Darcy was a constant visitor in Timothy's office for the last several days. Often times, Timothy would find her sitting inside his office in the mornings and refused to leave until the late afternoons.
As a result, Sabina drifted away from him little by little. She efficiently and quietly did her work but she avoided Timothy as much as possible. After telling him all his schedule for the day, she stayed out of his and Darcy's way. All her messages and reminders which were all work related were relayed through too-formal emails and short-cold-text messages.
All these things made Timothy's week horrible. Dealing with Darcy was bad enough and coupling it with Sabina's silent treatment was hell. All week, he was planning how to get rid of Darcy once and for all so he could set everything straight with Sabina but his efforts remained futile.
The heiress was his friend but she was over stepping her boundaries for the past five days, acting like an extremely possessive girlfriend.
It was Friday late morning when an elegantly dressed Darcy Madrid stepped into his office. She pecked his cheek and without any hesitation, started to clear his table.
"Get ready Tim, I have arranged a wonderful lunch for us." She stated proudly.
Then she grabbed his laptop and dragged it towards her. Timothy saw how the woman brashly turned it off and closed it while murmuring something incoherent. His blood began to boil from the woman's manner.
Darcy then, pressed the tiny intercom button. "De la Vega, cancel all the CEO's appointments and meetings for this afternoon. We are taking the afternoon off." She said snootily while Timothy followed her every move with furious eyes.
"Yes, Miss Madrid." Came Sabina's stiff and short acknowledgement.
Upon hearing Sabina's stiff and distant response, Timothy's blood rushed into his head. "Stop!" He roared. Darcy halted from what she was doing and paled.
"Who are you to order me around ha, Darcy? Who are you to decide for me?" He said viciously while yanking the bunch of papers in the alarmed woman's hand. The whole tension-filled week had now caught him and it made him burn with extreme annoyance.
Darcy looked at the seething man. "But Tim, you need a break. You have been working hard the whole week. You need to breath. I planned a wonderful afternoon for only the two of us." She stammered, trying her best to hold her ground.
Timothy dumped the papers on his desk loudly. "You should have consulted me first before planning on anything. You're well aware that I'm a busy person, Darcy." He countered irritably.
He pressed the intercom button again. "Sab, don't cancel anything. I'm working this afternoon." There was finality in his tone.
Sabina's voice sounded from the communication box. "It's okay, Tim. There are no scheduled appointments or meetings to be cancelled. Your afternoon is free." She said knowingly.
"Good news then." Darcy was thrilled of what she heard. Finally, she will have the alone time she was yearning for, for the longest time. Again, she started to clear Timothy's desk.
But Timothy grabbed her wrist. "Leave those papers alone, I'm staying here at the office and that's final." He uttered between gritted teeth.
The woman's face contorted in rage. "No Tim! Whether you like it or not you will spend the afternoon with me. We haven't had an alone time for so long. It's not healthy anymore." She demanded angrily.
"And who are you to tell me that, Darcy?" The young CEO asked.
"Stop acting like you owned me. You are my friend but I am not committed to you or do I have to remind you now?" He stated threateningly.
"Tim!" The young woman roared.
"What are you talking about?" She said. She cannot accept what he said. She knew that Timothy belonged to her and she was determined to do everything she could for it to stay that way.
I will not lose Timothy over this social climbing whore, she thought venomously.
Timothy gripped her wrist tighter. "Darcy, bear in mind that you're just a friend and that's all you will ever be. Nothing more and if you continue this kind of behavior, even lesser." He let go of her hand roughly and flopped on his chair.
The woman was left standing in front of the young CEO's table, hurting. Little by little tears cascaded from her face.
"Timothy." She murmured, her tone pleading.
"I have no time for this, Darcy. Get back to me if you knew where your place is." He said coldly, clearly dismissing the crying woman.
These past few days have been extremely difficult for him. Darcy's presence had cause a great fall out on his blossoming relationship with Sabina and it's frustrating him to no end.
His assistant had been cold and distant to him since Monday and the incident that night hadn't help at all. It appeared that from Sabina's behavior, that night never happened. She didn't mention anything about it or even given a hint that it happened. He too, had begun to doubt that night.
Or was it just a dream? He asked himself.
He didn't notice that Darcy had already left, still crying. A worried voice sounded from the intercom.
"Tim, is everything okay? Are you alright?" Sabina asked, totally perplexed with Darcy's state when she went out of the young CEO's office.
