His Punishment (18 page)

She peeked in the mirror, combed
her hair and applied powder to her face just enough to cover the shiny parts.
She didn’t have enough time to re-apply her make up. She looked for her shoes
and found it under her bed and got dizzy again when she stood back up.

She was still holding her head and
walked very slowly to the door. When she opened it, she saw it was the exact
time that James went out of his room. They stared at each other for a moment.
She decided to turn her head away first and suddenly felt her knees wobbly.

“Are you okay?” he questioned and
she just nodded.

She tried to start walking but her
vision is spinning.

“Tara . . .” he held her by the arm
as he caught her from falling off balance.

Tara kept still and closed her eyes
and leaned her back on the wall. James was just looking at her not letting his
hands leave her arms.

She inhaled deep and smelled James’
after shave and shuddered at the intoxicating smell of her ex-boyfriend. She
missed him. She wanted to stop time and freeze it on that spot. But there was
nothing she can do about it. She craved him but it was impossible to get him.
She cringed at her thoughts.

James didn’t like it when he saw
Tara’s body movement. He cupped her cheeks and caressed it lightly out of
worry.

“Are you sick?” he leaned closer
and their bodies are just an inch apart. His eyes were examining her face
closely. He loved looking at her even with her lids covering her attractive
eyes that spoke her feelings most of the time. How he wished that he could
share secret moments with her in the heat of the afternoon but he knew it was
impossible.

Tara opened her eyes and saw James’
tender and concerned gaze at her. She’s seeing his most unbelievably blue eyes
that were always so expressive. It mirrored his emotions. She melts at it every
time.

“I’ve been feeling dizzy since I
woke up this morning,” she decided to tell him.

“Dizzy? Are you pregnant Tara?” his
look was hard to predict. He was not smiling but his eyes were hopeful.

“No.” She gently pushed him away
when she felt her wobbly knees get stronger. “I didn’t have much sleep last
night plus I get motion sickness if I lack sleep,” she explained further. She
was trying to make him let go of her as she can’t stand being this close to
him. It’s blowing her mind. James’ heavenly scent was touching every inch of
her and she feels the strong walls she is trying to build between them is
collapsing.

“I think it would still be best if
we checked.” He insisted still not releasing her as he pinned her gently to the
wall. He felt unable to let go of his favorite addiction. He can’t understand
himself how she can melt him when he is trying to turn to a lifeless stone.

“I’m sure James.” She shook her
head lightly and started walking.

James followed her and held her by
the elbow, guiding her through the hallway to the elevator.

“Are you scared to check?” he
talked as they continue walking down the hall.

“No.”

“Then let’s do it,” he continued
urging her.

They stopped at the closed elevator
door and she turned sideways to face him.

“Okay. Buy the test and I’ll do it
if that will shoo your fears away.” She mocked him.

“Fear? Me? Good Lord! Tara if you
were pregnant I would marry you on the spot!” he exclaimed.

Tara felt immediately teary at his
howl. Not because he raised his voice at her, but he just indirectly expressed
how much she still meant to him.

As soon as James saw that tears are
almost trickling from her eyes, he wasn’t able to control himself again. He
took her to his arms and hugged her tight. She hugged him back.

They didn’t notice the elevator
ring as it opened in their floor.

“Down.” They both parted from their
embrace and looked at the sound of the guy’s voice.

“I just thought I’d pick you up
from your room for the luncheon.” Miguel was talking to Tara but was glaring at
James with his eyes.

“Thanks.” She moved first towards
the elevator and James followed.

Tara stood still inside the
elevator sandwiched by two towering gorgeous men on her both sides. It was only
the three of them in the elevator. She looked at her feet. She thought of the
lead character that she read in the novel the night before. She is in a love
triangle.

But her story was different from
the book. Yes she had two men over her, but she couldn’t pick the one she
really loves.
Why is life being cruel to me?

She heard the elevator door open
but none of them left. She decided to go ahead of the two guys and she was
instantly followed and both of them held her by her arm. She stopped in her
tracks and looked at the ceiling.

She then looked at James who is
glaring at Miguel. She looked at Miguel and found him doing the same.

“I can walk by myself, thank you.”
And she slipped away from either arm that held on to her. She went directly to
the dining hall and found James’ dad and her dad sitting and laughing.

How she wished the two were talking
about her future with James. Ironically, they are talking about their future
alright. Not about love matters, but their successful and wealthy future ahead.

“Hi dad. Hi Sir.” she kissed her
dad on the cheek.

“Please call me Uncle John.” James’
father smiled at her.

Wish you said, call me dad,
she thought silently and smiled back.

She felt her chair being pulled for
her as she held the armrest, she looked back and saw the two guys helping her
all at the same time. She narrowed her eyes at both of them when she saw they
are still glaring at each other.

“Please . . .” she pulled the chair
by herself. True she felt special at the attention from both of them, but it
was unbearable seeing them glowering at each other.

They both sat beside her,
sandwiching her again.

