Chapter 23: Chapter 23

Chapter Twenty three

*****

Recap:Laila and I visited our parents to sort out the issue at hand only to figure out it was a trap, Dad's on Yemi's side and wants my sister to get back with him and even wants them to stay over the night in the guest room. Laila and I were in the middle of our escape before hearing a knock on her bedroom door.

*****

"Lola!" Laila whisper yelled from outside, gesturing wildly with her hands that we had to leave immediately.

"Hold on" I mouthed just as I walked stealthily towards the door and opened it. I heaved a sigh when I saw it was Endurance, the maid from earlier.

"Mummy said I should ask you to come down with sister Tolani" She announced in good English, shocking me.

"Oh uhmm, she's using the bathroom right now but we'll be down as soon she's done" I lied.

"Okay ma"

"Just call me Lola" I said with a tight smile, which she returned with a genuine one, then I shut the door. I took quick strides to the window, as I slowly climbed out, holding on to the railing so tightly that my knuckles would have turned white if I was a light skinned person. I crept and crawled with my belly till I hit the ground and broke into a run. My sister was ahead of me, she needed to be out of there before me so I didn't bother about it.I slowed down when I got to the small gate and quietly slipped through it, shutting it carefully, after which, I broke into a run again. We ran through the narrow path, clearing through the small bushes on our path, before sighting Tana's vehicle which wasn't very far away.

She left the engine on, tapping her hands impatiently before glancing our way, she took a double take on us, as she wasn't paying attention earlier. "Hurry" She beckoned as Laila opened the back door and threw herself in along with the small suitcase which surprisingly did not impede her running, not that I would notice as my mind was all over the place.

I ran to the front seat and dunked myself in, just as Tana stepped on the pedal and drove off like an enraged woman. She only slowed down when we got to the estate's main gate, to avoid suspicion and once we were out she zoomed off again.

"That was crazy" I said breathing through my mouth. Laila nodded quickly in response

"And invigorating too" She added.

Tana chose that point to express her surprise. "Lola when did you get this wild??" She asked turning to me briefly and facing the road again. I shrugged.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures I suppose" We all laughed, momentarily forgetting the dreadful situation at hand.

*****

"We can't continue staying at your place, with the situation at hand" Laila said while we were at Tana's office, we all knew going over to her house would be foolish as that would be the first place they would search. Her office would be the next target but we had bought ourselves some time.

"So where do you guys want to stay, you know my parents aren't going to be of any help, they'd sell you out before you know it" Tana said and I nodded in agreement. We sat in silence, everyone occupied with their thoughts.

"What about Tunji?" Laila asked out of the blue. That was a good idea, but I saw Tana go rigid at the mention of his name.

"Why? Why Tunji?" She asked in a tone I couldn't decipher.

"Why not him? He's Lola's boyfriend after all" Laila blurted out and I glared at her.

"He's not..." I started to retort but she interjected.

"Yeah yeah,so you say" Laila rolled her eyes in sarcasm. How would I explain to these girls that Tunji's relationship with me was just platonic? I groaned.

"I'll call him right away, just to fill him in on the details, I hope he agrees" I pouted in worry.

"Don't be such a baby, just try first before we start thinking of something else" She urged and I called him immediately.

"Hey cupcake" He answered on the second ring, he sounded distracted.

"Hi, how are you?" I asked before stating the reason for my call. I hated having to ask for help in such a matter.

"I'm fine, how are you?"

"I'm good..." I drawled, sounding a bit weird.

" So... Uhm... I kinda need your help" I said, still a bit unsure of how to put it to him.

"Okay... What is it? Are you okay?" He asked in concern.

So sweet!

"How would you like to house two young ladies for a few days?" I said with a sweet voice, one I knew would be hard to resist.

"Whoa, wait what?"

"Okay it's like this, Laila ran off from her hubby's place for some reasons I'll tell you later on, and we went over to our parents to try and sort it out but it was a trap, so we kinda..." I hesitated at this point, I still couldn't believe I did what I did.

"Uhm jumped over the balcony from Laila's room and escaped through the back gate" Tunji laughed at this point, how could he find that amusing? I shook my head and continued.

"So... We know they'll come searching for us at Tana's, we have you as our last hope, please can we stay over at your place, just for a while, till everything calms down? " I ended in my sweet tone.

"Of course, anything for you, but we still have to be careful, I'll be a suspect because I'm your boyfriend"  He emphasized on the last part. I rolled my eyes in response, like he could see me.

"When we get to that bridge we'll cross it" I stated in finality.

