Publish May 30, 2019----Sept. 30, 2020

Katelyn woke up with a splitting headache, so painful that it is almost like being sutured without anesthesia. She tried to move so she can reach the bedside table for the medicine, but the realization hit her upon feeling the coldness of the room on her naked shoulders. Abruptly she opened her eyes and turned on her side to look for someone on the bed, but it turned out she was alone.

Thoughts of another person made her cringed not only because she had broken the contract but also because she committed adultery and lost her virginity to someone else. "But wait," she took a peek on her body under the blanket and saw that she was wearing her undies, and the bed is familiar.

"She is stupid to have drunk more than her tolerance." she blamed herself, "What did happen last night?" she murmured while putting her hands on her head to think.

"What is that look?" startled by Jared's voice, she looked up to see him walking towards her.

"When did he come inside? She never even heard a door opening or was he inside the room all along?" confusion marred her face.

"Don't you remember what you had done last night?" She just shakes her head from side to side for an answer.

"So reflect on it until you will recall what had happened," he told her while he opens the bedside cabinet at the same time Katelyn, who is still sitting on their bed and clutching the blanket, tried to do as he suggested.

But because of her headache, her mind cannot function well.

"Drink this medicine first," she looked at Jared's hands with a tablet and took it from him. She just looked at the pills while he poured water in a glass and offered it to her.

Jared sat down beside her while she drank the medicine, and once she finished, he removed the glass from her hand and put it on the tray at the top of the cabinet.

Katelyn puzzled look followed his every action.

"What had this guy's eyes had seen on the sky last night that he become so caring on her, or is it because he had seen her body?" That thought made her jerked and turned her back on him and bite her lips as shame creeps into her.

"What happened to you again? Your sudden movement will worsen your headache," he told her while he propped a pillow on the headboard and helped her position her head on it, and of course, his action made Katelyn conscious of her state of undress under the covers.

"Jared, its okay I can manage now," she told him, trying to send him away from her as his nearness made her felt uncomfortable.

He cupped her face gently and stared in her eyes, "Why? Do you remember what you did last night?" he smirked.

Though still confused, but afraid that in their current position, he will read in her eyes that he is the target of all her fantasies, she lowered her gaze.

"Now, I know your secret," his words brought awareness to her of the possibility that he knows her desire to have him to herself. She panicked at the thoughts of what will he say about it, so she pushed him away from her to salvage the remaining pride that she has.

She heard a loud thud as his body falls from the bed.

Katelyn, who was surprised too of her action, immediately get up from the bed to check on him. He was on his back on the floor, looking at his position made her panicked.

She immediately slumped down on the floor and tried to shake him. "Jared, are you okay?" but he just lay still on the floor, making Katelyn more worried.

She checked if he was still breathing, but to her surprise, she was pulled down by now fully awaken and smiling Jared.

"Were you worried for me, Tori?" with an impish look about him, he asked, and upon seeing her, with a pout brought a gleeful chuckle from him.

Katelyn wiggles to get out of his embrace in irritation, but his hold tightened. "Don't you know that I was anxious upon seeing you on the floor with your eyes closed? I thought you had cracked your head and lost your consciousness, but you were only making pranks on me." She grumbled.

"Don't be mad now, my beautiful wife," Upon hearing him call her wife, Katelyn was surprised and froze her movements, and that was also the moment that she realized her state of undress.

She tried to cover what she can with her two hands, but she cannot move. All she can do was to look at her breast that touched Jared's chest.

She looked up to make a protest. To see Jared looking at where her eyes were before stopped her from uttering any words.

Then he looked up at her, and his casual voice awakened her malicious mind. "I had seen it since last night," he told her while loosening his grip on her, making her vexed.

"Is she that unattractive that not a hint of being tempted marred his face?" She got up and, without care, walked in her underwear directly to the bathroom.

Jared, who was still lying on the floor, followed her movement. If Katelyn had turned around, she would see his eyes were full of admiration on her physical attributes.

