The first time she came into his bar with her friend, she barely left her seat while her friend got their drinks and danced as if there was no tomorrow. She just sat in a spot, nursing a drink she barely touched and the beautiful smile on her face was the only indication that she was enjoying the music. That day, his barman, Chike,had an emergency and he had to cover for him. The bar was unusually crowded and he didn’t have time to acknowledge her in any way.

The second time she came in with a man who seemed to be her boyfriend from the way she clung to his arms and hung on his words. It was obvious the man wasn’t into her as much as she was into him. He could tell the attraction wasn’t balanced between the two but his attention was always on her. He was drawn to her beautiful face, flawless skin and quiet demeanor. Those shapeless blazers she wore over her dresses didn’t reduce the allure of her voluptuous curves. 

He wasn’t the kind of man who prey on another man’s property , so he had kept his distance and never approached her. She never left his mind though and her face gave him wet dreams.

The beautiful ones were always taken. An ironic smile turned up his lips as he bent to tie the lace of his sneakers and rose to find his mother, Adesewa Faleke, watching from the doorway to her room. She had come visiting him , unannounced the previous night. They lived in the same city of Lagos but he barely had time to visit her.

“So you are going to leave me alone in this house, right?” 

He swallowed the groan in his throat, “Mum, you know better than to visit me in the middle of the weekday, nah? You should have waited till I paid you a visit.”

“And when will that be, dear son? When Jesus comes back ,right?” She moved to sit on one of the sofas in the sitting room. “If you have a wife and children now, I won’t be alone in the house.”

“Mum, please. Stop behaving like a typical Nigerian mother.” Exasperation coloured his voice.

“But I am a typical Nigerian mother. A proper yoruba one for that matter. So tell me what you meant by that senseless statement you just made.” She rearranged her bum, untied and retie the wrapper around her chest and glared at him.

Hiding the chuckle that was bubbling to the surface, he glanced at his ringing phone and gave his mother a pleading look, “Mum, my clients are waiting. I have a client to pick up on the next street and she is going to the Island. Please don’t let me lose this ride.” He used one of his Cars for Uber transportation.

“Ayoola, making money is good and you have made enough to take care of a family. You are not getting younger neither am I. You are 35 years old for crying out loud.” An hiss escaped her mouth as she leaned over to pick up the remote Control from the stool beside the sofa.

“I know my age, mum and I love you. See you later.” He was laughing as he opened the door and escaped before she could continue.

%%%%%

Kelvin’s jaw dropped in shock as the Cabman dropped him in front of a ten-storey building that was the Wright Oil and Gas administrative building. Dear God, he hoped he hadn’t bitten more than he could chew. His heart beat in excitement and nervousness as he made his way to the Reception desk. The moment he mentioned his name, he was given the direction to the CEO’s office.

Jonathan Wright’s office was located on the first floor of the ten-storey building, and Kelvin tried not to stare in awe at the opulence that was on display around him. These people were the creme de la creme of society. A little pang of envy lurched in his throat but he pushed it away.

“Have a seat, young man.” Jonathan gestured absently to him. His attention was fixed on the screen before him, and Kelvin assumed he was in a virtual meeting with his team, who were in different parts of the world. 

He moved to the comfortable loveseat on the right side of the office. The entire left wall was made of glass that looked directly into the blue waves of the ocean. Sunlight filtered into the cool room. There was absolutely nothing as good as great wealth.

The meeting ended and Jonathan turned his attention to the lounging young man. Kelvin straightened up in his seat abruptly and rubbed his suddenly sweaty palms on his jeans.

“I have a job for you. The package is attractive, but there are terms and conditions attached.” He extracted a file from his drawer and threw it at him. Kelvin caught it and flipped through the contents.

He was rich already. There was little question about it. His friends were in trouble. He didn’t know he was grinning openly and widely until he saw the terms and conditions detailed in the document. 

“I must woo and marry Evelyn?” His jaw went slack with shock. “This contract had to  remain a secret between the two of us?”

