Once You Were Mine

Chapter-3 Matio & Sara

Matio's POV:

My head started to buzz after the meeting with Hinata. I need a sugar rush. I did not expect Hinata to propose his daughter's marriage for a mere business deal.

How can he really compare those two?

My father would literally let go of all his wealth for the sake of his family. I can clearly understand the value Ikari gives his family.

But on the bright side, this is an advantage for me. I can have his daughter in my grip and use his daughter to make him my puppet.

Fuck all this s**t for now; I need a little peace. I am sure I will not get it tonight as I have to visit Hinata and his family, and of course, his lovely, precious daughter.

And I also have to inform my parents about the wedding. Maybe it is better not to discuss it right away. First, I will meet her and talk to her; later, I will inform my parents.

My parents had a love marriage, and they expect us to have a love marriage. If they get to know that it is just a beneficial marriage, it will hurt them.

I will tell them gradually, as I am not rushing either.

I called my secretary, Lilly, and she entered the cabin within seconds.

"Cancel all my plans and postpone my meetings to tomorrow," I said. She nodded and left the room.

Moreover, the deal is tomorrow, so I am free for today, other than for dinner tonight.

But for now, I badly need a sugar rush. There is this cafe named Akika, and I heard from Samir that they serve the best dessert.

I saw the location of the Akika cafe and started looking for it.

I have ordered a chocolate cheesecake and a croissant. They said that the Akika pie is their specialty, and it is out of stock for now. And I can get it after 5 hours or so.

So I got settled with chocolate cheesecake and croissants. I have this tendency to eat sugar when I am stressed out. Back in NY, I had a separate pantry stocked up with all kinds of cookies and chocolates.

This place looks crowded. I hope this place lives up to its hype. If this does not satisfy my taste buds, I am going to throw a punch in Samir's face.

I took a spoonful of cheesecake, and mark my words, this is hands down the best cheesecake I ever had. If only this was my place, I would have let out a moan already.

I smiled after having the first bite, and soon I finished eating and reached my hotel.

* * * * * * *

I got ready and called Hinata to inform him about my arrival so that he could get things ready. I do not want to waste my time at their place.

The sky turned dark by the time I reached Ikari Villa. It's new money; it can be seen. The villa spread across the land vastly.

I drive here by myself. And I also need to rush to NY today by 9. Dad could not attend an event, and he asked me to visit in his stance.

Father does not know that I am in Boston right now. So I need to hurry back to the airport. I asked my secretary to make arrangements for my hopper so that even if it gets late here, I can manage to get back on time. I am planning to keep this meeting

short.

I have enough information about what Hanna Ikari is like. I even heard that she is a little proud of all the money and her beauty. She is like a spoiled little brat.

I looked at myself for one last time before I got in the car.

Hinata Ikari is already waiting for me at the entrance.

He looks different from what I saw in the morning.

He looks confident but a bit scared and nervous. What would he have to get nervous about? He had already secured the deal with Rodriguez.

"Hi, Mr.Matio. It is pleasant to see you," he said with an awkward laugh, which irritated me.

I gave him a nod in reply. We both walked inside, and a lady joined us. She stood by Hinata's side. Agnez Ikari, his wife.

They both escorted me into the living room. I can see the photos of Hanna Ikari, solo and with her family.

There was a brown leather couch, and I sat on it. I took plenty of time, trying to make myself comfortable.

"Feel yourself home," Agnez Ikari said.

Trust me, I am trying my best to be comfortable, but in the presence of your husband, I feel like centipedes are crawling on my skin.

I gave her a gentle nod.

It had been 15 minutes, but there was no sign of his daughter.

I stared at Hinata. "I am sorry, Mr.Rodriguez; she got stuck in the traffic. She will hear in 15 minutes," he replied.

I hate people who do not give value to their time or others.

! 5 minutes turned into 30, but she had not shown up yet.

My patience is draining. It is already 8:00 PM. They are trying to prolong our conversation, but I am done.

I got up and buttoned my blazer. "It looks like your daughter has all the time in the world, but unfortunately, I do not. And it would be good for you if you clearly remembered this; I hate waiting. Every second of my time is valuable; you better understand this, Mr.

Ikari," I said storming out of the room.

I got into the car and looked at my watch; it was 8:20 p.m. f**k it. Even if I started now, it would take me at least an hour. We can

plan the land nearer to the event area. I better start now.

I took a deep breath and started the car.

* * * * * * *

Sara's POV:

Bella said she would not be in the apartment, so I opened the door with the spare keys.