Timothy let out a deep sigh before answering the communication box. "I'm fine Sab. Thank you for asking." He said softly. Regretting the way he treated Darcy and worrying what would his assistant think of him. He needed a lot of brownie points to gain her heart and trust again and this one will surely affect his standing.
When Sabina heard Timothy's dejected voice, her insides began to twist. "Maybe something bad happened." She whispered, speculating.
She tried to think of something more important than her boss and his girlfriends' quarrel but she couldn't think of one.
"The hell..." She murmured as she stood up ready to check on her boss but when she raised her gaze the man running in her thoughts was already in front of her.
She surveyed his appearance. "Are you really okay?" She asked, traces of worries were evident in her slightly shaking voice. Unconsciously, she reached out and rubbed his back.
Timothy smiled sadly. "I'm perfectly fine, Sab. It's just a misunderstanding." Savoring the feel of his assistant's small soft hand running on his back.
The assistant felt a little sad, it was obvious that her boss was really affected by his problem with Darcy. "Do you want to talk about it?" It was out before she could zip her mouth. The compassionate person in her had taken over.
Slowly, Timothy nodded his head. "I am free for the afternoon, right?" He wanted to make sure.
When he saw Sabina bobbed her head, he opened his mouth again. "How about you?" He asked.
"Nothing that couldn't wait?" She replied timidly.
"Then let's have lunch, my treat. I'll tell you everything over lunch. I needed to let these all out. Please." He pleaded, forgetting all about Darcy and feeling foolish for using I-need-someone-to-talk-to card just to be with Sabina's company again.
The assistant agreed by nodding her head again. "Alright, I'll just clear my table."
Hurriedly, he gathered all the papers in her desk and placed them neatly inside her drawer. She locked it and dropped the key inside her blazer's pocket. She picked up her purse and car keys and headed for the door where Timothy was waiting for her.
On their way out, Timothy turned to one of SB's most trusted employee. "Divert all my calls to Engineer Leonardo's office and if someone asked about our whereabouts, tell them that we attended a very, very important meeting. Thank you." He instructed.
"Yes, sir!"
∞∞∞
The two ended up in an authentic Japanese restaurant. "Good afternoon Architect Sebastian." The manager greeted Timothy enthusiastically.
He nodded his head in acknowledgement and offered a stiff smile. Obviously, Tim was a regular in this restaurant. The place was half empty so they were able to find a corner table easily, a hidden one, away from the public's prying eyes.
The petite woman asked for a platter of gyoza and a big bowl of Shoyu ramen while Timothy ordered a Tonkatsu Hire set, he also added a potato and egg salad and a miso soup. And for their drinks, they both opted to have a tall glass of red iced tea with lemon.
Timothy made sure that everything was free of peanuts or any other nuts for that matter, carefully informing the server that Sabina has fatal allergic reaction to peanuts/nuts.
Sabina was moved by her boss' genuine concern. She smiled at him. "Thank you, Tim. Don't worry, I'm being extra careful nowadays. My last attack scared me to death." She stated gratefully.
The place's ambiance was cozy and comfortable. Sabina studied that man in front of her, it seemed that he was deep in thought. Without knowing that the man sitting across her was thinking hard of how to start a conversation with her.
Before awkwardness ensued, the petite woman opened her mouth. "What happened back there?" She inquired softly and carefully, not wanting to upset Timothy.
The young CEO let out a defeated sigh. "I have been friends with Darcy since I was 8, she's two years older than me, you know. I knew that she could be difficult at times but what happened at the office a while ago have drained my patience so I might have said few hurtful words to her and treated her a little too harsh." He confessed.
The pair had to stop since the server had reappeared carrying a couple of trays laden with their food. When everything was put on their table the two started to eat and continued with their serious conversation.
The man pressed on with his story. "But I don't regret what I told her, what I am remorseful about was how I said it to her? I shouldn't have raised my voice, she's my friend after all." He declared ruefully while fixing a dip for Sabina. Then he forwarded the miniature bowl in front of her and wiped the utensils and chopsticks for her.
Sabina, on the other hand was watching the young CEO, his every move fascinated her. Although his thoughtful actions were a bit inappropriate since she was his assistant and he was the boss.
"Tim, stop. I can do it myself. You should eat now, your food is getting cold." She reminded him.
A wave of dismissal was Timothy's only answer. After handing her the chopsticks the man began to eat. "I told her that she is my friend and that I can't offer anything more. I wanted to start in a clean slate especially when it involves you." He added in between chewing.
