The next morning, El Jardin Café.
Ayla sipped her iced Americano, legs crossed, sunglasses on. Calm and collected, as if last night's wall-pin moment with Sadiq didn't leave her tossing and turning in her silk sheets.
"Damn that man," she whispered, chewing on her straw. "Bakit parang siya lang yung immune sa lahat ng kalandian ko?"
Ding.
The café door opened. She didn't bother looking.
Not until a very familiar scent floated in the air.
Tom Ford. Oud Wood.
She froze.
Then a voice."Still a heartbreaker, I see."
Her grip on the glass tightened.
Rafael.Her first love. Her first heartbreak.The man who cheated on her with her own cousin.
"Wow," she said, standing up. "Still wearing that overrated perfume and that fake smile."
He chuckled. "Still sexy when you're angry."
SLAP.
Everyone looked. She didn't care.
"Touch me again, I break your fingers," she snapped.
But Rafael leaned closer. "So... you're marrying a Farouk now? Mafia to mafia. That's cute. But you and I both know—no one can touch you like I did."
"Correction."A new voice.
Sadiq.Standing behind Rafael, wearing all black, jaw sharp, eyes darker than the coffee Ayla spilled earlier.
He slowly walked over, eyes never leaving Rafael's.
"You touched her once. Never again."
Rafael turned. "And who are you supposed to be?"
Sadiq didn't answer. He simply grabbed Ayla's hand and pulled her close, whispering loud enough for Rafael to hear:
"I'm the man who gets to undress her every night starting next week. You?"
Rafael clenched his fists.
Ayla couldn't breathe.
Not because she was scared.
But because Sadiq just declared war. For her.
"Let's go," Sadiq said, wrapping an arm around her waist.
They walked out of the café like royalty, the tension hanging behind them like smoke.
Outside, Ayla tugged her hand away. "You didn't have to do that."
"I didn't do it for you," Sadiq replied calmly. "I did it for me. Kasi kahit hindi pa kita asawa... akin ka na."
And that was the moment Ayla realized... this man wasn't playing.