Lionel frowned as he watched the receptionist became jittery with excitement. She had literally thrown her professionalism out the window. What was wrong with people in this town.
He suddenly felt like kicking Adam in the torso for inviting him to this town filled with crazy people. He signed the book in a haste and couldn't wait any longer,he itched to leave this place.
He rolled the suitcase out if the hotel with the queen of all crazy people,who was ironically now his wife by law. Could his life get any more ridiculous.
He located his car and put the suitcase in the trunk before pressing a button in his key. The door of his car opened for them to get in but just as was about to,his phone vibrated in his pocket.
He got it out if his pocket before entering his car. The door closed as he settled in and switched in his phone to see who had sent him a message. It was Adam,the man he so badly wanted to beat up for putting him in such odd situation.
He had sent a picture. He hissed in frustration as he saw the the picture fully. Some freak had taken a picture of him carrying Jema into her house earlier that day. Just then,few more pictures made its way to his screen with pride.
Some other freak had taken pictures of him and Jema in the hotel. They seemed to have captured their every movement. How in the heavens such pictures even circulate so fast.
He closed his eyes and flung his head backwards,shaking his head in the seat's headrest.
"Why didn't you tell me about this", he asked showing her the first picture before turning to face her.
She simply shrugged her shoulders in defiance.
" I thought you knew already,I mean it's everywhere ",she replied plainly.
" Well I don't follow celebrity gossip so I had no idea you were a big shot in this part of the world",he said dislike evident in his voice.
She just shrugged her shoulders at him again.
"You've just got to learn to live with it,it is going to get a whole lot worse in the next few days",she said casually.
" And now you tell me",he said muttering to himself. His phone vibrated again and this time,it was a message from Adam.
"You enjoying yourself lover boy", he messaged with a heart emoji making Lionel feel like squeezing his phone into dust.
He decided to calm down his nerve instead by taking in a deep breath. He quickly typed a retort message before placing the phone in the car's dashboard and stating the engine.
The car roared to life softly and immediately he made a move to get out of the hotel grounds. He drive the car on to the road and tapped on the car's inbuilt tablet for directions.
He proceeded driving and there was a cloud of silence hovering around them. Jema seemed to be comfortable with it but he wasn't.
" So, what next after this ",he asked and she turned to face him.
" We are going to a marriage registry this weekend to like make this official but before then we are going to see my father in the hospital tomorrow, he wants to see you",she explained briefly.
He could only smirk on hearing what she said.
"He wants to see me tomorrow, you are introducing me to your father tomorrow as what, your bodyguard", he asked not at all surprised with the new stunt she pulled at him.
" Try to keep up okay,it's as my husband to be,he wants an in-law,I'll give him one ",she replied,fierceness dancing in her eyes.
" Wow",was the only word he could think of to say at that moment.
"Okay then, what am I going to say is my occupation then", he asked and she faced ahead in thought.
" I guess I have to sleep over that one",she said after few minutes of deliberation.
Lionel nodded his head slowly,trying to remember how exactly he got himself into this. He drove into her private estate and located her penthouse within minutes.
He drove into her compound this time around and parked his car in front of her house.
"Where are your garage keys", he asked her.
" Inside,let's just leave it out for this night",she said and opened the car for herself to get out this time around.
He got down as well with the file in his hands and pressed his key to open up his car trunk. He got his suitcase out and rolled it after her.
She opened the door to her house and walked in,loving the feel of her home. He got in and looked around the reception that led to her living room. He entered the living room and began observing the house which he had no interest in earlier,apparently this was going to be his new home.
He looked around the room still with no interest. The room was exquisitely furnished yet simple in a way.
She walked forward a few steps before stopping to face her companion.
"Place the folder on the table and choose any guestroom,you are privileged to anywhere in my house,except my bedroom", she said with a flash of warning in her tone before turning and heading up the stairs.
Lionel rolled his eyes at her last statement,why would he want to go to her room anyway. He placed the folder on the table before he moved forward towards the direction she went. She hadn't given him any directions whatsoever or did she expect the online map to tell him where her rooms were.
He sighed as he too headed up the stairs, his suitcase still in his hands. He saw he had no way to roll that up the stairs so he resorted to carrying it,thank goodness that he always packed light.
He moved up the stairs hastily and placed the suitcase back on the floor on reaching the second deck. He looked at the hallway. He wondered which path lead to her room.
