The sun had risen when Rozarria woke up. She was disoriented, but she quickly recovered. She removed Alvaro''s arm embracing her waist and got up. She stretched her limbs and ignored the soreness of her sex. Cracking some bones in her neck, she nced at the man who was now awake and looking at her.


    There was something wrong with the way he gazed at her. The kind smile he always portrayed was gone, and his eyes were narrowed with pupils constricted. It was . . . a little scary.


    "What is it?" she asked.


    ". . ."


    Alvaro didn''t answer for a moment before he replied in a severe tone.


    "Who''s Allen?"


    ". . ."


    Rozarria''s heart beat faster and faster, and from the way he was looking at her, she couldn''t help but be nervous.


    Wait . . . why?


    She regained her breathing and answered in her usual forlorn voice, "None of your business."


    She then sauntered towards the exit of the tent, but Alvaro held her hand.


    "I asked you a question."


    The tone of his voice made her shudder, and the intimidating aura he portrayed was enough for her to cower in fear. His whole persona was different. Very different. The man standing in front of her was cruel and dangerous. It was like he was a changed man altogether.


    Was this his true self?


    Frowning, she met his gaze even though her knees started to quake. "I don''t care about your rtionship with other women. I hope you do the same. Or else, I''m afraid I have to ban you."


    ". . ."


    ". . ."


    They stared at each other. The air turned suffocating by the minute. It was hard to breathe will all the heaviness between them.


    ". . . Pardon me."


    It was Alvaro who broke the silence.


    He smiled, reverting to being a gentleman that Rozarria thought what she saw was just an illusion.


    "You''re right . . . it''s none of my business," he said and released her and sauntered back to get his things ready for the climb.


    "You should go and get your things ready. The climb will about to start."


    Rozarria hesitated for a moment. The reason, she didn''t know. She shot onest nce at Alvaro. "See youter."


    She then went out of the tent and didn''t saw the sinister smile on Alvaro''s face.


    Outside, it was still dark, but themps hanging high on the poles and the lightsing from the tents were enough to illuminate the area. Rozarria walked back to her tent, thinking how Alvaro knew An. Did she blurt it outst night? Or maybe she mumbled it in her sleep?


    It was not the first that a man asked her about the name, and she always answered the same. She was never bothered what they think. But she was clearly concerned now.


    Rozarria shook her head, dismissing it because she didn''t want Alvaro to stop having sex with her. The man was good. In fact, the only man that ever made her orgasm after Allen.


    "Roz!"


    Her brows twitched, but she didn''t stop walking. Instead, she hastened her steps. But the man who called her name still managed to catch up to her and grabbed her hand.


    "Roz, wait. Why are you avoiding me?"


    The entitlement, the ownership in his voice caused her brows to draw in one line. She gazed up and shed a timid smile before it disappeared as quickly as it came.


    "Mr. Dave, do I have any reason to avoid you?" Based on his question, she could guess he didn''t saw which tent she came, and she was relieved since Aaron could be an arrogant prick if he wanted to.


    Aaron frowned. After they had sex that night, Rozarria had been avoiding him. Not answering his calls and messages. Not even seeing him when he came to her house multiple times.


    "Roz, is it something I had done? Tell me. I will fix it." He reached his hand, attempting to hold her arm, but she recoiled, and instead, an intense cold stare reciprocated his move.


    "Mr. Dave, I think you have greatly misunderstood something. What happened between us is a one-night stand. A mutual benefit. There''s no rtion between us after that."


    ". . ."


    Aaron looked at Rozarria and gradually came to a realization. Because of his good looks and effortless charms, he could have any woman he wanted. Not to mention his family was well known in Frizkiel. He thought Rozarria was the same, wanting to bed him to be his girlfriend. But the reality was, he was used by her to relieved her itch.


    A roiling heat consumed him, which formed into anger. Never in his life that he was treated this way. It was mostly the other way around!


    "Be careful, bitch," he hissed. All pretense crumbled, and he reverted to his arrogant self. His pride took a direct hit. "I can have your puny Rozienheim corporation at the snap of my fingers." Since she was acting this way, he no longer wanted to y the caring boyfriend.


    Staring at him with no warmth, Rozarria only shrugged. "Really?" she then turned and walked away. "Good luck with that."


    "Wait, I''m not done with you!" Aaron didn''t care about anything else anymore as he grabbed her hand.


    However, before he could, someone took hold of his shoulder and called him.


    "Leader."


    Annoyed, Aaron snapped and saw one of his helpers. "What?"


    "Problem. One member," the helper said, forcing out the words one at a time while his finger pointed towards a specific tent where four Frost people and a single woman were arguing.


    "Oh, for the love of––"


    Aaron took a sharp intake of air. He nced at where Rozarria had gone before he turned to address the problem. Though he didn''t have any love for his position as the leader of the expedition, his father was a fanatical climber. If he didn''t do his job well and smudge his father''s good name, he would not hear the end of it. Besides, he had more than a month to deal with her for ying with him.


    Meanwhile, not far, Maxine had her own troubles. Her hired helpers refuse to carry some of her things. Usually, everyone would exactly do what she would tell them. She never experienced this kind of set back before, so she didn''t know what to do as her anger controlled her judgment.


    She stomped her feet and said, "Why are you refusing to carry my things? Isn''t that what I paid you for?"


    One of the helpers waved his hand. "No, no, no. Too heavy. Dangerous!"


    "What do you mean by dangerous?! You were perfectly fine carrying it until here, and now you refuse?" Maxine then thought of something, and her nostrils fumed. "This is part of your n, right? You pretended to carry our things here then refused to carry itter since we couldn''t turn back now. You cheated me!"


    "Whoa, whoa. What''s going on here?" Aaron asked the moment he stood between the group of helpers and Maxine.


    Maxine thought that someone hade to her rescue in the form of the leader andined about her grievances, "I paid them to carry my things, but now they refuse to carry it!"


    Aaron nced at the group of four helpers and frowned. "Is that true?" This was not the first time he had climbed Freezing mountain, but this was a first that he encountered something like a Frost refusing to carry their employer''s stuff.


    "Kechensha! Chokenxe zhoxina frogina toh henxi!"


    One of the Frost was rmed and rambled theirnguage, didn''t know how to speak the foreigner''snguage much.


    Aaron''s frown deepened, and he nced at his helper. "What did he say?"


    His helper replied, "Table and stove heavy. Couldn''t carry. Suggest leaving."


    Comprehension down on Aaron, and he sighed. On the one hand, his client was Maxine, and in a sense, he must take her side, and she did pay them to carry her things. But on the other hand, carrying those things was impractical and not necessary.


    Ah . . . what to do. He was not much in the decision-making category. His thing lies in adventuring and extremes sports.


    "What''s going on?"