The Royal Contract

"Where is that chauffeur?" Jacky mumbled to herself as she again looked at the clock on her phone.

Still, the person assigned to pick her up was a no-show. He was already late by almost an hour, something that she hated the most. Time was a valuable commodity that should never be wasted.

She had been pacing inside her apartment, double-checking her luggage if she had forgotten anything. Then, inspecting her checklist for things she might have overlooked.

She was about to call Alex since he was the one who made the arrangements but thought against it. She would give it a few more minutes. 

She did not want to disturb the couple unnecessarily, who probably was already having a great time. Besides, the private plane would never leave without her, would it? She thought as she debated her action next as the clock ticked by.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar ding that resonated inside the house. She automatically stood up from her seat to check it out.

"Finally." She exhaled a heavy breath since she was starting to get exasperated with the situation.

She moved to open the door, expecting no one else but the person bringing her to the airport. If not, she would abandon waiting for him and find herself another alternate ride. 

"It's about time." She stated in a barely controlled anger as she opened the door. "Do you know what time it is?" She continued, feeling frustrated with the man. 

She did not wait for his answer nor even look at the man as she walked back to her luggage, sitting on the living room floor. "Don't bother to answer that. Just get my things because we are already late." She instructed as she grabbed her carry-on bag.

She believed that a man like him should act professionally and be on time. "You should know that..." She was about to unload what was on her mind when she stopped in mid-sentence.

"Still barking orders, I see." A man with a very familiar voice finally spoke up.

She immediately recognized the voice and the man when she finally looked up to see his face. To say she was stunned to see him was an understatement. She was lost for words.

"Well, I was sent here to drive you to your destination. There was nothing in the job description about carrying your things." He resumed saying when she remained silent, just foolishly staring at him.

He suddenly remembered a scene in the past about her carrying her things. He could not help but smile as he recalled that incident.

"What is so funny?" She finally responded, finding her voice again. She noticed the slight snicker in his lips, which irritated her more. "What are you doing here anyway, Marcus? You are not the driver I was waiting for."

She was not amused to see him in this setting. Not when he was clearly enjoying himself at her expense. She thought that he had already changed from their last encounter, but it seemed that he was still the same.

"Sorry, I was not laughing at you." He tried to excuse himself. Then, he decided to be honest about it. "Actually, more or less, it is about you. But anyway, I am here because the one assigned to pick you up had a minor incident with his car."

He quickly changed the subject before things worsened. Judging from the daggers coming out of her eyes, she was not enjoying the idea of his presence.

He was already at the airport when he had learned of the situation. Instead of finding another one to replace the driver, he opted to do it himself. It was supposed to be faster and easier.

But on his way to her apartment, Alex called and asked him to make a side trip. Hence, the lateness of his arrival to pick her up. 

"Oh, what a noble gesture, picking up a damsel in distress. Well, since you are playing the part, then you can start carrying my things so we can leave." She pointed at her several pieces of luggage.

As a sign of peace offering, she decided to pick up the smallest one and moved towards the door. Leaving the rest of her things, expecting Marcus to carry them to the waiting car.

"You do travel light." He sarcastically said, looking at the three huge suitcases. "Are you sure these are all your things? Maybe you forgot something else." He could not stop himself from further antagonizing her.

He could never understand the need to bring too many clothes, bags, and shoes in a single affair. But to be fair, he did appreciate them on a woman's body, more so when he was taking them off.

He could only shake his head to where his thoughts were heading. It was not the time or the place for him to be fantasizing about her.

"Could you wipe that smirk off your face before I wipe it for you?" She did not know why she suddenly felt defensive when he had not done anything to her at all to merit such a reaction.

She should actually be thankful because he was doing her good deed. But, maybe her irritation from earlier and then that smile that she had tried to forget since they parted caused her to act irrationally.

"Fine. If you do not have any other instructions, we should get moving." He took out his phone from his pocket and called a number. After a few seconds of hanging up, a knock came on the door.

"Yes," Jacky asked, surprised to see two men in suits standing by the door.

"We are here to carry your things." One of the men answered her politely.

"I came prepared." He simply said before moving at her side. "Shall we?" He grabbed the small bag in his hands and carried them for her.

She did not have time to protest as he ushered her by her elbows outside her apartment with the two men carrying her other luggage.

Once in the elevator, all she could do was stay silent, unable to have a quick comeback to what happened inside her apartment.

"Just say thank you, and we are even." He knew what she was thinking. For Jacky to be speechless was a victory in itself, but he did not find joy in it.

He just wanted to make things better between them, even if they could not go back to what they were used to when they were still together.

He had already told himself that he should stop thinking about her. A future with her was out of the question. He had already burned the bridge that connected them together.

Still, he found himself attracted to her. He could not seem to move on without her. But he could not force her to take him back after what he did.

Nevertheless, it did not stop him from admiring her from afar. But he could not stop dreaming that she would forgive him even though he knew he was only bound to fail and get hurt. 

Regardless, he was like a moth to a flame, hoping to get that spark of fire back in his arms.