A bright smile danced around the corner of her lips, her eyes fluttering open. She rolled to her side, expecting to come in contact with the man beside her. Instead, her feet got caught between the duvet, and she almost moved to the ground due to the space.
"Shit!" She cussed, straightening herself. "Oh, there he is!" She thought, her eyes lighting up as she spotted Markris seated at his dresser. He felt her eyes resting on him and turned his head around. Pulling off his earplugs, he nodded at her shy wave.
"Good morning." Lorena drawled, her voice still croaking from their intense lovemaking.
"Hey." He tilted his head, his voice a little too disengaged for her liking. His eyes did not hold the warmth of last night, and it left her wondering if something bad happened while she was asleep.
"Did you sleep well?" She asked, determined to keep this conversation afloat. She couldn't be the only one still high of the euphoria from last night. She felt a familiar feeling rising from the pit of her bowels, and the thought of it alone made her sick.
"I guess," He shrugged. "Uhmmm, Lorena..." Her heart began to thump loudly in her chest. She didn't like the sound of his voice. Hated the way he called her even more. She leaned forward, her legs spreading out before her. "Last night was great, but it's a new day now. I think we..."
"You're joking, right?" She snickered, her eyes widening in disbelief. She should have known it was too good to be true. Markris could not be an asshole. "Don't tell me you're trying to say last night was a mistake because it wasn't!" Her voice raised an octave higher, her chest rising and falling.
"It's never going to happen again." He said with so much confidence in his voice. It rattled her soul. His whole demeanour was too calm for her liking. No one should be that relaxed after what happened last night. Hell, no one should be this comfortable while telling her to fuck off.
"Like hell, it won't! Why do you do this? Why do you ruin every good memory I have of you?" She screamed, her hands balling into a fist. He was driving her mad. Making her feel like she wasn't worth a thing.
"I don't deserve to be treated this way, Markris. I do-not!" Her voice cracked, and she hated him even more. Hated the fact that he always made her cry. The fact that he never wasted an opportunity to show her the demon he was, yet, she had shamelessly submitted her body for his pleasure.
"Look, Lorena. You don't have to be hysterical about this. It wasn't that deep, okay?" His serious dead look triggered a burst of bitter laughter as she shook her head in disbelief. She jumped out of bed, anger flowing through her veins in a rapid torrent.
"Where is my phone?" Her lips quivered as she searched on the bedside table.
"Lorena?" He stood to his feet, his eyes widening in alarm. "Calm down." He took slow steps towards her, his hands raised forward.
"Where the hell is my phone!" She screamed, her nose flaring up. "I saw it there when I sneaked into your room last night." Her trembling fingers pointed to the table.
"It should be there then, but I need you to calm down," He said, manoeuvring to the other side of the bed. Reaching the drawer, he pulled out the phone he had stuffed while she was asleep. "I found it, okay? Just calm down."
"No, you don't get to tell me what to do. You've made your point quite clear. I need my phone to get the hell away from you," Hatred burned as she stared at the unremorseful man who had just shattered her heart into tiny pieces. "I just need my phone." She said softly, a single strand of tears falling from her eyes.
"Okay," He nodded. "Here." He walked to her and handed it over. She snatched the phone out of his hands and turned around.
"I hate you so much." She muttered, bursting into tears as she fled from his room.
Lorena ran down the hallway to her room, feeling like dirt. To complete her shame, she sighted her bodyguards standing beside her door. Eyes blurred with tears. She was putting on nothing besides Markris's shirt, barely long enough to cover her butt. She shut her eyes tight and took a deep breath through her tears.
"Good morning, my lad-"
She dashed past them, pulling her door open. Quickly, she shut the door behind her and went straight to her bathroom. She began to rid herself of the clothes that smelt like him. Before today, she had found that smell a turn-on, but now, it made her want to throw up. She flung the shirt away and stepped into the running shower.
Lathering herself until her skin felt like slime, she washed thoroughly, vowing to rid herself of him. She scrubbed until her skin turned red and began to hurt. Then she fell into the tub, allowing the water to wash away her shame. Silently, she sobbed uncontrollably.
