After the storm (48 page)

Akeem
told her about Bassey's course in France while she checked the
freezers and fridge. Bassey had stocked them up with lots of
prepared dishes. She wondered which to heat up for their dinner but
changed her mind and decided to make something fresh. He smiled
when he saw her bring out the chopping board. He knew she liked her
food fresh.

"Can I
help you with anything?" he asked.

"Um…you
can bring out some plates and help set the table. We can eat in the
kitchen, can't we?"

"Of
course."

She
prepared a sauce using the sweet peppers and vegetables she found
in the fridge and boiled some white rice to go with it. Then she
popped some of the jerk chicken that Bassey had made into the
oven.

Sometime
later, Aleena and Kufre joined them in the kitchen. Yemi served
them their meal, but when she started to dish some food onto
Akeem's plate, he stopped her.

"Can we
eat in the sitting room or dining room?" he asked.

She
raised her brows questioningly. He looked back at her, the
expression in his eyes unreadable. She shrugged and
nodded.

"Aren't
you eating with us?" Aleena asked, watching Yemi dish their
portions onto plates and place them on trays.

"I want
some time with your mum," Akeem replied.

That
seemed to satisfy Aleena. She went back to her conversation with
Kufre. Akeem and Yemi took their food to the sitting
room.

"Very
tasty," he said as he started eating. "I've missed
this."

"You're
just trying to be polite, aren't you?" she teased. "You and I both
know that Bassey cooks very well."

He took
his time to respond, chewing his food slowly, an expression of
exaggerated enjoyment on his face. "You know what? Hasan said
something about this very same thing the last time I saw
him."

"What
did he say?"

"Something about wives and cooks." He smiled slightly, his
eyes holding hers. "He said no cook does food like your
wife."

Yemi
felt heat in her cheeks, both at his words and at the way that he
was looking at her. She looked away and concentrated on her food.
About a minute later, she looked up again. His eyes were still on
her, amusement evident in their depths at her obvious
embarrassment, but thankfully he said nothing more.

She
stayed for a few more hours after dinner. They reminisced about the
past and laughed at the funny memories.

"I wish
I had insisted that he wait for me that day. From what I eventually
gathered, what Hasan had to do in Lagos was really not that urgent.
It was just typical him wanting to get things rolling." Pain
appeared to shadow his eyes and, he sighed. "He could have still
been alive today."

"There's
no way you could have known," she said gently. "But for that call,
you could have been on the same flight too." She reached out and
touched his hand. "Don't blame yourself, Akeem. Hasan would not
want you to do that."

He
covered her hand with his. "Thanks."

They
both stayed with Aleena before she went to bed, which thrilled the
little girl. Akeem read her a story, and Yemi sat back and watched.
He was not just reading the story straight through like he used to
do; instead, he demonstrated it as well, making his voice deeper or
lighter when necessary. A giggle almost escaped her at his
impersonation of a female character. She wished his staff could see
him. He caught her amused look and gave her a mock
frown.

They
returned to the sitting room afterwards. She knew he really needed
company by the way he would bring up another topic anytime she
glanced at her wristwatch, but finally she felt it was late enough
and decided to get going.

"Thanks
a lot, Yemi. Have not felt this good for a while," he said,
standing with her by her car. "Hope I'll see you again
soon?"

Was he
just lonely because he had broken up with Lois, or did he really
want her company? "Will let you know when I'm coming," she replied
before getting into her car. "Take care."

"I'll
call you later tonight. Drive safely."

∞∞∞

Akeem
still didn't know about God and wasn't sure if he really existed,
but he knew that there was something different about Yemi. The
anger and bitterness were gone; in their place, there seemed to be
an inner beauty and glow that radiated from her.

They had
gone out for lunch a couple of times in the past two weeks. Short
periods, lighthearted chats, but thoroughly enjoyable nonetheless.
They also spoke on the phone every day. He made sure of that.
Speaking to her was the highlight of his day. For the first couple
of days, he struggled to get over the fact that he could just pick
up the phone and call her, and their conversation didn't have to be
about Aleena. It was amazing.

He was
still being very careful though, so he resisted the urge to call
her more than once a day. He didn't want anything to stir up the
animosity that he had experienced from her in the last three years.
They still tried to keep their conversations light and easy. They
avoided talking about the reason for their split, and he skirted
around anything that could trigger bad memories.

