She took a deep breath and listened to the sound of the sea to calm her feelings.
“Myra, you just got to know him… you don’t know his background or who he actually is, he’s a local from an island you went to for your vacation. He could be after something else…”
“You don’t want to be a replacement for someone of his past, do you?”
“And you just got betrayed by Jake… are you out of your mind for accepting someone else so quickly?”
“When your social visit pass expires, you have to leave anyway…”
Her inner voices were screaming inside her. She bit hard on her lips and turned to face him as he released her from his warm hug.
“I… I can’t…”
She watched as the positive look on his fair face turned to disappointment. She felt so sorry for him, but she knew, deep in her heart, he had done much for her and given her so much consolation. She remembered the passion of their kisses and how they had come together in the nights.
Hart had pleasured her so much that while their bodies were entwined together, she could not have anyone on her mind but him. They had fit together so well as if they were made for each other.
In addition, she had sensed a connection between them. His conversations never bored her. And he was such a gentleman, unlike Jake...
“Your eyes tell me otherwise.”
“There are so many reasons I can’t, Hart. I won’t be here long. We don’t know each other that well, too. Hart, there are so many others-”
Not allowing her to reason further, Hart stopped her with his mouth. Crashing his lips against hers, he held her against him strongly. She found solace in his kisses, as usual, returning his zealous kisses with curious kisses of her own. She didn’t care what was happening and if there were people around. Fortunately for her, there were none. They were all alone in a fascinating haven.
The sky was darkening. Above them, a multitude of colours presented themselves in the sky, but they were too obsessed with each other to notice the beauty of the sunset. He pressed harder against her, fondling her lovingly. She felt dizzy and consumed by desire. The warmth of his large body enveloped her tiny self.
He stopped, allowing her some space to cope with what was happening. She inhaled and exhaled repeatedly, looking down at her clothing to realise she was still in an orderly manner. But the unexpected kiss had taken her places.
“Eyes are the mirror to one’s soul,” Hart whispered, breaking the silence between them. “But I will not force you if that’s what you have in mind.” He knew her eyes had already betrayed her heart, but since she had her reasons, he would just let her have her way for now. He would not press on, but he was adamant that she would accept him as long as he tried harder. Maybe she just needed more time after a failed attempt at love.
Myra remained silent. Why was it that this man had such power over her that her body was responding immediately to his touches? To say she did not have feelings for him was such a lie. But what did she want from him?
From a one-night-stand, she had turned to companionship. She was only planning to pay him to accompany her for a night, but the next morning, she could not bring herself to leave the warm bed, ending in a steamy “breakfast in bed”. After she had washed up and finished the meal he had cooked for her, he had offered to send her back to the hotel. Instead, she declined and asked for him to accompany her for a while longer.
Not only did they end up staying in bed together the whole afternoon, they even had several conversations on relationships and life. It had not occurred to her that he was nine years older than her, because she felt incredibly at ease with him. But like Sierra often said, age was merely a number.
Today marked the third day they were together, and for no reason.
They enjoyed the remnants of the beautiful sunset with his arms around her, basking under the sunlight that was about to diminish.
“Hart, how was Milla like?”
He swallowed hard before answering her. “She was sweet and reserved. But you and she have some similarities. The way you pout and play with your hair…”
She recalled vividly how the stall vendors had been looking at her weirdly. Then, Bibik Ina had called her “Milla” from behind.
“But she died three years ago.” The tone of his voice was filled with sorrow. “I had a dream about her, asking me to move on. But something about you draws me to you.”
He played with her hair, combing it with his fingers. Myra had always been a sentimental person. Hearing his genuine words about his late girlfriend made her wonder if he was seeing her as a substitute since she resembled Milla in some ways. However, his misery broke her, and she inched closer to him, laying a soft kiss on his lips. Part of her wanted to nullify his pain, although the other part didn’t appreciate becoming a replacement.
“I see you as Myra. I know you’re not Milla,” he revealed, staring into her eyes. “I just want to start a new story with you, Myra. Milla will be in my heart.”