"I'll be with you in an hour"  He said ending the call before I could reply. I relayed the information to the girls and Laila heaved a sigh of relief, Tana looked indifferent. I had decided to not involve myself in whatever issue she had with Tunji, it wasn't my business in the first place, but it was exhausting trying to fix their back and forth relationship. They were too discreet about whatever was going on between them so I couldn't tell if they were dating or not.

******

About an hour later...

A knock on the door interrupted our usual bickering, as I froze in place along with the others.

"Who is it?" Tana asked in a professional tone, she wasn't expecting any client at that time of the day. That, I knew because I stumbled on her work schedule for the day while searching for games on her tablet. Games are one of the things I use to ease my nerves whenever they're all over the place, my sister on the other hand would just keep twisting her hair around her index finger like a school girl who was being scolded for a wrong doing.

"It's Tunji" He replied in monotone. "Come on in" She said, just as he turned the silver door knob and stepped into the room, his cologne filled my nostrils, his presence exerting an overwhelming influence in the room. Working attire always gave him a different vibe, a domineering aura...

How is he just Twenty eight?

Anyways... Enough of gushing about him. The tension in the room was thick, another stare down between the egocentric duo, I stifled a groan in irritation, but I had to speak up.

"Erm erm, whenever you two are done please notify us, we have got to get going you know" I said sardonically.

"Yeah..." He tore his gaze from Tana, clearing his throat in the process. He smiled at Laila, as a form of greeting and she did the same in response. But much to my surprise, he came over to me and gave me a hug, that lasted longer than usual. My hands went limp on my sides as I was stunned, but I hugged him back eventually. Laila whistled and that was what snapped me out of my reverie. A nervous chuckle eluded my lips as I gave him a smile which he returned giddily.

"Let's go?" He asked.

"Yup let's get moving" I said as I made to carry the suitcase but he beat me to it. "Such a gentleman" I teased and he guffawed.

He walked out with my hand in his. That was very new but I made light of it. Laila trailed behind us along with Tana who walked us to the parking lot. I saw Laila smirking, I could only imagine the teasing I would get at the end of the day.

"I'll bring your stuff over to his place after work" Tana said as I was putting my seat belt on. I nodded in response.

"Thank you" I reached out and held her hand lovingly, passing as much emotions as I could via that touch. She smiled in understanding and reciprocated my touch. Tunji drove off soon after, we stayed in silence, even when there were thousands of things running through my mind, I could not speak up. That uneasy feeling had still not dissipated.

*****

His condo, looked really cozy, typical bachelor pad, only that his fridge wasn't filled with junk as I had expected. He actually cooked! Tunji cooks!! It came as a shocker, he didn't seem like the type who would do such but he did anyways.

It was a three bedroom flat, with bathrooms in each of them. Laila and I shared one. The place was quite spacious for someone who lived alone but he did mention that he had friends over from time to time.

"Alright..." I twirled round for her to see. "How do I look?" I asked eagerly

"Like a boss" Laila smirked while I giggled.

I was attending Mrs Nnadi's baby shower, I delivered the dresses few days earlier, she loved them and insisted that I attend the shower, even when I tried to decline. I decided to utilize the opportunity, by that I mean possibly meeting future clients.

I wore a long sleeved Ankara jumpsuit with a pair of red D'orsays. I let my braids down, donning small red earrings, and a small locket around my neck. I flung my red cross bag on my left shoulder as I sashayed out of the house 'like a boss' as Laila put it.

I ordered an Uber for the trip, I couldn't risk getting under the afternoon sun, coupled with the usual traffic. Tunji wasn't one to attend such events, he would've taken me, if otherwise. He felt baby showers were too cheesy for him.

Who says that?

Anyhow, I was close to the mansion which Mrs Nnadi occupied with her family, I hadn't met her husband yet, hopefully I'd get to see him later.

Stepping out of the vehicle, I took a cursory glance around the vicinity before settling my gaze on the beautiful house in front of me, It had a dark shade of grey painted on the outside with white around the edges and pillars, marble designs ornamented designated spots in front and on the sides. I headed for the small gate, it was open unlike the first time I came when the security guard had to call Mrs Nnadi to ask for permission before I could enter. The new development was definitely because of the event going on inside. I was fashionably late, as by the time I arrived cars had already flocked both sides of the street. I heard some faint music coming from the backside as I stepped in, I guessed they weren't hosting the party inside their house.

The decorations left me awed, they were so cute, balloons were all over the place and lots of animations. It looked more like a kid's birthday party than a shower. But there was a cultural twist to it, everyone present was dressed in native attire, it was written on the invitation card anyways. There was a crowd but it wasn't too much, the function still looked intimate.

