₦airaland Forum

It was a good thing that she lived at Ojodu, not far away. On Friday, Customer Relation was so good there was no lull until about eleven. It was our first weekend.

Barbara decided she would sleep in her office. I usually stayed around till about that time before going to my one-room apartment in the adjunct building. 'You can sleep in my room, Barbara,' I offered. She looked at me briefly. 'Are you sure about that?' 'Of course.

The bed is quite small, but we can manage it.' She grinned and brightened up. 'Well, thanks a lot, Queen.' After ensuring that everything was in order, we left for my place. As usual, I had a shower and changed into a night wear.

Barbara too went for a shower. I gave her one of my shorts and t-shirts to wear. It was few minutes to midnight when we lay on the bed to sleep. 'Tell me about your boyfriend,' Barbara said. I grinned and told her about Dave. I also added how Dave threatened to give me the red card if I should come to Lagos.

'He's just like so many other guys - self-opinionated and selfish. From what you said he said, he has given you the red card already. Start looking for another lover.' I grinned sadly. 'Well, I believe there's always another opportunity.

' 'Don't waste your time on him,' she said in a tone that looked like she was counseling. 'What're about you? You've not told me about your lover,' I pressed. She laughed shortly.

'I have boyfriends,' she said. 'Boyfriends? You keep more than a lover at a time?' Again she laughed shortly.

'They're boyfriends, not lovers. I allowed them to be friends because of what I can get from them.' 'What?'

She was so down-to-earth, and I was taken aback by her candor. 'It's not safe to have multiple partners.' 'Yeah, I know. I can take care of myself.' I went back to the issue of having a boyfriend. 'A boyfriend is supposed to be a lover,' I pointed out. 'Not in my case,' she answered. I wondered what she meant, but I kept quiet on that.

'The weave-on you are wearing is fine,' she said. 'It's amazing they could fix something as beautiful as this in Benin.' I chuckled. 'Come on,' I said. 'Benin is neither a village nor a town.'

She laughed too and touched the hair. 'It's so good and looks so beautiful on you.' I grinned. 'Thanks for the compliments.' Her right hand went to my neck. 'You are beautiful, Queen.'

I would have said another 'thank you' to her, but there was something in her tone that made me catch my breath. I lay still. To confirm my suspicion, her hand went to my shoulder and my chest. I quickly sat up.

'Barbara, what're you doing?' She sat up too and grinned. 'Alright, let me confess.'

I looked at her curiously. 'Confess what?' She grinned again and sighed. 'I have a crush on you, Queen.' 'What!?' 'Ever since I first saw you, I've had the crush.' I stood up from the bed and moved away.

'You can't be serious, Barbara.' She looked at me solemnly. 'I'm serious, Queen. By now, you should know what my sexual orientation is.' I was too surprised to say a thing. I still kept away, staring at her.

She stared back at me. 'But something tells me you are just like me too,' she burst out. I looked scandalized. 'That I'm what?'

She nodded in affirmation and grinned too. ‘Good. That will make this our job much easier. This hotel will be gently opened to the public and business after its commissioning on Wednesday. Now, let me tell you how the place will operate.’

I nodded. ‘Okay, Barbara.’ She told me how she had and Madam Rose had mapped out how to make things work. I listened to her carefully. I must say Barbara was brilliant.

She combined beauty with brain and it was not difficult to see why Madam Rose had picked her for the job. I definitely had a lot to learn from her, but I would learn fast. After the talks, she took me round the hotel. From the offices, we went to the lobby, the club, the restaurant and the rooms.

We also went to the kitchen and the store house. As expected, the staffers would all start work on Wednesday. She also took me to the special rooms upstairs regarded as suites. I was impressed with everything. Madam Rose had done well. Within such a short time, Barbara and I were chatting as if we had been friends for years.

