Thanks for the update sis....

More grease to your elbow...

But Bimbo's sha

Thanks for the update ma’am
I want more bikonu

Thanks for the update, can't wait for the next chapter.

Keep it coming Rose.

What God cannot do…. Does not exist!!!

Thanks for the update ma’am

Nice one Rosemary dear..Thanks for the update �

wow thanks for the update

Thrilling and captivating, thanks for the update, God bless you more.

Thank you ma'am

Oh-be-still-my-thumping-heart!!!

...And the award for the best story on nairaland literature goes to Rossy! Kudos bae�

Ann2012:
What God cannot do…. Does not exist!!!

Thanks for the update ma’am

Chai woman , una sabi like soft ,romantic, loving story ehn .

Patnelly:
...And the award for the best story on nairaland literature goes to Rossy! Kudos bae�

Na so , see the way body dey sweet you like who buhari government just offer rice and chicken .

Baba no get choice than to accept him in law na cos what God has joined together no man can put asunder
Jeez Rosemary I want marry you now now
So that i go get first hand access to updates before over expectations kill me
Biko nu bring more updates

If no be say I don marry, I for dey ask God for my own Ade. Mama rose you.are.the.BEST

I love reading your stories. Thanks for the update

Patnelly:
...And the award for the best story on nairaland literature goes to Rossy! Kudos bae�

Yeeeyyyy

vetrovialMan:
Oh-be-still-my-thumping-heart!!!

silverlinen:
Baba no get choice than to accept him in law na cos what God has joined together no man can put asunder
Jeez Rosemary I want marry you now now
So that i go get first hand access to updates before over expectations kill me
Biko nu bring more updates

You say?

Rosemary33:
You say?

Lol...na wetin you see so nai i talk ooo
Say yes and i dey come tomorrow just like Ade

silverlinen:

Lol...na wetin you see so nai i talk ooo
Say yes and i dey come tomorrow just like Ade

Rosemary33:

Yeah yeah
Shey u don drop updates make i go check am
But are you on twitter drop your handle please

silverlinen:

Yeah yeah
Shey u don drop updates make i go check am
But are you on Twitter drop your handle please

Instagram: @authorrosemary_ok

Twitter: @OziomaRosemary.

Okay now i think the text is about to reach it's climax
Hmmm...why e wan finish na
But if na me be bimbo oo i for just allow the woman but we no go dey close
We no go be friends we no go be enemies. We go just dey like that

Rosemary33:
Instagram: @authorrosemary_ok

Twitter: @OziomaRosemary.

Okay thank you, I'm gon hit you up soon

Thanks for the update ma’am

Thanks for the update so in love with this piece

Rosemary33:
Twenty-six
Martha

“I didn’t ask you to come in.”

“You didn’t say I shouldn’t.”

She’s just nineteen…

Bigger and taller than you.

Still, she’s a child. My soon to be husband’s only daughter, who would be my step-daughter. My age and place in her father’s life gave me an edge over her.

Leaving her still holding the door, probably contemplating asking me out, I strolled deeper into the room that had a feminine mosaic of chaos born of happiness. The mood here was a sharp contrast to what I saw on the girl’s face when she opened the door.

“There is a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on the door,”

“Oh! I didn't know that included me.” Fact was, I knew she placed it there because she heard I would be coming around. Michael said he told them. “I thought it’s for your dad.”

“Why will I not want dad to come in?” Jamming the door, she came to stand in front of me, her hands crossed. “Daddy can come in here any time.”

I got your message, girl. “So, it’s for me then?” I left her, strolling through the marble-floored space to her dressing table where a framed picture of a woman, her skin as rich and deep as any stately home mahogany. There was sublime plumpness in her chubby cheeks, a sense of relaxation in her smile, and kindness in her eyes. I reached out to pick the picture but the girl stopped me.

“Don’t touch that!”

Pulling my hand back, I turned to give her a long stare, threw the picture a glance, walked back to stand close to her.
“The resemblance is so striking,” I said. “She is so beautiful.” No wonder Michael couldn’t find someone worthy to fill the gap she left.

Abandoning me, Bimbo lay on the bed, her face away from me. Silently telling me, ‘Use the door when you are done standing there like a jobless woman.’

“Can I sit?” When I got no response, I pulled the only chair in the room close to the bed and sat down. “Your father loves you so much.” She kept ignoring me. “And it bothers him that you don't love him as much as he does you.”

My last statement made her whip her head up, glaring at me. “I love dad so much and he knows it. You are the one making him think that I don't love him.”

She spoke back to me? We are getting somewhere.