“You don’t need to read it to me. My lawyer drafted it and I instructed him to do so. You only need to sign it if you are okay with it. If you hurt her or she has any reason to complain about you, you are a dead man.” His cold voice sent shivers of dread down his spine.

“Can you give me a few days to think about it?” His voice trembled.

“I am not in a hurry to lose my daughter to any asshole, but she seemed to like you genuinely for whatever reason. Take your time and return the contract to me when you are ready.” Jonathan dismissed him with a wave of his hand.

%%%%%

Kelvin swept her off her feet. He practically love-bombed her. He wooed and courted her in a way few women could resist. If she had concerns about some of his attitudes that seemed to slip through a facade or her instincts kept telling her to slow things down a bit, she ignored it and let herself be pampered by a good-looking man for the first time in her life. When he eventually proposed six months after their first meeting in the quietness of her favourite restaurant, she accepted.

Was it a decision she would regret for the rest of her life? She refused to dwell on it. She wanted him and now he was hers. She ignored the niggling little voice and went into preparing for her wedding day.

%%%%%

The bar was unusually crowded tonight. His barman, Chike, was overwhelmed and he had to join him to serve their clients. His attention was divided between watching the premier league football match playing on the big screen and servicing their clients. Some of his clients who were sitting at the bar, threw in a barter or two about the match and he responded with humour as his fingers mixed their preferred cocktail. Or served them their favorite bottles of beer.

He knew the exact moment she walked into the Bar with her friend. Damn! She was so beautiful. His gaze tracked their movement as they perused the crowded room, obviously wondering where to sit as every seat was occupied. He was about to remove his Apron and go meet them when her friend grabbed her hand and pulled her to the bar. Oh! He wished he could bless her soul. Fortunately, there were two empty stools available and they perched on it.

“The stools are sturdy.  They won’t be breaking any time soon.” His assurance was for her as he noted the wary expression on her face as she tried to balance her bum on the stool but he directed his smile to both. His palms were suddenly sweaty and his heart was beating fast. 

“Thank you, Handsome. This my babe is ready to use the crowded bar as an excuse to go home early and sleep. What a boring lifestyle!” Titilola smirked at him.

“Apologies for that. The bar is unusually crowded tonight because of the ongoing premier league match. If you don’t mind, I can check if our VIP lounge is available and book for you.”

“Really? That will be great. Eve, what do you say?” Titilola grinned at her friend.

“No, I am fine. I work in Seclusion all day long. If we want to really socialise, we might as well do it among the crowd.” Her smile was shy as she glanced briefly at him before looking away. Her beautiful brown eyes nearly undid him and he felt his body responding to the smile. Thank Goodness he was behind the bar. 

“That is my girl.” Titilola enthused as she ran a hand down her arm casually. “What is on our drink menu for tonight, Handsome? I am Titilola and my friend is Evelyn.”

Evelyn! It reminded him of Eve and the forbidden Apple. He would gladly eat the forbidden apple if she offered it to him. He sighed. “I am Ayodele. What do you care for, beautiful ladies?” 

“Martini  please. Thank you.” Titilola turned to her friend. “What do you want, Eve?” 

“Please give me a Pineapple Daquiri Mocktail. I don’t have a head for alcohol.” She ignored her friend’s gasp as she focused on him.

“Don’t fall my hand, Eve. Live life before you are tied to the shackles of marriage nah. We may not be able to hang out like this once you get married.” 

Titilola’s voice dropped as she protested but he heard her clearly and the wine glass he held slipped and fell. 

Evelyn was getting married? How did he let her slip through his fingers? His eyes clouded over for a while and he stared down at the broken shards of glasses.

“Are you alright?” Evelyn had gotten to her feet as she peered at him with concern written over her face.

“I am alright. Thank you.” His smile was wooden and he forced more cheer into it. Some things in life were just not meant to be but his heart wasn’t listening. It was aching so much he thought he could see it bleed. He rubbed his hand briefly over his chest while he beckoned to one of his boys to come and clean up the mess. “Your drinks will be coming up in minutes. Here are some nuts to munch on.” He pushed two bowls of cashew nuts to them.

