Since meeting Aylin yesterday, Alvian couldn't escape the shadow of that woman. She always haunted him and followed him everywhere.
No matter how hard Alvian tried to get Aylin out of his mind, he couldn't. Last night, he even dreamed of seeing Aylin carrying a baby boy. The piercing cry echoed in his ears.
"I must be going mad. Why is she always on my mind?"
Alvian snapped out of his reverie when he heard the sound of a horn from the vehicle behind him. He was on his way home, as his mother had been calling him non-stop since yesterday, urging him to come back.
Alvian pressed the accelerator pedal, and the car sped through the busy streets. After a 15-minute drive, he arrived at the Darmawan family's luxurious and magnificent home. He was greeted by Mama Veny. The middle-aged woman, who always looked young and beautiful, smiled as she hugged her son.
"Where have you been, Al? Why haven't you come home for four days and been difficult to contact?"
Yes, Alvian had been staying at his apartment for the past four days to calm himself down. His busy work schedule lately had made him tired, so he needed time to rest his body.
"I've been busy with work, Mum. You know what I'm like when I'm working."
"All right, it's fine. Just don't get involved with just any woman. I don't want you to choose the wrong wife!"
That was always what his mother talked about. Almost every time they met, she would warn Alvian to be careful in choosing a wife. Several times, his mother had tried to set Alvian up with the daughters of her socialite friends. However, Alvian had rejected all those beautiful girls outright.
Mama Veny even worried that her son might be gay. Oh no! Just thinking about it made Mama Veny scared.
"Al, when are you going to get married? Mama can't wait to hold your grandchild." Mama Veny followed behind Alvian as he headed towards the living room.
"Mah, how many times have I told you, for now I don't want to get married."
"But you're already an adult and mature enough to get married. What are you waiting for, son?"
"I haven't found the right person yet," Alvian replied flatly.
Mama Veny's lips pursed. She was a little annoyed with her son's behaviour. "What kind of person is the right one, Al? Let Mama help you find her."
Suddenly, Alvian fell silent. For some reason, Aylin immediately popped into his mind. However, he pushed that silly thought away.
"Someone who isn't beautiful or glamorous!"
Alvian knew that the candidates his mother would choose would definitely be girls from wealthy families who were a good match for them.
"You mean ugly and old-fashioned girls, is that it?"
Mama Veny's eyes narrowed suspiciously. Alvian answered with a nod.
"Oh my goodness, Alvian Setyo Darmawan! You are my only son. You have to find a really good partner, don't just settle for any woman!" the woman exclaimed.
Her heart felt like it was going to burst whenever she discussed marriage with Alvian.
"Why don't you just approach Riana? She's a sweet, beautiful woman, and I like her," she added.
At first, Mama Veny approached Riana just to gather information about the women close to Alvian. Unexpectedly, she and Riana had the same hobbies and became close, sometimes spending time together. Riana was very good at stealing the woman's attention.
"Riana? My secretary?" Alvian looked at his mother with a slight frown.
"Yes!"
Alvian's breathing sounded heavy. When it came to finding a partner, Alvian had his own non-negotiable criteria. To be honest, he did not like career women. His future wife had to focus on taking care of her husband and children, not working.
Usually, women who could work would neglect their responsibilities as wives and mothers. And Alvian did not want that to happen in his future household. He wanted his wife and children to depend only on him.
"Why Riana, Mum? Aren't there any other women?"
"What's wrong with Riana? I think she's the ideal wife for you. She's beautiful, smart and classy. Riana fits the criteria for a daughter-in-law in our family."
Alvian no longer responded to his mother's words. If this continued, they might end up in a long argument, and Alvian was never able to argue with his mother.
"Oh yes, tonight I invited Riana to have dinner at our house. I hope you can open your eyes and your heart."
Alvian loosened the tie around his shirt collar. Right now, he really didn't feel like talking about marriage.
"Enough, I'm going to take a shower, I'm hot!"
Without waiting for Mama Veny's reply, Alvian walked towards his room upstairs.
He spent a few minutes soaking in the warm water. His tired body felt refreshed after the shower.
**
**
Alvian was still focused on his laptop screen when he heard a knock on the door outside his room. This was Alvian's daily routine. When he came home, he would spend most of his time in his room, continuing his work.
"Come in, it's not locked!" he said.
The door opened, revealing a domestic helper. Alvian glanced briefly before returning his focus to the laptop screen.
"Excuse me, sir. Dinner is ready. Mrs. Alvian is waiting for you downstairs."
"Just a moment, ma'am. Tell my mother I'll be down in 10 minutes."
"Alright, sir. Excuse me."
After Bik Marni left, Alvian shut down his laptop. He then headed to the dining room. Riana and Mama Veny were already there. The two of them seemed to be chatting animatedly. Alvian joined them at the dining table without saying a word. He didn't even glance at Riana.
"Good evening, Alvian," said Riana with a smile. For the past few months, Riana had stopped calling Alvian 'sir' outside of the office. Alvian didn't mind. More accurately, he didn't care.
"Hmmm." Alvian only responded with a grunt. This made Mama Veny pinch her son's waist.
"Why are you just answering with 'hmm hmm'? Be proper, Alvian!"