She embraced him as hard as she could. Was there such a thing as fate? Perhaps fate was giving her another chance at love, even if it was short-lived.
“Can you help me forget him?” she whispered. It didn’t take him a single second to give her his answer.
“Give yourself a chance to experience love again, Myra. I don’t know if you believe in fate, because I do. Our meeting has to be fated. I didn’t take that route very often. Just on that day.”
She sighed. “That day, you offered to take me not because you were a private-hire taxi driver. Neither were you doing things for money.”
He laughed. “You said you wanted to pay me for accompanying you for a night, but now it’s the third day since and I haven’t got my payment. In fact, I’ve even lost more.”
She blushed at his words. “Hey, I’m sorry…”
He placed a paw on her little palm. “You don’t have to pay me anything, Myra. Fact is, I have a few businesses here in Bali. Don’t worry, they’re legit. If we have the chance, I’ll bring you over for a look.” He told her about his bar, The Dream and how he had been supplying materials and doing some designing jobs for some companies in Asia.
Since moving out of his father’s place, he had sought ways to achieve his own financial independence. One of the sources of the funding of his businesses’ startup had been Milla’s savings. He vowed to repay her through her aged mother in due course. If only she had lived to see the day he would succeed. By now, he had almost finished paying up all his financial loans with the banks.
“What about you, Myra?”
She explained that she was a second-year university student in hospitality, which was her purpose as she was her father’s only heir. She would inherit her father’s hotels when he retired.
“So, you’ll be here until…”
“For a month.”
“That’s our precious time.”
She smiled and said to herself in her heart, “Perhaps, this way is better for all of us. Jake has his new Belle, and I will have to move on anyway. Once my vacation ends, I’ll be back to being Myra Yang back home, and all I have from Hart is just a sweet dream.”
“I heard there is a hidden cave on this beach,” Hart said, staring at her hopefully with a positive spark in his eyes. “Do you want to explore the beach and look for it?”
Myra hopped excitedly, not believing her good luck. “Yes, Hart, I do!!”
Hart helped her to her feet from where she was sitting on the hard rock. The moment she stood up, she quickly straightened the bottom of the new dress she was wearing, pulling it down as it was slightly raised. He lifted a strand of hair from her forehead affectionately and pushed it back.
She scurried barefoot on the sand, giggling excitedly like a schoolgirl. Hart smiled to himself as he thought of how he would be pretending very hard not to know the location of the cave, when in fact he knew the place like the back of his hand. He would have to try harder to make it a little more realistic.
“Ah!”
Hearing Myra shriek, he stretched his arms in front of him as she tripped and fell, catching her neatly as they rolled on the pale beach.
She smiled and accepted her fate. Yet, they were not ready for what was next for them.
