Chapter 5

"Perfect! Next pose!" sigaw ng photographer.

I raised my toes a little, to emphasize my posture and tilted my head to the side. Continuous crisp clicks of the camera invaded the entire shooting area.

"That's right, baby!" nasisiyahan pa nitong sigaw. "Show 'em your curves!"

"Mallory!"

Nabulabog ang lahat nang may biglang bumagsak. Maging ako ay napatingin din sa may pintuan. Sage stormed towards my direction, ignoring the staff.

Pinasadahan niya ako ng tingin at mas lalong nanlisik ang kaniyang mga mata. "What the fuck do you think are you doing?"

I stared back at him. I haven't seen him in a week. Ever since I ditched him, he'd been calling me non-stop. I blocked him on my phone already but he always finds a way to call me so I was forced to change my number instead.

"What is it?" tamad kong tanong sa kaniya.

"Fuck," he muttered under his breath and dragged me away.

"Hey, what are you doing?" sumimangot ang aking photographer at hinarangan kaming dalawa.

"Protecting her from your disgusting look, that's what," may diin ang kaniyang bawat letrang sagot.

"You just can't—"

Without even thinking about it, Sage grabbed his camera and hurled it against the floor. Maging ako ay nagulat sa kaniyang ginawa. Hawak niya pa rin ang aking kamay nang pinulot niya ang SD card at ibinulsa.

"What have you done?" ngayon ay talagang galit na ang aking photographer. He examined his broken camera in dismay and anger.

"Sage . . ." I hissed.

"You," ani Sage, sabay turo sa kaniya. "You are fired."

"And who do you think—"

"Christian Sage Monterio, Monterio Group of Companies Chairman . . ." anito at nilingon ang iba pang nasa loob ng shooting area. Lahat sila ay nanlalaki ang mga mata bukod sa mga nakakakilala na kay Sage. "No one will shoot half-naked girls for my company from now on." Matigas nitong wika at nakipagtitigan sa photographer. "You get me?"

"Y-Yes, Sir . . ."

Binalingan ako ni Sage. His eyes travelled to my red lingerie that shows a huge amount of my cleavage and my buttocks. Then he cursed out loud and finally let go of my hands. Hinubad niya ang kaniyang suot na coat at ibinalot iyon sa akin. I was too stunned to protest.

He grabbed my hands again and dragged me outside of the room. It was hard, knowing that I'm wearing a six-inch heels and Sage doesn't look like he's stopping any moment.

"If you could . . ." I said panting. "Slow down a little!"

Huminto siya sa paglalakad at hinigpitan ang kaniyang hawak sa aking kamay.

"Where the hell are you taking me?" galit kong tanong sa kaniya. "You just ruined my photoshoot, you know that?"

Sage remained silent and crouched in front of me. He lifted my left foot and slowly removed my heels.

"What the . . . What are you doing Sage?"

"You're complaining for me to slow down because your feet hurts . . ." anito at ibinaba ang aking paa. He then grabbed my right foot. "Then let's get rid of this."

Nanginginig ang mga labi ko sa ginagawa ni Sage. I watched him unclasped my heels and even gently massaged my ankles before he placed it back on the floor. Then he grabbed my heels and before I knew it, swept me off the floor. My eyes widened in surprise.

"What are you doing?" natataranta kong tanong. "Someone might see us, Sage! Ibaba mo ako!"

"Then let them see us," prente nitong sagot at mabilis na naglakad papalabas ng building. Gusto kong itago ang aking mukha nang makarating kami sa lobby at pinagtitinginan kami ng mga tao.

"Sage!" I hissed. Kinurot ko pa ang kaniyang dibdib but he wouldn't budge. Ibinaon ko ang aking mukha sa kaniyang dibdib. His usual minty scent entered my nostrils and brought nostalgia. I remember this very scent. Oddly enough, it helped me to calm down. So he still didn't change his perfume, huh?

Namalayan ko nalang na papunta na kami sa parking lot. Sage struggled to get the remote out of his pocket. He opened the passenger door and shoved me inside.

"Hey—" before I could protest, he already locked the door and circled the car.

Nang makasakay siya sa driver's seat ay binulyawan ko siya.

"This is kidnapping, Sage Monterio! I could file a case against you!"

"File all you want, Mal . . ." anito habang inaatras ang sasakyan. I felt irritated that he didn't even glanced at me and instead focused on the car's side mirror as he slowly pulled out.

"Sage!" protesta ko.

Still, he remained silent as we left the building. Niyugyog ko ang kaniyang balikat.

"Hey, stop it. We're going to have an accident," saway niya sa akin.

"Kung ganoon ay ibaba mo ako!" singhal ko sa kaniya.

"With that clothes?" tinaasan ako ng kilay ni Sage at pinasadahang muli ang aking suot. "No way, Mal."