"Sorry, Mum. I have a sore throat!"
Mama had completely lost her mind dealing with her son.
Alvian didn't even glance at Riana. Even though tonight Riana looked her best in a navy blue dress. Everything she wore was expensive branded items. Of course, she took advantage of this dinner to look as beautiful as possible. If she could, she would make Alvian and his mother mesmerised.
"You look absolutely stunning tonight, Riana," praised Mama Veny.
"Thank you, Auntie," she replied with a smile. "You're also beautiful and elegant."
Riana glanced at the menu on the dining table. The dinner menu at a wealthy family's home was indeed very different. It seemed expensive and delicious.
Dinner proceeded with Mama Veny and Riana chatting. Meanwhile, Alvian remained mostly silent. He seemed uninterested in the two women's conversation.
"Oh, Riana, where are your parents? Why didn't you invite them to dinner with us?" Mama Veny's question made Riana almost choke on the food she was about to swallow.
She took a sip of water, then wiped her lips with a tissue.
"My parents live abroad, Auntie. My father had a mining company, and since he passed away, my mother has been running it."
"Your parents have a company abroad?" Mama Veny looked amazed.
Riana nodded with a smile. "Yes, Auntie."
"But if your parents have their own company, why do you want to work as a secretary at Alvian's company? Why not just help your mum run the company?"
Again, the question made Riana pause for a moment. Mama Veny was indeed a nosy mother. She would ask anything to satisfy her curiosity.
"I just want to gain work experience, Auntie."
"Well, that's great, dear. Auntie is impressed with you. Independent and not relying on your parents' resources." Mama Veny glanced at her son. "See, Al? What more could Riana want? She's beautiful, smart, and independent."
Alvian didn't respond to his mother's words. This made Riana pout. She was annoyed by Alvian's attitude, which she considered very arrogant.
Luckily, there was Mama Veny, who was very kind to her and always supportive.
Riana was just about to take a sip of her warm tea when an unexpected event occurred. Her eyes widened in surprise as she looked at one of the maids serving dessert. How could it be? The maid turned out to be Bu Nana, her mother.
Riana had always known that her mother worked as a domestic helper in a wealthy family's home. However, she never imagined that her mother worked in the Darmawan family's home.
"Ahem ahem!" Riana coughed due to choking on her tea.
Mrs Nana also noticed Riana's presence in the house and was equally shocked.
"What's wrong, Riana?" asked Mama Veny.
"Nothing, Auntie." Riana glanced at Mrs Nana. Her heart felt like it was about to jump out of her chest. Especially now that Mrs Nana was occasionally looking in her direction. Riana really hoped her mother wouldn't say anything carelessly and reveal all her lies.
With a glance, Riana signalled to her mother, who immediately understood.
"Oh yes, Riana, let me know when your mum comes back to Indonesia, okay? I want to get to know your mum so we can be closer," asked Mama Veny.
"Yes, Auntie," replied Riana, suddenly feeling shy.
*****
After dinner, they spent time in the living room. Riana quietly slipped into the kitchen, looking around for her mother. Coincidentally, Mama Veny and Alvian were having a serious conversation about company matters.
When they arrived in the kitchen, they saw Mrs Nana cleaning the dishes. Riana pulled her mother towards the corner of the room, occasionally glancing around to make sure no one was watching them.
"What are you doing, Riana?" Mrs Nana exclaimed irritably.
"Ssh!" Riana put her finger to her lips. "Ma'am, don't let Alvian's mother know that I am your daughter. I will be embarrassed and my plan will be ruined," whispered Riana. Mrs Nana's eyes widened.
"Are you ashamed to admit that I am your biological mother?"
"That's not what I mean, Ma'am. To get Alvian, I have to pretend to be the daughter of a rich person. If Aunt Veny finds out I'm a maid's daughter, she won't want to match Alvian with me," she said.
Riana's words shocked Mrs Nana. "So the boss you've been telling me about all this time is Den Alvian, right?"
"Yes, Mum."
Mrs Nana looked even more surprised. It turned out that Riana's boss was also her mother's boss.
"So what now?"
"You have to keep quiet and keep it a secret," Riana insisted. "Besides, why don't you find another place to work? Why do you have to work at Alvian's family home?"
"How was I supposed to know that Den Alvian was your boss!"
Riana sighed in exasperation. "Fine, now I'm asking you to quit and find a job somewhere else."
"I can't, Riana. I owe Mrs Veny a lot of money. If you have the money, pay off my debt."
"How much does Mum owe Aunt Veny?"
"80 million!"
Actually, the money was borrowed from Mrs Nana as additional funds when Riana wanted to buy a car. Meanwhile, the one billion rupiah obtained from selling Aylin had been used up to buy a new house and meet Riana's other needs.
"Where would I get that much money, Mum?"
All this time, Riana's salary has been used to fund her extravagant lifestyle or to go to beauty salons for expensive body and facial treatments.
She even went so far as to borrow money from here and there just to maintain her appearance. Riana, who did not want to be seen as the daughter of a poor family, resorted to various means to look glamorous.
"Riana, what are you doing here?" Mama Veny's voice suddenly appeared from behind, startling Riana.
***
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