My Married Lover

I was surprised when I turned around while washing the dishes, as someone hugged me from behind. "Roy!" I exclaimed in surprise, but later on, I relaxed.

He just laughed and released his arms from around my waist. In the past few days, he had been acting this way, especially when his wife wasn't around. Auntie Anne, who I owed a lot to because if not for her, I might still be in an orphanage. We aren't related to each other but still she want me to treat them as my own family and that makes me happy.

Because of our similar ages and the effort he had put into helping me adjust when he moved into Auntie Anne's house, we had become close. As Auntie Anne put it, I should consider them like family, especially her new husband, Roy. Even though I thought of him as an older brother, he wanted me to treat him as one.

Roy was kind and affectionate, especially to Auntie Anne, his wife. So, it wasn't unusual for him to act this way around everyone when he was in a good mood. However, I couldn't help but wonder why he seemed to be overdoing it these past few days. It was unlike him to hug or be this physically affectionate. No man had ever held me or hugged me before, except for him.

He innocently smiled at me, his huge frame contrasting with his friendly demeanor. "Do we still have rice?" he asked.

"Are you still hungry?" I asked in return.

We had just eaten a short while ago. The mother and daughter were at work and school. The two of us were always left at home. Roy had recently graduated from college, and for now, his wife allowed him to rest before joining her company to learn the ropes.

I might have graduated from college too if I had been studying, but due to the hardships of life and my need to support myself, I ended up working as a caretaker for the children and eventually became a housemaid. Sometimes, I wondered why my employer married someone so much younger than her. Every time I looked at them, it seemed as if I am looking at a mother and her son.

"Nah," he replied.

"There's still some rice, but there's no viand left," I said as I resumed washing the dishes.

"Do you want to eat?" he asked again, but I shook my head. I was still full.

"I'll just finish up the laundry outside," I told him, brushing him off.

"Oh? I'll help you," he offered.

"No, it's alright. I'll never finish if you keep talking," I said. His constant chattering had already made our chores take longer last time when he insisted on helping me.

"Why not?" he asked, laughing as he followed me.

"Do your things, Roy. Have lunch here. You want to eat right?" I asked.

"Then serve it," he instructed.

I raised my left eyebrow at him, and he did the same to me.

With a sigh, I gave in and served him. I knew they were my employers, but he can do it!

"You're going to cook me some eggs later, right?" he asked.

"Why don't you cook them yourself?" I retorted.

"Why me? I don't know how to cook," he said.

"You're just lazy," I muttered before getting some eggs from the fridge and cooking them for him.

I handed him the plate of eggs and bacon and left him in the kitchen to finish early.

"Hey, Ina!"

"What now?!" I couldn't catch a break.

I turned to him again as I bent over to pick up some clothes from the basket. I began hanging the ones I had finished washing. This washing machine had been a great help to me. It was so easy to use, so I didn't get exhausted on laundry days.

"Queen of the house," he said, chuckling.

"Cut it out, Roy," I shot back.

I gave him a stern look when he took my hands, causing me to stop collecting clothes.

"Can you please stop bothering me?" I said, trying to pull my hands away, but he held them even tighter as he examined them.

"Maybe that's why no one likes you. Your hands are so rough," he remarked.

I looked at him, controlling my irritation. "It just means I'm hardworking and do a lot of housework. Unlike you, who's incredibly soft, obviously lazy, and doesn't help with any household chores! I rather have this rough hands of mine than yours, though."

He just grinned and looked down. "Maybe I should do your work for you, but there's a condition," he said.

"What?" I asked, even though I knew he was just playing around.

"Of course, you'll serve me, and when I give you orders, there should be no complaints," he said.

"You're so audacious. You're not the only one paying me," I said, pulling my hands away from his grip forcefully.

He just laughed and sat down, picking up some clothes to hand to me. I furrowed my brow as I took them from him to hang them.

"But you know, you're actually pretty. You just need a bit of grooming," he said, making noise again.

"Is that even a compliment?" I asked.

"You're also hardworking. Wife material," he added. "If I didn't have a wife, I might have married you."

"You're crazy," I chuckled. "Maybe I should report you to Auntie Anne," I said.

"What if I didn't have a wife? Would you like me then?" he asked.

I raised my eyebrows, looking at him seriously. Our eyes met.

