Episode 2

Today I woke up earlier to avoid the risk of Caio arriving before me; today I will wait for him with coffee ready so that he doesn’t complain.

I also decided that I will accept his proposal; I was already determined, and now that my mother wants to sell the house, I need to do this for her.

I take my shower, put on a white satin blouse and a gray pencil skirt, throw on a gray blazer, slip into my black shoes, grab my bag, and walk towards the office.

"Good morning, Marcela." I say as I enter.

"Good morning, Raquel. You got here early today."

"I won’t take the risk of the boss arriving before me again."

"Very well." Her deep, husky voice echoes, sending a shiver down my spine.

"Good morning, sir." I say awkwardly.

"Let’s go to my office to go over the agenda." I nod to Marcela, who smiles, looks at Caio, and bites her lip; I smile back.

Once in his office, I head straight for the agenda, but he stops me.

"Sit." He says, pointing to the chair; without thinking twice, I sit down. He is so authoritative, demanding, and sexy.

Focus, Raquel! Don’t get distracted by his looks, and don’t delude yourself; a man like that will never look at you.

"About the proposal, do you have an answer?"

"Yes, sir, I accept to be your companion."

"Great; I must tell you, it won’t be just as my companion; you will have to pretend to be my girlfriend." I look at him startled; he didn’t mention this yesterday.

"Are you sure I’m qualified for that?"

"I thought of you; if you don’t accept, I’ll find another." He says coldly.

"No, it’s fine; I accept."

"Great, then sign here; this is a contract stating that you agree not to tell anyone about our arrangement; now that you accept, you must sign."

"Yes, sir." As a good law student and future lawyer, I read the contract very carefully.

Whenever I read a contract, I have a habit of biting my lower lip and running my tongue over it; I know it's a strange habit, but it excites me to read contracts and legal processes. I know that's even stranger, but that's just how I am.

When I finish reading, I see that he is looking at me intently, and I know exactly why; I feel a bit embarrassed that he saw me biting my lip.

"Should I add to the contract that you cannot bite your lip?" I flush.

"I’m sorry, sir."

"Sign." He says, and I sign. "The wedding will be this weekend, we leave tomorrow; it’s at the beach so think about that when packing... no, better take my card, go do some shopping; after all, you will be my girlfriend, and you need to look impeccable."

"You don’t have to, sir."

"That isn’t a request." He looks at me with that intimidating gaze, and I take the card. "Don’t worry about the amount you will spend; buy everything you need for the trip."

"Yes, sir, excuse me."

"Go now, take the day off, and buy everything."

"But what about you?"

"I’ll be fine alone."

"Yes, sir."

I gather my things and prepare to walk to the mall since I can’t afford the luxury of taking a cab; it’s a bit far, but that’s all we have for today.

"How are you getting there?" Caio sticks his head in the door and asks.

"Walking." I say a bit embarrassed; he returns to his office and a short while later comes back with his briefcase and the car keys.

"Let’s go; I’ll drive you."

"You don’t have to, sir."

"That isn’t a request." What a bossy man; I say nothing and follow him to the parking lot.

His car is one of those imports that cost about six digits, more or less; I don’t know the brand; I’m too nervous to think about it.

I never thought I would get into this man’s car; this kind of relationship is very intimate between boss and employee, and Caio Alencar is so intimidating that it makes me feel nauseous.

The whole way, he drives in silence, just looking ahead; I sneak a few glances now and then, but he doesn’t look at me at any moment.

I thought he would take me to the mall nearby, but he drives for about forty minutes and takes me to the most expensive shopping mall in the city.

He parks in the lot, and as I reach for the door to get out, he grips my hand, stopping me. A shiver courses through my body, and I feel a slight pang between my legs, just from his touch.

He walks around the car and opens the door for me, offering his hand to help me down. I've always believed he is a gentleman, but I never thought that would apply to me someday.

"I'm heading to the food court for a coffee. Buy whatever you need, and we'll have lunch when I get back to discuss the contract terms."

"Yes, sir."

