Chapter Seventeen

“Uno, is that you?” I asked as I heard the door open outside. I turned off the shower and combed my hair. I’m guessing that’s Uno. I mean, when I peeked out the window of his room earlier, there was only one man in a suit outside. I suppose Uno stepped out of the house earlier just to send his men, who were scattered outside, home.

“Are you done showering?” I heard him ask, so I exited the shower stall and approached the door.

“Yes, and there isn’t a towel here; could you get me one?”

“Oh right, wait,” he said and I hid my lip after looking in the mirror and noticing some more visible bruises on my arms.

I can’t let Uno see this because I’m certain that if he finds out why I’m covered in bruises, he’ll tell Dos, which I don’t want to happen because I’m afraid he will confront my father. As far as I recall, Dos is the type of person who doesn’t hesitate to confront someone when he knows he’s right and has a reason. He will take a stand regardless of who is in front of him. That is exactly what he did to his father, and it is the reason why his father allowed him to leave the mafia.

“Open the door, Kharris.” Uno commanded as he knocked, reason for me to lose my train of thought. I swallowed hard before opening the door just enough for my hand to fit. I caught a fleeting glance at him and noticed that his brows had furrowed.

“What’s the point of hiding when we’ve already seen each other naked?” he asked, handing over the towel and paper bag. I picked it up and looked inside; as he had mentioned earlier, it contained underwear and ladies’ clothing and because it was a T-shirt, I’m certain that my arms would be exposed.

“I don’t want to wear these clothes,” I told him, making him scowl. I sure sounded like a spoiled brat. But what am I to do? I need to figure out how to wear long sleeves. I could have just worn my clothes earlier, but they’re already wet because I accidentally opened the shower while undressing. Hah! I’m fucking stupid.

“Why?” Uno asked.

“I want your clothes, particularly your button-down shirt.”

“Why?” he asked again, this time weirded by my actions.

“I just want to try it, I haven’t had a boyfriend yet, so I want to try wearing a man’s clothes, you know?” Fuck, my reason is too lame for him to agree.

“You were wearing a man’s clothes the other day,” he said sternly, referring to Reo’s sweater. I knew he would say that, he was very keen on details after all.

“That was different; it’s just a sweater.”

“It’s still man’s clothes, Khariss.”

“Please?” I made puppy eyes at him despite knowing it was cringe, but I didn’t expect it to work because he sighed and folded his arm.

“Fine,” he said before going to his wardrobe. I smiled broadly, and I was genuinely pleased because I felt like I had defeated him.

When he handed me his white button-down shirt, I immediately changed into it, and, as expected, Uno’s clothing was too big for me it reached my legs. It was also incredible that the bra and panty he purchased were a perfect fit for me. What a talent he has there.

“I’m don—” I couldn’t finish what I was about to say when I saw Uno naked when I came out. He’s now just wearing sweatpants and no top. He appears to be changing into more comfortable clothing.

“Wow,” he exclaimed as he turned to face me while I was wiping my hair with the towel.

“W-What?” I stuttered.

“I feel like you’re asking me to attack you,” he grinned and I swallowed hard. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t expect anything to happen to us now that we’re alone in his room. I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if we continue what we were doing earlier in the fitting room. We already have a friend with benefits relationship, so I suppose it’s just normal when we’re intimate with each other. Ugh! I’m not sure how that kind of relationship actually works.

“Come on, do you really want me to attack you?” he asked while putting his muscle tee on.

“No,” I said flatly. I kept my poker face on as much as possible so he wouldn’t notice that I was anticipating.

“Is that why you’re staring at me as if you want to eat me?” he grinned as he approached me. I raised my head to look up at him and then fold my arms to my chest.

“So, what if I am?”

“I warned you it’s a bad idea to provoke me.”

“All right, can we eat now? I’m starving.” I change the subject because I don’t think he’s joking. I’m afraid I won’t be able to walk tomorrow if I provoke him. I’m sure he was gentle the first time we had sex because I was a virgin, and I’m not sure what will happen to me if we do it again.

“What would you like to eat? Me?” He smirked, obviously teasing me.

“Shut up,” I said as I slapped his arm and looked around his room. “Lend me a comb.”

He grinned at me before grabbing a comb and handing it to me.

“I’ll go downstairs; just follow me after you’re done,” he said, and I nodded as I stood in front of his full-length mirror. I can smell Uno because I used his shampoo, which smells like a man but it isn’t so bad because it’s so appealing. When I get home and the demons in the house smell me, they’ll probably question me. Wait! I think that’s a good idea because we’ll be having a guest later. Isn’t it nice when the son of De Guzman Corp’s owner notices that his soon-to-be wife smells like a man?

I’m laughing just thinking about Dad’s reaction. Should I try doing that? Hmm.

When I was finished combing my hair, I placed Uno’s comb on top of the drawer and was about to leave but I noticed the picture near where I had placed the comb. It was partially covered in paper, but I knew Dos was there, so I took it.

This photo was taken when the twins were in college. Uno is on the right, Shia is in the middle, and Dos is on the left. Their arms were wrapped around each other’s shoulders as they smiled. They looked so happy. Would we still be the same if the twins were my age?

I just grumbled bitterly and returned the photo before finally following Uno downstairs. When I walked into the kitchen, I was surprised to see him cooking.

“I had no idea you could cook,” I said as I sat on the barstools and rested my elbows on the counter. He grinned as he turned to face me.

“What do you expect from someone who lives alone here?”

“Why don’t you hire a maid? Aren’t you lonely here? Your house is too big but you live alone.”

“It’s okay, I built this house because I want my future wife and child to live here,” he said, turning his back on me and continuing with whatever he was cooking.

“Right now, I live alone, but I will soon be able to be with my future family as well.”

I was taken aback when Uno said that, I had no idea he was such a deep man. I mean, I know he’s a serious person, but I didn’t expect he’d think that. I smiled as my interest in him slowly went back. Now, I had a strong desire to get to know him better. I want to see the different expressions on his face and learn about his life.

I was aware that the life he was leading was dangerous, but that was one of the things that piqued my interest.

“Wow, now I wonder what kind of father and husband you will be,” I remarked before reaching for and peeling a banana from the fruit basket.

“Do you want to know?” he asked as he turned off the stove. He removed the pasta from the pan and placed it on the plate. After that, he approached me, so I stopped eating the banana and looked up at him.

“W-What?”

“I’m asking if you’re interested,” he said, and I shrugged. He’s teasing me again.

“Lol, I’m just curious,” I replied before recalling something.

“Right, I’d like to ask you a question about our current relationship,” I said. “How do friends with benefits actually work? I mean, aside from sexual relationships, are there any other rules to follow?”

“Do you want to set some rules?” he replied, leaning against the countertop behind him.

“Hmm? No? I can’t come up with any.”

“Good,” he grinned, “Because rules aren’t going to work on a rule-breaker like me.”