Palawan Strangers (CharDawn)

Two

Dawn fights back the urge to smile, too. She clears her throat uncomfortably.

She pats her cheeks with her both hands, it flared at the embarrassment.

She sees that the man looks at her again. Now he got her attention. She needs to retreat. That is the only solution to the situation. So she rises from her chair on wobbly legs.

Composure, Dawn. Composure.

Sure, there are other routes, other pathways to get out of the scene –the outdoor dining is too spacious. But, her wicked other Dawn self chose to turn around the table and make sure she passed by the man's table.

In great timing, the wind blew strong, and the slit of her maxi wrap skirt flew open –exposing her shapely leg.

The man almost choked on the water he was drinking. She can see him coughing, hitting his chest to recover.

She feels sorry for him as she only passed by his table. Pero hindi ko naman kasalanan na nakatingin ka.

A smirk quirks her mouth.

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Richard glances at the woman again, he is sure she is panicking.

No, okay lang naman.

His glaze draws back to the woman as if her face was made of a powerful magnet. Her beauty struck him full in the chest.

Then he sees her standing, probably to walk away. He is sure he made her uncomfortable.

No, huwag kang umalis.

He keeps his eyes on hers as she steps forward.

He tries his very best not to stare. But he can't.

She is attractive. He feels like she was drawing him in, from those broad curves to that lovely bust with the tip of her cleavage peeking out in her loose spaghetti strap top tucked in her maxi wrap skirt.

A ball of emotions clogs in his throat. He grabs the cold bottled water to drink.

But then... the wind blew strong. The slit of her skirt opens revealing her bare leg in front of him.

Putangina.

He almost died. Cause of death: choking while drinking water. He almost choked on the cold water he was drinking.

Richard sucks in a long breath. His heart and head were warring at the scent of soft rose water that filled his nose when the woman passed by. Ang bango pa niya.

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The next day, Dawn rolls out of bed and her head is surprisingly clear. It's already ten in the morning. What she really likes in this place is that her insomnia has never attacked her, so far.  She wakes up on a cloudy morning, the sea wind still makes her drowsy. She brought her Needlepoint kit, the shell collage, and settled herself in a modern-contemporary rocking chair on the front porch of her suite. Lazy to dress up, she ordered room service breakfast.

She checks her watch.

Three hours.

She gave herself only three hours to be lazy and sit with her needlework. She can't be in Palawan and do stitching all day. She has to go out.

Dawn left her suite by afternoon and went to town. The staff in the concierge was generous to fix her problem with the transportation, there are no GrabTaxi services or rent-a-car services available in the place. About safety and security in roaming around the town, the staff assures her that the place is totally safe and they will personally assist her with any problem that she may encounter. She will be fine even if she's alone.