Thrills of a Lagos Babe (Episode 13)

Pix: Unsplash

I turned to face him the moment the children were out of sight. 'What was that?'

He smiled. 'It's our way of welcoming you to the house.'

I grinned. I suspected there was more to this, but I would play along.

'Do you want anything for dinner?' he asked.

I shook my head. 'Oh, no, I've eaten.'

'Let me take you to my bedroom, then.'

I picked up my handbag and followed him to the bedroom. It was a very large and comfortable room with king-size bed. He was already in pajamas, so I was the one to change clothes.

He eyed me with interest as I wore my skimpy and sexy night wear.

'I know you must have missed me terribly and you're gearing for the real action,' I teased him.

'I missed you,' he agreed, ‘but I’m not angling for any action.'

'Really?' I wriggled my waist and seductively shook my breasts. 'Are you sure about that?'

'I'm sure,' he asserted. 'I didn't bring you for sex, Simi.'

I stopped to stare at him. 'Really? So, what did you bring me for?'

He looked solemnly at me. 'Simi, I have seen in you great qualities. You are indeed an embodiment of beauty and brain. Will you marry me?'

I froze. There would have been complete silence for several seconds, except for the noise from the split air-conditioning system.

I finally recovered from the shock. 'No, no, no, Mola. Tell me this is a joke.'

He chuckled. 'No, it's not. I really want to marry you, Simi.'

'No, you can't be serious. You're joking.'

'I'm forty-four years old, my dear. Why would I be joking on this kind of thing?'

I looked away from him, not knowing what else to say.

He was staring at me. 'I know you'll be a good companion and wife. I have no doubt about that.'

I still wanted to put on an air of indifference, but my mind cautioned me. Come on, don't be such a wet blanket, my mind said. No man had ever expressed so much zeal about future companionship like this before, not even Daniel with all his gra gra.

I suddenly smiled. 'First and foremost, let me appreciate you for deeming me worthy of being a life partner. But this is a very serious matter. It's a life-long thing. Give me some time to think over it.'

He smiled. 'I understand you perfectly and completely agree with you.'

'Alright, let's go to bed, darling. I've got to wake up early tomorrow morning.'

I climbed on the bed and snuggled up to him. He used his right hand to wrap my shoulders and to hold me so lovingly. I rubbed his chest and was surprised he made no further move.

'Well, aren't you going to swing into action?' I asked him.

A big smile played on his face. 'I'm not going to touch you until I hear your answer.'

That answer was another big surprise. 'Really? Are you sure about that?'

He smiled kindly. 'Of course. Right now, I'm happy to have you in my arms. I'm happy to have your companionship.'

I grinned to myself. It was good to hear that. It was good to know that the essence of my coming was just to keep him company.

We soon slept off. I woke up on time to start preparing for work. He was still lazing on the bed when I was through with my dressing. I tapped him on the shoulder.

'Good morning, darling.'

'Good morning, Nike,' he answered.

I was instantly on the offensive.

'Who's Nike?'

He opened his eyes wide and stared at me. 'What?'

'You called me Nike some seconds ago. Who's she to you?'

'I did? Sorry about that. That was the name of my deceased wife.'

I stared at him briefly, the anger oozing out of me.

He sat up on the bed.

My dressing was complete and I was set to go.

‘Sorry, you have to go by cab,’ he said. ‘I didn’t remember to tell the driver to come around early.’

I grinned. ‘Oh, that’s okay.’

He opened his wardrobe and brought a wallet out. The wallet was already unzipped and I could see wads of currency notes inside. He placed it on the stool by the bedside.

‘Take the amount that you need,’ he said, leaving the bedroom for the attached toilet.

That was like being given a blank cheque. Ah, Mola was tempting me o. But then, I decided I would not be greedy, so I removed only five thousand naira from the lot. He soon came back from the toilet.  He accompanied me downstairs.

'Moyo!' he called out.

'Sir!' an answer came from one of the rooms.

The girl that opened the main door for me yesterday soon came out.

'Good morning, sir.'

'Good morning, Moyo. You're to accompany aunty to the bus stop where she could take a cab.'

'Yes, sir.'

He waved bye to me. The bus stop was just a few minutes' walk from his residence. I thanked Moyo as I flagged down a cab and mentioned where I was going. We briefly haggled over how much to pay and finally agreed on something reasonable. Right there in the cab, I thought over Mola's marriage proposition. According to him, he was forty-four. That meant there was seventeen years' difference between us. Seventeen years!

I wondered if I should say yes to him. I knew comfort was guaranteed, but marriage was more than that. I would prefer a younger, much younger, man.

By eight, I had entered my office and was settling down. His call came.

'Hello, darling, hope you got there safely.'

'Yes, I did. Thanks for your concern.'

'You will always be my concern now.'

I grinned. 'Thanks,' I repeated.'

Later that evening, Tina was around. She had said I should be visiting her in her place, but because of my busy schedule, I could not be going there.

'Tina, dear, how're you?' I greeted.

She smiled. 'I feel good. You know what, sweetie? You're looking more and more gorgeous everyday.'

