The CEO's Painted Skin

Romeo was smoking cigarettes outside the balcony of his house. He noticed that the weather was good at this particular night. Yesterday the wind was howling and torrents of rain came pouring down in their backyards and in the sidewalks, now that the latest typhoon has already left the country, the night was getting calmer.

His phone suddenly rings...

He picked it up and checked the caller. His mouth twisted into a grimace.

"Hello, Romeo!" a cheery voice entered his ears.

"Ella, hello...!" he said.

"Wazz up? How are you?" asked Ella.

"I'm fine, thank you for asking," he replied.

"Romeo, can I ask you a favor?"

"Tell me what is it first?"

"Can you set me up a date with John? He doesn't want to meet me anymore," she pouted at the other end.

Romeo sighed heavily. "Stay away from John! You already have done enough damage to his life!"

"Huh? Why damaged, I didn't do anything wrong that he doesn't like? I only pleasured him and he likes it, you should have seen how he sucked at my tits hungrily," she laughed and boasted of her dirty manipulation and seduction during that particular night.

"My God! Ella, you are a...a...," Romeo refrains from completing his derogatory sentence.

"Say it already! I am a whore? Is that what you mean? It's okay I don't mind, as long I can get John for myself then I don't care what you will call me. Your negative opinion towards me has no meaning to me, I don't care. What I want right now is to get closer to John as much as possible," she said.

"No way! Stop fantasizing about, John. I won't allow it!" said Romeo firmly.

"Oh, come on. Don't play hard to get with me, Romeo! Tell me how much? Name your price! You want money I can give you one million pesos wired to your bank account directly at this very moment with just a little bit of your cooperation. I can buy you a brand new car or buy you a house and lot, which do you like best? Just tell me, all you need to do is set me up with John in some private place then I will take it from there, I will do the rest," she said convincingly.

Romeo sighed. " Hell no! You are buying my loyalty and cooperation? No thanks, I won't betray my best friend's trust this time. I made a mistake before but am not stupid enough to do it the second time around."

Ella was furiously gripping hard at her cell phone. She wasn't expecting Romeo to play hard to get. Grrr!

"Okay fine! So tell me, what happened to John and his girlfriend after I left his flat?" she was eager to hear the juicy news. What she wanted to hear is the juicy news that John and his girlfriend had already broken up. If that's the case it would be easier to advance into John's life if he no longer has a girlfriend and no emotional attachment to another woman.

For a few seconds, Romeo was internally debating within himself either to tell her the truth or just ignore her question.

"They have a quarrel but they make up pretty quickly, so, don't try to disturb them anymore. I suggest that you find another boy toy to play around with. Leave my best friend alone! John and his girlfriend were expecting their first child soon, they don't need another drama to cause havoc in their lives. If you still have some guilt and shame left in your gorgeous body, don't disturb their peaceful lives. Adios!" said Romeo.

He ended the call and put back the phone into the center table.

Sandra, Romeo's wife appeared in the balcony holding a glass of wine in her hand.

"Who's that person you are talking to a while ago?" asked Sandra.

"It's Ella, that shameless woman!" he replied.

"What does that woman wants?"

"She wants to bribe me in helping her set up a meeting with John in a private place. She offered me, One Million Pesos! Just to cater to her request. To make her offer more enticing she even offered me a brand new car or house and lot in exchange for my cooperation..."

".....and what did you replied to her?" asked Sandra glaring at her husband.

"I told her a fat---'No!" said Romeo in an indignant voice.

"Good!" Sandra sighed in relief. She was already feeling guilty supplying women for John to meet. If only she had known that Catherine and John already reconciled she would stop at once. Just that his bastard husband didn't inform her that the estranged couple had already reconciled. Sigh. She doesn't know if she can ever face Catherine again. This 'Ella woman' is Romeo's find---not hers, still, she feels guilty just the same. She feels that her husband's mistake was also her mistake.

"So, how's Catherine's current condition?" she asked.

"She's still the same, suffering from Dissociative Amnesia. No positive progress yet, but John was doing all his best to take care of and protect both mother and child. And this Ella girl, might do something stupid later, it's something that is bothering me right now," replied Romeo.

Sandra sat down on the chair beside her husband. "The only thing you can do is make sure, Ella won't have a chance to get close to John ever again. She mustn't know what happened to Catherine or else she will come to John again using a manipulative technique," said Romeo sighing.

"Hope she won't do the same stupid mistake or else John's life will become more complicated," said Sandra.

"I hope the same as well," replied Romeo.

"I want to visit Catherine...," said Sandra.

"Not right now sweetheart, she no longer remembers you, maybe one day if she already returns to her normal self. We will visit her together and make our apologies. But not right now, everything we will say to her has no meaning because she is not her usual self. We shall keep praying for her early recovery so that she and John can finally get married and start their own family," explained Romeo.

"Okay, let's go back now inside," murmured Sandra.

The couple went inside their home to retire early for the night.