After taking me round the hotel complex, I was shown (last, but not the least) the small office I would be using. It was the next room to hers, except that it was smaller and had only a chair for visitor. It was cozy, sort of, and i liked the place as it was. She sat on the visitor's seat while I sat on my leather, swivel chair. 'It means you can only receive a visitor at a time,' Barbara said and grinned. Later, towards evening, I decided to call Dave. 'Hello, Dave,' I said. 'You did not even call to ask after me or about my trip.' 'What trip?' he asked, almost in a snappy tone. 'My trip to Lagos, of course.' 'Wait a minute. Are you saying you left Benin, despite asking you not to do so?' I breathed in deeply. 'Dave, since yesterday evening, I've been in Lagos.' 'So, you decided to please yourself, right?' 'It's not about pleasing myself,' I told him. 'It's about doing something that is very right.' There was no response from him again. Seconds later he disconnected the line. I sighed in exasperation. Going by the sign he had been giving me in the last few weeks, he was most likely fed up with the relationship. We did not do much at the hotel the next day other than to prepare for the commissioning.

On Wednesday, by nine in the morning, guests had started arriving for the occasion which was billed to commence by ten o'clock. The Chairman of the occasion, a serving female senator, was there. There were short speeches and the place was declared open. Work started in earnest.

My work was not just to sit in the office. I had to always go round and see that things were working the ways they should. I soon got to understand the pattern of patronage from customers. There was usually a lull in Customer Relation in the morning till late afternoon. Apart from taking care of the needs of lodgers, much was not done in the morning time.

But by early evening, Customer Relation boomed. The bar was usually filled to capacity by seven-thirty p.m., till it closed at ten o'clock. Barbara would stay late before she would leave for her. It was a good thing that she lived at Ojodu, not far away.

We quickly caught up on each other’s lives, not that I had much to tell. He told me that he was having a huge party on New Year’s Eve at his club. A sort of grand opening, he explained. He invited me to come, adding that, I would be his VIP Guest and everything would be on the house. I’m not much of a drinker and I definitely am not the club type. I started to make my excuses but Tee would hear none of it.

“You know you have absolutely nothing to do but sit home and be miserable," he said, “You will be here or I will come and get you, period, "

I knew Tee, he never bluffed. He would come and get me. I agreed to go for a while and he gave me the address to the new club. He told me the party would start at about 9 p.m. and last till who knew when. He told me to bring anyone I wanted as a guest and he would VIP them as well.

Thursday morning at work, I went online and typed in the address for the club and saw it was only a block off Bourbon Street. In fact there was a website for the club. I clicked on the link, it took a while to load. When it did, it began apparent, this was just not a club. It was a very high end Diamond’s Club. I had never been to strip club before so I had no idea of what to expect. All that day, I really wanted to call him back and give him some excuse for not going. But knowing Tee, that would not fly. Soon it was time to leave and head home.

I arrived home a bit later and saw the recorder light flashing, I had a message. I clicked on the machine and heard Tinu’s voice. She asked if I would call her at home when I got in. I picked up the phone and dialed her number. She answered the phone quickly.

“Hey Mike," she said, “I want to invite you out with us tomorrow night. We are going to a huge party at one of Jimi’s friends house.”

“Thanks Tinu, but I already have plans, "I replied.

I told her about my invite to Tee’s new club for the Grand Opening. I was now glad I had accepted the invite. A night of Jimi getting drunk and hanging all over Tinu was nothing I wanted to see. The only time he paid her any attention is when he was drinking. And after a few drinks, he usually became rude and obnoxious to her.

“You’re going where?" she exclaimed, “You know what kind of club that is?”

“Yes," I told her, “But I really have to go, I have known Tee forever.”

“OK, I understand, but if you change your mind let me know," she added.

We hung up and I made dinner and sat down to eat. The phone soon rang again. I answered and this time, it was Jimi. He told me Tinu had just informed him of where I was going tomorrow night. He was very excited.

“You know that is the hottest new club in the city?" he asked.

“Not really," I responded, “I grew up with the guy who owns it, he invited me.”

“Can you bring us with you?" he quickly asked.

Great, now I am back to square one. I get to spend the evening watching him get plastered and Tinu get abused. What a great way to usher in another year.

“No, I have other plans Tinu, "I replied.

“Mike, are you avoiding me?”

“Not at all. I was invited to a friends this afternoon and I decided to go," I answered, trying my best to sound convincing.

“alright, "she said, “Have a nice day, I miss you.”