Her heart fluttered as their eyes met and locked in on each other. It had reminded her so much of all those dramas she had watched on TV, yet it was so distinct when it happened to her in actuality.“Are you okay, Myra? Your face is very red.”She hurriedly brushed the sand from her face. “I’m fine, really. I’m just a little hot.”“Ah. The tropical weather here may be a bit hot for you.” He assisted her to sit up, taking extreme care of her. “I reckon the weather in your country is tolerable? Since there are, after all, four seasons.”She stood slowly, shaking the sand off her sundress. “And I assume you haven’t seen actual snow?”He looked at her s
Without hesitating, Hart’s hands moved to cup her cheeks, kissing her passionately. Please, don’t stop, she implored him in her heart. The night breeze was chilly, making her shiver in the cold. He scooped her up in his arms, laying her on the bed before resuming his affection on her lips. Taking his hands, she placed them on her chest. Was this… a direct invitation to touch her? He wondered, stroking her through her thin clothing. She let out a few moans, pulling him closer. She had to be aroused, but he did not want to be a monster to her. Separating their lips, he lay down next to her and stared into her eyes. “Myra, are you sober?” She nodded. “Hart, I only want you to think about me when we do… that.” Maybe it was a
[Back at Hart’s hideout]“Morning,” Myra yawned, rubbing her face against what turned out to be Hart’s chest. Daylight was streaming through the pale curtains. She was exactly where she wanted to be.If only, she didn’t have to wake up from the dream. Every moment with Hart had been so delightful and not hurtful.“Slept well last night?” Hart ran his hair through her hair, which was now probably a mess from their adventure last night. Her forehead throbbed with pain, reminding her of how much she had drunk last night.They had both called each other’s name last night. He had even taken her in
“Will everything be okay?” Myra said as Hart unlocked a decent-looking black Atoz hatchback. She breathed a sigh of relief to notice that there were no signs of the men chasing them earlier. The bustling crowds of shoppers and vendors fended them off from the rest of the bazaar, giving her a confirmation that they were safe, for now.“I’m the king of the bazaar,” Hart announced with a smile. “They wouldn’t be able to find us easily through the crowd. Particularly when they are not from the area.”He started the car, and they were on their way. Compared to his usual casual speed, he was driving fast. The car whizzed off into the distance, passing down the highway into the streets. Hart almost didn’t stop, until he finally reached a red light.Myra found her stress
Myra led Hart, still hand in hand, into the suite where their friends awaited. It was not a big suite, with a master room, two shared bathrooms and a kitchen which the rich girls barely used and a smaller room where Lesley slept. Hart put down his duffel bag carefully, observing the room as thoroughly as he could. This would work for a temporary hideout, but he would have to go forward with his plan.“You’ll be sharing with Lesley,” she said, hoping he would not be disappointed that they would not be sharing a bad. Sierra smiled with a hand over her mouth, anticipating what her sister shared with the divine man that she had just brought back to the hotel. Between them, they had the habit of calling the hotel ‘home’, as they did on several occasions. The home was where Myra was with Sierra, although now, it was where she hid with Hart. Hart had presented her with such a special
“I suggest we leave for your city as soon as possible,” Hart said solemnly after they finished eating. Under the table, his hand was warm on Myra’s thigh, sending electrical volts down her back and inciting her arousal.“Back to City V?” Myra gasped, pulling her legs together to contain her desire. Stop it, Hart, she uttered mentally. Fortunately, after a long silence, Hart moved his hand away, to her relief.He stood up and made an enormous bow before the others.“I’m deeply sorry for the inconvenience.”Sierra’s eyes followed Hart’s hand gestures as he explained about his situation and how he had indirectly caused Myra to be entangled in his family affairs. His excellent body language would make anyone s
Myra placed her head down on Hart’s shoulder as the plane took off.Goodbye, Bali, she told herself reluctantly. Knowing Jake was in City V along with that girl he was hugging in the party, she didn’t feel keen to go home. While she missed her overbearing daddy, she wasn’t sure how to face him after she had just left without a word, without his golden permission. But no news was good news. Surely he would have taken Sierra’s words.From now on, it would be her and Hart. She hadn’t expected so much from him when she had taken his car in the first place, and now he was going to her country with her, to be her dutiful boyfriend. It sounded so fairytale-like.In the aisle behind her, Sierra behaved intimately with the man she had met in Bali. Teos, the person who had stepped up
The following weeks had flown by like a breeze. The holidays ended, and it was back to university. As usual, Myra and Sierra would dine together between lectures, ignoring the handsome men that passed them.“Jake Yu is here, and he’s in a discussion with the Dean,” some girls chattered amongst themselves as they strolled by carrying trays of their food orders. The cafeteria, while having the most affordable meals the average university student could afford, was known for its variety. Of course, as wealthy as they were, the sisters didn’t need to subject themselves to inferior quality dishes.“How are you and your guy?” Sierra asked, seeing how distracted Myra was.“I guess, good.”Sierra noticed how Myra wasn’t paying attention to what she was asking, waving two fingers in front of her eyes repeatedly.“Jake Yu inherited his father’s conglomerate. Shall w