Chapter 1
1092 Words
Santana Peninsula Hotel, located at Punta Engaño, Mactan Island, Lapu-Lapu City. It is one of the five-star hotels in the Province of Cebu that offers a luxurious stay for every tourist or even local guest. Travelers can reach the place by any means of land transport, bus, taxi, private cars, or by foot, but it takes almost two hours to walk from the city of Cebu.
The weather is quite good as there is no sign of rain, but it seems like one of those days with high temperatures. The hotel is flocked with tourists and locals as September is the second busiest tourism season up to November.
A lady in her long black-fitted jeans topped with a fitted long white-sleeved shirt and paired with ankle-strap stilettos came into the entrance of the hotel. She went straight to the reception area, and walked gracefully, which made the people in the lobby area look at her. Some were amazed and fascinated by her beauty. Her outfit looks simple but elegant and matches her mestiza beauty. Her shoulder-length hair is naturally blonde and wavy. Her almond-shaped eyes in hazelnut brown added to her alluring looks, which made everyone take a second look.
“Hi, good afternoon. I'm Samantha Muñoz and I am…”
She hadn't finished introducing herself when the receptionist cut her off. She frowned secretly. She finds it rude to cut her off.
“Mr. Santana is waiting for you, Miss Muñoz, right?” The receptionist said.
“Yes!”
“I will send you to him, he is waiting for you. Please come and follow me,” the receptionist added.
“Thank you!” She replied and looked around while walking, following the receptionist. . She knows that people are looking at her. She can feel it, but she doesn't care. It was her friend who asked her to come to meet Mr. Santana. She knows who it was. No one knows the guy who is popular in every corner of the island of Cebu. She left her work to grant her friend's request to meet him because, according to her friend, it was the solution to her financial problem. Her friend didn't tell her what kind of job it was, but she grabbed the opportunity as she was running out of money to pay for her godmother's hospital bills.
The receptionist led her to one of the private lounges on the ground level of the hotel. Outside of the lounge were six men in uniform standing, three on each side of the door of the private room.
“He won't hire me as one of those men, right?” She mumbled to herself.
“Miss Muñoz, I will leave you here. You can get in now,” the receptionist said before she left.
She bowed her head and thanked her. After the receptionist left, she took a deep breath and knocked on the door, but before she could knock, the door swung open, making her fists land on someone's forehead. She withdrew her hand instantly when she saw a man in an elegant terno standing right in front of her. She gasped in shock.
“I'm sorry!” She said apologetically after recovering from the shock.
“No worries. It's my fault,” the guy said in a formal tone. He then opened the door wider for her to enter. She gets in and stands for a while to look around the room. The lounge is quite a big room with a modern half-moon sofa with velvet maroon covers, a rectangular center table in front, a wall adorned with paintings by unknown artists, and in one corner is a small bar with two bar stools.
“Do you like the room, Miss Muñoz?” She was a bit startled when the guy spoke. She turned to him. “I'm Kendrick Santana,” he said and stretched his arm, and gestured for a handshake. She received his hand and introduced herself simultaneously.
“I'm Samantha Muñoz, Sam for my friends.”
“Nice to meet you, Miss Muñoz. Have a seat.”
“Thank you!”
“Any drinks you want? Anyways, your friend told me that you love fresh juices. I ordered one for you. Sorry! It will be delivered soon,” Kendrick continued.
She smirked. “Wow! And my friend has already told you everything about me, isn't he?” She asked.
“Sorry about that. I asked your friend if you would accept my offer, then I already know something about you,” Kendrick responded.
“What else could I do? You did it in advance,” she said. “So, can we talk straight now, Mr. Santana?”
Kendrick looked at her intently. “Can you be my girlfriend?”
She almost fell off the sofa when she was about to get a glass of water on the table when she heard the guy. Luckily, she was able to hold on to the sofa before an embarrassing thing happened.
“Can you be my girlfriend? I mean, I'll pay you to pretend to be my girlfriend and be my wife,” Kendrick said bluntly.
Samantha suddenly felt dizzy after hearing Kendrick's offer. She wasn't able to process what she heard. She gritted her teeth, remembering what her friend had told her.
“Sam, that is it! This is what you are waiting for. We can take Tita Margarita out of the hospital once you accept the job that Mr. Santana will offer to you.”
“Really? And why, all of a sudden, that icy rich man of every woman's dream is looking for someone like me?”
“I don’t know. Just meet him, okay? And please don't forget to update us after you meet him.”
'I will kill you, Kyle.' She thought after reminiscing about their conversation.
When she recovered from the shock, she sat up straight and looked at the guy in front of her intensely.
“I'm sorry, Mr. Santana, but I can't accept your offer. I think Kyle has told you who I am?”
“He is! But I don't care about it, Ms. Muñoz. You fit the criteria of a person I am looking for,” he said, meeting her intense stares. She felt that his stares seemed to penetrate his soul. She avoided his stares and drank water.
“ Will I think about it?” She said and was about to stand up to leave.
“300,000 for advance payment,” Kendrick said, which stops her from going.
- Writer
