"No, man! Do you want her and her fiance to drive me out of here? Her parents might put me in jail for taking up a false identity. I'll just try to remind her of the love we shared while acting as Alphonso Tillman."

Carlos shook his head at his friend. "You love complicated things, don't you? Because how are you going to pull that off?"

Miguel looked away with a sigh. It was a difficult situation he found himself in, and so far, he hasn't been able to make much progress in his Mission. But all that was about to change.

As soon as his injury healed, Miguel went straight to Anastasia's office. He would charm her into loving him again before finally revealing his identity to her. If he went as Miguel she would throw him out. So he would take the route of false identity, same personality.

Miguel waited outside while Anastasia's assistant went in to inform her of his presence. Excerpt from the dog incident, this was the first time he was meeting with her face to face. Last time she called him by his real name, sensing his real identity. What would he do if she suddenly blew his cover? He would have no other choice but to start begging her because the consequences would be dire. His heart skipped the thought. Just then the assistant stepped out.

"You can go in," the lady ushered him into the office and closed the door. Now he was left alone with Anastasia. She sat comfortably behind her desk, calm and comported. Her brown eyes were relaxed on him. It's been years since they were in the same room alone. Those days, they would reach cloud nine together. Oh, how good would it be to have her in his arms again, touch her brown hair, and feel her smooth skin underneath his fingers?

It was when Anastasia's gaze shifted uncomfortably that he realized he was staring too much.

"Uh, Good morning, ma'am. I'm Alphonso Tillman."

"Good morning, Mr. Tillman. I remember you. The man who had a dog bite, how is your leg?

She remembered him? It gladdened his heart to think that he made an impression from their first meeting.

"My leg is fine now. Thanks for your concern, Ma'am."

"You're welcome. I understand you were given five days off."

"Yes, I felt better yesterday so I decided to resume as soon as possible."

Anastasia chuckled. Her laugh warmed his heart. "Most people would want to stay away for five days, but you chose to come back quickly. Why?"

"I realized what I was missing out on while staying away."

Anastasia studied the man in front of her. His words hinted at a hidden meaning behind them. What captured her attention mostly was his vague resemblance with her ex-husband. The rest of what he was saying went completely past her as she was lost in thought, partly admiring, partly scrutinizing him.

Alphonso Tillman's eyes were a different color than Miguel's but his gaze... There was something about his gaze that reminded her of the passion she shared with her ex-husband. It awakened a sense of longing inside of her like she was drawn to him. As they say, the eyes don't lie.

"Miss Ani?" He called, and she cleared her throat, leaving her imagination.

"What can I say, Mr. Tillman? Since you're enthusiastic about work, you can start today."

"Yes, Maam," he beamed a smile at her and turned to leave. From her expressions, he had gotten the information he wanted. He might be answering Alphonso Tillman with the disguise, but he still had that charm of Miguel Dolores that Anastasia couldn't resist.

Anastasia watched him from behind as he left her office and she called her assistant on the phone. The young lady came immediately.

"Rose, I want you to give me as much detail you have on this Alphonso Tillman."

"Okay," Rose replied with a sceptical look. "May I ask what's so special about him?"

Anastasia sighed. Rose has become more of a sister to her over the past five years they have worked together. She had also known Rose from her childhood when she was newly adopted into the Ani family without any siblings. The two of them could discuss freely about things.

Anastasia looked in the distance as if trying to confirm her thoughts. "I have this strong feeling that I know him from somewhere. To be honest, he reminds me of my ex-husband."

"Wait, do you think he is Miguel?"

"I'm not sure, but I have this hunch that he is."

"Ana, I don't know... You said your ex-husband was a CEO, proud, and stinkingly rich. Alphonso Tillman isn't close to any of that."

"I know, but whenever I look at him, I feel the same things I used to feel for Miguel. There's a way he looks at me too. Let's just check to be sure."

"Okay, if you say so. I'll inform you if I discover anything."

"Thank you, Rose."

"Anytime, darling."

Anastasia smiled at her red-haired friend, who had always been supportive of her since she returned to the Philippines. Rose had never had any issues working with her and they understood each other pretty well.

Miguel returned to the rice plantation where Carlos was already working.

"How did it go?" Carlos asked as Miguel had a smile on his face.

"She still responds to me."

Carlos scrunched up his face. "What do you mean?"

Miguel sighed tiredly. "How do I explain this? Do you know how two people behave when they're compatible? That chemistry that makes a woman respond to a man?"

"oh..." Carlos said, nodding slowly.

"This is progress, Carlos; I will make sure she likes me before my one-year contract ends."

"Go get your girl, man! It's you against the billionaire tycoon now. I love your determination, Miguel." Carlos said and hugged Miguel sideways as they walked down the farm track. "You know, it makes me believe one day I would be able to fly like a bird, high up in the sky."

Miguel pushed Carlos away as the other man continued to laugh hysterically.

Later that evening Anastasia received feedback from Rose.

"I couldn't find anything. No social media handles bearing Alphonso Tillman; he isn't registered anywhere, either. The only thing I have are the documents he submitted when applying for the job."

Anastasia raised her eyebrows in surprise. So, she managed to employ someone who didn't exist outside the four walls of her company.

"Let me see his documents again," she asked with an outstretched hand, and Rose passed the documents to her.

She scanned through the few papers. The information in it was useless. She threw them aside in frustration. Now more than ever, she felt Alphonso Tillman was hiding something. And she won't allow any fake people to work for her.

"I can't sit back and act like I'm comfortable with all this."

"So what are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know. I'm not even sure about our connection, Rose. What if I check again?"

Rose laughed. "How are you even going to do that?"

Ana stood up from her chair "I'll go over to the farm and have a word with him. Let's say the first time was a mistake."

Rose watched in wonder. "You do know you're the heir of Ani Farms, a multimillion-dollar company, and he's just a farmer, right?"

"Maybe, or he's the CEO of a multimillion-dollar company coming undercover to ruin my life again. I can't sit back and wait for him to hurt me first, like last time. I can't lose twice."

With that Anastasia left the office straight to the farm.

"Carlos, she's here," Miguel said as soon as Ana crossed the medium-height wooden fence. His face brightened with a smile, unknowing of Anastasia's mission to uncover his secret.