Always Yours (Lagos Romance Series) (9 page)

I gasped, shaken out of my thoughts. “I wasn’t admiring you” I sputtered, embarrassed. “I was just making sure you were putting everything in the right place”

He gave me a disbelieving nod “As you say.” He winked and walked past me to sit on the couch. “Phew!” he exclaimed. “That was hard work” He gave me a dazzling grin.
“So, woman.
How are you going to reward me?”

“You sound like a cavemen” I scoffed.

“If I were a caveman,” He said with a grin. “I’d have carried you over my shoulder into that room and…” He stopped and shook his head. He gave me an apologetic glance. I know I shouldn’t even go there, his eyes were saying, even in a joke.

He shouldn’t have, but still the image was already firmly planted in my head, he would carry me over his shoulder to my room and throw me on the bed and…. The images filled my head and I fled into the kitchen, to hide my embarrassment. Get a grip Sophie…! I muttered to myself.

I grabbed a can of juice from the fridge and stomped back to the sitting room. “Here’s your reward.” I said huffily before throwing the can at him. He caught it neatly, annoying me even more.

“I’ll watch TV, while you get ready.” He said.

I shrugged, and went grumpily to my room, slamming the door behind me.

As I got ready, I could hear the sounds of the TV through my bedroom door. He was obviously enjoying himself, neither my mood, nor my annoyance had gotten to him, I sighed. What is wrong with you? I asked myself. Why can’t you take a simple joke? Why would just a single statement from Michael have the power to make me so confused, annoyed and desirous?

I picked a simple pale blue gown, not too short, just long enough to skim my knees, and form fitting, but not too tight. I coupled it with a pair of nude sandals and a matching clutch. I did my hair up in a loose chignon with tendrils falling around my face and neck. I applied very light makeup and added just earrings and a watch as my jewellery.

When I was done I inspected the results in my mirror and smiled. It was understated, but sexy. Sexy enough to punish Michael for the suggestive comment he had made earlier, but not too sexy for meeting the family.

His eyes widened when I walked into the living room. I smiled inwardly and said nothing. I felt him watching me as I switched off the lights in the kitchen and the living room. When I was done I walked to him and took the remote from his hands and switched off the TV.

“Are you just going to sit there admiring me?” I asked mischievously. “Or are we going to go to your parent’s party?”

I didn’t wait to see the expression on his face. I savoured my victory as I walked out of the flat, pausing at the door to wait for him so I could lock the flat. Two can play that game Mr Ade-Cole, I thought smugly as we walked down the stairs.

Michael’s parents’ house was in one of those quiet streets nestled deep within
Ikoyi
. It was an old house, early 1980’s I think, built in that boxy style of those days. It was beautiful though, especially at that time of the day when it was brightened by the garden lights as well as the lights blazing from all the windows.

As we drove into the compound, I noticed that there were many cars parked in front of the house at the end of the short driveway.

“I thought you said it was a small soiree” I whispered as I got out of the car.

He shrugged. “It is a small soiree.” He said. “There is no live band, no high table, no
emcee,
it’s just a couple of friends of my parents"

“So what’s the celebration?” I asked. Realizing I didn’t even know why there was a party in the first place. What if it was someone’s birthday, I hadn’t even thought of bringing a gift.

“It’s not a party” Michael stressed the words.
“Per se.
My mum’s best friend moved back to Nigeria after almost thirty years in the states. It’s just a small, informal dinner to welcome her”

“
Okayyyy
” I said, slightly relieved. Funny enough I was nervous, I was as nervous as someone going to meet her boyfriend’s parents for the first time. I couldn’t help it,
even though I wasn’t his girlfriend and had actually met his mother before. As we walked towards the front door, he caught hold of my hand and held unto it. For a moment I allowed myself to think how like a couple we must look, going into his parent’s house together,
holding
hands. But I shrugged it out of my mind, no use thinking such thoughts.

We climbed up two steps to the front porch, which was covered in deep terracotta tiles and edged with pretty flowering shrubs, the front door was closed, but not locked and opened into a spacious reception room, elegantly furnished and well lit, from which a pair of double doors opened into a parlour. There was no one in the reception but through the doors which were slightly ajar, I could hear the chink of glasses and the hum of conversation.

“Michael!” It was Cecilia, his sister. Still as heavily pregnant as the last time I’d seen her. She walked into the reception with smart easy steps to hug her brother. “And Sophie!” she grinned as she noticed me, and gave her brother a teasing smile. “Sweetie, how are you?”

“I’m fine” I replied, Returning her warm smile. I looked up towards the doors at the sound of another voice.

“Michael, I thought you said you were coming right back?” It was Mrs Gladys Ade-Cole, their mother, admonishing Michael before turning to me with a
welcoming smile. She was a tall, slim woman. I knew she was about sixty but she looked about forty or less. She was well kept and elegant, with a natural grace she had passed on to her children.

‘Sophie!” She moved towards me and enveloped me in arms that were slim, yet as motherly as anyone could hope for. “It has been a long time” she continued. She released me and looked at me. “Too long, and you look more beautiful than I remember”

“Thank you ma” I said shyly.

“Nothing to thank me for.”
She smiled warmly. I couldn’t help thinking of the good witch in the Wizard of Oz, that was how cool and kindly she was, and lovely. “You’re the one who’s beautiful” she continued with a shrug and a small laugh at her own joke. She turned to her son. “Michael, what do you think?”

His eyes had been on my face the whole time, but now they widened as he turned to his mother, giving her a look of disbelief, then he turned back towards me. “You look exceptional, Sophie” he said with a smile.

Even though he had given the compliment under duress from his mother, I practically melted at his words.

