Chapter 4

It was about eleven o'clock in the evening when I got home from Papa's fishing port. Last night. Kervy had gone home already so I didn’t face any visitors.

But when I came home from University that afternoon, I saw him on the patio with Mama and they were having tea and talking about something, and they sometimes laughed with each other. I raised a brow when a maid told me that Kervy had eaten lunch in the mansion.

Then, there he was, standing beside me. I heard him drew a breathe. "I don't know what I'll do with you anymore, Rishell."

I sighed and averted my eyes. I turned my gaze to the vast terrain of El Grande Lat. I sighed again. I also didn’t know what to do with him. It annoyed me that he was constant in his visits. My mother, being hospitable, would let him enter the mansion so he might thought that it was okay with me seeing his face  almost everyday.

I pointed to the mountain that was clearly visible from where we were standing at. "If you go hiking, can you? There, it's free. For your life to have some purpose."

"Rishell," he whined.

"Why are you always here, Kervy? You're not needed here," I said with my hands closed. I glanced at him sideways. "Don't get used to it. Mama is just being hospitable so she keeps you here."

He smiled and tucked both hands in the pockets of his pants. "Didn't I say I am courting you? So here I am, I brought your favorites." He took the ecobag that was lying on the table and handed it to me.

I frowned at what he offered to me before accepting it.

"Those are books from your favorite author. You told me the other day that you didn't order Ara's book. So, there, I bought some for you," he added.

I peeked inside the ecobag and my mouth fell open when I saw four new books. Those books were part of the newly released collection that I failed to buy some time ago.

My eyes blinked and I bit my lip. "Thank you." I smiled and looked up at Kervy again. "Thank you so much, Kurt Vincent!" I even jumped to hug him.

He laughed and responded with a hug. He gently stroked my hair. "You're welcome. You're not angry anymore?"

"No." I shook my head. "Alright, continue your courtship with me." I let go of him.

He raised a brow and grinned. "Just because of the books, you are now urging me to continue? It seemed like some minutes ago... you were eager to throw me down the balcony."

"Well..." I jokingly slapped him on the arm and laughed softly. I even pinned the hair to my ear while smiling sweetly at him. "I'm just joking with you earlier. Don't take it seriously."

He went silent for few seconds and then grinned. "Mmm... seemed like I've became your sugar daddy."

I threw my hands and laughed hard. "You!" I exclaimed and then giggled. "If you don't want it then stop bothering me," I teased.

"Who said I don't want to be one?" He smirked. Then he raised his hand to me and mouthed 'wait' before pulling his phone out from his pocket.

He answered the call and listened. Then his forehead frowned and stole a glance at me before clearing his throat. "I'll go. Tell Jaxx." He ended the call and put his phone back to his pocket.

"What is it?" I asked.

"There's an emergency at my company. I'll leave first, Rishell."

I smiled broadly. "Okay!" I chirped and giggled. "As long as you keep the books coming, I might give you my answer you forty years later."

He laughed then nodded. "Seemed like a very aggressive investment, isn't it?" He grinned at me. "Alright, I'll wait for your answer then." He stepped closer and then kissed me on the forehead before walking away.

I glanced down at the ecobag and I sighed. Where could I keep those books? I looked at the vast mountain for a moment before entering the house. I found myself travelling towards my room, and I put the ecobag at my cabinet. I planned to take the ecobag to University tomorrow, then I'll just go to the fishing port again.

I put on my house clothes before lying on the white bed. I could still smell the fragrant lavender mixed with lemon. I immediately remembered Levi. That was the smell of his perfume that I inhaled when he passed by me at the dock. Maybe, I should post a thank you message on his message wall.

But I remembered that my phone had fallen into the sea. Dad told me to buy another one but I forgot to ask him money. I knew that Mom would not hand me an amount.

I glanced at the landline and smiled when a thought crossed my mind. I quickly moved closer to the bedside table and reached for the landline. I dialed Kervy’s cellphone number. His office was just in Arbor so he was the nearest one to get help from.

He answered the call. "Hello."

"Hi, Kervy," I said coquettishly. I lowered my voice. "Amm ... where are you now?" I asked.

"On the way to Sumaya Heights. Why did you call, Rishell? Do you need anything?"

"Amm ... yes. Can you buy me a cellphone?" I bit my lip to hold back a grin. "But... if you can't, it's alright. I under---"

"What brand?"

I covered the telephone's receiver and chirped. I then cleared my throat. "Amm ... as long as it's within your budget. But can I have version ten? I want to turn my favorite reading app into dark mode." I silently laughed.

Hopefully, he'll buy what I'm asking for.

"No problem as long as you want it."

"Thanks, Kervy. You're so generous!"

I heard him laugh on the other line. I shuddered at his laughter. A guilt crept within me but he wanted to give it to me, right?

I knew I'm beautiful, but he's handsome. Rich, and a realible man. There were a lot of other women chasing after his attention. But why was he pushing himself on me?

"Alright, Rishell. I'll just send it to your house later."

"Uhuh. Thanks again, Kurt Vincent."