“Thank you.” The ladies beamed at him and continued talking while he made their drinks mechanically. His thoughts were in riots and his mood got darker every second. Why was he always so unlucky in life? He had no known father and had been single-handedly raised by his mother. Growing up was a real struggle and abject poverty had been part of their existence for too long. Now that he was comfortable enough to start thinking of settling down, the first woman who had caught his fancy had been snatched from beneath his nose. 

“Here we go, ladies.” Their drinks were ready and he placed it before them on circular mini trays.

“This is so good.” Titilola took a sip and exhaled with pleasure written over her face. They all laughed.

“She is right. You are really good.”  Evelyn smiled at him and his heart tumbled in his chest. This would be pure hell. 

“Thank you, ladies. I am flattered.” He grinned at both.

“That reminds me. Please I need a driver. Kindly let me know if you come across any responsible and trustworthy one. I am a generous boss.” She brought out her business card and slid it across the wooden space between them.

“I will be on the lookout.” God! What was he about to do? “ I am also a Cab driver. You can always give me a call whenever you need one urgently.” Ayoola, you were just pathetic.

“Oh, that is great. Please let me have your number.” They exchanged numbers and he moved away to serve other clients before he started drooling over her.

%%%%%

Kelvin returned with the signed contract a week later, and his life turned around for good. The company’s Human Resource department invited him for an interview and his offer letter came through a month later. The employment package came with an official Car and his own personal office. It was a dream come through.

He wooed and dined Evelyn like a Queen, even though half of the time, he just wanted to be free from her clutches.  He proposed six months after they met and the wedding took place two months after the engagement. His family were treated like royalty and they fell in love with Evelyn’s quiet charm. He was the envy of his friends. 

His wife didn’t have a to-die-for body, but she brought him great fortune. He had the kind of job he had only dreamt of, drove his choice car, and his house was almost completed on Banana Island. He also had enough cash to feed his addictions; beautiful sleek women, weed, and booze. What else could a man wish for?

He rolled out of bed and stretched his lithe body. His night in Belema’s bed had left him satisfied and drained in a great way. Belema was Evelyn’s housemaid. A smile spread over his face as he walked into the bathroom and turned on the hot water in the shower.

Ten minutes later, he joined his wife at the breakfast table and tried not to stare at the backside of the woman serving his food. She seemed to add an extra sway to it this morning, and his dick twitched in response.

“Belema, that is okay. Please bring my bag. I need to call Ayoola. He will take us to my parents’ place in the next two hours.” Evelyn told her housemaid as she served fried eggs into a separate bowl and placed it beside her husband’s plate of yam.

“I will deliver your message. Merry Christmas to you, ma’am.” Belema smiled as she moved away.

“Thank you, dear. Please pick up your gift under the Christmas tree and inform the other staff to do the same.” She smiled at the young girl.

“Thank you, ma’am.” Belema beamed with appreciation before she hurried away.

“I hope we won’t stay long at your parents’ place. I want to take my wife out on a dinner date.” He grinned at her and watched the pleasure light her eyes. Women were so easy to please. He nearly rolled his eyes in mockery.

“Oh? Thank you, darling. I would love that. We will leave as soon as you want.” She beamed at him. 

“We are long overdue, baby. Hurry up so we can leave on time.” He returned to his food.

Finding Solace is now available on the blog shop for your reading pleasure.

The Blurb

Araire Falade, a beautiful, wealthy, and single woman in her 40s, is trying to slow down her ticking biological clock, and her boyfriend, Bamidele, has said he will only propose if she gets pregnant. 

Seeking help, she approaches the sexy, handsome but married fertility doctor, Chibuike Azuke, and they soon become great friends. 

Glowing and pregnant, her happiness doubles or so it seems when  Bamidele finally proposes.

All hell breaks loose when Araire discovers she has been duped, not only by the man she was engaged to, but also by the man she had come to trust and love with her whole heart.

Will love find her again or she is destined to remain single and alone forever?

The full story of HIDDEN DESIRES will drop on 26th December.

Save the date!