"No," I replied later, leaving him there to fetch more clothes that had just finished spinning.

"You're so picky! Like you think you're super gorgeous!" he said loudly.

"I never said I was beautiful! You were the one who said that!" I retorted.

He muttered something under his breath, but I didn't bother to ask. I didn't want to waste more time talking to him. I preferred to finish my laundry early and do some cleaning inside, even though there wasn't much to clean.

After we finished hanging the laundry, we went inside.

"Do you have a fever?" I asked him as he took the mop and started using it on the floor.

I was wiping some vases. I prioritized this and so I could get rid of the dust on the floor later. He rarely helped anyway. He preferred to sit and watch me do my job.

"Don't you like it?" he asked.

"It's fine," I said. "Just continue," I added.

"What's your type when it comes to men?" he asked again.

"Me?"

"No, Ina. Me. What's my type when it comes to men?" he sarcastically asked himself.

"First of all, hardworking," I said. "If a man isn't hardworking... he might not be able to support us or our future children."

"Ch-children?" he stammered.

"Yes, children. What's the point of looking for a partner if it's not for starting a family, right? I don't want to entertain someone only to find out it's not for the long term," I said.

"I see," he said.

I shrugged, and he didn't say anything more, focusing on wiping the floor in silence. When I finished wiping what I was working on, I moved to the stairs to continue there.

"You're going to wipe each step one by one?" he asked.

"Yes?" I replied with a question.

I was surprised when he suddenly pulled me up. It was a good thing we were only on the first floor of the stairs! My eyes widened as I pushed him away because of how close our chests had become due to the sudden proximity.

I didn't show any reaction and calmly distanced myself from him. "What's with that move?" I asked.

"You could just mop it, why wipe it step by step?" he said as he started wiping.

"But you're not done wiping over there," I pointed to where he had been cleaning earlier.

He hadn't even done half of the living room! "I'm done," he said.

"No, you're not!"

"I'm really done. I'll come back for it later," he said with a challenging look.

If there were two mops, I'd do it myself, but there was only one, and he wouldn't give it to me. "What do you want for lunch?" I asked him.

"Anything," he replied.

"Even dried fish?" I asked for the second time. Challenging him.

"I'll eat anything as long as you cook it," he said, winking at me slightly.

I was about to throw the cloth at him when he quickly dodged it. I just smirked at him and lowered my hand before walking towards the kitchen.

I went into the bathroom and threw the cloth in, then came back out after finishing washing it. I should have been at school today with the siblings, but Auntie Anne didn't let me come with them this time, so the driver ended up doing my tasks.

I left the chicken there for now and went out. It was scorching hot. "Damn you!" I exclaimed when Roy tossed a handkerchief at me as I entered.

"Wipe off your sweat," he said.

"Couldn't you hand it over properly?" I replied sarcastically as I wiped my face with the handkerchief. I even sniffed it slightly to make sure he hadn't done anything to it.

"My sweat smells nice, don't you think," he said.

I bit my lower lip and blinked while looking at him. I was trying to restrain myself. It would have been fine if I had an endless amount of patience, but I didn't, and it got even shorter whenever I talked to him. I threw it back at him, and he caught it, laughing.

"You're really something else," I said.

"Such a drama queen. You even smell my clothes before washing them," he teased.

"You're so arrogant," I replied.

"Say it's not true," he said.

"It's not. Even if you put CCTV cameras all over your house, I would never smell your clothes. Besides, why would I? I don't want to die!" I retorted and left him there.

"Lily!" I called for Ate Anne's eldest daughter.

"Yes?" she replied.

"Is this all you're taking with you?" I asked, looking at her luggage.

"Yes. Mommy said I can buy other clothes in Boracay," she explained.

"Alright. I'll just check on Andrei and organize his things. I'll bring these," I motioned towards her luggage.

"Yes, sure. I think Mommy is already taking care of Andrei," she said.

"Oh? I'll go check on him as well, just in case." She nodded and continued scrolling on her phone.

Our flight was later in the day, so the house wasn't in a frenzy of activity just yet. Auntie Anne had decided to take a vacation because she couldn't handle the recent events at her company, which had been quite hectic. Her children were also upset because she didn't have much time for them. Usually, when she came home, they were already asleep. They only had the mornings to spend together before she had to leave for the office and they had to go to school.