"I meant every word I said last weekend, Sab!" He murmured in a solemn tone.
A warm sensation invaded the woman's chest and it made her smile but she hid it by taking a mouthful of soup from her bowl.
"I'm serious about you, about us, Sab, what I feel towards you is genuine and sincere. And I will do everything so I could prove it to you. I will do everything to make you reciprocate my feelings." Timothy stated as he reached for her hand and squeezed it lightly.
Sabina choked on her food. She coughed loudly and lost control of her swallowing ability. "What?" She sputtered.
In a flash, the man was at her side. Rubbing her back and helping her drink some water. "Are you alright?" He asked worriedly, he looked at her, grabbed his own table napkin and wiped the woman's moist mouth.
Instantly, blush crept on Sabina's angelic face. She was embarrassed and elated at the same time. "I'm okay, Tim, just a little overwhelmed." She revealed truthfully.
The man gazed at her piercingly. "Sam you have to believe me because I promise you, you will see more of me this coming weeks and get over it because you'll be hearing those words more often." He whispered soberly against her ears.
"You're making me uncomfortable." Sabina blurted out, still blushing prettily. "Enough of that please." She begged.
The man let go of it for Sabina's sake. "Then tell me about yourself Sabina, I have known you for months now but I don't know anything about your native home and your parentage."
The woman's eyes lost it's focus but she managed to give a small smile. Timothy noticed that she spaced out a little. "I'm from the south, Naga City. I have an identical twin sibling, both boys who were a lot older than me. Jacob and Anton. The twins are old enough to be my father since my parents married at such a young age, mid teens if I'm not mistaken and they had my brothers in their late teens, unusual right?" She stated with a dim expression.
She sipped on her iced tea and popped a piece of gyoza in her mouth. She continued with her narration after chewing and swallowing her food. "I was closer to my abuela while growing up. You see, I am an unplanned baby. My mother had me at the age of 38. She was so strict because of her ancestry so I was scared of her then. A..."
"Wait, wait? Abuela?" The man asked, furrowing his forehead in confusion.
Sabina smiled timidly again. "It's a Spanish term for grandmother, grandma. My paternal parentage was of pure Spanish race while my maternal side was of pure Chinese and pure Spanish descends." She said, surprising herself more. She had been very careful when it came to her family background.
Timothy's heart hammered when he heard this information but ignored it deliberately. "But you're from the South, right?" Trying to silenced his instinct. It was nagging him to ask this question.
The woman nodded her head. "My mother passed away when I was fourteen." She voice quivered a bit. "She was only 52 years old at that time and something terrible happened so I was forced to move out from home." Her voice quivered a bit but she pushed on bravely.
The young CEO felt that Sabina was not yet ready to share her full story so he didn't ask more, what's important was that she was from the far South and not from the North.
All the while, the young man thought that his assistant would stop from there but miraculously, she went on with her tale. "At fifteen, I already live alone in a dormitory near my Secondary school in Naga city. That's where I met my best friend Tricia and her boyfriend Jamie, who was studying in the nearby all boys school, Ateneo de Naga high school. They were both from Pili, Camarines Sur, an adjacent town. Since then the three of us were inseparable." She finished with a big smile, recalling her early years of friendship with Patricia and James.
"So you have been with the two for so long now." Timothy commented while chewing on his shredded cabbage. He pushed the potato salad towards Sabina's direction so they could share.
The woman whispered a silent thank you. After scooping a bite size of the salad she continued. "Yes, you met them already, at the shoot with Maggie." She recalled.
"Tricia is the photographer and Jamie was the stylist/fashion designer." She stated gladly, truly proud of her friends' achievements.
The man's eyes widened and Sabina giggled. "Yeah, I know it's quite unusual." She had guessed what was on Timothy's mind.
She raised her hand stopping what Timothy was trying to say. "James is straight, I can attest to that." She said.
The young man's handsome face darkened upon hearing her words. "How?" He said a little to hard, trying to conceal the sudden sprang of jealousy.
"You and your dirty mind, Architect Sebastian. Please take your brain off the gutter. I just know okay? He's my friend and he's as straight as you are." She declared knowingly.
"Are you sure about that?" The man stared at the woman as he moved closer to her, pulling his chair and plate with him.
His eyes were penetrating and suddenly Sabina felt hot. Everything else became a blur until he stopped a couple of inches away from Sabina.
"Are you sure about that?" He repeated his words, this time in a husky whisper.
