#TENDER_BEAUTY_2 (Life after the wedding)
EPISODE 2
“Don’t you think this Sk-irt is too short Oyin?” Ronke asked her friend.
Oyinade smiled mischievously. “Nope, I don’t think so. Besides, you know my ultimate goal, don’t you? A h0t b©dy like mine and S-xy clothes like these would help me achieve my aim”.
Ronke rolled her eyes in exasperation. “I know your plans as much as you do girl and I am with you all the way. You know my popular slogan – ‘when you see what you want, go for it doing everything you can to get it’. But my friend, you have to apply common s-en-se. You have just been given the job so it would be risky and out of place for you to get a query on your first day at work. You worked very ha-rd to get this job, you cannot throw everything away by being overzealous”, Ronke said. “You have to carry out this plan slowly, portraying the highest level of innocence you can. You should be coy and sneaky, slow and steady; with time you would get rid of the hindrance and be in his arms”. She finished.
Oyinade as-similated everything she heard and smiled. “You are a clever snake babe. I would make you my chief adviser in this life-changing project, so you have to be with me all the way”, she said dropping the Sk-irt on the be-d.
She picked her employment letter for the umpteenth time and whispered to herself. “You would be mine very soon. All mine”.
********************
I stepped into the room and met Richa-rd pacing from one end of the room to the other. He was trying as much as he could to re-lease his anger but I could tell it was not working. He noticed my entrance but continued pacing.
“Can you imagine? She actually had the guts to show her face here like she has the right to”, he said still pacing.
I sat down at the edge of the be-d and looked at him.
“Did you see her face? She looked so sure of herself. What did she think? That I would jump into her arms, welcome her and treat her like the most precious person on earth? She must be delusional”. He continued not even waiting for a reply to his previous questions; not like there could be any answer though. When I did not say anything, he st©pped and stared at me. “Would you not say something?”
I sighed, stood up, took his hands and pu-ll-ed him with me to the be-d. He sat down at the edge of the be-d and I knelt behind him on the be-d, placed my hands on his shoulders and gently mas-saged them.
“Mas-sage is not what I n…”
“Shhhh…” I breathed, silencing him and continued my mas-sage. Gently, I felt the anger and tension ease out of him and he started relaxing. “I nee-d you to calm down and relax honey. Today ought to be a happy day for us, remember? I am just seeing your mother for the first time and it means something to me”, I said as I continued my thera-py.
“She is not my mother” he said more calmly.
I left his shoulders and went to sit on his l@ps. “Honey, whether you like it or not, you have her blood flowing in your veins. Do you know what it was like to find out that my father never wanted me? He wanted me to be flu-shed out. I know it hurts but plea-se forgive her. Keeping this grudge in you would hurt you terribly everyday but re-leasing it and forgiving her would make you happy. Accept it. de-ep down in your heart, you know you nee-d your biological mother”, I said as softly as I could.
He shook his head, “No, I don’t nee-d her. I have you to be my mother, wife, sister and everything”.
I nodded. “Yes, but you nee-d her. plea-se, forgive her”, I said going down on my knees. He tried to pu-ll me up but I did not get up. “Yes? For me? plea-se…” I asked with a faint smile.
He stared at me, shaking his head unbelievably. “What have you done to me?” He asked and I grinned. “Alright, would you get up now?” he said and pu-ll-ed me into his arms.
He k!$$£d my forehead and hvgged me. “I love you heart, even though you are n@ûghty”, he said with a smile.
I smiled back, “well, I am happy she is your mother if not you would not have eyes as beautiful as this”.
He scoffed, “I could easily charm you with the generally possessed black eyes, you know?”
“You don’t have to charm me; you were made with very potent charm”.
He laughed. “Alright baby, let’s go and get this over with” he said like we were on a suicide mission, drawing a sympathetic smile from me and we both went back to the sitting room. On getting there, Richa-rd ‘s mum was nowhere to be found.
“She just left, we could not st©p her” Prisca explained.
Richa-rd looked at me. “Do you see? She is not here. She is not around; she never was”. He said and stormed out of the house.
********** **********
Our anniversary celebr@tion had fallen into ruins and I am sure I would not forget it in a hurry. I picked up my phone and dialed Richa-rd ‘s number again after several fruitless attempts but the phone rang off without an answer. I strolled from one end of the compound to the other in worry, dialing his number continuously. Though, I tried to st©p Richa-rd from leaving, he left anyways and I felt terribly angry that my father-in-law could be so thoughtless as to invade one of our happiest moments by bringing his ex-wife. I knew just how Richa-rd must be feeling having experienced first-clas-s rejection from the hands of my step-father (Mr. Badmus).
