"So, where should we start our plan?" Raisa asked.
"From this mansion."
"Don't call me sir, just Damian!" Damian exclaimed.
"So we have to convince everyone in this mansion that we're a couple?" Raisa asked.
"Yes, like that. Whatever it takes, you have to convince everyone. Because my mommy's spy is here, and she's sure to tell my mommy that I brought a woman to this mansion," Damian said.
"Okay, I understand," Raisa replied.
"It's good that you understand!" Damian said.
"I'm going out for a moment, but you shouldn't go anywhere. Stay in your room!" Damian ordered.
"Okay, Damian, I'll stay in my room," Raisa replied.
Damian left the mansion, while Raisa returned to the room she had prepared for her.
"It's lonely, living in my room alone. But this is much better than living at my uncle's house, where all I hear is yelling and cursing," Raisa thought.
Raisa is indeed an orphan, abandoned by her parents when she was five years old in an accident.
The company and luxury house that should have belonged to Raisa were seized by her aunt and uncle. Raisa wouldn't have minded just managing them, but a few months ago, Raisa learned that the ownership was different, not hers. Her aunt and uncle had falsified the company and house documents.
Raisa remained silent as she stared out the window, remembering her plight.
Raisa's reverie was interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Come in!" Raisa said.
"Mr. Damian asked me to deliver some food," the maid said.
"Just put it down, Auntie. I'm not in the mood to eat anymore," Raisa ordered.
"Okay, Auntie, put it here, okay?" she said.
"Madam, don't go yet," Raisa said, stopping the maid from leaving.
"What's wrong, miss? Is there anything I can help you with?" she asked.
"Nothing. I just wanted to ask about Damian. What do you think of him?" Raisa asked back, feeling embarrassed.
"Mr. Damian is very kind. He never discriminates against the maids. Miss Raisa is lucky to have a husband like him," she replied with a smile.
"Husband?" Raisa quipped.
"What do you mean, miss?" Raisa asked.
"Isn't Miss Raisa your future wife? She should know," she said.
"Yes, I am Damian's future wife, but I didn't know we were getting married so soon," Raisa said.
The middle-aged woman smiled, thinking Damian hadn't told her on purpose.
"I'll excuse myself. I have a lot of work to do," she said.
Raisa simply nodded, not asking any further questions, afraid of making a mistake. She would ask Damian directly later.
"It's boring being alone in this big place," Raisa thought,
"But don't worry, I won't be cursed at or hit by them anymore."
***
However, after Damian left the mansion, he was scolded by his mother for not attending Damian's engagement to the woman of his family's choice.
"You've embarrassed the Vander family, what's wrong, Damian!" the woman looked angry.
"What did I do?" Damian asked, his expression calm.
"Yesterday was supposed to be your engagement to Devisa, but why did you run away?" exclaimed Rora, Damian's mother.
"Mom, I told you I don't want to be matched with the woman of your choice!" Damian insisted.
"Mommy just wants you to get married, Damian! You're already 40. I'm embarrassed when my friends at my social gathering ask about you!" Rora exclaimed, her anger uncontrollable.
"Don't listen to what they say, Mom," Damian replied.
The woman who had given birth to Damian was furious because her son hadn't gotten married yet.
"Damian!" Rora exclaimed.
Damian held his breath; if his mother raised her voice, it meant the conversation was getting serious.
"Mom, whether you get married or not is my choice. Do you want your son to suffer from unhappiness in a marriage he doesn't want?"
"If I'm going to get married, I'll introduce you to a wife of my own choosing. I'm capable of finding the right woman for me, Mom!" Damian asserted.
Rora took a deep breath.
"Mommy's just afraid you're still traumatized by your past," Rora said.
"I've forgotten about her, Mom. Besides, she's happy with her family. Besides, that's not the reason I haven't gotten married yet," Damian replied, smiling at the woman who had given birth to him.
"About my engagement to Devisa, just call it off. I don't want her. I know she's no good."
"Okay, Mommy will call it off."
"I'm sorry, Mommy forced you to get married," Mommy Rora continued.
"It's okay, Mommy. I know exactly how you feel, but if one day I find the woman I want to marry, Mommy promises not to look at her background," Damian said.
Mommy Rora nodded slowly.
"Okay, I'm going to the office."