Still, life went on. If there was one person who was in the same boat as Olaronke it was Wande and Bonuade. Wande was drowned in his business. Every waking moment was spent working on something new. He hardly had time to think of his home. It was just as if he was transported back to his early adult life. Ibadan as he had envisaged was the right place for his regional office. But he could not spent all his time there. His businesses had grown and he couldn’t split himself into halves to be at different places.
He appointed few of his trusted employees and placed them in his branches. There was only one person he thought was best to head his regional office. It was Grace. Grace was smart and intelligent. It was that attribute that endeared her to him. Their relationship had lasted a little over two months until he found out she was clingy. That was her only defect. He wished she had applied her intelligence into their relationship and saw it for what it was. For all that, he needed her. He called her on his phone.
“Hi” she said
“I want to see you” He said and described where he was.
Grace was excited to received his call. The fact that Wande was married mattered not at all—-most men of thirty were. And she was thirty two herself, her petite stature and pretty young face had hidden all that. She easily lied to men that came her way she was twenty eight. Only now they hardly come and the few that did were married. Her aunt had advised her to marry any man that came her way. Married or divorced. She wanted Wande for herself, he was the best among her past lovers. Oh, he did all the correct things—–gave her expensive jewelry, sent her flowers. But there were no sentimental notes attached to any of his gifts. Only his name Babawande Williams. But she had discovered he could not be pinned down easily. If she had known he was serious about getting married to that harpy, she would have trapped him with pregnancy. Now, was never too late. It was obvious he and his wife had fallen apart. Why would he be calling her if not that. She wore her sandal quickly and applied make up to her face. Blowing a big kiss to the mirror, she picked up her purse ready to leave.
Wande leaned back in his chair, long legs stretched before him with a hard expression on his face. Grace was taking too long. He hated to be idle for a second because his wife always found a way to crept into his mind. He had kept a tab on her and each day, he received notes on her goings and comings. What in the hell was she up to at the moment? He had been patient all along—-to give her a chance to make up her mind and come clean with her devious act. But she was stubborn always hissing like a snake whenever he was around.
Her recent pictures that was sent to him showed no pregnancy bump. She must have terminated the pregnancy. That was what she meant when she said the gynaecologist said she could always get pregnant. It was horrible to think her father supported her act. Why was it that she was the one woman who was capable of making him care? Was it because she was a sister to his best friend? Why was he missing her? He hated the knowledge. He shouldn’t miss a woman who had deceived him, but he had. He woke in the night, reaching for her but she was not there. He had dreamt about their kiss, her sweet mouth
His phone rang disturbing his thoughts. He answered it. It was his friend Kunle.
“I told you, she visited Glorious night those years” his excited voice rang out. Women excite him
“Who?” Wande asked
“Aina, your wife’s best friend” he replied.
There was a knowing silence. If Aina had been at those parties, his wife had been there too. He needed to confirm his fears
“So she said Adunni was with her” Wande said
“No, not exactly but they went everywhere together” his friend replied
“I hope you didn’t tell her who owned the hotel” he growled
“No I do….”
Wande ended the call. The last “No” had sufficed. His wife visited Glorious night, where the women slept with at least two men in a night. How had they not recognized her? Or did she saw her brother one of those nights and decided never to attend again.
“Hello” Grace greeted kissing him on his cheek
He needed to set her right. Grace was dramatic and he would not want to encourage her affections for him the second time. So he brought out his handkerchief and wiped out her lips from his face. He saw her lips pouted in anger
“Grace, I called you here to discuss business” he informed her
“Wait, let me guess. You want us to be back together because you realized your wife is harpy like I warned you she was. So you want me to marry you and have your baby while I won’t interfere in your marriage with her” Grace said clapping gleefully while Wande rolled his eyes heavenward. Why was she acting like a dunce? Did she really believed that unintelligible story she just told?
“You should act romantic movies, instead of just watching them. Or better still write a romantic novel”
Grace gurgled with laughter. “Anything is possible I think, especially with you being the romantic man in my….” Grace was stopped from launching into another tirade of meaningless words by Wande.