“Bimbo, if you love someone, you would care about his happiness.”

“You know nothing about us! We were happy before you came and ruin everything.” Anger was exuding out of her, I could touch her desperation to convince me of her love for her father. “Daddy was happy with mom!”

But mom died. I didn’t know how to remind her of that so I don’t sound insensitive.

“I know your mother.” That got her attention. Roughly wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand, she sat up, folding her legs. “She’s the most beautiful and nice woman I’ve ever seen.” Lady Ugo, the mother to all the women in our fellowship. A soft-spoken, easy-going, cheerful woman. I had never spoken with her one on one, but I’ve sat under her ministrations and must say she was a gem.

“She completes dad.” It’s understandable if Bimbo chose to speak of her mother as though she was still alive. Grief could make one do that—refuse to accept that the one you loved was gone. “Their love for each other is something I look forward to having when I finally get married.”

“You miss her.” God I need you to keep this discussion channel open.

“You don’t know how it feels to lose someone so dear. Mom was everything to me, to us.” She sniffled. “Then she died…she’s not supposed to die like that!”

God: Let her speak.
"We did everything.” She aimed her grief-ridden eyes at me. “Dad…dad prayed…. He suffered with her.” Sniffle. “She loved God and he allowed him to die!”

Lord, Bimbo wasn’t just angry at me, she was hurting! The pain had eaten deep inside her and she’d come to love the closure, the comfort of the darkness. Michael thought that all the gifts in the world, all the extra care could get her out of this pit. How did he not see this?

Without seeking her permission, I left the chair and sat on the bed, shifting deeper until I went near her. Gripping her shoulders, I pulled her into my arms.

She didn’t pull away!

Thank you, Jesus!

“It’s hard to forget her…It’s hard.” Her body rocked violently with her sobs, anguish sipping out of her like steam from a boiling pot. “Daddy wasn’t supposed to get over her this soon. He wasn’t…” She broke off, pushing herself away from me. “He no longer loves her.”

“Your father loved your mother till her death. And even after she died, he had continued to cherish her memories.” Only the blind didn't notice how much the woman's death affected Michael. Years after her departure, he would infuse stories of the times they shared in his messages, most of the time, he would pause to get hold of himself before continuing with his preaching.

“Yet he is ready to replace her.”

“He didn’t plan it.” From the look she gave me, it was obvious she didn’t understand me. “None of us did,” I added, wishing the holy spirit would help me explain better.

“You are pregnant for him?” I wasn’t certain if I should be laughing at her statement. “Dad…He…”

“Your father is a nobleman, he wouldn’t touch me unless I have his ring on my finger and his name attached to mine, even if he has a gun pointed to his head.” One of the things that made him even desirable. The level of his control, his ability to stand by his words and convictions. I will wait for us to be properly joined as husband and wife, you are worth it. It was his way of saying, I love God and I love you.

“Then what do you mean none of you planned it? He found you—brought you home.” Lifting the shirt off her ‘bob the builder’ pyjamas, she wiped her face with it. “Not as if both of you were forced on each other.”

Her initial anguish has ebbed. If there was anger remaining inside her, it could be…a trickle. “It’s complicated, Bimbo,” I said, shaking my head.

“Then you are trying to lie to me.” Bimbo was smart. No, she wasn’t right about me trying to lie to her, but like her father, she knew how to draw responses from someone and she would push until she got what she wanted. “I see the way dad looks at you. He wouldn’t speak ten sentences without bringing up your name—that’s what he used to do when mom was alive. Mentioning her name in every conversation.”

“You will not believe our story.”

“Try me.” Grabbing a pillow, she placed it across her legs and leaned on it, fixing her gaze on me with anticipation.

I had my inner voice lifted in praise to God for what he had started doing in Bimbo’s life, even as I began to narrate our story to her. It amazed me that she could laugh at our awkwardness, marvel at our spontaneous actions, ask how her daddy proposed.

“It didn’t bother you that he’s way older and that he had children?” She asked.

“Not at all.”

“Really?”

“Well… I was worried about you. You made it obvious the first time we met that you don’t like me.”

“Don’t blame me.”

“I’m not.”

We allowed a few minutes’ silence, then she did something I had never dreamt she would do; Throwing her hands around my neck in a tight hug, the whole of her weight laid on me, she laid her head on my shoulder. “Thank you for coming here.”

Was she thanking me for coming into their lives or her room? It didn’t matter. Bimbo was coming around, that’s what mattered. Returning her hug, I stroked her hair. “Thank you for understanding.”

“Tell dad that I’m so sorry for being selfish.” She said as she leaned off me and I stood up, ready to leave.