I had dismissed everyone to their various destinations, immediately Richa-rd stormed out – there is nothing to celebr@te about with my husband in a bad shape. However, it is over three hours now and Richa-rd is nowhere to be found. I shivered from the cold outside and went back inside to get a jacket. It was almost nine and my husband was not home yet. I continued my phone call as I went into the room only to find Richa-rd ‘s phone on the be-d. I hissed aloud and flung my phone onto the be-d, my apprehension increasing a notch. “Where are you Richie?” I gro-an ed.
********************
Prisca placed Patricia in her court and placed a good night k!sson her forehead. Even though the room was mosquito free, she still used a mosquito net for Pat. She climbe-d into be-d beside Tony and smuggled closer to him to feel the warmth of his b©dy. He held her close and looked into her eyes, “Even after a child, you are looking more beautiful darling”.
She smiled, “What is it with your flir-tatious eyes and tone now my husband?”
“Well, if I don’t flir-t with you, who else would I flir-t with?” he asked
“You would not dare flir-t with anyone else. Remember when Richa-rd held Belina today? I was actually jealous. I wanted you to do the same that very minute”, Prisca replied with a smile.
“Hmmm, you should have told me. You know I would have done more than you bargained for” Tony said with a wi-nk.
Prisca smiled but the smile soon faded off. “You know, I would not have taken it lightly at all if our anniversary was ruined like that. Whatever entered Richa-rd ‘s pop to make him bring that woman there, ehn?” Prisca said with annoyance.
Tony had carefully ensured that they did not discuss the p@rty by bringing up other subjects however unimportant, because he knew that Prisca was obviously very pissed. He was also very angry and he had felt so bad when he saw the sad look on Belina’s face as she told them all to leave.
“I don’t even know what that woman is looking for. She did not come looking for him for years but now that she has become an empty barrel, she wants to reclaim her son. Haaa, human beings are so heartless” Prisca continued.
“Don’t draw that conclusion honey; that she is back without a child does not mean that she can’t conceive again”, Tony replied.
Prisca laughed, “I know what I am saying though I don’t have any proof. Do you think she would be here if one of her rich aristos had married her? Trust me darling; the woman is just here because no one wants her fruitless as-s anymore plus Richa-rd is a multi-millionaire, now she wants to eat where she did not sow”. She hissed.
********************
Loretta sat down on a chair in her tastefully furnished mini-flat, crying. Though she was pres£ntly in Nigeria, her taste, clas-s and de-sire for luxury was still very much imbe-dded in her. Ever since she ran out of her son’s ap@rtment, she hadn’t been able to st©p the tears from flowing. She remembered the look of hatred on Richa-rd ‘s face when he looked at her and the tears dropped the more. She had done terrible things to him in the past which she considered unforgivable.
She had thre-aded a very reckless life, not putting into consideration what it might cost her. She had felt unsatisfied with James because he was unable to give her all the luxury she de-sired. Whenever he traveled, she would invite strange men into the house for S-xual activities, locking her seven years old Richa-rd out. Whenever he cried and protested, she would beat him, drag him out of the house and lock the door until she was done. This happened very frequently because James br@nson; her husband; always traveled, looking for greener pasture to make his family especially his wife, happy and contented. Loretta finally bec@m£ fed up and decided to quit the marriage, giving the full custody of Richa-rd to James in order to perform her escapades without the hindrances and burden of a son.
Richa-rd ‘s father, who loved Loretta with all his heart, decided to leave the States for Nigeria in order to be far away from her. Together, Richa-rd and his father had struggled throu-gh thick and thin eventually breaking the holds of poverty. Loretta on the other hand, had several ab-ortions which eventually severed her wo-mb. No man could afford to marry her without a wo-mb, despite her rare beauty. She had felt completely alone and miserable until she decided to take the only lifeline she had left. She had heard enough about James and Richa-rd from the news and she knew that it would be even more difficult to gain their forgiveness now that they are rich.
She wiped tears of regrets off her face as she heard a knock. She was startled, wondering who might be there. She stood up and went to open the door.
“James”, she breathed as she stared at her ex-husband at the door.
Mr. James br@nson entered the house without saying a word, pu-ll-ed her out of the entrance into his arms, closed the door with his leg and covered herl-ips with his. He k!$$£d her like his life depended on it. He hadn’t been able to find love in another woman ever since she walked out of his life. She was the only woman he ever loved. Since she arrived about three years ago, he had tried his possible best to avoid the feelings that never left him but it kept on increasing every time he set his eyes on her. Tonight, he hadn’t been able to ba-re it when he saw tears in her eyes.
Loretta tried to pu-ll away but he held her and she gave in. The door flung open and they sprung ap@rt like children caught stealing meat. They both faced the entrance at the same time and Loretta g@sped, “Richa-rd ”
WATCH OUT FOR EPISODE 3