NO CHOICE /r18

EXTENDED

Mylene and her mom were having a meeting with one of their Singaporean jewelry supplier at the coffee shop inside the restaurant of the Sentosa Hotel lobby that early morning. The coffee shop was part of the hotel lobby where guests spend their spare time or meet business comrades.

They were engrossed in negotiating  the deals with the supplier when Mylene suddenly noticed someone who looked so familiar came in the lobby and went straight to the receptionist.

 What The Hell??? Si Alex yun! Si Alex ba yun? Why is he here????

She stood up and excused herself para puntahan ang pamilyar na tao, and indeed,  she was right! Si Alex nga!!! Amoy na nya ang pabango nito habang lumalakad sya palapit sa reception.

"Alex???" she surprisingly called him. Napalingon si Alex sa kanya. "Oh my God, why are you here??? Kala ko you were just kidding me kanina!" she wondered but at the same time, she felt happy that sumunod talaga sya sa kanya.

"Hi, love." Alex embraced her and kissed her.  "Di ba sabi ko susunod ako? Na miss kita eh."

"Wala pang 24 hours tayong naghiwalay. Wait, don't check in. Stay with us. May 2 bedrooms ang suite namin dito sa hotel." she told him as she turned to the receptionist. "This is Mr. Montreal, my husband. Can I get another key card for him?"

"Oh, your husband. Sure mam." sagot ng receptionist.

"Can we extend the reservation, say, until Monday?" tanong ni Alex sa receptionist na kinagulat naman ni Mylene.

"May trabaho tayo sa Lunes, baka nakalimutan mo!" she scolded him.

"Tss. So what? You own the shop, you're also the department head ng company nyo. Ako din ang boss. So sino ang sisita sa atin if we extend our stay here? Tatawagan ko lang si dad and I'll tell him na gagawa tayo ng future tagapagmana nila, sigurado akong di na hihindi yun!" lambing na sabi ni Alex sa kanya kayat di na sya nakasagot. She just rolled her eyes.

Napangiti rin ang receptionist na parang kinikilig sa kanila as she handed them an extra room key card. Pilipino din pala ito so naintindihan nya ang pinag uusapan nila.

"Hay, bahala ka na nga."

Alex turned his attention to the receptionist, who was smiling widely at them.

"Please extend the suite room until Monday. Here's my card."

Mylene didn't argue with him anymore because deep inside her, she also wanted to spend time with Alex here in Singapore. 

After the arrangements has been made Mylene brought Alex to the table where her mom and their suppliers were still talking. 

Actually, natapos na ang business deal nila and they were just discussing kung anong oras silang pipili ng mga jewelry items na dadalhin pauwi.

Mylene caught their attention as they approached the table.

"Mom, Alex is here." bumeso si Alex sa kanyang mommy and she then introduced him to their guests. "and these here are Mr. And Mrs. Cheng. " Alex shook their hands.

"This is my husband Mr. Alexander Montreal of Montreal Industries." she proudly told the couple.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Montreal. Its a good thing you were able to join us. Did you just arrived here in Singapore?" Mr. Cheng asked.

"Yes, I took an early flight from the Phils. I couldn't afford not to be with my wife for long, so I decided to join her here," he answered, reaching for Mylene's waist to her close to him. 

Patuloy silang nag uusap about sa negosyo. Alex really possesses that charm kasi halatang na charm nya rin ang mag asawang guest nila.

In fact, bago matapos ang kanilang deal, si Alex ay may nabuo din na deal kay Mr. Cheng na pag uusapan nila sa susunod nilang pagkikita.

***

They had a long day after that meeting and when everything was ironed out and deals were closed, Mylene's mom decided to fly back to Manila right away instead of tomorrow, leaving the two together to spend the weekend by themselves.

They went to Beduk 85 Market that night to eat and tried out most of Singapore's authentic foods.

Then they also went to Merlion Park for a walk.

They were enjoying the view of the park when Alex held Mylene's hand and pulled her to face him.

"I missed you," he said while looking intently at her eyes.

Mylene rolled her eyes and avoided his gaze. She's feeling giddy inside but she didn't want to show it.

 Yan na naman ang mga titig na yan!

"Sus, ilang araw lang oh. Kung di ka sumunod eh bukas uwi na rin ako." she joked.

Alex took a deep breath. "No, seriously, I miss having your presence sa bahay. Sleeping without you was really a strange thing. Nasanay na yata ako sayo." Alex told her as he caressed her face.

She blushed. She again felt that strong emotion that she had been denying for some time now.

 Mahal ko na ba sya? Am I falling for him? Or am I just mesmerized by his charms... Like how other women fall for him.

"Hmmm, love, can we talk?" Alex then said. Kinabahan si Mylene kasi mukha itong seryoso. Parang may kung anong bagay na pumipigil sa kanyang damdamin at the same time, tumutumbok sa kanyang puso.... Na parang di sya ready kung anuman ang sasabihin.

 Stop it! Uusap lang kayo. Wag kang assuming.

"Aren't we talking  right now? About what ?" patay malisyang sagot nya kahit na ramdam nya ang bilis ng t***k ng kanyang puso.

"Promise me you won't judge me or jump to any conclusion before hearing me out first." wika ni Alex na parang naninigurado at pinagmamasdan ang ekspresyon nya lalo na at napairap ito.

"Seryoso ah! Go ahead! Spit it out! I promise I won't. Ano ba yun?" sagot nya na nakangiti, encouraging him to speak.

"I "almost" did it," Alex said.

"Did what?" she asked.