He was just pretending to be unaffected, so the building sexual tension will not reach the point of no return. Especially now that even Katelyn was not tipsy, her response to him confirmed she was not indifferent to him, too, sexually.

Good thing she doesn't know how much he restrained himself since last night.

Whose husband can resist temptation when his wife strips in front of him? It was only the thoughts that she is not sober that had stopped him from having her.

He was even surprised now with what is happening to him. His already tailored plans for his future were all untangled to make room for Tori. He never also planned to marry in his twenties, let alone fall in love.

"But wait; is he in love now with Tori? Maybe not, he was just fascinated with her," he reasoned out to himself.

Love is just a waste of time, the destruction he cannot afford, especially since his priority is his company.

His arrangement with Charlize is enough. If he needs her, she accommodates him with open arms and, in return, everything that she wanted, may it be financial or fame was hers to have. Their unwritten agreement was excellent, especially that no emotion involved.

"But then why was it that ever since he had seen Tori, everything becomes a mess. He became considerate of things that include her when his friends had always called him a cold-hearted one.

While away on a business trip, in the solitary confinement of his rooms, his thoughts filled with her. Before his mind was only full of numbers and profits, now it becomes the gallery of her images and his attention-seeking plans.

He was so busy analyzing what was going into his mind, but no conclusion came out.

Still, in ponder, he got up and walked out of their bedroom.

After a while, Katelyn came out of the bathroom, refresh, and wearing a blue midi skirt with a matching short sleeve blouse. She looked around for Jared, but it seems that he was not around. "He is probably in his study again," she told herself while walking to their bed to arrange it.

After tidying the room, she went out and walked to the kitchen's direction to cook. As it is already past in the morning, it is not breakfast but a brunch. for their brunch as it is already past eleven.

Before she entered the kitchen, she heard the ringing of her phone and then remembered that since waking up, she had not seen it. She followed the sound, and it leads her to the couch near the main door.

Her phone was not on the couch though the sound is nearby.

She bends on her knees and takes a look under the couch. There she saw on the other end of the sofa in between the end table is her evening bag.

"How come it was there?" she asked herself, and then memories of last night came back.

Upon entering the door, she began to be dizzy again, resulting in her wobbling, and Jared, who was at her back catch her, slamming her back to his chest.

Katelyn then remembered that being in his embrace had brought pleasant feelings inside her, and with the help of alcohol, she became shameless. She wanted more of that feeling, still, in his embrace, she turned around and put her arms in his shoulder and kissed him. A subtle lip kiss, and then she sucked on his lower lips between hers.

Though what had happened afterward was hazy, she knew it was her who removed her clothes.

The continuous ringing of her phone made her realized her purpose, and she immediately took her bag, get up, and then opened her bag to fish out her phone.

She groaned upon seeing her caller and then pushed the answer button." Hi! Nicole, how are you?"

"Hello Katelyn, I was calling you as I was wondering if you're okay," Nicole asked with concern in her voice.

"Thank you, and yes, I am fine though I woke up with a headache but become okay after I took medicine. I was sorry to leave you first."

"Oh! Don't worry about us," a gleeful Nicole answered.

"You sound so happy as if being out last night was a blessing in disguise instead of being wallop of headache."

"I had forgotten about my headache as soon as I saw where I woke up," excited Nicole told her and curiosity made Katelyn asked," and what is the reason of that happiness in your voice?"

"Well..." a deep breath was heard from the other end," I woke up in a hotel room, not just a single room but in a suite."

"That's all! And it already made you so crazily happy? I thought you had slept with the man of your dreams."

"Don't make me sad by saying that, I also thought that I had seduced one of them, but it turned out they are gentlemen. Tess and I were so drunk last night that we were brought here in the Hotel and we don't know yet which of the gentlemen. But it was surely not Mr. Steele as he was missing after you left." Katelyn heard the disappointment in Nicole's voice, and can almost imagine her friend's face making a lot of expressions while talking to her. Thoughts of it brought a smile on her face.