********
"Can you calm the fuck down? I'm on my way!" Markris said, hurrying out of his room. It was another one of Jorginho's evening meetings, and he was tempted to call it off. His face creased, hoping for his friend's sake. This client was worth the stress he was going through on an evening he should have been resting.
"You better hurry up before we miss this opportunity," Jorginho said, and the phone went silent. Markris rolled his eyes, pulling out his ear pods. Running down, he contemplated calling a driver to ready a car but decided to use any available one.
He was still deep in his thoughts and didn't see the person coming from the other side. He barged into them, and the force of the contact pushed his briefcase down. He watched open-eyed as his documents spilt to the floor, flying around. With a glower of rage in his eyes, he raised his head, ready to raise hell at whoever it was, when her scent hit him.
"Lorena?"
"Excuse me." She easily sidestepped him, and walked straight ahead. His head turned around, watching her leave. She didn't even manage so much as a look back. He had begun to question her presence in the house after going a whole week without seeing her.
The last time he had seen her, things had-- He shook his head, refusing to go down memory lane. Her smell lingered, and he caught himself sniffing the air.
"Control yourself, Markris!" He hissed between his teeth, dragging his attention back to the files. "Now what?" He brought his palm to his head, wondering how to pick everything up. His phone suddenly rang, and he knew he had no more time to waste.
"Tanika!" He screamed her name, running down the stairs.
"My lord!" She rushed out from nowhere, a rake in her hand and her hair dishevelled. "I was just..."
"Save the explanations, Tanika. You see those files over there. I want everyone one of them found before I get back home. I have to run now." He said the rest of the instructions from outside the room as he sprinted to his car.
Soon as he turned the car to the highway, his phone rang again. "What the hell, Jorge? I'm on my way!"
"Jeez, calm down! I sent you the address for the meeting. Just called to check if you've seen it."
"I'll check now." He said, ending the call.
After driving for over thirty minutes, he finally found the address Jorginho sent his way. He found the perfect parking spot and jumped out of the car. The corner of his lip twitched, and he nodded at the impressive building. Over sixty feet, with outer space designs. The lobby door pushed open for him, and he stepped inside.
"Mr Markris Andino?" A bald man, presumably in his forties, asked, walking up to him.
"Yeah." He nodded and was escorted into a room.
He looked around, appreciating the showroom. This was definitely what he imagined when he thought of the tech world. A glass prism was placed at the room's entrance, and light flashes passed through, spreading a rainbow-like glow around. A tap from behind made him turn around.
"Jorge?" He raised a brow before turning to look at the woman beside him. "Madam Amelia, I assume."
"Nonsense!" She laughed, waving a dismissive hand. "Please call me Amelia." She stretched out her hands, gripping his in a firm shake.
"You've done an outstanding job with this place." He nodded, looking around.
"That's why we've contacted your company. Only the best in the finance field is suited to give us advice," She broke into that bubbly laughter of hers that was so infectious. Markris felt bad for doubting Jorginho. This woman was nothing like the rabble he had introduced him to before.
"Please, look around, and see if any of our latest designs catches your fancy. I'll be right back with the contract details." She turned around, her hips swinging from side to side, as she walked out of the room.
"Damn!" Jorginho whistled when she was out of earshot.
"Don't even think of it," Markus rolled his eyes, fully aware of what his thick head friend was thinking. "We don't get involved with our clients."
"Mark, my darling." He held onto his shoulders and squeezed gently. "We'll have to make an exception this one time."
"No."
"Oh common, look at her, man!" He pouted, but Markris had suddenly gone quiet with a faraway look. "What is it?" Jorginho paused, a worried expression spreading across his phone.
"Do you believe in destiny, Jorge?"
"Destiny?" He frowned. "What are you yapping about?" He asked, following his friend's gaze as they lay to rest on a phone.
"Lorena." He breathed out, pointing at the breathtaking device.
"Lorena? What are you talking about?" He looked around, his face scrunched in confusion. "Look, man, I know you're all married and happy and whatever, but do you hallucinate about her now?"
"Lorena needs a new phone, and I think I've just found the perfect one for her."