I peeked into Andrei's room and smiled when I saw Auntie Anne looking my way. "Are you done packing your things?" she asked me.

"Yes, I am. Lily's things are also packed," I replied and went inside the room.

"That's great. I'll just organize Andrei's clothes and then take care of mine," she said.

"I can handle that, Auntie. I don't have much to do anyway," I replied.

"Why don't you prepare a snack, so we won't be too hungry when we leave?" she suggested.

"What kind of snack would you like?" I asked. "I'll prepare it."

"Anything. It would be nice if you made a bit extra so we can take it with us," she said.

"How about pizza, Mommy?" Andrei chimed in.

"Do you want pizza?" she asked her son.

"Yup," he replied.

"Alright," she said. "Don't bother cooking. We can just go through the drive-thru later," she told me.

"Okay," I agreed and sat on the bed to help her fold some clothes.

"What about Roy?" she asked again.

"I haven't seen him yet," I answered.

"Didn't you see him in the living room?"

"The last time I saw him was this morning when he asked for coffee."

"Is that so? Well, maybe he's in our room," she said with a shrug.

"Maybe," I said, and she fell silent after that.

We finished folding the clothes, and she left to attend to other matters while I went to load Lily's things into the van. After placing the items that weren't immediately needed in the back, I went back inside the maid's room to get my own bag. I and Roy both shocked when I opened the door, as he was heading towards the kitchen.

"Your eyes are so wide, huh? Did you see handsome?" he teasingly said, and flicked my forehead playfully.

"More like a ghost," I retorted, pushing him aside.

"You'll pay for that later!" he shouted as I started walking away from him.

"Ms. Ina, did you put my power bank in my bag?" Lily asked.

"Yes, I did. It should be in there. Just check," I replied as I glanced at her looking into her bag.

"It's not here," she said.

"Let me see," I offered, taking her bag from her.

We were in the car now, with the two kids sitting side by side in the backseat, and Kuya Jugs, the driver, and I in the front. I removed the items in her bag one by one and found her power bank. Just as I handed it to her, she handed me her bag. "Thank you!" she said.

As planned, we swung by a drive-thru to order pizza. Originally, it was supposed to be just pizza, but they ended up ordering more food than necessary. "Can we bring food on the airplane?" I asked.

"No," replied Auntie Anne.

"Oh my, what are we going to do? We have so much food," I said.

"Just eat what you can, and whatever we can't finish, we can give to Jugs," she suggested.

I nodded. That would work. The airport was a bit far from the house, but we arrived with plenty of time to spare before our flight. The kids were asleep, but we had to wake them when it was time to enter the terminal.

"So, Jugs, should we have someone look after the house?" Auntie asked, speaking to our driver.

"Yes, Ma'am. I'll take care of it."

"Alright, thank you. We'll only be gone for a few days and will return soon." That settled it, and we left for the airport.

As soon as we arrived, I quietly pushed the cart where the bags were placed. They insisted on bringing suitcases, saying that backpacks wouldn't suffice, claiming they couldn't carry them anywhere.

"Ouch!" I glared at Roy in annoyance as he pulled my hair.

"I'll do it," he insisted, and this time, he pushed me to the side to take the cart from me.

"What's going on?" Auntie Anne asked, turning her attention to us.

"Nothing," Roy replied.

"Stop annoying her, Roy. You'll really get on my nerves," she warned.

"I'm not doing anything," he smirked.

"Someone might get in trouble and guess it's not me," I teased him.

He just rolled his eyes at me and followed his wife, while I stayed close to them, matching their footsteps. During the journey, we were all equally quiet, except for Roy. He kept disturbing me because he had gotten enough sleep, and now I couldn't find any rest. Despite being repeatedly scolded by his wife, he couldn't stop himself. If it weren't for Auntie Anne, I would have choked him in frustration a long time ago.

I kept yawning as we finally arrived in Boracay. I wasn't in a good mood anymore.

"Ina looks sleepy," Mrs. Anne chuckled.

"Ah," I just said, pretending to laugh. I was really annoyed.

"The resort is nearby. Don't worry. You can rest as long as you want. After all, that's the purpose of being here," she reassured me. I nodded in agreement, my throat getting dry.

