The Royal Contract

Seeing that someone was already in the pool, Jacky proceeded with caution. She already saw Evan and David swimming in the pool. That would mean Marcus would be likely in the area too.

She did not want to see him anytime soon. She was still fuming after what he did to her. But then again, why should she stop enjoying her vacation just because of him. She thought as she continued to walk to one of the lounge chairs.

That was when she noticed the figure that was lying on one of them. Marcus had his eyes closed but seemed not to be sleeping. He was in his swimwear, but he appeared to be completely dry from her observation.

"Jacky, nice to see you here," Evan shouted when he finally noticed her presence. "You look great." Evan praised her, knowing that should catch Marcus' attention, who was still pretending to be sleeping.

"Come on, join us." David then shouted, joining in with Evan's plans.

They knew that it would put Marcus on the spot. They wondered what their friend would do in this situation. They might not be privy to the real deal between Marcus and Jacky, but they still sensed that a big issue was brewing between the two.

"Wait, let me fix my things." She moved closer to the lounge chairs, picking one that was next to Marcus. She placed her small bag and towel on the chair and sat beside it.

There were a lot of other areas that she could choose to sit on if she wanted. But she picked that one because she would show him that his disregard of her feelings did not affect her.

She was not going to hide from him. She would show him that she was fine even if he had abandoned her during the party. She was moving on from him.

Finally, he opened his eyes and looked at her. "Jacky, can we talk about this?" Marcus asked as he suddenly shifted himself to a seating position. 

He was not expecting to see her. He was even more surprised that she did not pick the farthest chair from him. He still wondered how her mind worked. She was a puzzle to him until now.

"What is there to talk about?" Jacky stated without even looking at him. She continued applying some lotion on her arms as if he was not there in front of her.

"Do you need me to help you with your back?" He offered, suddenly missing touching her.

Not only that, he missed the way they enjoyed each other's company and not whatever was going on between them right now.

"Sure." She offered the lotion to him. She was not going to pretend that she could do that on her own. But she would show him that she was not affected by his touch anymore.

He quickly stood from his seat and moved to her back, taking the lotion in her hands. He slowly placed it in his hands and slowly spread it on her back.

"I'm sorry about what happened the other night." He started to tell her, knowing that it should be what he had done in the first place.

He realized that Alex was right. It was a stupid move on his part to put her in such a situation.

Feeling her skin under his touch made him realized his mistake. He suddenly feared that what they had might be over because he was afraid they were already moving into unchartered territories.

"You should be." She said as she let him finished what he started. 

She was not going to let his touch persuade her to forgive him just like that. Although his presence still invoked a certain thrill in her body, it would not be enough to make her overlooked what he had done.

"What do you want from me? You know what we were when we started this relationship?" Marcus felt that he should try to find out what was wrong with her.

He felt that she should not be making a big deal out of this. Yes, he already admitted that he made the mistake of leaving her at the party, but they were both aware that they were not dating exclusively. He knew that she was also going out on dates with other men, just liked he also went out with other women.

However, he realized that he was not ready to end what they had, not just yet. He still enjoyed Jacky's company, but pursuing something more was not what he also had in mind.

"Nothing. That is what I am trying to say to you. I want nothing to do with you anymore. I think we had exhausted this relationship, and it is time for us to move on." That was it. She had finally told him what was in her mind since last night.

Although she still felt something for him, she was not about to waste her time waiting for him to grow up and realized that he liked her too. She was ready to move on and find someone else that was worth her time and effort.

So far, Lance had been sweet and a real gentleman. He had shown her that she deserved more than what Marcus had given her. She was beginning to think that she already wasted her time believing Marcus was the one. It was time to go back to the drawing board and searched again for the right one.

"But we have something good going with us. Why would you want to end it now?" Marcus questioned her plans. He was not in favor of it and would like to appeal to her.

"Because it doesn't feel right anymore. I think I was beginning to get bored in our relationship. It is time for me to find something that is more exciting." She knew that her words were far from the truth of what she felt. 

But she was better off going on her way now while she still could. She was afraid that she might fall in love with him while he did not reciprocate the feeling in the end.

"What are you saying? I don't believe this. What could be more exciting than what we have? We are great together, so why do you want to make it complicated." He was not ready to let her go yet. 

Marcus knew that his voice was louder than what he intended, but he could not help it as he felt a bit of exasperation. He saw his friends looked at them, but they pretended not to care as they went back to what they were doing, giving them their privacy. 

To him, most girls were easily replaceable. But Jacky was different. She was able to get into his skin, making herself deeply planted in his mind. No matter how he tried to get her out of his system, the more he craved for her. The more he wanted her at his side at all times.

"Yes, things are getting very complicated, so I think it's time to end this." She was about to walk out on him to join the others. But he stopped her.

He grabbed her and forced her to look at him. When she looked up to stare at him, he took that as his opportunity. He held her tightly against him and quickly lowered his face to her, possessing her lips.

He wanted her to understand that what they had was not yet over. He was not willing to let her go yet, despite what she was saying to him.

She was not expecting that he would kiss her. Her instinct took over as she started responding to his advance. She leaned closer to him to deepen the kiss, then allowed her hands to hold on to his shoulders.

When they finally let go of each other, she found herself mortified of what she did. She quickly stepped away from Marcus, pushing his body away from hers, so he would let go of her.

"Don't you see that what we have is not yet over?" Marcus whispered to her as he stepped closer again to her. "You still want me." He said confidently.

Her body might have betrayed her, but her mind knew that it was wrong. But Marcus' last words did not sound right to her as her hands suddenly landed on his right cheek with a big pang.

"What was that for?" He held his cheek in his hands, rubbing it to ease the pain that she slapped.

He was surprised by her response. He knew that she also liked it. Her kiss was no different from what he was used to, so he did not believe that she was over him.

"Because you don't have any right to kiss me anymore." She turned her back on him, moving towards the pool. "Good sex is not enough anymore for me. I want something more. And you are not capable of giving me that."

She still felt the same way for Marcus, but she believed that it was not enough anymore. Jacky was not going to settle for sex anymore. 

She wanted the real thing. She demanded love and commitment.