting with delicious berry flavor. Or was that sweetness coming from her sweet lips? He grinned when he saw her gritting her teeth. He knew her very well by now, an act of intimacy was making her immensely uncomfortable and attractive at the same time. Feeling challenged of how far she could resist if he started invading her lips. An A-plus was what he usually got from women so he must not be wondered. She would love his touches and she would let down her guard.

“My mom grew up reading her books so my Dad did some magic for those two to meet. They got along from there,” he explained to a very attentive siren in front of him. His Mom, Chandria, was an avid fan of books when she was young, up until now but not that much. And her most favorite author was Ms. De Padua who used to be the most famous local author of all time. Using his father’s money and power, Chandria’s dream of meeting her inspiration became evidently viable. According to the stories and knowing what Alarcons were capable of, his father offered the owner of Love Pages tons of millions for a one-on-one with Ms. De Padua.

She hissed with an overflowing sarcasm in her voice. “Oh, so there was where the confidence was coming from.”

“You hate her that much, don’t you?” He felt to burst into laughter when he remembered her notebook that he kept safe in his safebox.

“Since you know everything, fine. I hate how much she hates me. It sucks when she looks at me like I’m the dumbest person in the room despite me trying to be the best of all.”

“For the promotion?”

“Yes, but-.” Mayen wanted to say more of her sentiments when her phone rang. She looked serene when she answered it. “Mom? How’s everything? Hey...hey...why are you crying?” Her angelic face turned worried, shocked and possessed the feeling of unreality. He looked at her and suddenly saw Debby's face that made him tremble. This could be what precisely Debby felt that night when he made the biggest mistake of his life. The sight of her devastation, anxiety and loss of hope were killing him inside.

“I’ll be there as soon as possible. Everything will be alright, Mom.” He let her finish talking to her mother. She was emotionless when she ended the call and put her phone on the table. He did not ask anything. Hence, he waited for her to talk. But, she did not.

“I need to go. Where’s my car key?” She asked tonelessly.

He held her risk. “Hey. I’ll drive.”

“Fine.” Without further ado, she agreed fast which was unusual of her.

Women, he sighed. He got his key for his grey Porsche Carrera S. It had been a while since he last tampered his finger on his luxury car collection. He put on a denim jacket before following her to the parking lot. Mayen was standing beside her car and waiting for him to unlock it.

“Right here,” he waved at her. An irritation and dismay were evident in her face. That was very different from admiration he used to get from other people who had seen his extravagant cars. This woman was really far from ordinary. “I bet there’s an urgency.” As a response, she rolled her eyes, breathed heavily and got into the car like it was her last resort. He started the engine and gave her the phone to type the location. The atmosphere was so heavy. He was just driving as fast as he could while she was just looking emotionless at the roads.

“What would be the first three things you’ll do when you only have twenty-four hours to live?” She broke the silence. And, she did it with a mind-boggling note, something out of the blue. Someone must have died, he guessed.

“Hmnn...I’ll probably cry first?”

“Me, too,” her shaky voice agreed.

“Secondly, I’ll join a car racing again for the last time and then thirdly...hmnnn...save the best for last so I still need time to think of it.” Death was something he was not afraid of. He already died when Debby left him three years ago. “How about you?”

Unable to answer him, she tiredly shook her shoulders trying to convene the energy left in her. Behind those strong facades she was trying to convey was a sensitive human being who wanted to cry out loud.

“Mom, I’m on the way. Wait for me in the morgue. Hush...everything will be fine.” From all those encouragements he had been hearing from her, he proved how strong and matured a woman she was. She was fierce, resilient and could easily cope up with whatever life threw at her. It was not the perfect time to think about his proposal but it made him ached for her more. He could not afford to lose such temptress. When he heard his mother hysterically cry from the phone, he stepped wildly on the accelerator and drove as fast as he could. He missed this rush on the driveway!