It was already night when we arrived, and the only source of light was the street lamps along the road. It didn't feel scary outside because there were people around. I helped carry the bags once we arrived, and I was amazed by the beauty of the interior. I was curious about how much Auntie Anne had paid because the unit was not only spacious but also stunning.

"Let's eat first," she suggested, and I sat down immediately.

She laughed when she saw her children looking exhausted as if they had been on a long journey.

"I was thinking of having a barbecue, but it seems like you don't want to go out," she chuckled.

"We're dead, Mommy," Lily said.

"Let's just have the food brought up here," Auntie Anne decided, getting nods from everyone, especially her youngest child.

"There are only two rooms here," Auntie Anne mentioned later.

We all exchanged glances as if counting each other. "I'll stay on the sofa then," I said when I saw that there were four of them.

"Okay," Ate Anne agreed. "Lily, just sleep beside Andrei," she instructed her daughter.

I just rolled my eyes at Roy when he looked at me teasingly. I excused myself to bring the bags inside, and when I came out, the food had arrived, so we started eating. We didn't have a chance to talk because we were all tired. They went to their rooms while I stayed on the sofa.

I was in the middle of arranging my blanket when I was startled by something thrown at me.

When will this guy stop?

I just glared at Roy and grabbed the blanket he had thrown at me, arranging it on the sofa.

"Are you going to sleep?" he asked.

"What do you think?" I asked sarcastically.

"Why are you so hot-headed," he laughed and sat on the sofa!

"Get out of there!" I push him away.

"Alright, I'll report you to Anne!" he threatened me when I was about to hit him with the blanket he threw at me earlier.

"Leave me alone. Come on," I said.

"I don't want to," he said.

I bit my bottom lip hard. Trying not to punch him, I might lose my job forever. I don't even know why out of the many men in the world, he is the one Auntie Anne chose to marry. A five-year-old thinking, immature, naughty, and most of all is that he is way too young for her! I pulled him straight but because he was stubborn I was not able to get him out.

"Roy," I called his name threateningly.

I was just like that when he just smirked at me. Teasing me more.

"Go to sleep. The vastness," he said while looking. He even backed off at the end as if to tell me to lie down and sleep while he was there.

"Go back to your room," I said. Feeling annoyed.

"And what if I don't want to?"

"You do not want?" I asked him and he shook his head while crossing his arms.

Needless to say, I pulled my bedclothes off the sofa forcefully, causing him to fall on the floor. He also quickly stood up from sitting there holding his butt. His eyes were too wide, probably in shock.

I quickly lay down on the sofa and then lie down on my back after giving him a teasing smile. I'm full of his attitude. He is worse than Andrei, Auntie Anne's youngest son! He is just so fucking annoying.

"Ouch!" I gasped when something hit my butt hard.

His eyebrows were raised while looking at me. "Fair enough," he said and turned away. "By the way, nice ass," I heard him whisper.

My lips pursed as my eyes I followed him as he headed back to their room.

"I'll take care of them," I ensure Auntie.

"Sure, thanks. I'll be back soon, but don't wait for me. You might not even go if you wait for me since I don't know when I'll be done with my meeting," she said.

"Do Roy and the kids know?" I asked her.

"I haven't told them yet, but you can be the one to tell them. I have to go now. Goodbye," she said and quickly left.

I blinked in surprise and, not knowing what else to do, I went back inside. It was still hot outside, so we were all inside the cottage.

"Where did you come from?" Roy asked. "Did you see Anne?" he added.

"She just left?" I replied questioningly.

"She just left? Where did she go?" he asked, raising his eyebrows, waiting for an answer.

"She said she had a meeting," I replied.

"A meeting? Where?"

"Well, how should I know where?" I asked him.

"You didn't even ask her?"

"Because if she want us to know, she will inform us," I retorted and turned away from him. "She just said she had an important meeting and not to wait for her because she doesn't know when the meeting will end," I replied.

I walked towards our cottage and, with the vast space inside, I wondered how things would unfold.

"Ms. Ina, where are the drinks? I'm thirsty," Lily asked.

"Oh?" I looked around and breathed a sigh of relief when I found some nearby.

"Sure, stay here. I'll get some," I said. "Andrei, do you want some juice?" I asked her brother, who had been watching the swimming pool earlier but couldn't swim alone.

"Orange juice, Ms. Ina," he said.