“I miss you too, sweetheart.”

The next week was just about done and New Years Eve was approaching. Again I had no plans, and figured I would spend the holidays alone watching TV. Friday night was New Year’s Eve, on Wednesday, I received a call from a longtime friend of mine. We had went to the same high school together and both had played ball later at the same college. I had heard he had just opened up some sort of night club in the city, but never really heard much about it.

We quickly caught up on each other’s lives, not that I had much to tell. He told me that he was having a huge party on New Year’s Eve at his club. A sort of grand opening, he explained. He invited me to come, adding that, I would be his VIP Guest and everything would be on the house. I’m not much of a drinker and I definitely am not the club type. I started to make my excuses but Tee would hear none of it.

“You know you have absolutely nothing to do but sit home and be miserable," he said, “You will be here or I will come and get you, period, "

I knew Tee, he never bluffed. He would come and get me. I agreed to go for a while and he gave me the address to the new club. He told me the party would start at about 9 p.m. and last till who knew when. He told me to bring anyone I wanted as a guest and he would VIP them as well.

Thursday morning at work, I went online and typed in the address for the club and saw it was only a block off Bourbon Street. In fact there was a website for the club. I clicked on the link, it took a while to load. When it did, it began apparent, this was just not a club. It was a very high end Diamond’s Club. I had never been to strip club before so I had no idea of what to expect. All that day, I really wanted to call him back and give him some excuse for not going. But knowing Tee, that would not fly. Soon it was time to leave and head home.

I arrived home a bit later and saw the recorder light flashing, I had a message. I clicked on the machine and heard Tinu’s voice. She asked if I would call her at home when I got in. I picked up the phone and dialed her number. She answered the phone quickly.

“Hey Mike," she said, “I want to invite you out with us tomorrow night. We are going to a huge party at one of Jimi’s friends house.”

“Thanks Tinu, but I already have plans, "I replied.

She cut the call connection and put the phone on her big desk. 'I've just called the Customer Relation Manager that you will be working directly with. Don't forget: you are my eyes and ears in this place. You must always brief me about things that are going on.' 'Yes, ma,' I answered. The door gently opened and a lady stepped in. 'Good morning, madam,' she greeted. 'Good morning, Barbara. Sit down.' 'Thank you, ma'am.' Barbara sat down and regarded me briefly. 'Yes, Barbara,' madam said. 'This is Miss Queen Alade, the lady I told you will be your assistant as Deputy Customer Relation Manager. Queen, meet Barbara Ogbeha, the Customer Relation Manager. The two of you will be working together. I want maximum cooperation and high productivity.' I nodded in affirmation. 'Hello, Queen,' Barbara said. 'Good morning, madam,' I replied. 'Yes,' Madam Rose went on, turning to Barbara. 'You will show Queen her office. You will also put her through our operations here. Explain everything to her.' Madam Rose extended her right hand to me for a hand shake. 'Thank you, ma'am,' I said. 'You will get your letter of employment later today.' Again, I nodded in affirmation. 'Thank you, ma. I’m grateful.' Barbara and I stood up and left the office. Down the corridor, about three rooms from Madam Rose's office, was Barbara's own.

Her office was small but cool, neat and well-arranged. 'Sit down,' she said. 'Thank you, Miss. Ogbeha.' 'Hey, just Barbara is okay,' he protested. I grinned. 'Okay, Barbara. Thank you.' She stared at me briefly and studied me. I studied her too. She couldn't be less than thirty-four. Almost the same height with me, but she was a bit plump and busty. She looked pretty and confident. She certainly looked like a lady who was not a push-over. 'I've seen your curriculum vitae, and I'm impressed,’ she said. ‘Having a Second Class Upper in Food Technology is no joke.

But this is a complete different terrain. This place is not about being academic. It's about smartness and astuteness. Baby, you are in Lagos now, and you've got to be smart. Some guys will want to take you for a ride, and some ladies too. But that’s if you allow them.’

She paused to gauge my attentiveness. I was all ears. ‘In hotel Customer Relation, you meet all sorts of characters. You’ll meet the educated, the illiterate, the successful business people, and those ones that that are still struggling.’