I saw people exchanging pleasantries, with hugs, pecks and smiles, drink in hand,laughing to one anecdote or the other. I searched for the celebrants, I had to give my present before settling down to enjoy the function.

Finally, I saw her smiling whilst talking to one of her guests. Donning her attire sassily , and I gleamed with pride, it looked so good on her, accentuating her baby bump. Her hair was styled back in cornrows, typical of pregnant women,  the only difference with hers was that it was made with artificial attachments which made it lengthier and it trailed down her back. She had a natural makeup look with very little jewelry but she looked beautiful all the same.

I don't know how my feet landed me in front of her but there I was anyway and her eyes lit up with excitement when she saw me.

"Oh Lola dear" She tried to hug me but her bump was in the way as expected. We laughed after the very awkward hug, then I congratulated her.

"Thank you" She said with a sweet smile.

"Yeah, I got this for the baby" I said handing over my gift box to her.

"Awww how nice of you"she cooed

I couldn't help the smile that graced my features at that point. I almost wished for my own baby the moment I saw the stockings and onesies at the mall, few days earlier.

Almost...

"I'm so loving the dresses by the way, you need to see my daughter in fact. People have been asking how they can connect with you" She gushed and my ears perked up at the last statement.

"Oh wow" I was tongue tied, too happy to say anything.

"Oh don't worry, I gave them your Instagram handle. Plus I'd definitely give you a shoutout" She grinned and I chuckled before nodding.

"Thank you very much, I'd like that. I'd leave you to attend to other guests now" I said, as if on cue someone called out to her and she squealed in excitement. I excused myself as they got engrossed in their conversation.

I decided to have a look around the place, the backyard was quite spacious with a well mowed lawn that I yearned to dig my bare feet into. Something or rather someone caught my eye as I walked aimlessly with a glass of wine in hand. It was David speaking to a man who looked like the older version of him, the man looked very much like an older brother to him and was wearing the same Ankara outfit with Mrs Nnadi, that was her husband alright. Just then David looked up and caught my gaze, we engaged in an eye lock for a few seconds before I looked away, embarrassed that he caught me staring.

I watched him excuse himself and walk over to me with a friendly grin gracing his handsome face.

"Hello there" He said flirtatiously, I almost laughed at his pathetic attempt.

"Hey what's up?" I said casually and he frowned a little.

"You just had to ruin the vibe" He pinched the bridge of his nose in mock frustration. I looked at him in confusion. What was he going on about?

"That was the part where you had to give a sexy reply or even a coy smile, silly" He said with a 'duh' tone and rolled his eyes. I laughed at how ridiculous he sounded.

"You're not serious" I shook my head with a smile.

"Anyhow, how are you doing?"

"I'm good, how are you?" I asked taking a sip of my drink just after.

"I'm great"

"Nice party..." I commented trying to keep the conversation going.

"Oh yeah it's really cute. Becca can't stop smiling, I hope her face doesn't tear up" He chuckled and I did the same.

"So... That was your older brother, you two look very much alike" I said again.

"Oh" He shook his head and guffawed, leaving me puzzled.

"Sorry" He said clearing his throat after he had recovered. "That's my dad actually"

What???!!!

"You're kidding"  Now it was my turn to laugh but the look on his face was serious.

"Wow" I blurted out. "He looks so... young, almost too young to have a son like you. No offence but how old are you?"

"What is this? A date?" He chuckled, folding his arms across his broad chest. I threw him a glare and he snickered.

"Fine, I'm twenty seven" He shrugged and my mouth fell open. He did not look it at all but that's by the way, how was that man his dad?

"So he's actually your biological father?" I asked, a bit skeptical about the piece of information I had received. He nodded.

"He's the Mr Nnadi?" I asked placing emphasis on 'the' and he nodded again.

"Rebecca's husband?"

"Yes Lola" He answered with amusement dancing in his eyes.

"So she's your stepmother?"

"Yup" He popped the 'p' while saying that. My mouth fell agape once again.

"Better close your mouth before flies enter" He snickered and I blinked rapidly, as if trying to process the info. I really wanted to probe deeper in the matter but it was no business of mine so I kept my lips sealed for the meantime.

In summary, the party went well. Their cake reveal showed she was having twins a girl and a boy, the screams were thunderous. She gave a shoutout to the designer of her outfit and I ended up exchanging contacts with a few people, I could only hope that they'd reach out to me soon enough.

David walked me down to the gate when I was leaving, we talked about random things as we waited for my ride, when it arrived he opened the door for me while I got in after bidding farewell with a side hug. The feel of his touch lingered on my body for longer than it was supposed to, I felt it throughout the ride, even after I got home and took off my outfit.

That was strange.