It was already past noon when Natasha was through with her meeting. She was feeling tired and regretted provoking a beast. The more she thought about him, the more she cursed him in her head. But the pain. She took out her cell phone and texted Brandon. "12:45" and before she put the phone down came the reply: "Set!" from him. She found herself smiling. She went through her emails and found nothing urgent that needed her attention. She pressed her telephone buzzer. "Please come to my office Pauline." She requested her secretary. Within a brief moment, she came rushing in.
"Yes Ma'am." Pauline answered with courtesy.
"I shall be leaving before one and might be late coming back. While I am away, please handle my affairs and anything urgent, please call me on my cell phone. Understood?"
"Yes Ma'am."
"Please don't call me that."
"I am sorry Ms. Claire."
"Better. That is it."
"Okay. Excuse me."
Pauline left and shut the door. Natasha looked at her watch. It was three minutes to quarter to one and she began getting ready to go out. As soon as she walked through her door to the elevator, the door opened and in was Brandon and Watson. They both smiled at her. There were some colleagues who were also heading out for lunch and Natasha thought for a while. She took a step back as she had decided to take the next lift.
"No thanks Boss. I shall take the next one." She sweetly declined. Brandon was at the back of the lift with his hands thrust deep in to his pocket. He looked at Natasha then at the employees behind her. He took a step forward and leaned forward.
"Ms. Claire, if you do not get in to this elevator and we happen to be late for our already scheduled engagement, then the employees behind you shall have to take the stairs all the way down to the company restaurant. Thirty floors down, mind you." He said in a low voice that only the employees near them could hear the threat, and they tried their best not to frown or complain or the big boss would make it worse. Watson smiled. It was another romantic threat. Natasha held her temper in place and smiled back.
"If you do so Boss Bran, then I shall have to walk down the stairs with them. I can't promise you that I shall get to the last stair safe and sound." She threatened as calmly as she could. Watson was impressed. Brandon loved a challenge. He took a quick glance at the employees behind her, especially those who had heard both their threats and his face turned dangerous.
"Watson, let us leave." He said calmly and Watson was surprised his boss had backed down from a fight. So was Natasha and the employees. After Watson pressed the button to the parking lot and the doors began to close, Brandon quickly pulled Natasha in to the lift and the doors closed. What he did left everyone dumbfounded. It happened so fast that Natasha was amazed at the event. Watson was busy laughing and Brandon looked composed as if he had done nothing.
"You! You…Brandon Joseph! You…" Natasha was very angry that she could not form a coherent sentence or ridicule. Before she could start complaining again, his lips were tightly on hers again. Watson was shocked at his boss' quick actions today. He looked at the two people kissing before him and he realized he had never seen his boss be romantic with a woman before, not even with Julie! He looked at his boss and realized that Natasha was indeed his first love! After a long while, the man kissing the woman let go of her as she struggled to breath. Natasha did not complain nor look at the two men the remaining of the time in the elevator. Watson was busy trying not to laugh at her and Brandon had his hands in his pockets focused on the depreciating floor numbers on the screen before him. Soon, the elevator opened at the parking area and the three oddly behaving people got in to the vehicle and left.
At Heal Care Hospital, gynecology ward, Natasha had just finished being examined and the doctor told her everything was okay and she just needed some drugs to help with the pain. When she got out, Brandon was seated at the waiting area, patiently. As soon as he saw them, he got up and went straight to them.
"Anything the matter, doctor?" He asked mischievously.
"Not at all Mr. Joseph. I think the stamina is too much for her." The doctor said seriously and walked away. Brandon smiled at the blushing woman before her. Natasha walked past him, she was still furious. She went straight to the billing department to ask for the bill.
"It has already been cleared Ms. Claire." The cashier told her.
"By whom?"