"Where are you going again?" Roy asked as I met him.

"Join me. Your children wants some juice," I told him.

"They're not my children!" he fastly denied.

I widened my eyes and glanced at the two of them. Fortunately, no one paid attention to us. "What do you mean? Remember, you're married to Ate Anne!" I said, showing off.

I didn't expect his answer at all. I mean, to me... I just shrugged and continued to get the juice for the two of them.

Half a day had passed, and I decided it was time to take a bath. There was a canvas roof on the far end, so I figured it would be okay to use it since no one was there. Plus, Andrei was alone in the middle.

I looked around for the two siblings. They might have gotten tired and needed someone to take care of them. I glanced at Roy, who was standing next to me.

"Aren't you going to take a bath?" I asked.

"What about you?" he asked. "You're starting to smell."

"Is that supposed to be funny?" I asked him, and he laughed.

"Well..." he started but didn't finish the sentence.

I tried to fix my hair, which he had messed up, and then stood up. My hair must have turned white from dealing with him.

He smiled at me and reached out his hand as if asking for something.

I raised an eyebrow at him. "What should I do with your hand?" I asked.

He just pouted, and he himself pulled me closer. I was about to step back when he put my hands on his head and placed them on his shoulders.

"Massage my head. It's been hurting," he instructed that made my burrows furrowed.

"Just a minute!" I annoyingly pulled my hands back from him.

I looked at my bruised thigh, probably git from the collision with his knee. It seemed pretty bad.

"Uncle!" Andrei called out. We both turned to look at him. "Come here! Let's swim!" he shouted.

"I'll follow! Uncle's head still hurts," Roy replied. He didn't even look at the kids.

He raised an eyebrow at me. I quietly rolled my eyes and massaged his head.

Hours passed, and it was already noon. They had left the water, but Roy and I were still here, sweating because of how hot the sun is.

In the past hours, we haven't been with the mother of these children, and during that time, I noticed Roy getting closer to me. I don't want to read too much into his actions, but it seems like he's going overboard. I'm not sure if he's flirting or just being overly affectionate.

"Come on, you two. It's getting late," I said while handing them their towels.

"More, Ms. Ina," Andrei requested.

"We can't do more. That's enough. You might catch a cold. You've been in the water for a while now, and the sun is almost gone," I replied.

"Ms. Ina is right. You two should come up now," Roy chimed in, taking a towel from my hands.

I didn't pay him much attention and quickly approached Lily as she came out of the water as well.

"We can come back another day. There's still time," I reassured them as both siblings pouted.

Since they found out they wouldn't be able to have fun with their mother, their mood had dampened a bit, but they didn't blame me, which was a relief.

In the end, we all went back to the unit. They didn't stay long either as they soon fell asleep due to exhaustion.

I gently closed their bedroom door and stepped out. Our eyes met one last time as Roy sat on the couch, his finger tracing his lower lip. I avoided him before he could say anything, but I couldn't escape when he called me.

I stood there in silence, sighed, and then turned to face him. He tilted his head to the side and approached me as I took a step back. It was challenging for me to think that he might be flirting. I didn't want to consider that possibility. I preferred to be presumptuous about my actions rather than continuing like this.

He raised an eyebrow at me and moved closer while I continued to step back. When his hands touched my arms, I finally insisted on retreating.

"I have something to do. Do you need something?" I asked.

As his hands slid down to mine, I strongly resisted moving any further back.

"What... do you have to do?" he asked.

I fumbled for an answer, avoiding eye contact. "My things are... in the room," I finally mumbled.

"Your things are in there," he said, pointing to the sofa. "Everything is in order," he added. Caught me ired hand lying.

"I'm just thirsty. I need a drink," I feigned again.

"The kitchen is over there, and there's nothing here," he replied.

I wanted to slap myself when I realized that. "I mean, I want the juice from the resort, yes," I said, relieved as if I had escaped something.

"Is that so?" he asked.

"I'll go first," I said and quickly turned to leave.

I decided to walk around the resort. It was getting dark. I just walked around. Until now, Auntie Anne hadn't returned, and I wouldn't go back to the unit until she did.

I sat in front of the counter and looked at the pool right in front of me.

"Can I have some orange juice, please?" I asked.

There were some people outside, but not many, as almost everyone seemed to be inside the bar not far away.

