“Your father… did he do something?” he asked.
My eyes narrowed at him, and I shook my head. “I can’t think of anything. Why? Does my father know you’re here and your connection to Simmy?”
Skylar’s lips twitched. “No.” He crossed his arms and leaned back. “He’s not here. Simmy sent me to talk to you.”
I stared at Skylar for a few minutes before releasing a long breath. There was nothing unusual about him. To me, he was still the same Skylar, my classmate in one of my subjects.
“Just tell me why you’re here. Stop fooling around.”
“She wants your lover.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. “Lover?”
“You know who I mean, Azora.”
“I don’t give a damn, Skylar. Just get to the point.”
He sighed, a smile lingering on his lips. “We’re not blood-related, you know.” I narrowed my eyes even more, so he raised both arms in surrender. “Simmy wants you to take back your lover.”
“You mean the man who got shot last night?”
A dark look crossed his eyes. “Gunshot?”
“He got shot. Simmy must be happy by now.” There was a hint of sadness in my voice, but bitterness lingered on my tongue. Japen must be safe by now, and I wasn’t insane enough to take him back after what happened. I knew now that Dad would never spare him. I looked at Skylar, who was deep in thought. “Is there anything else Simmy wants you to do?”
“Nothing… just persuade you to take back your lover.” His eyes narrowed at me. “I never knew you had a lover other than Anthony, Azora.”
My cheeks burned hot at his accusation. I immediately looked away. “It’s not what you think. He was just…” I trailed off. Japen was clearly my friend, a dear friend. I cleared my throat. “Nothing’s going on between us.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.” I sighed. “Now that you got what you asked for, what’s the reason Simmy contacted you for this favor? I don’t believe in mere coincidence, Skylar, so you better have a more believable lie.”
My breath hitched when Skylar laughed. He looked at me as though I was a beautiful piece of art. My stomach churned at the way he stared at me; it was like he was reading me like an open book.
I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. “What?” I asked.
“Did I tell you how beautiful you are, Azora?”
My eyes squinted. “Don’t mess with me,” I warned him.
He just shrugged and stood up. “I happened to tell her that I know you. That must be why.”
“Will you tell my father about this?”
“Not at all. It won’t benefit either of us.”
I kept my gaze on him. Something was off. Something wasn’t right. I couldn’t name what was missing or what was wrong, but I could feel something was going on that I didn’t know about. And it made me tremble a bit. I didn’t like being kept in the dark.
“You won’t tell the Clasiso about this, right?” I asked.
It would be more understandable if Skylar relayed this information to Anthony’s father. After all, he was one of them, but then I thought about his relationship with Simmy. Being her aunt, he must be torn between telling the Clasiso or not.
But then, knowing my relationship with Simmy, it wouldn’t hurt her if the Clasiso knew that I was detained in this mansion and had a lover apart from Anthony. So it didn’t make sense at all.
Who knows, it might do me a favor if the Clasiso realized I was no longer connected to Anthony. Surely, they wouldn’t bother to send men to help me get out of that guest room. They knew better than I did.
“What should I tell them?” he asked, confused yet with a hint of amusement and challenge in his voice.
“That I was thrown into this room, detained, and that I had a lover after Anthony?” I shrugged. “As if they can do anything about it.”
“Does it concern the Clasiso?”
I shook my head at his question. “Definitely not.”
“Apparently, you might misunderstand why I’m here.”
My gaze lingered on the smug smile on his lips. I found myself staring at his thin, pinkish lips. Looking at him, I remembered Japen. My cheeks suddenly burned hot at the memory of him, so I looked away.
Nothing happened between us. Japen did not cross the line, and I was thankful for that. I knew I wasn’t ready for such intimacy with the opposite gender.
I cleared my throat. “Care to tell me why Simmy wanted you to come here?”
“You really have no idea?” he asked, surprised yet amazed. His stare lingered on my face.
“I wouldn’t have asked if I knew.”
“I see.” He faced me and crossed his arms. He stood across from me, a small tea table between us. I had to look up at him because of his height. He smirked at me. “Simmy knows who I am and my relationship with the Clasiso.”
“And…?”
“Still not getting it?”
My lips pursed into a thin line. “Get straight to the point.”
“Simmy wants the Clasiso to know what’s happening inside this mansion.”
I blinked at his words, a little confused yet trying hard to connect all the dots. Then, my eyes widened as I gasped in sudden realization.
“What are you-”
Skylar cut me off. “She thinks I’m a fool who will fall into her trap, Azora. You know I hate being used. I am the predator, not the prey, and definitely not the bait.”
I stood up and stepped closer to him, but the tea table between us stopped me from advancing further. I stared at him, wide-eyed in surprise. “What is she planning to do?”
He shrugged. “You better ask her yourself. Look, I won’t meddle with you, Simmy, and your father’s problem, but I don’t like being used as a pawn. Simmy called me over to let me know why you haven’t attended university for the past weeks.”
“So you’re not going to tell the Clasiso about this… detaining me here?”
He shook his head, looking at me gently. “I admit, they were curious why you suddenly didn’t show up at university, but I was more worried about you. So I had to contact Simmy and ask why you weren’t showing up. She led me here and told me what’s happening.”
I drew a deep breath. “Why? I mean, what’s going on between Simmy and the Clasiso, and why do you know all about this?”
There was hesitation in Skylar’s eyes before he looked away. “There are things that should be left unsaid, Azora. Secrets that should remain uncovered.”
Then he walked out of the room, shutting the door and locking it from the outside. My knees wobbled, and I slumped back down into the chair I had been sitting in earlier.