"Your partner." Natasha threw a glance at the man two steps behind her and rolled her eyes at him. His heart felt warmer. Back in the BMW, the couple sat quietly at the back. One seemed furious while the other was busy smiling. Brandon had already informed Watson where they would go to next and off they went. It was a twenty-minute drive but they soon arrived at the City View International Hotel for their lunch. As soon as they settled in the restaurant, Natasha's family joined in and it was another family reunion. Natasha introduced Brandon to every member of her family and all were happy to be acquainted, except her mother, who kept a cold environment around her. Soon lunch was served and the whole family was getting to know one another. After a while, Natasha whispered something to one of the waiters and he came back with a well wrapped dish, which she took to Watson in the car. He was happy. So was Brandon. They felt she was always so selfless.
"So, Mr. Joseph…" Benjamin started.
"Please Mr. Benjamin, call me Brandon." Brandon corrected.
"I will correct mine if you do yours." Benjamin highlighted and the table burst out laughing, all except one. "You and my daughter…"
"I love your daughter." Brandon blurted it out without hesitating, which shocked everyone at the table, even Natasha. "She is very nice, hard-working, considerate, principled, kind, selfless among other things. What is there not to love?" He added as he held Natasha's right hand under the table. Natasha smiled.
"Are you certain? Are you sure when some rich girl comes along with a good family name you won't leave my daughter for a good business?" Sandra jumped in.
"Mother!" Natasha called out. She had had enough with her mother. "Now that he is here, why don't you tell him what your problem is with him?"
"I thought I already said it!" Sandra shouted. The table went quiet again. The atmosphere became awkward. Brandon maintained the smile on his face. He did not know what Sandra's problem was, but he could guess it.
"I think I know what your mother's problem is my dear." He sweetly said to Natasha and everyone at the table looked at him. "I think she is just concerned that because of my big name, you will be in the spotlight more often than not and that the public may start unravelling private information about you, and possibly, your family." He said to Natasha but his eyes gave a sweet but dangerous glare to her mother. Sandra looked at him and she immediately understood. She looked towards her husband but he seemed not to understand, neither did her children, who took it literally. "Well, my dear, we better get going now. We have some more business to take care of. Thank you for a delightful meal. Ms. Claire." He stood up and pulled the chair from behind Natasha and she bid her family goodbye.
Nobody at the table was aware of the business conference happening in one of the halls in the restaurant. As soon as Natasha and Brandon got to where the car was parked, Watson showed them the topic gaining public's attention at the moment: "Business tycoon and guru CEO Brandon Joseph and his girlfriend Ms. Natasha Claire having lunch at the CVIH with what reliable internal sources claim are Ms. Claire's family, who have been in the city for two days now. Could things be leading to where we all think?"
Natasha looked at the headline and she knew that her moment of having her issues private was long gone. She looked at Brandon, who seemed calm.
"Are you okay with this?" She questioned him.
"Yes. Is it not true?" He questioned her. Well, he was right, it was indeed true. The headline had several pictures of them taken and it was reported about twenty minutes before they got in to the car.
"Bran, we need to leave!" She said quickly.
"Why?" He asked, unbothered.
"The article is twenty minutes posted. That means other paparazzi are on their way!"
"Let them come." As soon as he said that, news reporters and paparazzi surrounded them asking all sorts of questions. Brandon just smiled at them. Natasha felt uncomfortable to being the center of attention, especially public attention:
"Mr. Joseph, Is your relationship serious?"
"Does you meeting her family signify anything?"
"What about Ms. Julie Ann?"
"Does him being your boss complicate your relationship with him Ms. Claire?"
"Should we be expecting wedding bells soon?"
"Is two months enough for such a big step?"
Brandon heard the last question and his face turned cold. He looked at the reporter who had asked that and all the others went silent. Everyone knew what would happen to that reporter next. Natasha noticed and he held his hand and looked at him sweetly: "Well, what does time have to do with love? People may meet today and by end of the day they are mad for each other and others may meet and know each other for a very long time but no love will ever touch their hearts. That is the beauty of love." She then turned her eyes to the reporters and it was Brandon's time to look at her. "I am excited that my love decided to meet my family. If and when he does decide to get this relationship higher, to the next step, then you will be the first to know. Any other question I have not answered is irrelevant. If you excuse us, we have a couple's moment to get back to." Natasha pulled Brandon from the attention and led him in to the car, leaving the reporters temporarily astounded.