I bit my lower lips in frustration. "You can't do this to me!"

He chuckled, his voice confident and deep. "Oh, I just did."

"You are so fucking stubborn!" pilit kong inagaw ang steering wheel mula sa kaniya ngunit mabilis ang kaniyang mga kamay at mas malakas siya kaysa sa akin. He stopped the car for a while but the door is still locked. Hindi ako makalabas.

"Look, you still owe me a dinner for ditching me on our first date . . ." aniya. Ang kaniyang mga siko ay nakapatong sa manibela. He leaned closer to me. Napaatras ako lalo sa bintana ng sasakyan. I wanted to curse at him but I couldn't. Even my knees are trembling uncontrollably. "You ditched me, right?"

"You should've known I couldn't come," I averted my gaze.

"You said you'll come," he shrugged. "So I waited."

"How long have you been waiting?"

"Half an hour," he lied. I stared at him blankly. It's either it's his ego talking or he just doesn't want me to know that he'd been waiting there in the rain to make me feel less guilty.

"So stop whining, alright? We're going to have our date today," anunsiyo niya.

"What?" I shrieked and realized that I left my bag and phone at the studio. Goddamit! I promised Leon to see him today for a dinner with his family.

"What what?" pinaandar nang muli ni Sage ang sasakyan. "You have to come with me whether you like it or not."

I gave him an unbelievable look. "Are you fucking serious?"

"What a bad mouth you have, Mallory . . ." ani Sage. He leaned closer again and before I knew it, he pressed his lips with mine. It was just a peck. But it was enough to left me astounded and wanting for more. Halos hindi ako makahinga sa kaniyang ginawa. "Is this the same mouth you use to kiss me?"

My chest heaved up and down. "Kidnapping . . . sexual harassment . . ." I enumerated. "You are going to jail, Monterio."

He threw his head back and laughed. "I'd like to see you try, baby." He even had the audacity to wink before he started the engine again.

Gusto kong sabunutan ang sarili ko sa kaniyang ginawa. I scooted as far away from him and hugged my knees into my chest. I'm so aware of his presence. His hair that I messed up and the first three undone buttons of his white button-down sleeves. I stole a glance at him but quickly averted my gaze when I saw that he's already staring at me.

"You'll get us killed," I muttered. "Focus on driving, Sage."

Umiling-iling siya. "Sorry. You're so distracting."

I swallowed. Why is this guy flirting with me when he knew that I already had a boyfriend? Naghahanap ba talaga siya ng gulo?

"Where are you taking me?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. To a nice restaurant that serves some grilled fish and white wine?" anito sa akin at pinasadahan na naman ako ng tingin. "But first, we'll have to do something about your clothes, maybe rip it off?"

"Sage!" nanlaki ang mga mata ko sa kaniyang sinabi.

He laughed out loud. "Just kidding, Mal. We're going to buy you some new clothes."

My cheeks burned so bad. Mas isiniksik ko pa ang aking sarili sa dulo ng kaniyang kotse.

"You haven't changed a bit," aniya matapos ang ilang sandali. "You're still the same Mallory. You're still my Mallory . . . God, I'm so relieved."

"You shouldn't be," I said through gritted teeth. "Not because I show some mannerisms from before doesn't mean that I haven't changed a bit. A lot could happen in the four years I've been on Japan, Sage."

"Oh, Japan huh?" he mused out loud. Ihinto niya ang sasakyan sa harapan ng isang mamahaling fashion boutique. I eyed the pretty red dress on display and was itching to grab it but I remained on my seat. Kapag lumabas ako at nagsuot ng damit, para ko na ring binigyan ng permiso si Sage na gawin itong lahat sa akin.

He climbed out of the car and opened the door for me.

"Let's go."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Mallory . . ." he said in a warning tone.

"No. I'm not going anywhere—Sage!" I shrieked out loud when he pulled me outside of the car and carried me again. Nagulat ang mga taong naglalakad at napatingin sa aming dalawa. Pinagpapadyak ko ang aking mga paa para makawala kay Sage ngunit masyado siyang malakas. "Let go of me!"

He pushed the glass doors open. The saleslady looked at us quizzically. "Uhm, can we help you, Sir?" ipinaglipat-lipat niya ang kaniyang tingin sa akin at kay Sage.

"Yes, please. My wife here," he glanced down at me, making me froze. "Is having her tantrums again. Can you look for the perfect clothes for her? We're going to have a dinner date."

The lady smiled. "Ang cute niyo pong dalawa. Sige Sir, kami na po ang bahala."

I wanted to shrunk in embarrassment. Mas lalong humigpit ang hawak ko kay Sage.

"And oh, while you're at it, get her some nice and normal underwear, okay?" nanlaki ang mga mata ko sa kaniyang sinabi pati na rin ang saleslady. "I'm not really a fan of lingerie . . ."