“Now listen” he said and explained every details of what he wanted them to achieve together
“Also, I think its about time my businesses take a social media approach. I have been shying away from it all these years. But the truth is, its catching up on me. I was reading a newspaper last week, and I saw my name pictures in the young entrepreneur list. I want us to take the media on together” he completed.
**
Two weeks later, Bolarinwa was in his office going through the newspapers before him. A frown marred his handsome features. His friend was in the arm of another woman he recognized as Grace. Had he rekindled their relationship? How could he disrespect his wife that way.
He had stayed out of his marriage like Wande suggested believing he was capable of holding his home together.
Should he call him? No, maybe it meant nothing. He thought to himself. He decided to check the net if there was video of the interview he could watch. He found it and clicked on play.
Reporters mingled with distinguished guests at the ceremony of the opening of his Regional office. Grace eyes sparked as she was introduced as the manager of the office. She was dressed in a yellow backless gown with a black shoe to matched. Her weavon was long and sparkling, it reached her waist. She looked like a run away model than a businesses head.
The reporters approached her
“Miss Grace, we heard you graduated with a first class at university of port Harcourt and has been behind most successful entrepreneur s we know today albeit anonymously”
“Yes that’s very correct. I have worked with notable business men and women just mention any of their names, I still do”
They pounced on that little information
“Forgive the question Miss Grace, You’ve been seen everywhere with Engineer Williams, are you two an item?”
“Why don’t you ask him?” her lips curved into a smile and she said again “an item in a sort of way, I work for him and he enjoys every bit of it” her voice dripped of innuendo
Another reporter shyly asked her “We heard he is married?”
“Not very married is he?” She said this laughing, and dismissed them all gracefully.
“Not very married? What the hell does that mean” Bolarinwa said exasperated.
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Bonuade was grateful for the large sum of money Oluwaniyi sent to her monthly. It helped to established her freedom
It had been more than enough for a monthly salary—–that was his reply when she asked him what the money was meant for. She had cried profusely pleading with him to stop sending her money she believed was her divorce settlement. But he didn’t grant her wish nor did he reassured her he would not divorce her.
He had been solicitous of her needs yet he was distant. She hadn’t seen him for weeks. It had been terrible for her in the beginning, being the only one in the big house. No one to talk to. And she couldn’t tell her sister the state of her marriage. She had warned her not to marry a man who did not share her feelings. She didn’t listen, she wished she had.
Her loneliness hardened her will. It became hard going through each day in sadness. So, she drew herself up and mentally began to prepare for the future that awaits her. Her pregnancy was four months old. By November, she would be having her baby and also be divorced at a young age of twenty three. The divorce could happen in December, probably as an end of the year gift from her husband. It dependd on how he wanted it
She wished she could talk to someone but she was scared she would blurt out Aina’s part. She kept mute and helped herself by visiting bookstores. She bought books on divorce. After reading “Wild”, ” Codependent No More” and “How to Sleep Alone in a King sized bed” she was deeply prepared for the journey ahead of her. She gained her self confidence back by reminding herself each day that everyone makes mistakes, the wise one lives with theirs.
She was tired of receiving credit alert from her husband monthly. She wanted to earn her own money. Being a housewife was not a job; it was silly of her to agree to be one. She went in search of a new properties she could rent. She found one. It had three rooms that suited her purpose. She imported pharmaceutical drugs and set up a pharmacy store and converted the two other rooms to an office and bedroom. After a week, she moved out of her husband’s house to her one room. Whenever he decided to come, he was welcome to Hi piece of furnitures, she was not one of them.
Her store blossomed, she employed two other pharmacist technicians to assist her. She was pregnant and do not want to stress herself. Each visits to the gynaecologist dampened her mood. She wished she had her husband there with her, watching the tiny life they created together. She sent the ultrasound pictures to her husband on WhatsApp. He was excited over it. He kept calling asking after her and their baby. His call had excited her at first but the truth was nothing had changed. He would divorced her hence she stopped being excited over his calls.
Karma was a word she was casually aware of until the moment it caught up with her. She had ruined someone else relationship and now she was paying for it with a failed marriage.