Sabina knew that the man was teasing her. She faked a scandalized face and clutched her chest. "Tim!" She gasped. But the man didn't budge he just stared at her with his dark wanting eyes.
"You're such a swinger, Architect Sebastian." Sabina exclaimed. Timothy was not able to control his chuckles when she heard these from the loud petite woman.
An overwhelming force to hug the woman took over Timothy but he couldn't bring himself to do so. Sabina might freak out and it wouldn't be appropriate for a place like this so instead he reached for both her hand and held them on top of the table.
He then looked at her expressive eyes, imagining what it would be like to hug her and kiss her freely, anytime and anywhere when he feels like doing it. He wanted the woman, he was in love with her and he was more than ready to take the risk and leave everything if it meant being with her and her loving him back.
Sabina heart rate sped up, Timothy was so close and her body was responding excitedly at his nearness. The place was cold but she began to sweat and her breath came out in shallow puffs.
She closed her eyes while nervously anticipating a tender kiss from the young heir but was rudely interrupted by a very loud clearing of throat.
Abruptly, she opened her eyes and was stunned to see a livid Darcy, standing in front of their round table.
"So you call this working ha, Tim?" She asked the man sharply.
Extremely furious, she didn't wait for Timothy's response. She darted her eyes to the woman sitting beside the CEO. "And how about you De la Vega? I just left for less than a couple of hours and here you are jumping at Tim again. You really don't waste time, huh?" She added scathingly while smiling bitterly.
The patrons of the decent place were now beginning to stare at them so Timothy stood up and faced the seething woman. "Quit it Darcy, I will do anything I want and please, spare Sab from all these. This is between you and me so don't you dare drag her into this." He muttered in a low controlled voice.
"But she's stealing you from me and you're letting her." She muttered hatefully.
"This woman is just using you, can't you see? She's doing everything to gain your trust. She's not good for you." She added, tears streaming down on her ashen face.
Sabina felt a little sympathy for the woman, it was clear that she loved Timothy. But you love him too and he loves you back, came a whisper in her head.
Timothy's last strand of patience snapped. "Darcy, we are just friends, I made it clear this morning, remember? Sab is not stealing anyone from you. I chose to be with her and please stop accusing her of things she didn't do." He grabbed Sabina's hand again.
The mad woman gaped at them. "What do you mean, you chose her? Can you hear yourself Timothy? You chose this social climbing bitch over me?" She screamed, making the young man angry as hell and the other patrons to gawked at them openly.
The crew and staff of the place were all alarmed and Timothy had now lost the last shred of his hard earned self-control. "Darcy, I am perfectly aware of what I am saying. It's you who needs to listen. I chose Sabina so deal with that." He half yelled.
Sabina stood up in fear and shame. Everybody was now looking at them. She touched the furious man's arm with her free hand. "Tim, that's enough. Let's just go. Miss Madrid, please." She pleaded, trying her hardest to brush aside the older woman's brass behavior.
Darcy shot her a venomous look. "Shut up, whore! Can't you see we are still talking here?" She berated.
"Don't talk to her like that!" Timothy roared.
Both Darcy and Sabina blanched at this. The man's anger was now visible, his face and ears were all red and the veins in his forehead were bulging.
"Please Tim, let's go." Sabina said in almost crying voice, she didn't want to create a scene here, someone might recognized her.
It looked like icy water was poured unto the man after hearing Sabina's quivering voice. He blinked his eyes and looked at their intertwined hands and at Sabina's other hand resting on his arms. He nodded his head slowly and the two started to head for the door.
Upon reaching the entrance, Timothy faced the doorman. "Tell Norman, to just add the bill on my tab. Thank you." He mumbled calmly but his dark demeanor remained. The doorman nodded his head in agreement and opened the wide door for them.
Darcy was left alone, crying. The young heiress just lost the man she loved all her life.
∞∞∞
As the two were cruising the streets of BGC towards Sabina's place, the woman was unsuccessful to hold back her tongue. "Tim, she loves you!" She said softly, letting out the words that was greatly bugging her since this afternoon.
The young man glanced at her direction. They turned right and stopped when a traffic light sparked red. "I know but I don't feel the same way, she should learn to accept that. She is nothing but a sister to me, despite our age gap, I see her as a younger sister." He spoke.
"But you made a promise to your older brother, remember?" The woman went on, feeling guilty. She felt terrible, like she had just wrecked a lovely relationship.