I could see that I was in for a pep lecture. I waited. ‘You’ll meet honest ones and those ones that are unscrupulous and fraudulent. Hey, you must always be on your guard. People always want to take advantage of weak or soft ones.’

I nodded in agreement. ‘Queen, I don’t just want to be your boss or colleague. I want to be your friend. Do you accept my offer?’ I grinned. ‘Sure. It’s better we’re friends than we’re rivals.’ She nodded in affirmation and grinned too.

‘Good. That will make this our job much easier. This hotel will be gently opened to the public and business after its commissioning on Wednesday. Now, let me tell you how the place will operate.’ I nodded. ‘Okay, Barbara.’

ajsino:
Amazing story, Kween Sheba.

Well done.

Those of us shouting 'more' or 'following' of 'nice story' or commenting and liking, please kindly click on the link the author has shared to get a copy of the book. It's only N300.

We spend N500 for lunch or recharge card. Some of us even spend N1000 or more on a given day.

Let us show maximum support for her.
A bottle of plastic bottle coke is N100 or N150 depending on who or where you buy from. In some places, that same bottle is N200, N300 and so on. And most of us buy this and also buy for friends in one sitting.

The book is sold on Okada Books. Buying it won't take you more than 2 minutes. Just click on the buy button and shortly after making payment, the book will be downloaded into your phone.

If 1000 of us buy that book, the author will be N300,000 richer! And that is how it's supposed to be! What you make happen for others God will make happen for you.

When I checked the Okada Books page and saw that only 57 people had bought I wasn't happy. That is too small, please.

Let us share this page and share the book link and make it go viral online.

Who says up to 10,000 people cannot buy this book before the end of September?? It is possible.

Caveat: I don't know the author.
This is my first time coming across a work by Kween Sheba. I like the story she has shared here.

I believe in the aphorism: what you make happen for others God will make happen for you.

After now, I will buy a copy of the novel on Okada Books.

Please, let us also do the same.

N300 is not too much for the story. It is even too small but then this is Nigeria where reading culture isn't much.

Go get your copy of The Nanny's Daughter, my people!

When you've bought it, find somewhere warm and cozy and get you a bottle of soft drink and start reading.

. Thank you so much. I am grateful for these.

God bless you and your work.

"Want to see them?"

He nodded dumbly.

"Come on." I led him by the hand down the hall to Mom and Daddy's bedroom and we walked into the walk-in closet and I stood on the shelf and reached into the farthest pigeon hole and took out a few camcorder cassettes tightly wrapped in rubber bands. Each had a tiny red X on the label and had the name of the town or resort.

Akin took them and stared at them.

"Is it right to look at them? I'm not sure."

"I think it's all right for us to look at them, Akin."

"OK." he muttered docilely. "I'm not sure we even have the camera anymore for these old ones."

"I don't know. I played this one, which fits the new camera they got last Christmas."

"Yeah," he muttered.

He went down stairs to rummage for old cameras. He soon came back carrying a couple of huge old clunky looking cameras and a handful of cords.

We went into the family room and pulled the hassock up to the TV. He attached the cords to the TV and put a tape in. The scenes were just scenes of the lake and the two couples going boating, seemingly in the natural combination of married couples. Scenes of them doing silly things, laughing having fun. I put my hand on Akin's thigh and squeezed. He nuzzled a kiss against my forehead.

"They just look normal." he said. "I don't see anything wrong!"

I had to agree. The scene switched to the next year or the following one. And then things started to change.

There was a scene that showed Mom and Uncle Mato under the covers of a bed looking startled. Then they were laughing, but holding the covers up close. There was one of Daddy in bed with Auntie, which looked like one of those 'you took our picture now we get to take yours' things. And THEN, on another tape, there was a scene by a lake. A breakfast table on the veranda with Mom and Uncle Mato sitting with coffee, looking at the camera. Mom was bare-breasted and grinning impishly at the cameraman. There was sound on this one and Akin had to go and get another cord. They were just cutting up and telling the photographer, Daddy, to go away."

There were a good number of pictures of all of them in the nude or in various stages of UnCloth, like you would on a vacation. But there were lots showing the brother/sister couples cuddling and finally one with Uncle Mato kissing Mom and squeezing her breast.

