77 Next Stage

Green View Hotel.

Caroline and Mike were having dinner inside the hotel's restaurant discussing what will be their next move since the bidding was stopped abruptly.

"How about if we will just stay here until tomorrow, if there is no good news then we will just return to Manila. I have a feeling that if Daniel is serious about buying the land, Mr. Fernandez would award the land to him. They could just negotiate privately and not include us anymore," Mike said.

"Is that what you are thinking?" Caroline asked.

"Yeah. That's more like it," he said.

Caroline's face registered sadness. "Ah, okay. Bye-bye land," she said in an emotional voice.

"Hey don't be sad. Once I know of lands nearby that is up for sale I will let you know," he said trying to cheer her up.

"I want that land near the beach!" she declared petulantly like a child wanting to eat a Popsicle.

Mike smiled and put a slice of beefsteak on her plate. "Eat some more. Don't lose your appetite over some land that was never yours, to begin with," he told her.

"But I love your vision for that land. I can see a theme park bustling with people, a luxurious hotel that every guest adores and the beach that everybody loves to visit. I already envision it in my mind! I thought we could buy the land and won't encounter any hurdles along the way. I never expected that Daniel would become our biggest rival in owning the land," she pouted.

"Well...let's just hope and pray that Daniel will no longer pursue the land so that we can buy it and starts planning for our grand vision," Mike said.

Caroline stared at his face. "How much do you know him?"

Mike's brows knitted together. "Who-?"

"Daniel..."

"Hmm...not much. We only meet him inside that bar then I happened to talk to him for a few minutes in the lounge area while waiting for you. We're just discussing pretty random topics about anything and touches some issues plaguing our economy. Nothing serious..." he replied.

"Ah, okay," she murmured.

Caroline found herself thinking of the mysterious Daniel. She was wondering what is it that he's about to reveal to her when they were dining in the restaurant, unfortunately, Mike appeared in the table just in time when he was about to tell her...disrupting their conversation.

She had to admit to herself that Daniel captivated her curiosity.

She was curious as hell to know his real identity.

There's something about him that...damn...she can't describe it!

"Penny for your thoughts dear!" Mike snapped his fingers in front of her face. "What's so nice about that mermaid statue outside that captivated your interest?" he asked looking at the object of her attention.

Caroline smiled and looked at him. "The mermaid statue looks ethereal, out of this world," she answered simply. She did not know that her attention was focused on the mermaid statue outside, located above the fountain in the garden facing the restaurant yet her thoughts were drifting towards Daniel.

"Let's continue eating our dinner, sweetie. Do you want to swim in the pool tonight?" he asked. There was an Olympic size pool as well as a kiddie pool located at the back of the hotel.

"Yeah sure," Caroline agreed since there was not much to do in the hotel.

"I think we should just book a flight for tomorrow afternoon back to Manila, how about 5:00 in the afternoon? Is that okay with you?" he asked her for confirmation.

Caroline nodded her head in agreement. "Okay shoot!" she replied 'coz she was also eager to go home since she already missed her daughter and her family.

Mike successfully booked a plight on the app on his phone. "It's done, we're going home tomorrow afternoon," he said. "Regarding the land, if we're lucky Mr. Fernandez will contact us. But we should not count on it," he reminded her.

"Alright, now that's settled," she smiled at him. "I just want to ask you on how much money I need to reimburse you regarding the flight tickets as well as the hotel accommodation here?"

Mike looked into her eyes meaningfully. "No need to pay me regarding our expenses here. It's my treat. I love spending my money on my sweetie," he winked at her.

Caroline showered him with her sweetest smile. Mike is very generous, whoever becomes his woman will be very lucky to have a boyfriend like him. 'Then what are you waiting for? Grab him!' a tiny voice whispered in her mind.

"Thank you, Mike. You're so very generous, I don't know how to pay you back with your generosity," she said demurely.

"Don't mention it. It's my pleasure to pamper you, my dear," he continues to flatter and tease her.

Caroline smiled and rolled her eyes. The truth is - Mike is a good catch. She knows it and they both know it.

After done eating their meals, they left the restaurant and went to the back of the hotel to inspect the swimming pool area.

When they arrived in the pool area, there was much activity going on. And the pool is a bit crowded.

She looked at Mike. "I don't think I want to swim in that pool, it's too crowded," her mouth contorted in dismay.

"Ah, okay. No problem then, we will just entertain ourselves by watching free movies on cable. How about that?" he suggested.

"Okay, that sounds much better," she agreed.

"Your room or mine?" Mike asked excitedly.

She pondered for a moment. "Yours..."

Mike smiled triumphantly. The truth is he wants to spend some private moments with Caroline and watching movies with her in his room sounds exciting and a lot of fun. "Let's go now," he said, looking forward to enjoying her lovely presence inside his room.

They left the crowded pool area and went upstairs to their suites.

"Just knock when you're ready to come inside, sweetie," he said softly and open the door.

"OK," Caroline answered.

She entered her room and changed into casual clothes, just a mini skirt and body fit black blouse. She brushed her teeth and comb her hair.

She checked her phone and read her mother's question asking her how she's doing and when is she coming back to Manila. She typed a reply message and sent it to her mother.

Done texting, she exited the room and knocked on Mike's room.

"I'm ready to conquer your bedroom," she uttered a joke into his expectant face.

Mike's eyes widened and smirked with her joke. "Really?" he said in a husky voice. He opened the door wide for her to enter perusing her attire appreciatively. No matter what she wears she always looks lovely to him.

"Feel at home, sweetie," he winked at her.

Caroline went to the sofa facing the 25 inches flat-screen television. She was about to reach for the remote control but Mike grabbed it before she can.

"Opsie, I already had a nice movie chosen for tonight. I'm sure you'll like it," he said.

"What kind of movie?" she asked.

"A thriller movie with a few actions but it also has romance side which women like very much," he chuckled.

Mike inserted the USB to the USB port of the TV and the movie began rolling.

He took the wine he brought with him and poured some of the content on the two glasses.

"Wine for you my sweetie," he said and handed her the glass.

Caroline accepted the glass and began sipping the wine. She likes the taste.

They watched the movie as the lead characters were interacting...then a few minutes later there's some teasing and flirting going between the man and the woman lead.

Caroline was sipping her wine and loving it and demanding more from Mike. "Give me more!"

"Hey...drink moderately sweetie or else you will get drunk," he warned her.

But Caroline kept drinking and kept asking for more wine.

A moment later, she started feeling hot all over her body, she wanted to strip her clothes and go naked especially that the man and woman in the movies were having a steamy romp in the bed.

Mike stared at his companion, he casually draped his arms around her shoulder, she didn't complain. When he went too far by brushing and intentionally caressing her exposed neck with his fingers, she still didn't mind, her eyes glued to the naked couple romancing in the bed on the screen.

Mike smirked.

Time for the next stage...