“Won’t it be better if you find him and tell him yourself?”

***
Michael

“Bimbo?” Looking past her, my eyes darted left and right the corridor, then settled back on her face. “Princess…”

“Dad, can I come in?” There was a hint of uncertainty in her voice. What was she thinking? That I wouldn’t let her in? Or that I was angry with her.

“Sure,” I stepped aside to let her in. A quick glance out to be sure Martha wasn’t hanging around watching, then I shut the door. “So, you decided not to come down for dinner.” I picked the towel I brought out earlier for my bath up from the bed, walked into the bathroom to hang it back.

“Ola brought me some food,” she said, flipping through The Wonders of God magazine on top of my reading table.

“It’s not an explanation to why you didn’t show up during dinner.” Walking back into the room, I sat on the sofa. “Sit,” I ordered but she didn’t move. “Bimbo?”

Taking a few steps forward, she collapsed at my feet and started crying. “I’m sorry dad. I’m so sorry.”

“My princess.” Gripping her arms, I helped her up. “What is it? What are you sorry for?”

“I’ve been so selfish, I should have understood you…just that I'm missing mum and I felt… I felt you have thrown away all the good times.”

“My baby.” Palming her face, I kissed her chubby cheeks, one she inherited from her mother. "We all miss her a lot."

"But it's easy for you to move on. You found a replacement too soon."

"You think it was easy for me? That I didn't spend nights after nights wishing there was something I could have done to keep her alive?" My family was hurting, what would I have done? If I had shown weakness, who would have strengthened the others?

It was easy for Ola to understand because he had wanted to be a man as well. But Bimbo, she never knew my grief, my pain, my decision to remain true and faithful to Ugo even after her death.

But the Lord got a woman ready for me. I didn't know I needed one.

"Auntie Martha spoke to me and…" Auntie Martha? Did she just call her Auntie? Oh, Lord, what do I appreciate you with? "I didn't realize… Oh, dad." She placed her head on my chest, wrapping her hands around me. "I don't want to make you feel sad."

"I'm not sad, princess."

"Auntie Martha said you are bothered. You think I don't love you as you love me."

There were times I felt overwhelmed by the task of parenting. No matter how much I tried, I was never measuring up. Ola was my consolation, but Bimbo—.

"I love you dad and I want you to be happy."

"You are my happiness," I said, patting her on the back.

"What of Auntie Martha?"

"She too… I love her… you may not understand."

"Don't worry." She eased herself from my arms. "I understand everything and I am happy for you dad."

God, is this you? "Really?"

"Really." Flashing me a toothy smile, she started walking towards the door. Then she stopped and looked back. "Dad?"

"Hmm?"

"Will you...will you and Auntie Martha be making babies?" Was this going to be an issue now? "I don't mind little siblings. It will be nice to have them run around the house."

Without waiting for my response, she opened the door and walked out, leaving me staring mouth gaped at the space. Jesus, God! I gave in to the laughter that was welling inside me. Whistling one of my favourite songs, I danced my way into the bathroom.

Soaking in the heated water, feeling it hug my skin so gently, breathing in the aroma of the bubble bath and the presence of God, my lips started moving to the nudge of the holy spirit and before I knew it, I was praying in tongues.

My bathroom was one out of my many secret places, my mini sanctuary, a place to breathe deeply and let the lord take over me. Tonight I had nothing to ask of the Lord, my heart was filled with worship, my mouth with praise and praising him in an unknown tongue made this moment more intimate.

The sound of someone knocking on my door forced my eyes open, rushing my bath, I wrapped my towel around my waist, with water trickling down from my hair to my face, down to my shoulders, I walked back into the room.

The knock came again.

Bimbo. What did she forget to tell me? “Come on in, Princess.” The door cracked and…

“Oh, Jesus…” Turning around, I found Martha almost out of the door, her face lowered and turned away from me. I guessed she had her eyes shut. “I…Uhm…I’m sorry I didn’t…Oh, God.” Her reaction was both surprising and amusing. Hadn’t she seen a half-naked man before? “I have to go now…I’ll…Uhm…be in my room.”

“Wait,” I called. “I want to speak to you about something if you don't mind.”

Throwing me a glance, she licked her lips and nodded. “I’ll be outside then.”

“Okay, let me put on something decent…”

She was gone before I could finish.

Nne'm God bless you for this updates...

Ma'am, this is no longer a short story o. Maybe you should change it to ‘NOVEL’. Oh, well, I love it more. BTW, I mentioned you in one of my stories. Please check it out. I'd really love it if you do. Thanks so much.