'Thank you. You are looking good too.'

I could not even wait till we got to my room before I started giving her the latest gist.

'Mola has proposed marriage to me,' I said.

Tina was wide-eyed in surprise. 'Really?'

'Yes, he told me last night.'

Tina became exuberant. 'Well, congratulations! When is the wedding?'

'Hey, not so fast,' I cautioned. 'I'm yet to say yes to him.'

Again, she looked surprised. 'What are you waiting for? Tell him yes.'

'But he's about seventeen years older,' I pointed out.

'So what? Are men not supposed to be older than their wives?'

'But, I'm yet to learn so much about him. How could I be sure that we're compatible and we're made for each other?'

'Of course, you're made for each other. You've been going out for several weeks together, now. If you were not compatible, the relationship would have ended long before now.'

She studied my face briefly. 'Wait a minute, don't tell me you're waiting for that Ibadan guy to make a come-back.'

Daniel? No way. He was not even on my mind. I chuckled.

'Listen,' Tina said. 'A lady doesn't need to marry who she loves. She should marry the guy who loves her. That is the important thing: the guy who loves her and can take good care of her.'

I nodded. She had a point there.

'But what if he's a flirt who jumps from one woman to another?' I asked.

'You're not to think so negatively. Believe he is the one and all is well.'

Later in my room, we discussed more about men.

'You've not told me who you want to settle down with and marry,' I said.

She regarded me briefly and smiled.

'About three men are on my waiting list, right now, I've ' not told any of them yes because they don't seem to have enough financial muscle to satisfy my needs. As soon as I get somebody with Mola's kind of resources, my resounding answer will be yes.'

I sighed. What else could I say?

Tina slept over and only left early the following morning for her place of work. About mid-day, Mola called to inform me again that the driver would be coming to pick me.

But, it was just yesterday that I went to his house. It was obvious he wanted to be making my coming very regular. No problem. I was there about the time I got there during my first visit to the house. He hugged me like he had not seen me for weeks.

'Hello, baby. Very good to see you.'

'Hello, darling,' I answered.

He kissed me softly on the lips.

'What will you have for dinner?' he asked.

I grinned and shook my head. 'Sorry, nothing.'

'Okay, let's go upstairs then.' He held me by the hand led me to the staircase and to his room upstairs. When we got there, he brought out a big Ghana-must-go bag from his wardrobe and opened it. It was filled with different lace, guinea brocade and ankara fabrics - all in bundles.

'When we marry,' he said. 'You'll not be wearing only English wears alone. You'll also be wearing things like these. They're for you.'

'Oh, how magnanimous of you,' I gushed and went on to give him a bear hug.

'Are you ready to give me your answer now?' he asked some minutes later.

I smiled. He had put me in a tight corner, hadn't he?

'Okay,' I said. 'My answer is yes.'

'That's my lady,' he enthused, hugged me and briefly held my waist to lift me up. He genuinely looked pleased with my answer.

'Now, let me undress my love and make passionate love to her.'

I obliged him all he wanted. The following day was Saturday. I didn't have to wake up at five in the morning to start preparing for office. We were still in bed till six-thirty. He woke me up with kisses.

'Morning, darling,' I greeted.

'Good morning, sweet heart,' he replied.

I went to the bathroom to have a good bath.

'The driver will take you back,' he said as I was creaming my body. 'And please, don't forget to take your bag of clothes along.'

I smiled. 'Yes, love.' Of course, I would not forget the bag. How could I?

I kissed him good bye. He had to call Manu to carry the bag to the boot of the car. When we got to Berger, I asked Manu not to park in front of the hotel but take the side drive to my residence. He helped in bringing the bag to my room.

I quickly fished out a thousand naira note from my purse.

'Here, have this.'

'Ah, thank you, madam,' he answered and drove off. I had not time yet to examine the clothes one after the other. I would do that another time. Quickly, I changed my dress and locked my room. Mola's car gift, now my car, remained at the spot where I had parked it in the residential compound. I was not in a hurry to be cruising in it. I was not always crazy about cars. Even in Ibadan, mummy said I should be using one of the three cars left behind by daddy. Specifically,

she said I should take the Honda Accord. Believe me, Deola used that car more than I did.

I sighed and went to the hotel. It was another busy weekend. Tina did not come around, as she had said she would be with one of her lovers. We however spoke at length on the telephone.

'Hey, take it easy o,' I said.

'I can take care of myself,' she answered. I went on to tell her I had agreed to Mola's proposition.

'Ah, that's good,' she replied. 'And in case you get a better proposition, then you go for the better option.'

'What? I can't do that!'

She laughed over the line. 'Why not? Make the best from men, Simi, dear. That's what a beautiful lady like you should do.'

I shook my head. 'Except Mola changes his mind, I can't just accept marriage proposition from any other man again.'

'Na him be say Mola's love don dey shark you. Na wa o.'

'I'll like to be faithful to a cause,' I explained.

There was another short laugh from her. 'Okay o, madam faithfulness. Congrats, all the same. Mola is a big catch.'

Download the full e-book from:  https://publish.okadabooks.com/search?term=thrills