“So, as you know already, we are
expanding Subic Intercontinental from becoming one of our biggest resort-hotels
to one of the most elegant resort-casino,” her father looked at her explaining.

“We know this is a shock to you,
but I actually didn’t consider a venture like this until I saw James’
proposal.” Uncle John explained.

I looked at James wondering when
and why he ever gave that proposal.

“What proposal?” James was as
puzzled as she was.

“Honestly, I saw one of your papers
in Business to Business Marketing. The proposal you made there was realistic
and seemed promising.” His dad answered the question on his mind.

“You mean . . .” he asked his
father again.

“Yes, I saw it on your desk. It was
graded and got a good mark by your professor.” His dad was proud of him.

“Oh, actually, it was a paired
project, between me and Tara.” He smiled at her pleased that their indirect
proposal was accepted by their fathers. He saw her smiled back at him.

“I know. I saw the title page of
your proposal and I was amazed at how the two of you came up with it,” his dad
continued.

“I was amazed as well when John
here met with me. We have known each other for a while now, but we never
thought of any business together. Not that it wasn’t a plausible idea, but
because we just never gave it a thought,” her father explained.

“Now here we are with execution of
the proposals you came up with and it is excellent so far.” His dad said.

“Thanks for considering it, Mr.
Salvador.” James politely said as he sensed the indirect applause of Tara’s
dad.

“Oh, cut the formality son, you
call me Uncle Tom.” He offered him.

Son? How I wish I would be. What
magic can I do to make me your son-in-law.
He wandered off.

“Plus, the hiring of Miguel was a
good start. He came from one of the most established hotels in the metro. He is
definitely an advantage to us,” her dad acknowledged Miguel.

“Thank you sir.” Miguel smiled when
he was recognized by her father.

“Later after lunch, you will be
meeting with the department heads of the hotel.” Her dad told him.

She looked at Miguel and she saw he
was happy that he is being welcomed so warmly. She looked at James and he saw
him scrunching his jaws once again.

Their food was delivered to their
table one by one and they started to grab a piece of the dishes. James moved to
take a portion of the steamed fish as Miguel sliced a fraction of the grilled
pork. They both supplied Tara at the same time. Their fathers did not notice as
they were busy chatting with each other.

Tara moved both of their forks
rejecting their offer.

“I can help myself.” She reminded
both of them.

They continued eating silently and
she never glanced at either one of them.

She was pleased when a staff
requested Miguel to come with him for the meeting with the department heads.
She looked over at James and clearly, she wasn’t the only one relieved.

Actually, Miguel is a good guy and
Tara can’t help liking him. But she never promised him anything more than
friendship. She promised she would give him one shot at trying to make her fall
for him. She is open to it, but she wasn’t sure about her heart.

“Coffee or tea?” she heard James
asking her when he saw she was done eating.

“Coffee will be good,” she replied.

“Do you serve Caramel Machiatto
here?” he asked her.

She looked at him and smiled.
He
remembered.

“Yes Tara, I remember. I remember
every single moment,” pain was so visible in his eyes.

“So, let’s start . . .” her father
handed out folders to the three of them, outlining the plans for the casino
operation expansion.

***

It was five in the afternoon when
the luncheon meeting was adjourned. James was feeling giddy. He wanted to go
out to buy the pregnancy test in the drugstore near the duty free shops. He was
on his way out when he noticed Tara sitting in one of the benches near the
pool.

Her hair was not tied. It was free
flowing. And she looked lovely as the afternoon breeze blows her hair softly.

She looked like an angel,
James thought. He can’t count the number of times that Tara’s sight hypnotized
him. He moved closer to her and sat down at the pool bench across hers.

She was too engrossed in her
thinking that she didn’t notice that he was already gawking at her.

“Too deep . . .” he sighed.

Tara heard his voice and turned to
him.

“Oh. You’re here,” she reacted.

“What are you thinking about?” he
asked.

“Nothing. Funny how other people
think that others are in deep thoughts when they are staring somewhere and
alone.” She turned her head away from his face and stared back at what seemed
like an imaginary object she is seeing.

“I’m going to the drugstore.” He
shrugged at her remark.

“Okay. Take care.” she said to him.

“I’ll meet you at your room when I
come back?” he asked raising one of his bushy eyebrows.

“I’ll just knock on your door
whenever I’m ready,” she sighed heavily.

She knows she is not pregnant. She
had her period already. But it was hard to argue with James. He was hopeful and
she doesn’t know how he will take it when he finds out she was right all along.

“I’ll be back quick and I will wait
for you in my room.” He whispered to her as he touched the back of her hand and
gripped it lightly before rushing out.

She was so confused. She wanted
James. She wanted him forever. If she had been pregnant then it would
definitely be happy ever after for them. But was it even possible? She shook
her head and laid back on the pool bench.

She watched the happy families
swimming. Sweet couples lying in the benches, ecstatic kids jumping from the
pool sides and into the water.