Bonuade searched for her accomplice Aina on Facebook. Something has to be wrong in her life too, karma could not have forgotten her. What she saw on her page was a titillating news. Aina was engaged to one Doctor. She wished she could warn Adunni about her so called best friend. It was cleared to her now that Adunni knew nothing about those pictures and the abortion tale. It was all Aina’s doing. Buttelling Adunni who lead to her own death. She had to keep quite and prayed God protect them all from her. A thought occurred to her; What if Aina comes back and threatened her with God knows what? Or force her to commit another evil with her?
She had to retaliate. She could become Karma and ruined Aina’s life like she ruined hers. It would not be difficult to achieve. Someone as wicked as Aina would definitely had her failings. That was what she would used against her. She thought of someone she could trust, someone who would not questioned her motives. It was Francis. He was a good friend of their family and a detector too.
She called him on phone and sent him details of Aina and two weeks after. Her email brimmed with different files on her. She saw some short video clips capable of destroying Aina’s life. She kept them for future purpose. Armed with demeaning pictures of her. She thought on the best way to revenge. Why not pay in her own coin?
She sent the pictures to her fiance, a few days afterwards, she sent it to his relatives. Aina was a little witch but Bonuade was certain her spell cannot worked on everyone. If it worked on her Stevie, it would not work on his family members.
***********************
Lawyer Oluwaniyi sat in his office looking forlorn. It had been days since his wife called him. She seemed resigned to her fate. The past few weeks she kept calling, reminding him she loved him and begging him not to divorce her. He had intentionally sent her money to remind her she was just like every scheming females that were after him in the past for his money or something else. He had escaped them all but still found himself married to one. She claimed she loved him. He believed her and he still did.
What was she up to? He checked her Facebook page everyday, his wife was back with her quotes but this time, it was about independence and he wondered of they were in October already.
She had gone back to her normal life; partying. Pictures of her in headtie cropped up almost every weekend. Was she truly happy without him in her life or was it just appearance
Despite his anger at her deceit, he still wanted her as his wife. She burned in his veins like an addiction he was not equipped to fight. What she did was not entirely wrong. It turned out Adunni was seeing another man. How did she got married in just two days? She had kept another potential fiance in those three years they dated.
He would not divorce his wife. She was pregnant with his child and that must take precedence above all else. Including his feeling. They had to stay married for their child. Divorce would taint his own image. He wouldn’t do it. He would be a good father present in every phase of his child life.
What about being a husband? The prospect was appealing especially having her back in to warm his bed. He missed her. It had been two months.
His office door opened and the way of deja vu spread over him. Someone that belonged to the past was here.
“Aina” he said
“Life and direct” she chuckled
She was dressed in a tight jean and cropped top. The last time she came to his office, he had thrown her out because she tried to seduced him. He was in a relationship with her best friend then.
“How is life treating you?” She asked bending over his table. Her cleavage almost in his face.
“Fine, as you can see” he replied
‘”Hmm, it turned out your virgin wife to be was sleeping with another man while you lived like a monk rejecting my advances. You thought she was better than i. She’s only a pretender while I am true to my feelings ” she said
“Really?” he said leaving his seat to sat on another lone chair
“”How is Bonuade?” She asked
“Fine” was his reply
“Fine is a vain answer. If it is really fine, why is she not in Lagos with you?”
“Aina, just go straight to the point. I know you have something to gloat about” he said annoyed with her game
“Patient, Oluwaniyi, just chill. I thought after rejecting me for seven months that when you finally get married it would be to a perfect woman. A woman without flaw. Bonuade your wife was no, she is seeing one of your colleague. Harry? Do you know him. He’s based in Abuja” she said gleefully
It was true Bonuade had a whirlwind affair with the Lawyer. It was after Oluwaniyi was engaged and Bonuade decided to move on. Aina had encouraged her to quit the relationship and remained hopeful Oluwaniyi would be hers. .
Oluwaniyi mulled over her words. His wife was exactly not an innocent. She had not mentioned a thing about her love life. Just that “she did herself” that was the phrase she used. He was very sure she had nothing sexual with Harry. Even if she had, it was all in the past. He had learnt from his previous relationship that patient was key. He would wait and asked his wife about it.
He brought out his phone and text his security team. In few minutes, his office was besieged by securitis, Aina was treated like a criminal. Her picture was snapped. And she was dragged even though she pleaded she would walked on her own out of the office premises. Her passport was printed and placed in the building
…to be continued
