Hidden Currents (Lagos Romance Series) (12 page)

He paused and she turned from her
contemplation of the street outside to look at him. “I didn’t mention your
name, I only told him that you did some work with one of my old projects.”

“Living Lagos,” Ada interjected, “and I am
the only professional photographer with Living Lagos.”

“I didn’t realize that everybody knew that.
“ He said wryly. “Or that you knew him so well.”

“I don’t know him so well.” Ada said, her
temper flaring. “I’ve already told you I approached him to publish my book. He
said I had to raise the money myself.”

“And he called you to tell you I had been
asking about financing it.”

She nodded.

“What did he say to you?”

She frowned, remembering Dele’s slurred
insults. “That’s none of your business.” She stated.

He chuckled. “And you want me to believe
that you’re not seeing him.”

She would have struck him then, it was a
reflex, her hand swung out before she could control herself, but he caught it,
and didn’t let go.

“Let go of me.” She whispered.

He released his hold on her abruptly, as if
her skin had suddenly burned him.

She took a deep breath. “Believe what you
want, but I’m not dating a married man.” She said tersely, “Not that it’s any
of your business.” She paused. “Well you should know that now he thinks I’m your
girlfriend or whore, maybe, that’s why you’re so interested in publishing my
book.”

“But you know better,” He shrugged, “Who
cares what he thinks?”

Good question, Ada thought. Really, why did
she care so much? She had no answer.

“Did he come on to you?” Eddie asked.

Ada nodded. “Can I go in now?” She asked.
“Because I really don’t see why I have to tell you all this, It’s my personal
life, and I don’t have to share it with you.”

He nodded. “You’re right.” He said. “It’s
not my business.” He paused. “I said I wanted to try to make you understand
something.”

She nodded. “Okay?”

“Those things you said about my
grandfather, they were true.” His voice was quiet. “He did embezzle money.
Nothing I say or do will excuse that fact.”

She stayed silent.

“He belonged to a system that was corrupt,”
Eddie continued. “I’m not excusing him, but he did what everyone was doing at
the time.” He stopped, and sighed. For a moment, Ada pitied him. This was
obviously an argument he had gone through before, with himself maybe. “I would
have preferred for him to be a hero.” He continued. “To have been the man who
stood up against corruption and fought for what was right, but he wasn’t that
man,” He turned to look at Ada. “That doesn’t mean that he is no longer my family.”

Ada didn’t say anything. What could she say
anyway?

He sighed. “Maybe you would prefer for
people like me to fall on our swords and die, but in real life it doesn’t work
like that. For God’s sake we’re fighting about someone who has been dead for
more than twenty years.”

“We’re fighting about money he stole, which
you still have.” Ada retorted. “If you were such a good person, if your family
had any conscience they would return it.”

He laughed. “Don’t be naive.” He said.
“You’re talking about money that has been multiplied a thousand times over.” At
her stubborn expression, he continued. “My father did try to return some money
to the government when he was young and idealistic. He ended up enriching a
couple of government officials, while they called him a fool as soon as his
back was turned. That’s what happens you know. The country hasn’t changed for
the better, even though my grandfather is dead.”

He wasn’t lying, Ada realized. It was still
a corrupt country. But that didn’t change anything, it certainly didn’t change
the fact that he had tried to interfere in her life without her permission.

“Can I go inside now?” She asked
dispassionately, the sooner this episode of her life that included him was
over, the better for her. “I really don’t want to talk about this. Eddie, you
don’t need to make excuses to me, you don’t actually need my forgiveness or
validation.” She paused. He was staring straight ahead, and she couldn’t see
the expression on his face. “We’re not friends.” She continued. “I’m sure you have
a lot of friends, people like you, who understand where you’re coming from and
accept it. But I don’t, and I don’t want to have to deal with it.”

He laughed disbelievingly. “So that’s it
then?” He asked, turning to face her. “You asking me to take a hike because I
tried to get your book published and I had the misfortune to be born into a
certain family.”

“You shouldn’t have tried to interfere in
my life.” She retorted. “Maybe you should have come to me before appointing
yourself as an executor of my affairs.”

“Why don’t you just face it, and accept
that you’re blowing all this out of proportion because you’re too scared to
face up to the fact that you want to be with me.” He said.

“I am not scared of anything.” Ada replied
hotly. It was a lie, and they both knew it.

“Really?” His voice was challenging.
“Really?” He shook his head in what looked like exasperation. “Come off it,
Ada, I know you are attracted to me.”

She forced a laugh. “I am not.” She
insisted.

He laughed softly, to her, it sounded
dangerous. “You want to test that?” He asked.

Now she was scared, but she went on
bravely. “I know your vast experience with women makes you think that you know
us all and that were all the same.” She said. “But we’re not. You’re just going
to have to accept that there are some women who do not think you walk on
water.”

“Like you.” He stated.

“Yes.” She agreed. “Like me.”

He moved so quickly that she had no time to
prepare herself. One minute she was talking and the next he had taken hold of
her shoulders, pulled her towards him, and silenced her with a kiss.

It wasn’t like when he had kissed her
before. He wasn’t gentle at all, at first. It was a demanding kiss, a kiss that
sought to conquer her, to make her accept that she wanted him, and not a kiss
meant to give any sort of pleasure.

At first, she forgot to struggle, to push
him away, because she was surprised. There was also the fact that punishing or
not, the sensations his kiss aroused in her were too pleasurable to give up in
just those few seconds.

However, after a few moments she recovered
a little of her senses, enough for her to raise her hands to his chest to push
him away. Then his lips became gentler, softer, cajoling a response from her.