Cruel cruel life, why me?

Miguel has been looking for Tara
since he got out of the departmental meeting and couldn’t find her. He searched
almost the entire hotel but could not find her. He dialed her phone but no one
was answering. He remembered not noticing Tara and her phone over lunch so he
concluded that her mobile phone was left in the room.

He decided to go back to his room
when he gave up looking for her.

He was near her hotel room when he
heard James’ door opened. He didn’t want to talk to him, but for the sake of
Tara, he turned around willing to ask him if he saw her.

He was shocked at what he saw.

“Tara?” he frowned as he saw her
sneaking out of James’ door.

“Migs!” she jumped a bit in
surprise.

He was as surprised as she was
especially after seeing her in just her hotel robes. He shook his head at the
thought of what’s beneath it or if there was something beneath it at all.

Flashback

After thirty minutes that James
left, she went back to her room and decided to take a shower. She most
definitely needed to cool off at this moment.

Too much thoughts have been
swarming in her head and worst is she doesn’t know how to deal with any of
them. Plus the fact that James is thinking that she is pregnant with his child
too.

She wasn’t sure what she was
wishing for. Though she was positive that she isn’t pregnant, she can’t help
but think herself why she was awfully dizzy even after she had her nap in the
chopper and rested for an hour or so at her room when they arrived.

Her thoughts were just too
perplexed. She was sincerely wishing that the test result would be in her
favor. But that got her thinking again. She didn’t know how many lines would be
favorable? One? Two?

If it would be one, it will just
mean James will be out of her life forever. Not even a hint of a slight chance
for them. But then she felt sad. She didn’t know whether she is wishing for
this or the other.

If it would be two, it will
mean, James will marry her at the nearest church or city hall perhaps first
thing tomorrow morning. She felt happy. But then she thought of Rhea. If her
results turn positive tonight that means he will not marry Rhea and his life
will be in danger for sure.

He got the daughter of the most
powerful man in the Armed Forces of the Philippines pregnant. Tara was sure
Rhea’s father won’t just let James get away with that. Actually, she was sure
that Rhea would exhaust all possibilities just to give her child a name.

She didn’t know what to think
anymore. She turned on the faucet to the tub and mixed the hot and cold water.
She walked to the room as filling the tub would take a while.

Her hot tea that she ordered
through room service is at the coffee table near the window. She sat down and
viewed the hotel’s pool at the bottom. The sun has set a few minutes ago and
she could still see the red orange beams glowing at the sky. She pulled the
curtains farther apart and sat at the middle of the divan lying just below the
big windows and stared outside.

She sighed heavily and looked at
the sky blankly again just like she did this afternoon at the poolside before
James interrupted her. She wonders if he is back.

 She suddenly heard light
tapping on her door and stood up to check who it was.

“James!” she was surprised. “I
told you I’d come to you if I’m ready.”

“But you might back out.” He
said just noticing she was on her robes. “Do . . . you . . . uhm . . .” he
stammered as he swished his fingers in front of her robes, but not touching
them.

Tara clutched tightly on the ribbon.
“What?!”

“Wear something!” he demanded.

“I am.” She was still in her
shirt and boyleg. She just wanted the warmth of the robe in her skin as she
felt cold from all her nervousness.

“Here,” he handed her the bag
and she took it.

“Three?” she asked him why he
bought a lot.

“Just in case the first and
second is negative, there would still be a third chance,” he shrugged.

“James, I just need one to
confirm.” She went to the bathroom and turned the knob of the tub’s faucet.

“Uhm, can we do this in your room?”
She hollered to him as she slid her feet in a pair of plush slippers.

“Why?” he asked puzzled.

“I don’t know. Miguel might look
for me or something.” She was really tensed.

He frowned at the sound of his
name on her lips. He hates how that name rolls in her tongue. Though he doesn’t
care if ever Miguel finds them together in her room, he can’t help but agree on
what she wanted.

“Okay.” He opened the door for
her and then turned the knob of his room and made her enter first.

She went directly to the bathroom
and locked herself. She knew she isn’t ready to take this. She doesn’t know
where her confidence suddenly went to. Early this morning, she was so sure
she’s not pregnant. She has no idea how come she is now so edgy.

“Are you done?” she heard him
ask with anticipation.

“NO!” it hasn’t been a minute
that she was inside. “I haven’t even peed yet.”

“Hurry!”

She peed nervously feeling her
body tremble. The excitement in James’ voice made her feel more nervous.  She
collected the sample with her cold and shaking hands. She took the little
dropper and got some urine and dropped three times to the strip. She was so
worried when she saw the white part get all pink.

She clutched her chest. Then
suddenly it subsided and she finally saw it.

She kept silent and leaned on
the bathroom wall behind her.

“What’s taking you so long?” she
heard James ask.

He was so excited to know the
result. He was keeping all his fingers crossed, even his toes if he could do
that. He wanted Tara to be the mother of his children. He was earnestly hoping
she is bearing his child now.