Anya Tejero was forced to return to a place she chose to forget for years, a remote town where her grandparents' old farm was located. Ten years ago, she committed the most stupid and impulsive decision in her life. She secretly married Lander Rafael Valera, a farm owner's grandson whom she only dated for two months. Blinded by her first love, she dreamed of living with him forever. But her fantasies were shattered into pieces when she caught him cheating on her on their honeymoon night. After a decade, she had to find him again because of the annulment she neglected to process for the longest time. She wanted to revoke her married status before leaving to France where she was planning to settle for good. However, Lander wouldn't sign the papers so easily. He had too many conditions and demands. She needed to put up with his stubbornness and continuous ego tripping. Never in her wildest dream that the period she amounted to erase her bad past would actually result in falling in love to her estranged husband all over again.

Elevators. Airplanes. Palaman ng Sandwich. Yung feeling na papunta ka pa lang at excited ka pa lang sa pupuntahan mo. Yung feeling na palapit pa lang yung birthday mo. Yung feeling na palapit pa ang isa pang espesyal na araw. Yung feeling na ilang oras na lang ay pasko na. Yung feeling na tatlong araw na lang simula na ulit ng pasukan. Yung feeling na nasa gitna ka pa lang at di ka pa nakakarating. Yung feeling na malapit na pero hindi pa. Yun ang laging gusto ko. Yung nasa gitna pa lang. Yung nasa gitna ka ng dalawang bagay. Gitna ng isang building. Gitna ng langit at lupa. Gitna ng dalawang matatabang tinapay. Gitna ng byahe papuntang disneyland. Mas gusto ko yung feeling tuwing nagbabyahe kesa doon sa nakarating ka na. Mas gusto ko yung feeling na may inaantay ka kesa doon sa nandyan na. I always like the things in between. "You only like things in between, Coreen. You only like the chase... You only want me chasing after you. You don't want to decide... Pero pakiusap naman, magdesisyon ka na, kasi tao rin naman ako, nasasaktan. And you? I don't think nararamdaman mo yung sakit na nararamdaman ko... You are just too heartless."

Tomboy ako. Yun ang sabi nila. Dahil sa kilos lalake ako, at sa klase ng pananamit ko. Well, their opinions don't matter, really. Komportable ako sa ganitong ayos, may magagawa ba sila? And besides, mas gusto ko na ang ganito para naman walang magkamaling lalake na ligawan ako. Pero hindi ko maipaliwanag ang nadarama ko sa tuwing lumalapit sa akin si Ian, biglang kumakabog na lamang ang aking dibdib. At sa tuwing ngumingiti na siya, napapalunok ako. Natutulala ako. And one night, naibigay ko ang sarili ko sa kanya sa gitna ng kanyang kalasingan....pero ang hindi ko alam, pati puso ko ay naibigay ko na rin pala. Pero paano ko siya mapapaibig kung ang tingin lang niya sa akin ay nakakabatang kapatid?

Lawrence dela Vega, the man who I fell in love with. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I could love someone as much as I loved him. I thought what we had was something unbreakable. But I thought wrong. Three years ago he made me feel that being in love with him was like lying in a bed of roses. But I wasn't aware that the bed itself was full of thorns. Full of deceit. Full of pretence. That the man himself was a great pretender. My plan was to revenge against this heartbreaker Hotelier for making my life miserable. But how? When after all these years, my heart still belongs to him...aches for him...owned by him....

Fortress Island Series 1: BOOK ONE

"Forgetting a debt doesn't mean it's paid." But I didn't forget him. I knew I owed him a huge amount of money. He paid me even though he wasn't able to own me. Yes, I offered my virgin body to a stranger because I was that desperate. I was sixteen then and helpless. But that night, I knew from the depths of my heart, I won't be able to forget him. Six years later, I found myself in his territory. His eyes twinkled with recognition. That sexy grin I've always remembered about him. The way he ran his tongue along his lower lip as he roamed his gaze around my body, I know, it's payback time.....

Pinagmasdan ko ang dalawang taong gulang na sanggol na payapang natutulog sa aking bisig. Hanggang ngayon ay nanggagalaiti pa rin ako sa galit sa ama ng bata. Hindi ko siya mapapatawad! Pababagsakin ko ang taong sumira sa buhay namin! Kaya isang gabi sa kanyang Restobar ay isinangkatuparan ko ang aking plano. Nag-eskandalo ako at pinahiya siya sa lahat ng taong naroon! Ngunit nagising na lang ako isang araw na ako na pala ang bumagsak sa kanyang mga kamay! His charms are toxic! At ayaw ko mang mangyari ay nahulog na ang aking loob sa kanya at ang poot ay napalitan ng pag-ibig sa aking puso. Pero paano ito, gayung nilinaw niyang ang bata lamang ang kanyang nais at hindi ako!

Gabriel is the love of my life. He is the kind of man any other women would dream of having. He is my knight in shining armor. He is my Prince Charming. At least, I thought he was. Dahil nagbago ang pananaw ko the moment I saw his big brother, Jack. Na sa umpisa pa lang ay galit at ayaw na sa akin. Pero hindi ko maipaliwanag kung bakit naghuhurumintado ang buong sistema ko sa tuwing lumalapit siya sa akin, sa tuwing dumadampi ang balat niya sa akin. At kahit boses niya ay nagbibigay sa akin ng kiliti at kilabot. And when he kissed me, realization flooded me in complete astonishment. And that's the only time in my life that I wish I was single. But I can't afford to break Gab's heart......

What if you only have one chance to live... how would you spend it? This isn't a fairytale. This is my story. My tears of faith. Disclaimer: The story is written in Filipino/tagalog. ______________________ AyamiLu © Copyright 2014 All rights reserved.