"Imagine if it was another man, Tess and I had surely not awakened this early and alone in our bed. It did make me wonder if we are unattractive that even in their drunken state, they will not be seduced by us."

"Don't worry, Nicole. They were just blind." She reassured Nicole, though, in her mind, she thought of Jared and his reaction to her earlier.

"I am just complaining, but their action did not damage my self-confidence." Katelyn heard Nicole laugh, "Besides, we still have tomorrow night."

"What was tomorrow night?" Katelyn thought and then took a deep breath as she remembered that she had to accompany Nicole for her blind date. But why it is that she felt guilty; she will not be lying to Jared as she will only be a companion, not the one searching for a partner.

"Can we not postpone it on other days?" She finally said as she felt uneasy.

"No, no...The earlier I meet them, the better, so if we are not compatible, I can find another one. Time is ticking so fast, my friend, so it's better to grab each moment."

There is no sense in arguing with Nicole when it comes to her dating philosophy, so better accompany her now, so next time she will not ask again. She hopes Nicole will finally find her "The One."

"Okay, I will not forget." She finally answered.

"Don't worry; I will bring all the things we need. See you tomorrow as I will go to Tess's room again. I am sure she had already gotten over her disappointment. Bye."

Katelyn wanted to say her regards to Tess, but Nicole had already switched off the phone. Only the thought of seeing Tess tomorrow appeased her disappointment. She turned her phone off too and returned it to her bag.

"Who are you talking on the phone?" startled Katelyn turned around to see Jared standing outside the door of their kitchen wearing an apron.

"It was Nicole on the phone asking if I am okay after last night," she told him, but astonishment etches her face upon seeing him wearing an apron, it made her asked while walking to where he stands bags in arms. "Am I hallucinating, or did you cooked?"

"Of course, I cooked for my wife; she is not feeling well, so I have to take care of her," Jared told her once she is beside him that stupefied her for a moment at the way he looked at her, with sincerity in his eyes.

"No, it was only the alcohol residue that made errors on her judgments, and so she had put meaning in how he looks at her as well as heard him called her as his wife. Don't assume anything; remember your wearing undies only did not even seduce him."

After lecturing herself, it still did not stop her from reaching up to touch his cheek. "Hmm...My hubby is so sweet that I could cry." a honeyed voice told him while she reached out and touched his newly shaved face, and then in her most flirtatious way, she smiled.

Jared looked at her eyes as if reading any emotion in its depth and suddenly grabbed her waist and cupped her chin.

Soft lips touched her, eyes wide open and mind busy thinking she was only kidding when she flirted with him, but upon feeling him bite on her lower lips softly, Katelyn lost all reason. She closed her eyes and be a slave to the command of her senses.

The aroma of his shaving cream with the subtle scent of sandalwood and a touch of spice made him smell so masculine that it added to her trance state.

The way he glides his hands at her back send shivers to all part of her body and weaken her knees.

She clung to him as if holding to her dear life and unconsciously brushed her fingers on his nape and deepened the kiss.

Katelyn was even surprise of her wantonness, but she reasoned out, this time, she will not be a passive participant; all her inhibitions must be flush in the drain.

When they broke away, it seems like ages. They both looked at each other eyes while taking shaky, shallow breaths. Jared's eyes fill with wonder looked at her passion-filled eyes, and then he hugged her.

"Wait for me in the dining table while I get the food in the kitchen," he told her after their hearts beating slowed down, and they breathed regularly.

She just answered him with a nod, afraid that her mouth will say what is in her mind.

He then kissed her forehead and walked back inside the kitchen, leaving her still standing contemplating her actions.

Her attraction to him grows more and more each day, and she cannot hide it anymore.

Katelyn is tired of always pretending to be a person that she was not; she wanted to be herself for once. Though she cannot deny that a part of her was afraid of the consequences of her action, she just wanted to thread into this newfound fervor.

END OF PART 9

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