"Isn't Mom beautiful?" I whispered.

"Yeah, yes, she really is beautiful!" he said with a lot of emotion.

There was another scene with the two women smiling and hugging and posing on the porch overlooking a large lake. They were both completely nude. Auntie's bush was trimmed to almost nothing but Mom's was quite full and looked lush like the hair on her head.

I rubbed Akin's cock which was semi-hard and lying along his thigh under his shorts. I slipped my hand up the leg of the shorts and felt the head slip into my hand. We shared a deep kiss and he pulled me down on the floor to lie together and look at the lovers on the screen.

I'd like to say we stopped looking at the tapes, but teenagers are not built with a high sense of preserving the privacy of others.

"I enjoy ... I enjoy watching them, Akin..."

He nodded as our tongues continued to play.

"I want some pictures of us, too..." I said tentatively.

"OK ... I will..." he said, looking deep into my eyes. "Whatever..."

I didn't want to push him, so I just lay there enjoying our love play. He found my breast and pushed a nipple above my bra and quietly and gently suckled on it. I moaned and squirmed happily.

By few minutes after seven, I was still waiting for her. I stood up to greet her as soon as she stepped inside the room. 'Good morning, madam,' I greeted. 'Good morning, Queen. You are looking good. I like your outfit. That's the spirit.' I grinned coyly.

'Thank you, ma. Your dressing is super, too.' She seemed gladdened. Indeed, her dressing, though 'iro' and 'buba', looked good on her. 'Lara!' she called out.

Lara instantly answered from her room and soon came up. Madam Rose handed her bag to her and turned to face me.

'Alright, let's go.' I keenly followed them downstairs and outside to the waiting car. Mr. Kasali had washed the jeep and it looked sparkling. Once again, I sat beside madam in the jeep.

In less than fifteen seconds we got to the front of the hotel. In the absence of Lara, I assisted madam with her bag. I could see the hotel edifice clearly now. In its nice-looking and fine view, it looked attractive from the outside. We got inside it and went to the lobby. I could also see the members of staff enthusiastically greeting Madam Rose. The interior was very attractive. Madam Rose must have spent quite a lot to put that building in place. By the lobby was a corridor to the right. We followed it to the last door by the right. Madam took her bag from me, gently opened it and brought a bunch of keys out. She went through the keys and finally decided on the one to open the door. She stepped inside the cool room. Her portrait was on the wall and a small Nigerian flag was on her desk. This was Madam Rose's office. She motioned me to a seat while she went to sit behind the desk. She gingerly opened her handbag again and brought out her cell phone.

Then, she put her eye glasses on, scrolled through the saved numbers on the phone and called a number. 'Hello,' she said into the mouth piece and paused briefly.

'Yeah, good morning. Are you in the office? Come over to my office.'

She cut the call connection and put the phone on her big desk. 'I've just called the Customer Relation Manager that you will be working directly with. Don't forget: you are my eyes and ears in this place. You must always brief me about things that are going on.' 'Yes, ma,' I answered.

The door gently opened and a lady stepped in. 'Good morning, madam,' she greeted. 'Good morning, Barbara. Sit down.'

The silence returned. I could feel the tension come to his body. "What do you mean, Temi..."

"With Uncle Mato..."

His breathing was short and his eyes darted around my face. He looked as if I were speaking another language. "You can't mean ... you can't know that..."

I nodded my head. And I kissed him lightly on the chest. I looked into his eyes. "Yes." I said.

He shook his head as if I were speaking gibberish.

Did you ever notice at Thanksgiving or Christmas when they are together, how often they hold hands/ How they touch each other when telling a story about growing up? How they look so ... in love ... when they are close?"

"Well. We probably look that way too. We're good friends ... we touch."

I nodded my head in agreement. "Almost the same way. But not quite."

"Well, they are older. It doesn't mean ... that ... doesn't mean what you are saying. Does it?"

Daddy too." I said softly.

"WHAT?"