"I almost made out to another woman last night." Mylene did not say anything but her brows arched. She felt a prick on her heart, but she didn't want to show him that she was a bit hurt. When she didn't react, Alex continued.

"Di ba, I was at Tipsy with friends? I met someone last night. Actually, we were introduced...and we almost made out. Good thing I met your friend Rose, she saved me from being tempted." he said.

 Ah kaya pala. May nakakita sayo kaya sinasabi mo sa akin. Pero kung wala, baka natuloy!!! Gago!!!

She remained silent and avoided his gazes, trying to conceal what she really felt.

"Please say something... " Alex urged her.

Mylene looked at him again. "What do you want me to say?" she asked back.

"Anything!!!" Alex replied. He looked a bit worried. Mylene wasn't showing any emotion or reaction sa sinabi nya. Nasanay sya sa mga ex flings nya na always may exagerrated or violent reaction syang natatanggap or inaaway sya. Di tulad ni Mylene. No emotions. No reactions. He couldn't read her...

Mylene took a deep breath, raised her brows to hide the real emotion in her eyes and pretended she wasn't affected.

"Look, you don't need to feel guilty kung anuman ang ginawa mo, or gagawin mo or kahit na ano pang plano mong gawin. We made a deal. Nothing has change sa deal na yun. Walang pakialaman as long as hindi sa harap ko." she faked a smile again and added, " But I appreciate you telling me this. As I've said, as long as di kita makikitang naglalandi sa kanila sa harap ko, then I'm good." she said and she turned her back to him to hide what she truly felt.

Alex hugged her back and kissed her neck.

"But di ko ginawa yun....not because I felt guilty, but because inisip kita."

she smirked at him. "Huwag mo akong bolahin Alex. Di mo nagawa yun kasi nakita ka ni Rose." natatawa nyang sagot. "I wasn't born yesterday, Alex. Hahaha."

Yes, she was affected but at the same time, she was glad that even if it was hard for him to confess, he told her about it. Pwede rin naman kasi nyang esekreto yun.

She wondered why her friend Rose didn't tell her about it. She could always message her sa kanilang group chat.

Baka rin kasi pinakaiusapan ni Alex na huwag sabihin. She'll call her pag uwi nila.

"I'm sorry. I was so weak." he looked down like a scolded child. "Are we good?" he drew his lower lip between his teeth.

She faced him again, this time, so determined to guard her feelings.

"Don't be sorry. As I've said, we have a deal, just as our marriage is also a deal that we have no choice. As long as you keep your end, then we're good. But really, thanks for telling me." she answered, giving him "an almost" genuine smile. "I appreciate your honesty."

 Tangina mo Mylene! Magkaka award ka talaga dyan sa Best Poker Face mo!

Kaya naman pala nya. Dapat nya lang sakyan ang sitwasyon. Di rin naman kasi nya mapigilan ang kanyang sarili.

Bumalik na sila ng hotel after nilang mag night stroll sa Merlion Park.

Alex ordered a bottle of Chardonnay pagdating nila ng kanilang suite habang si Mylene ay pumasok sa banyo para maligo.

Alex contemplated on what has transpired today.

Ang biglaang pagsunod nya dito sa Singapore...

Ang pag uusap nila ni Mylene...

Ang pagkadama nya ng di nya maipaliwanag na damdamin...

Ang daming bagay ang naglalaro sa isipan nya. Samo't saring emotion na di nya inaasahan.

Nagugulo ang kanyang isipan. Nagugulo ang kanyang damdamin.

It was all strange. It was overwhelming.

But one thing he was sure if, he liked being with his wife...

***

Alex lay next to Mylene, listening to the soft sounds of her breathing. They made passionate love that night. Regardless of what has transpired between them, their body would always betray them.

Her head was pillowed on his arm, and though it was getting numb, he refused to move because he liked the feel of her nestled sa tabi nya. She was warm and soft beside him and he was gripped by an odd....contentment. 

He wasn't a cuddler. Not since na ikasal sila, he had never devoted any time to the more intimate parts of lovemaking.

Di naman sa di nya ina-allow na mag sleep over ang mga babae nya, but there was always a distinct separation, almost an invisible barrier between him and his the women he had bedded.

But with Mylene, iba. As soon as he had withdrawn from her body, she had snuggled into his side and fell asleep.

Huminga sya ng malalim at pinikit ang kanyang mga mata para matulog.

****

Mylene opened her eyes to see Alex leaning over her, his hands, gently shaking her.

"Hey, time to get up. May pupuntahan tayo."  he said.

She rubbed her eyes, "What time is it?" she said.

"It's almost 8 in the morning. If you want to shower and get dressed, we'll grab breakfast at the buffet na lang." Alex replied.

"Ok, I won't take long, promise."

wont take long daw eh halos isang oras sya maligo.

Mylene stumbled into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. Other than signs of fatigue, she didn't look any different. Somehow, she expected the world to see on her face what she and Alex had done the night before. That after s*x glow is shouting on her face!

****

They spent the rest of their stay in Singapore worthwhile. Mylene had experienced how Alex was so generous and lavish,  with what she wanted and what she needed. 

Splurge shopping was like a piece of cake. 

Of course, she could afford to buy anything she wanted.... anything...from signature bags to branded shoes and clothes but Alex never allowed her to pay for that, not even a cent. He spoiled her big time!

And it was also the first time that somebody spent for her, aside from her kuya Michael and her parents.

Their nights were also well spent. Totoo nga, parang second honeymoon nila ito, but the small difference was, this time, randam nila pareho na mag asawa sila. They won't admit it to themselves pero parang ganun na nga....