I don’t think my love struck face escaped his mother’s notice. She turned her smile back in my direction. “We
were just about to eat” she looked archly at her son. “I had almost given up on you coming back.”

Dinner was great, the food was fabulous. There were about sixteen of us, guests and family. The conversation flowed nonstop as we ate. Mrs Ade-Cole had seated me beside her and opposite Michael on the table. She kept up a constant conversation with me whenever she wasn’t busy carrying out her hostess duties. She asked me so many questions, about my family, my work, the magazine. She had this intimate way of talking, like I was the only person in the room. She made me so
comfortable,
I felt I could tell her anything.

“Remind me to show you Michael’s baby pictures before you leave.” she whispered to me as the final plates were cleared.

“What have you and my mother been whispering about?” We were all returning to the parlour and he had come to walk beside me.

“Oh nothing” I said, smiling. Seeing the
dissatisfied
pout on his lips, I decided to tease him a little. “Just how you were so afraid of the dark you used to cry if someone switched off your light.”

“What!” He exclaimed. “That’s not true”

“She said you’d say that”

He laughed. “My mum loves to embarrass me.”

He steered me towards one of the windows facing the garden, away from the general conversation in the room. Mrs
Adegbite
, in whose honour the dinner had been given was regaling everyone with a funny story from her stay in the US, everyone was listening and laughing.

“My parents like you.” Michael said.

I smiled. “I like them too.”

When I had been introduced to Michael’s father, Chief Festus Ade-Cole, he had taken my hand and said that I was proof that his son inherited his good taste. Everybody had burst out laughing but at that moment my thoughts had gone to Folake. Why wasn’t she here?

“Where is Folake?” I asked Michael now, finally giving in to my curiosity.

“Busy” he shrugged. “She said she wouldn’t be able to make it”

“Ah!” Strange relationship, I thought silently. I wondered if I had been a speedy replacement date. But then it wasn’t like anyone needed a date to go to their parents’ house.

“Do you want to see my old room?’ he asked suddenly.

“No funny business?” I asked with a smirk.

He looked hurt. ‘Of course not” then he grinned. “Unless of course, that’s what you want”

I laughed. “Dream on.” I said nonchalantly.

He led me through the house, up the wide stairway to the first floor. There was another living room, an open door into a library and some other closed doors. He opened one of the doors into another smaller living room.

‘I and Cecilia’s parlour” He explained. “When we were growing up she used to bring all her friends in here. I practically had to climb over them to get to my room.”

I laughed. “You can’t have minded having so many girls in close proximity” I said.

“God, I hated them.” He groaned. “They could never stop giggling.”

He opened the door to his room. “Voila!” He said. It was a big room, surprisingly well kept even though he no longer stayed there, but then I thought of my own room at my parents’ house which my mother kept in good shape too and I understood.

The room was filled with knickknacks from his growing up years, as well as some things I remembered from his room back in school.

“Nice room” I said, looking around. “So this is where little you morphed into big you”

He laughed.
“Crazy girl.”
He closed the door and leaned on it.

I suddenly realized that I was alone with him, in this room, with a bed and everything. I tried to stop the awareness that rushed into my head at that moment. I moved towards an old bookshelf, with books, CDs, an old DVD player and some framed pictures. I studied the pictures intently, aware that he was still leaning on the closed door. They were mainly family pictures, pictures from secondary school days and university. I recognized a picture of me with him standing behind me making a face.

“Hey! That’s us!” I exclaimed.

He came over to look and smiled “I have many pictures from those days” He said. “There are some at my flat. But the bulk of them should be around here somewhere”

He was about to start looking for the pictures when his phone rang. He took it out of his pocket and took one look at the screen, and from the expression on his face, I knew it was Folake.

He gave me a ‘
gimme
a minute’ sign and answered the call. I pretended to myself that I didn’t want to know what they were talking about and continued looking at the pictures on the shelf. He was still on the phone when the door opened and Cecilia came in.

“Sophie! You’re here! Thank God.” She exclaimed, patting her stomach. “My mother sent me to find you.”

I shot Michael a look of alarm. Cecilia’s voice hadn’t been that loud but what if Folake had heard my name? How would she react to the fact that I was here with Michael in his parents’ house.

Michael was still on the phone, but his expression had hardened, with a voice like granite, I heard him say “Yes, she is here”

I hurriedly turned to Cecilia who seemed oblivious to what she had done “I’ll come with you” I said eager to escape.

Downstairs, most of the guests had left. It remained Cecilia and her husband and just one couple who seemed to be having a very interesting conversation with Chief Ade-Cole.

Michael’s mother was sitting on a couch with a huge photo album on her lap. When she saw me her face broke into a charming smile. She patted the seat beside her. “Come and sit” She said. “I promised to show these to you”

I went to sit with her, my smile disguising the trepidation I was feeling inside as we looked at Michaels cute baby pictures. In
Folake’s
shoes, I wondered silently, how would I feel about the fact that my fiancé had taken
another girl to dinner at his parents?
Friend or no friend?
But then their relationship was so strange. I sighed.

“Are you all right dear” Mrs Ade-Cole asked.

I nodded. ‘He looks so cute” I said. Pointing to a picture of a serious, four year old Michael, his mouth around the ears of a furry blue rabbit”

Her eyes twinkled as she laughed “Yes he does, doesn’t he? He loved that little rabbit, or wabbit, as he called the poor
thing,
I think he finally chewed it to death.” She patted my hand.

At that moment Michael walked in, he looked really pissed. At himself or at Folake, I didn’t know. I suddenly
had
a serious urge to go home. He walked towards his mother.