Her hands stilled on his chest. They forgot
why they were there in the first place, now they were moving over his chest,
feeling the muscled hardness under his shirt, moving to grasp his arms,
caressing him, drawing him closer.

Someone moaned. Was that her? It couldn’t
be! She thought, as he deepened the kiss. I should push him away, she thought
desperately, I should get out of this car right now, but she didn’t make any
move to, no kiss had ever felt so good. Her lips, every single part of her body
his hands touched, were suffused with intense pleasure. She felt pleasure build
and pool in her stomach, and lower, the sweet aching longing that she knew was
desire. She didn’t want him to stop, all she wanted, was more.

A car drove by, and for a few seconds they
were illuminated in the bright headlights, her senses slowly returned and she
pulled away from him. He was breathing deeply and so was she.

“Don’t tell me that you’re not attracted to
me.” He said slowly, his voice ragged.  His chest rose and fell with each
word, and she realized that her hands were still holding on to him. She let him
go abruptly and looked away.

“It’s just physical.” She said, her voice
had lost all of its earlier stubbornness and now sounded soft and shaky to her.

He sighed. “You’re determined to push me
away no matter what.” He stated.

She was tempted. In that moment all she
wanted to tell him was that she didn’t care about any of it, that she didn’t
care about anything as long as he kissed her again. Instead, she plowed on. “I
am not going to be one of your many girls.” She said, her voice recovering some
of its firmness, “If that’s what you’re asking. Find someone else to charm,
Eddie. I’m not interested.”

He nodded, and sat back on his seat.
“Fine,” He said. “Suit yourself then.”

“I guess I’ll see you around.” She said,

He smiled but didn’t answer. She opened the
door and climbed out of the car. She didn’t look back. She just walked through
the gates and towards her empty flat. Why did she feel so empty all of a
sudden? She felt empty and foolish and totally wrong. She heard him rev the engine
of the car. What right do you have to judge him? That little voice in her head
said. You’re just overreacting, Ada, overreacting.

She ignored it. She wasn’t going to think
about it, or about him! It was over. Her short reign as the girl in Eddie Bakare’s
life was over. It was for the best, she told herself, it had to be.

The office should have felt a little
cramped, with the addition of two new people, but it didn’t. A new desk had
been added to the outer office for Clive and Fadeke to share, while Oliver, now
Sophie’s assistant, retained his old desk. Lola Balogun, the new receptionist,
sat at the desk by the door, the severity of her dark blue suit and smoothly
braided hair belied by the good humored smile that never seemed to leave her
face.

The space had been rearranged somewhat, so
that Ada’s desk now occupied pride of place in a corner, confirming that she
was the boss of the outer office. It was a jovial atmosphere that Monday
morning, as everybody got to know each other. Lola had been a receptionist at a
multinational company, before she resigned to have her kids, now that her last
child was five years old she had decided to get a job again and the position
Living Lagos had offered had been ideal for her.

Clive was just excited. Fresh from
university, it was his first real job. He already had ideas for subsequent
covers that Ada found interesting. In the few hours he had spent in the office,
he had already become best friends with Oliver and Fadeke.

Ada forced herself to take part in the
friendliness and the bonding, especially when Sophie was doing the formal
introductions. Later, when Sophie had returned to her office, Ada went to her
desk to sit quietly and think. She knew she ought to prepare her itinerary for
the week, set tasks for Clive to do, do something herself to get her mind off
the one thing that had been troubling her all weekend. Eddie Bakare!

But it was hard. She just wanted to lay
down somewhere and close her eyes for as long as it too for her to completely
forget that Eddie had ever existed. That he had ever kissed her, and made her
want things that she didn’t want to want.

Her body still shuddered with pleasure
whenever she thought of that kiss in his car. She had tried to convince herself
that it was just physical, but the ache in her chest that came from the
realization that it was probably really over with him, made it hard to believe.

Clive was showing off some moves on some
new graphic design software to Oliver. Fadeke was paying attention too, looking
entranced, whether with the software or Clive, Ada couldn’t really say. She got
up, leaving them to get to know each other and made her way to Sophie’s office.

Sophie was engrossed in going through some
papers that were laid out on her desk. Aside from the hum of the AC, the only
sound was that of her pen as she tap tap tapped it on the desk in
concentration. She looked up when she noticed Ada.

“Ah!” She sighed, pushing the papers away.
“Just the person I want to talk to.” She relaxed on her chair and flexed her
fingers. “What’s up with you?” She asked. “You look miserable.”

“Do I?” Ada laughed self-consciously. “I’m
just tired.” She moved through the tiny office and took her seat at the desk
opposite Sophie.

“Do you want to go on leave?” Sophie asked.
“It’s a bad time, but if you’re fatigued...” She shrugged.

“I’m not fatigued.” Ada replied. She
gestured towards the outer office. “I just wanted to come in here for a while
and leave the young ones out there free to get to know each other without me
looking over their shoulders.”

Sophie laughed. “So who is not a young
one?” She asked. “You?” She shook her head, still amused. “I have good news for
you though, something that will excite you out of your tiredness.” She smiled. “Sometime
around noon today, your car will arrive.”

“Oh my God!” Ada exclaimed, excited despite
her dismal emotional state. “Wow!” She jumped up ran round the desk to hug
Sophie. “I’m so excited.” She said breathlessly.

Sophie laughed. “I hope you won’t name the
car though.” She said. “I’ve met too many people who call their cars Nancy or
Pharaoh in this Lagos.”

Ada grimaced then joined in Sophie’s
laughter. “Naah, I don’t think so.” She said, amused. “I may consider Mr. Darcy
though.” She added as an afterthought. “If I were going to name my car, I’d
call it Mr. Darcy.”