I step away from him, and a few paces later, I glance back to find him still standing there, watching me. When he realizes I've caught him staring, he turns away and leaves.

The shops in this mall are all designer brands. I’m not sure if I should take it as a compliment or an insult that my clothes are cheap, which they are, but I dress well within my means; I have good taste.

The first step is to buy swimsuits since we’re going on Friday and won’t be back until Monday. Sooner or later, I’ll need to wear a bikini.

I choose four: a black one, because black is life, a navy blue, a red, and an aqua green. I pick a cover-up to match each one.

I head to the cash register to pay, and the total surprises me: 5,250 for these few pieces. That’s more than my salary, but since he told me to buy, I must comply; I would never dare to report what this man orders.

Upon leaving the bikini shop, I buy some short shorts because of the heat, tops to match, and a few light dresses.

Finally, I look for the dress I’ll wear to the wedding. I try on several, but none appeal to me. I like the aqua green dress I’m currently trying on a bit more.

I hear the sound of a message on my phone; it’s a text from Caio.

"This dress looks great."

I glance around, searching for him, but don’t see him. He’s definitely nearby; this man is very strange, and he frightens me. His behavior can change suddenly. Caio Alencar is the most bipolar person I know.

The dress is very elegant and lightweight, perfect for a beach wedding. It’s aqua green, which I think is a great choice for the beach and daytime, and it has my boss’s approval.

I delve into each purchase, but I have no way to backtrack; I signed a contract, and above all, I need the money.

These few purchases total 93,578 reais. I’m surprised that wealthy people spend so much on clothes. I love dressing well, but I don’t know if I’d have the courage to pay that much for a few articles of clothing.

I exit the store, and Caio suddenly appears beside me, startling me a bit. His hair is messy, he’s removed his blazer and tie, and the first two buttons of his shirt are undone, revealing a hint of his muscles, which makes me slightly dizzy. I swallow hard again, feeling that familiar pang in my core, and heat rising to my cheeks.

"Let’s have lunch!"it’s not a suggestion; he’s simply informing me.

"I’d prefer to go home; you don’t need to bother."

"Okay."

For the first time, he doesn’t impose his will on me, and I must admit, I feel incredibly relieved. I’ll already have to face a long weekend with him, pretending to be his girlfriend. I don’t know why he needs this pretense; a man like him could have any woman he wanted.

We get into the car, and he plays a song, something by The Weeknd. I don’t know the title, but I know it’s very sensual. The beats make me imagine this man inside me. Caio is scrambling my thoughts. I’ve never thought of him this way, but seeing him outside the office, with his guard a little down, is sending my mind on a journey.

"Why do you need me to pretend to be your girlfriend?"I ask, breaking the silence.

"My sister is getting married, my brothers are already married, and my ex, who also got married, will be there with her husband since she’s friends with my sister. I don’t want to show up alone."

"I understand."

"I didn’t mention that we’ll be staying at my family’s beach house, and since we’re a couple, we’ll have to share a room."I swallow hard again; it will be very difficult to be in a room with this man without being able to touch him.

I remain silent, unable to come up with anything intelligent to say; all I know is that it will be a great challenge for me. Caio has never affected me sexually before; he influenced me in other ways. In fact, I’ve always been afraid of him, but with this proximity, I'm looking at him with new eyes.

"Is this too much for you?" he asks.

"No, we’ll manage; we’re adults."

"Great."

After a few minutes, he stops in front of my apartment, and only then do I realize I never told him where I lived. I don’t know how Caio knows where I stay.

"How do you know where I live?"

"I’ve seen you leave here a few times."

"Were you watching me?"

"I think you would have liked it if I had been." He doesn’t give me a chance to respond and quickly gets out of the car to open the door for me. "I’ll pick you up here tomorrow morning at 8:00 sharp, don’t be late."

"Yes, sir." He gets back in the car and drives away, and I stand there like a fool, watching until I can no longer see the car.

My heart is racing so fast that I can feel the rhythmic beats in my chest. Tomorrow will be a big day; I hope everything goes well.

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