He just decided to follow his gut feeling and go left. He picked the first room,opened the door and stepped in. He sighed when he found out that the room was empty.
He put his suitcase by the side of the door,observing nothing else and went straight ahead to lie on the bed,trying to recover from the madness of the day.
Jema walked into her room, kicked off her shoes,put her purse on the dressing table and crash landed on her bed
She didn't know when the softness of her sheets caused her to drift to lala land.
She woke up the next morning awoken by her alarm. She stirred lazily on her bed,not actually wanting to stand up. She mumbled something in audible in her frustration before fluttering her eyes open.
She sluggishly dragged herself off the bed. She went to her sink,squirted some toothpaste to her toothbrush and began to brush her teeth in lazy rhythms.
When she was done,she absentmindedly slipped out of her clothes,went into her bathroom and filled her bathtub with soap and water before slipping in.
The warm water seemed to make its way between her nerves,calming her tense muscles. She bathed taking her time,allowing herself enjoy the moment to herself.
She got up,put on her bathrobe and moved to her dressing table with her hair towel. She slowly dried her wet hair before blow drying it. She styled her hair for the day ahead.
She then went to her wardrobe and dressed for work. When she was done preparing,she left her room and began her descent when an aroma caught her attention.
She slowed her descent and began to wonder who concocted such mouthwatering delight. She still hadn't remembered the events of the previous day.
She walked to her kitchen as soon as she reached the ground floor. Her mouth dropped on seeing a man cooking in her kitchen,wearing an apron and a hairnet.
She face palmed herself when she finally recollected the activities of the previous day. She now lived with a man,her lawfully signed husband.
He turned to face her when he noted her presence and flashed her a warm,welcoming smile.
"Good Morning Miss Malteng", he said turning back to face what he was cooking.
She composed herself and went over to her dining to sit.
" You don't have to cook for me,I eat breakfast in my office",she said,not even quite sure why she was telling him that.
"I wasn't cooking for you,you gave me permission to your kitchen last night so when my wife wasn't awake to cook this morning,I figured I come fix breakfast myself", he said walking over to the table and placing his plate full of food on it.
Jema didn't even know how to react to his statement,she just found herself staring at his food and realised how hungry she was,she hadn't even eaten the previous night in her apprehension to find herself a husband.
He caught a glimpse of her almost drooling at his food from the corner of his eyes and smiled. He then dished her food and put it on the table,in front of her.
She looked at the food and back at him.
" You didn't have to really",she said and he cut her short.
"Says the woman I caught drooling a puddle over my food", he replied,walking over to his seat and she thanked him,suppressing a smile.
" And besides you ought to be eating before leaving to work in the morning,home made food does something to the heart,it doesn't seem like you've had a home made breakfast in a long while",he said and she shifted in her seat.
She grabbed the cutlery he had set earlier,having had enough talking and began to eat her food,no longer able to resist the seduction of the food.
Lionel chuckled as he watched her pounce on the food like a hungry lioness.
"You couldn't even wait to say your prayers,you must really be hungry", he said and she looked up to stare at him,her mouth full and he laughed out loud.
She slowed down her eating,slightly embarrassed by how she behaved. She stretched her hands to the jug to pour out a cup of water,but he poured it for her instead. She thanked him and drank the water,slowly.
When she was done,she placed her cup on the table and looked at him.
" Why are you suddenly being so nice",she asked, her voice meek.
He looked at her and grinned.
"I've gotta take care of my wife now, don't I,I can't leave you going off to work hungry", he said and winked at her.
She looked back at her plate and picked her cutlery again.
" Thanks,but this isn't going to be an everyday thing",she said and continued eating.
Lionel picked up his cutlery as well.
"I wish this would be an everyday thing, you are so fun to tease", he said and she raised her head to glare at him.
He looked at her and gave her a look that said 'see what I mean'.
They ate their food together in comfortable silence. When Jema was done,she picked up her plate and took it to the sink. He too had finished his food surprisingly quickly and he walked to the sink as well.
He offered to help her wash her plates and she blatantly refused so they decided to share the labour,she washes and rinses while he dries out the dishes.
" You're a great cook for a man",he said and he smiled.
"My mum taught me well I guess", was his curt reply and she suddenly found herself thinking about her own mother.