"What are you implying? What are you trying to say, Sab? That I should go and be with her?" Timothy replied in a controlled voice but one could easily sensed the hurt tone in it. He shifted and tried to catch the woman's eyes
Sabina bowed her head to avoid her boss' eyes. "I feel guilty. You two were happy before I came into the picture. It felt like I was destroying or wrecking something sacred, something precious." She muttered, face guilt stricken.
"You know, there are those people who anchored their whole life on a single word or a single promise and from the looks of it, Miss Madrid did, too." She confessed softly.
As the traffic light turned green, Timothy reached out for her hand. "She was happy but I wasn't. Everything was mediocre to me until you came along. That's the only time I felt alive, I felt the extremes, saw more, heard more and felt more. That's when I learn to appreciate, Sab." He explained in his earnest voice.
A lone tear escaped from the petite woman's eyes. Every single word that Timothy had uttered touched her heart. "Me too, Tim. Me too." She whispered inaudibly. She wiped her face discreetly and trained her eyes on the chaotic road.
To hide her current state, the woman attempted to lighten up the conversation. "I have a very few heavy drama moments in my entire life, in fact I can count them with my fingers but this one is trying to topped it all." She exclaimed, trying her hardest not to give in to the sensation she was feeling.
She wanted to cry, to hug the man presently driving and to tell him that she loves him too but she couldn't do that right now, not right now.
She must first learn to have peace within, to make peace with herself and to make peace with her past.
The driver chuckled. "I did not know you hate drama, I thought all girls were drawn to Dramas." He commented.
"Not me! Not your typical woman, remember? You should have known that by now, architect Sebastian." She said teasingly, successfully redirecting the flow of their talk.
The young CEO gave off an adoring smile. "It's the weekend, any plans for tomorrow?" He asked the young lady beside him.
"Except for sleeping until after lunch and running on my treadmill, I have none. And I want to just stay home, this week had been very stressful to me." Her mind wandered to the entire week, seeing Darcy, dealing with her and Timothy simultaneously was really hell for her.
The young man got Sabina immediately. "I'm really sorry about that." He apologized regretfully.
She gave him a small smile and continued. "I want to rest, sleep a lot and laze around." She added, blinking away the images of her boss with the snooty woman that started to invade her head.
The man smiled knowingly, Darcy's presence had his assistant's stomach in knots.
She's jealous! An inner voice sounded in his head.
"Am I welcome to join you? I could be your slave." He joked but Sabina just answered him with a smirk.
"I'll cook for you. I'll do the dishes for you. I'll make you coffee. I'll bring you your favorite dessert. I'll give you a massage." Sabina's brows quirked upon hearing this.
"Okay! Fine! You can come but not until after lunch. Clear?" She stated giggling.
A big smile blossomed from Timothy's face. "Yes ma'am."
"Oh shoot! I need to drop by the supermarket, I need to do some grocery shopping." She hollered.
The man smiled, noticing that the woman didn't curse, she said shoot instead of shit. "Improving, Miss De la Vega." He remarked appreciatively.
For you Tim, for you. She replied mentally.
The woman turned red with his simple praise. "I'm trying, I'm open to change especially if it's for the better." She murmured quietly.
Timothy turned the vehicle and headed to where SNR Global city is.
∞∞∞
The following morning Sabina's glorious sleep was interrupted with a pair of long lean arms, shaking her gently. Languidly, she opened her eyes and found her boss standing at the side of her bed.
"Tim! Don't be a jerk and let me sleep, it's Saturday." She pulled the comforter and burrowed herself on it.
"But it's already 10:00 o'clock Sab. Just eat your breakfast and we can go back in bed after." He insisted. He tried to jiggle the woman again but got no reaction at all.
After a few minutes, he pulled the comforter and found Sabina under it, sleeping soundly. She appeared so peaceful and it looked like she really needed the sleep.
Giving up, the man sat down on the bed. He took off his shoes, his moss green plaid button down shirt and joined the sleeping woman on the bed.
He was left with his plain white undershirt and his Khaki jeans, not so comfortable but still okay for bed. He lay down carefully and pulled Sabina closer to him. He put his arm around her waist and locked her in his chest.
Feeling a heated body next to her, Sabina snuggled to his chest deeper, enjoying the warmth that was enveloping her. Timothy let out a contented sigh and closed his eyes.
After four more hours of long deep sleep, the couple woke up well rested and feeling refreshed. The two padded to the kitchen and enjoyed the breakfast prepared by Tim hours ago.