"Daddy and Aunt Charity. They have sex, too. Brother and sister, too, and they have sex together. Actually probably having sex today. Perhaps right now. I looked at my watch. I think it is wonderful, how the two sets of brothers and sisters have managed to remain close and quietly remain sex partners over all these years. Imagine. And we never knew."

"I cannot believe such a thing."

"It's true, sweetheart." I grinned. "My first 'sweetheart, ' too."

"Nahhhhhh!" he started laughing. "You're pulling my leg. I don't think this one is funny, though." But he pulled me close and kissed my lips for a long kiss.

"It explains my dream back when I was tiny. I've never told you, but I once had a dream that I woke up frightened one night and ran into Mom and Dad's room to crawl in between them. But in my dream, it was Uncle Mato ... not Daddy. Mom hugged me quickly into her arms against her breasts and when I looked up again, he was gone and Daddy was coming into the room in his pajamas. We all hugged and kissed and talked about there being nothing to be afraid of. I never thought of it as being scary or anything being wrong. I think that is when they started having two mini-vacations a year to be together without kids."

"My god, you have built a whole fantasy world around this, honey. You have to forget this."

""Want to see?"

He looked bewildered.

"I can show you. When we were gathering all those old video tapes from when we were little? When you got your MAC computer for Christmas and we were going to edit all the old tapes?"

"Yessssss..." he said quietly.

"I found some tapes we were never supposed to find."

I let that sink in. He looked at me, eyes wide.

"And I looked at them a little when you had to go to the store for Mom. They are tapes that Mom and Daddy and Uncle Mato and Aunt Charity took on their vacations. Of them ... having sex..."

Akin leaned back and scratched his head.

"Want to see them?"

He nodded dumbly.

‘You are welcome.’ I gently opened the long wardrobe and put my suitcases inside. Later, I decided, I would arrange my things there. ‘Now, let me take you upstairs,’ Lara said. I nodded in affirmation again. on our way out, she pointed at a bunch of three keys hanging in the key hole.

‘These ones are the keys to your room. I’ll advise that when you are not in, always lock the door.’ Again, I nodded in affirmation. We stepped out of the room. Just as she suggested, I removed the bunch and locked the door. We climbed the tiled bed up to the first bed. Immediately we got to the top, next to the stair case by the right, was a large room that served as the living-room. The black leather seats looked exquisite. Madam Rose was obviously a woman of impeccable. There was a large and impressive flat screen on, and it was showing a food and drinks channel. I watched and was impressed with the sumptuous meals they showcased. Roses Hotel must strive to excel if it must be at par with providing the kind of quality food shown on the television. Madam came to meet me. She chose a sofa not far from my seat. 'Yes, Queen. Let me give you some briefings on your work,’ she stated in earnest. ‘You are actually to be the Deputy Customer Relation Manager. Yes, for now, I've brought a lady that will be the substantive manager. She has working experience in hotel Customer Relation. You will be her deputy and you are to understudy her. The moment you've learnt the ropes, you'll take over. I do believe that you will learn fast.' I nodded in affirmation. 'Any time you want to relax, you can come up here. Meanwhile, I will tell Lara to get us something for dinner.' She stood up and went downstairs. I sat back comfortably on my seat. Then, I remembered I had not called mummy to let her know that I had safely arrived Lagos. Promptly, I brought out my phone and called her. I promptly woke up early the following morning, took my bath and dressed up for work.

The black skirt, white shirt and black jacket I wore fitted me well, certainly and undoubtedly. I was to go to the living-room upstairs and wait for Madam Rose. By few minutes after seven, I was still waiting for her. I stood up to greet her as soon as she stepped inside the room.


Lady of the Park:

Roses Hotel again. She had gone to resume as P.A to Steve Renoya, the CEO of RenOil Oil and Gas. I wished her the best. I had no qualms that I declined taking up the appointment. My earnings in Roses were not bad and if I planned well with my income, I would continue to live comfortably. She called me about mid-day. ‘Hello, baby girl.’ ‘Hello, Barbara. How’re you?’ ‘Cool. I’ve started the work as P.A to De Gov’nor.’ ‘Yeah. How’s the work?’ ‘Cool. I’m sure I’m going to enjoy it.’ She sounded excited and, again, I wished her the best. That evening, De Gov’nor called me. ‘Let’s meet in that hotel suite,’ he said. ‘Okay,’ I answered. ‘But I may come a bit late. Now that Barbara has left, I have more work to do.’ He was silent for some seconds. ‘Like what time will you be leaving the place?’ he asked. ‘Maybe by nine in the evening,’ I replied. Again he was silent briefly. ‘I’ll send a driver to come and pick you,’ he said. ‘His name is Patrick. That will save you the stress of coming here late in the night.’ ‘Oh, you are such a darling,’ I said. Few minutes to nine, the reception lady called to inform me that a man by the name Patrick was waiting to see me. ‘Let him wait,’ I said. I tidied up some things and got ready. The ride to Ikoyi was smooth. I sat at the rear right seat of the Prado jeep. I must say I was impressed by the presidential treatment De Gov’nor was giving me. I honestly wished more of such would come. It was few minutes past ten when I stepped inside De Gov’nor’s suite. From the way he grinned expansively, he was glad to see me. ‘What will you like to eat, dear?’ he asked. I had eaten about seven p.m., so I wasn’t hungry. ‘I’m okay. I ate just some hours ago.’ ‘What about chicken? Will you like to take just fried chicken?’ Gosh, this man was trying to be nice. I grinned. I did not really want anything, but maybe taking some chicken was not a bad idea. ‘Okay,’ I said, the smile still on my face. She placed me on his laps. ‘How’s my friend doing at work?’ I asked. ‘Not bad, so far. But I wish you were my P.A.’ Wonderful, I thought. I must have got a wonderful aura. ‘Barbara is good,’ I pointed out. ‘She’s hard-working and dedicated.’ He grunted. I wondered why he was particular about me being his P.A. There was a soft rapping on the door. I went to open it. The room service had come with his order. The food was brought in a large tray. De Gov’nor asked that the tray be put on he center, glass table and tipped the guy. ‘Thank you, sir,’ the beneficiary said and left. We ate in silence. I had to force myself to have the appetite and to munch the chicken. After the meal, he allowed some minutes of rest before the passionate action began. In what was becoming a normal trend, he did it only once and collapsed on the bed. The following morning, I promptly woke up at five to start preparing for work. I was dressing up when he gently opened his eyes. ‘Hello, love,’ he greeted.

Barbara called him and he asked her to come for the test and interview the following day by ten in the morning.

‘I’ll go there straight from my house,’ Barbara told me. ‘You will have to cover up for me. Tell madam I went to the bank.’
‘No problem.’

She did as she said. It was almost 1.30 p.m., when she came to work. Thankfully, since I was up and doing, madam did not notice her long absence.

‘How did it go?’ I asked.

She nodded in affirmation. ‘All went well. I did the written and verbal tests and came out in flying colors. He says he will get back to me within twenty hours.’

I looked surprised. ‘Get back to? Why can’t he employ you immediately?’

Barbara grinned wryly. ‘I wonder o.’

The following morning, Barbara got a call from De Gov’nor and gave her the message she had been yearning to hear.

‘He has said I can come around to pick my letter of employment. I’m to start the work next Monday.’

‘Ah, congratulations.’ I hugged her.

Then, it suddenly dawned on me that she would be leaving me at Roses Hotel. ‘Wait a minute, Barbara. Are you really going to leave me alone, here?’

She hugged me again. ‘Don’t you worry, baby. We’ll arrange for how we’ll be meeting. Barbara will never abandon you, Queen darling.’

I was very much comforted by These ones words.

About four p.m., Madam Rose called me to her office.

‘Barbara said she has got another job, and she would be leaving by Sunday,’ she said.

I nodded in affirmation. ‘She told me so.’

She sighed. ‘She has been doing well since we started this Customer Relation,’ she continued. ‘There’s no doubt she’s an asset to us and we’re going to miss her. Well, such is life. There’s no way I could stop a young woman from progressing in life.’

I nodded in but wondered if she would say the same thing if I were to be the one that had given my notice of resigning.

‘You are going to be the acting Customer Relation Manager. If you handle the position well, I will only employ someone to assist you.
Otherwise, I will get another Manager. But, I trust you. I trust that you will do well.’