"Ma'am, here you go."

I smiled as I turned around and faced the counter after I got my glass. I picked up the glass and took a sip. I wasn't really thirsty, but thanks to Roy, I was drinking.

"Is it good?"

I almost choked when I heard his voice. I nearly coughed and lowered the glass to avoid being rude.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

Even though it was obvious that I wasn't, I just nodded and raised my right hand as if making a solemn vow.

"I'm fi-fine," I said as I continued to cough.

I quickly stood up from my seat when he tapped me on the back lightly.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

I even heard the irritation in his voice, but I just nodded and turned away, quickly walking away from there.

"Ina, are you really avoiding me right now?"

My eyes widened when he caught my arms and forcing me to face him. I sighed and without any choice, I faced him.

"What?" I replied in a trembling voice. "No, why would I avoid you?"

"Then why do you leave every time I approach you? You've been doing that since earlier. I'd like to think that I have a serious illness, and that's why you keep avoiding me," he said.

"What are you talking about, Roy?" I asked, pretending to be amused.

"Earlier upstairs, you said you were going to fix your things that it was neatly organized, then next you said you'd get juice downstairs, even though I didn't agreed. And now that I'm here downstairs, you're leaving again? Just be honest with me, are you avoiding me? Did I do something wrong?"

"N-no!" I quickly replied. "You didn't do anything wrong," which was true.

"Ina..." he warned.

"I-It's just that... maybe the kids might wake up."

"Stop with the excuses! You've been here for less than an hour, and we're not both foolish enough to think that they might wake up," he said.

I swallowed hard, glancing at the people who were starting to stare at us.

"Roy, there are people looking," I whispered.

"There will be more if you don't tell me what's wrong between us," he said.

"What are you talking about?" I said, trying to pull away from his grip and so when I did, I ran away from him. I never wanted this much attention. I just kept walking until I ended up in a dark area that made me stop.

There was a large pool in front of me. It looked clean, but I couldn't be sure because it was dark, and there was very little light here.

There were cottages here as well, but they seemed abandoned in this part.

I was about to turn around to go back when I realized that Roy was following me closely. I could even see the anger in his eyes.

I glanced around to see if there was another way out, but there was none except the way I came. I bit my lower lip as I continued forward toward an empty cottage.

"Ina!" I heard him call my name. "I know you're still here. Come out. It's dangerous here, there might be snakes," he said.

Even though he spoke normally, it was loud because of the silence here. I remained silent, hiding behind the cottage. I was confident he wouldn't see me here.

"Ina!" he called again, and this time, his voice was closer.

I was about to move to a different spot when I accidentally stepped on a plastic wrapper, making a noise. I cursed myself and stood up, looking at Roy in front of me.

"Now you'll tell me you're not avoiding me," he said as he approached me.

I backed away from him again, causing him to stop in his tracks. I stared at him, still in my swimsuit. I was waiting for him to speak.

"So?" he asked when I remained silent. "What did I do?"

"That!" I replied firmly, pointing at him. He was here now.

He looked confused. "What do you mean, 'that'?" he asked.

"Your actions in the past few days have made me suspicious. I couldn't help but give them meaning because my feelings have changed. We know you're naturally affectionate, but now it's different."

"I never saw you do those things to Auntie Anne. You weren't like this before, but now it seems like you've changed."

"How did I change?" he asked, seeming indifferent to what I was saying.

"You're teasing me too much. You're getting too close, and it's as if you want me to serve you every minute-"

"Because that's what I want," he interrupted.

"But you're not the only one I should serve. You're not the only one I work for. I serve your whole family. What's wrong with you?"

"I want your attention, Ina. Your full attention," he said, his voice filled with anger. "I want you to take care of me all the time-"

"But that's not part of my job. Your wife will do that for you. You should ask her to take care of you, not me."

"And I also said that I want you to take care of me."

I just stared at him in disbelief. "Why would I do that? Just because you want me to? Are you joking? Yes, I know I'm your helper, but it's not my obligation to take care of you. I remember my job is to take care of the children. Children," I repeated. "I apologize if it came across as disrespectful, but I just want you to understand that you have a husband who should take care of you, just like you want. Please know the boundaries, Roy."

I saw a smirk on his face before I turned and left. I heard him call my name, but I didn't bother myself to look back.