I took a deep breath.

Whenever I come to Boston, most of the time I stay in this apartment, so somehow this place feels more like home to me than my home ever did.

And yeah, saying that I also have a room for myself here. I and Bella are also from the same university; we were roommates back then and always thought of having our own place.

Ditch the marriages and always be with the bitches.

That was our slogan. Bella has had her fair share of breakups, and she runs away even when she hears the word marriage.

I got into my room and ran through my wardrobe. I found a Cinderella dress. No, this is not the puffy blue dress. The name of this

gown is 'Cinderella Divine 7475 Dress, so I decided to call it a Cinderella dress.

It is a dark green deep V-neck dress with a slit that goes up to the left thigh. It is an A-line dress. I am a pear-shaped woman, so I am very particular about my styling.

It is better for me if I get ready now, even for the nightly exhibition. I can directly reach the airport from my dad's place. All I have to do is a little touch-up once I reach New York.

It is now 6:30, and I am sure I can get ready by 7 and reach my father's place by 7:30, probably. I will not be late. I got into the shower and used my cocoa-mandarin shower gel. I do not know why, but I love it when I smell like chocolate, maybe because

always being around baking and desserts made me fall for the cocoa smell.

I stepped out and spread a good amount of vanilla caramel lotion all over my body. I was about to pull up the gown, but my phone rang.

I lifted the call.

"Hi Serah, this is Alice," the other person said.

Alice is my subordinate in the art gallery, and she is looking after the exhibition in my absence.

"What is it, Alice? Is everything fine with the exhibition?" I asked.

"Yes Serah, we have prepared everything. Tonight is going to be a hit. There is a small change in the guest list. We need to update it

in our system. But our system is broken.

As you know, all invitations are system-scanned. We have sent the QR to all other guests except this one.

He is an influential business man and a very important guest. What should we do now?" she questioned.

Great; always, things get messed up at the end.

"Did you try for any other alternatives before calling me?" I asked. My team should know how to deal with a situation in the absence of mine.

"No," she replied. I let out a sigh.

"Okay, try with other systems, and if it is not working, then we will be left with only one option. If any of our crew knows what he or

She looks like, ask them to send the picture to our security team, and they will allow him." I replied.

"And also, this is one of our important exhibitions in our gallery; paintings have been brought from across the globe, and we will be

hosting many VIPs to make sure that no one feels inconvenienced," I say in an authoritative tone.

"When will you be here, Serah?" she questioned.

"By 9 PM, and even if it gets late, carry on without me; I will try my best to reach you soon," I replied that we both talked for a

while making sure that everything was on point. I cannot let any mistakes happen on my watch.

I cut the call and looked at the time displayed on my phone. Oh sh*t. It is already 7:00, and I am still wrapped up in my towel.

I hurried myself, wore the dress, dried my hair, and put my makeup on. It is just basic makeup, since I did not have much time to get ready.

I looked at myself as I was done getting ready. The dress feels like a perfect fit and the best option for the night. But this does not look formal to have dinner with my family as it has a deep V cut. I went through my wardrobe again and found a white cape, which did a pretty decent job covering my cleavage.

It is 7:30 now; maybe I can reach my dad's place by 8. I just hope that it is just a simple dinner and nothing else. I booked a cab and got into it.

I got my dad's call as I got into the cab.

"Hi Dad," I say.

"Where are you?" His voice seemed nervous.

I can not tell him the truth or a lie. "I will be there soon," I replied.

"Make it quick," he replied, cutting off the call before I had any other conversation.

The cab went well for the first 10 minutes, but the driver pulled it sideways and got down. He opened the front deck and looked into

it. I checked the watch, and it was 7:45.

"What is it? What happened?" I asked him.

"I am sorry for the inconvenience, mam, but it looks like the car is troubled; there might be a problem with the engine," he said.

I closed my eyes in frustration. God, why? Why are you doing this to me?

"I will try to book another cab for you," he said.

The time was almost 8 by the time I got into another cab, and within no time I got stuck in the traffic. Great.

The time is 8:20 now, and I got a call from my dad again. I lift the call.

"Do not bother to show up, or else I might kill you," he said with a stern voice, and the phone got cut.

I did not even greet him, and he did not try to hear me.

My eyes got blurred for a second. I took a deep breath and tried to control my breathing.

No, not now. You can not break down now. Deal with you, Dad, tomorrow, but for now, you have to head to the airport, I told

myself.

The whole ride towards the airport, I clutched my bag tight.