I beamed in smile. ‘Thank you, ma.’


Later that evening, late in the night, Barbara and I were in my room. As soon as we got inside the place, she was all over me, kissing and caressing. Several minutes later, we snuggled to each other in bed, gladdened that we had satisfied our desire.

‘I can’t leave you,’ she said. ‘The fact that I’m changing job does not mean end to our relationship. We’ve got to be seeing, and you have to be the one to be coming to my house.’

Her house was not far away. With a bike, I could get there within five minutes.

‘That will be no problem,’ I answered.

‘And of course, I’ll be coming here too - once in a while.’

On Monday morning, the reality hit me that Barbara would not be coming to work for Roses Hotel again. She had gone to resume as P.A to
Steve Renoya, the CEO of RenOil Oil and Gas. I wished her the best. I had no qualms that I declined taking up the appointment. My earnings in Roses were not bad and if I planned well with my income, I would continue to live comfortably.

She called me about mid-day. ‘Hello, baby girl.’

FairCritic:
Some women are shameless.

And some guys are even more shameless.

"Let's rest!" he called, and we pulled down a lane to the boat launch area where we could sit and skip rocks on the quiet lake.

"I don't even know what to say." he said.

"Just say "Yes." I said quietly and reached to hold his hand after making sure no one was around. He wouldn't let m hold his hand in public.

"Akin, listen to me. Back when she was a cheerleader, Mary got let one of the football players Bleep her under the bleachers! They were sort of going steady, and he was a senior. He hurt her! He just shoved it in and tore her hymen. There was a lot of blood and he wasn't even nice to her. It was terrible. Just terrible for her. She got infected, too. I know that same thing could happen to me. You know, just get carried away or something. And it wouldn't be someone I loved or who loved me and it would be a terrible memory. And I know that I could be talked into it, you know how I enjoy thinking about it! And since Mary told me, I have been looking things up - you know, Googling stuff! So I really know a lot about it. And I decided that I want my darling brother, who I love, adore and who loves me, to be the one to help me lose my hymen."

We rode back home rather quietly. I could tell that Akin was thinking about what I had said.

It was 3 PM. He slumped into a chair in the family room. "Why don't you ever ask me anything easy?" he groaned. "And don't look at me with tears in your eyes, either. You know I can't stand that! and, also, come here and sit with me, Goofy."

He held his arms open and I sprawled in his arms, lying across his body with my cheek against his chest.

"Temi, sweetheart. I mean ... think what Mom would say."

"She won't know."

"But just think what Mom and Dad would feel if ... we did ... and they found out sometime..."

We sat in silence, me cuddling into the warmth of his body. After a couple minutes, I started again.

"Mom did it..." I said in my smallest voice, buried against his chest.

The silence returned. I could feel the tension come to his body. "What do you mean, Temi..."

"With Uncle Mato..."

His breathing was short and his eyes darted around my face. He looked as if I were speaking another language. "You can't mean ... you can't know that..."

I nodded my head. And I kissed him lightly on the chest. I looked into his eyes. "Yes." I said.

It was better to stay home and have a quiet day.

On Christmas Eve I stopped by my in laws' house and dropped off gifts for them and Jimi and Tinu. I told them I had been invited to a friends this year and wished them Merry Christmas. My mother-in-law walked me out to the car. I knew she wanted to talk to me about something.

“Mike, what’s going on with you lately?" she asked me, “And don’t tell me your just tired.”

“Mom, you know, its just this time of year, " I responded.

“No, its more than that," she replied.

I tried my best to reassure her nothing was wrong but as most mothers can do, I think she saw right through me. I continued to make excuses as I got in my car to leave. Once again, I wished her Merry Christmas and pulled out of the drive.

Christmas morning arrived and felt like any other day. I got up, looked out in the front and saw a few of the neighbor’s children out playing with their new toys. I made some breakfast and settled in front of the television. A few hours passed and my cell phone rang. It was Tinu. I answered the phone.

“Where are you, Mike?" she asked, “We are at Mom’s, she told me your not coming today.”

“No, I have other plans Tinu, "I replied.

“Mike, are you avoiding me?”