"Mmm ..." I heard the faint sound of the stereo in the background. "You're welcome."

I immediately ended the call. Then I drew a breathe. Maybe what he said was true, I was just using him to get what I want but he was also pushing me to use him. Right?

And he was rich. He wouldn't run out of money that easy. It was just my conscience telling me to stop my foolish actions because I had no intention to give him my yes in the near future or years later. I sighed again.

Never mind. I'll just return everything he gave me in the future. Except the books. Of course, those were mine.

I HAD FINISHED one of the books Kervy gave me while I was waiting for my cellphone. I was in the second chapter of the second book when there was a knock on my bedroom door.

I immediately hid the books back in the cabinet before opening the door. It was Jemima. As usual, she looked like a goat again because of the bubble gum she was chewing.

"Sent by Sir Kurt, Miss." She handed me the cellphone box.

I accepted it with a grin. "You look like a goat Jem. 'Don't chew on that."

"Are you insulting me, Miss?"

I shook my head. "I'm just stating a fact."

"Ok," she said then she walked away. My eyes narrowed at her receding bulk.

She really was a girl with no respect. I couldn't complain to Mama because in the first place, she just volunteered here. Also, Mama knew that Jemima had an ugly attitude. I snorted and erased her from my mind.

I entered the room and opened the box. I sat on the bed and took out the accessories then the cellphone. I smirked when I saw it was a luxurious brand.

I immediately turned on the cellphone and I downloaded the reading app, then went straight to video streaming site. I searched for the official Vine channel and streamed their new videos for hours.

When I finished all the new videos, I went to other social media platform and searched for their official fanpage.

I smiled as I scrolled up and down the timeline of the page but I was confused when I saw the sideview picture of Levi. When I looked at the reaction, it's just a hundred. While the reaction on the ugly picture of Ariel reached almost two thousand.

It was so unfair on Levi's part so I reacted to all of Levi's pictures and posted a message on my account's timeline on how handsome Levi was.

Suddenly, I received a message from a group chat. It was Ara's readers group chat and they were flexing their orders of Ara's new series. So I took a picture on the books I had recently acquired from Kervy and they were so amazed that I got my copies earlier than them.

I laughed at their envious reactions and enjoyed replying to their curious questions on how I got my books that early.

I have chatting with them for few hours when I suddenly lost the wifi connection. I huffed in annoyance. It was my mother's doing and I was sure of it.

Carrying my new cell phone, I left the room and went downstairs. And then, I saw Mama sitting on the sofa and reading a magazine. The chandelier was already on. When I looked outside the main door, I saw that it was already dark.

I turned to Mama again. "Mom, did you turn off the wifi again?" I asked impatiently.

She glanced at me. "I'll turn it on again later. I know you'll come out of your den when the wifi is off."

"But Mom..."

She glared at me. "You don't even want to go down. Do you know what time it is? It's almost seven in the evening. Eat dinner early so you can rest early."

I pouted. "I'll just wait for Dad."

"He'll sleep at the port. Don't whine in front of me, Rishell," she warned so I shut my mouth.

My head nod and I walked to the dining area. But few steps ahead and I stopped abruptly. I turned to Mama. "Have you eaten, Mom?" I asked.

She nodded and then flipped the magazine on the next page. I drew a breathe and marched again to the dining area next to the kitchen. I invited the maid who was currently washing the dishes to eat with me but she declined politely and reasoned that she had eaten as well.

So there, I was alone at the table. In the middle of silence, my new cellphone rang. I answered the call. "It's Rishell," I said to the caller. "Please just text if it's not important."

I heard a faint laugh on the other line. "I guess you're good with your new phone?"

My forehead furrowed at the familiar voice. "Kervy?" I asked in confusion. I even checked the screen and it was an unknown number. "How did you find out its number?"

"I bought it. How can I not know?"

I laughed. "Ah, of course. Uh, thanks again for this."

Then silence passed between the two of us. I heard the ticking of the wall clock above the kitchen door.

On the left of that wide room was the kitchen while on the right was the dining room where I was sitting at that moment.

"You're eating?" Kervy suddenly asked.

I picked up the glass of water next to my plate and took a sip. "I am eating right now."

"Is that so? Then I'll end this call. Go to bed early. You still have an exam tomorrow."

My eyes widened. "You even knew my school's schedule?" My eyes narrowed. Did he stalk me? Uh, I hope not!

He laughed. "You told me. And Rishell, I'm not into stalking."

"Good." I nodded and sighed in relief. I put the glass down on the table and smirked. "Alright. You're bothering me."

"Goodnight, Rishell."

I then heard the beep on the other line. He was the first to drop the call. Well, that's new. I was the first to drop the call in the past. I stared at the new phone. Maybe Kervy was too busy in the office.

He was still in his early twenties but he was already managing fifty condos named after him. He just bought one for his convenience but then bought a whole building when he had the opportunity.

The adjacent building was bought by him too until he built his own real estate business. He was really genius when it comes to investments but he was nowhere sensible when it comes to love.

He was madly, deeply, and deadly in love with me and thinking about that, chill crept my whole being.