He
didn't think the change in her attitude towards him was just
because of Hasan's death. After all, she had gone to see his mum in
hospital before Hasan had died. Something had definitely changed in
her, and it seemed real. She didn't bash him with her new beliefs,
either, but she was more confident whenever it came into their
conversations.

"I'm
attending Bible study tomorrow, so I won't be able to talk with you
in the evening," she had told him the third day that they spoke on
the phone.

"What
time do you get back home?"

"At
about eight thirty."

"I'll
call you at about nine thirty, is that okay?"

"That's
fine," she had replied.

He had
done just that. He was taking it easy with her, but he didn't
intend to give her much space either. He had come to terms with his
feelings. Lois had been right: Yemi still had his heart firmly in
her hold.

∞∞∞

Yemi
waited in her car outside the Ola-Daniels' residence. Aleena sat
impatiently in the backseat as they waited to be let into the
house. Yemi noticed the increase in the security detail at the
house. She had already filled out the visitor's forms but she was
still being told to wait for clearance.

She eyed
the gun-toting security men with a little apprehension. Akeem had
armed security men in his house, but their guns were always hidden
away. These security men made theirs so obvious that it was
frightening.

She
tried Charlotte's number. It was switched off. She was on the verge
of turning back home when she was finally allowed to drive
in.

"So
sorry, Yemi," Charlotte apologised when Yemi walked into the
sitting room where she had been having what appeared to be a
meeting with five other women. The women smiled politely at her as
they left the room. "My husband is just trying to be a bit more
careful with people going in and out of the house, now that the
elections are so close."

"I
understand, but are you sure you're okay with Aleena being around
this weekend?" Yemi asked. She was feeling uneasy about leaving
Aleena there now anyway. "I know it's a busy period for you. We can
rearrange the sleepover."

Aleena
turned towards her with a look of dismay on her face.

"Or
better still, take Chloe with us," Yemi added hurriedly, preferring
not to have to deal with Aleena's sulks.

"No,
it's okay. They will be fine here," Charlotte insisted.

She
reluctantly let Aleena stay. Aleena had set her heart so much on
the sleepover, and Charlotte might have been a bit put off too if
she had insisted on taking Aleena back with her. But Yemi made up
her mind that she was not going to let Aleena do any more
sleepovers at the Ola-Daniels house until the elections were
over.

Akeem
was coming over to her place that afternoon, and she was looking
forward to seeing him. She knew that the attraction he had always
had for her was back. It had been easy to convince herself that she
no longer had any feelings for him when she'd been so angry with
him, but with her bitterness gone, it was just like how it had
always been, maybe more.

He
arrived about an hour after she got home. It was the first time he
had been there since their fight in her kitchen. How different
things were now, she thought to herself as she heated up a meal for
him while he walked casually around her kitchen, chatting with her
and checking things out.

"Whoever
fixed these cabinets did a lousy job," he said, inspecting the
shelves in her kitchen.

"What's
wrong with them?" she asked, peering over his shoulder and trying
to see what he was talking about.

"Don't
bother," he said with a knowing smile, and she laughed. They both
knew he was a lot more detailed in such things than she
was.

"I could
send someone from the office to have a look at it. This wood will
give way soon if not reinforced or changed outright," he said,
still looking at the shelf. He turned back towards her. "But on
second thoughts, I don't think that will be necessary."

She
looked at the shelf and then back at him. He didn't say anything
more. Just smiled and changed the topic.

"Would
you like to play a game or watch a movie?" she asked after they had
eaten.

"I don't
really mind either. What would you like?"

"Let's
play chess," she said.

She beat
him twice at it and was beginning to feel quite smug when she
noticed the very serious expression on his face, like he was
struggling to keep his face straight, and the truth dawned on
her.

"You're
deliberately letting me win," she accused him.

The
innocent look he gave her convinced her that she was right.
"Certainly not!"

She knew
he was not telling the truth. There was no sweetness in the victory
if he was deliberately conceding it to her. That would tarnish her
bragging rights over him.

"C'mon,
Akeem, give it your all."

He did,
and beat her soundly. She was not happy about the
results.

"Let's
have another go," she told him shortly, still smarting from the
loss.

He
obliged, and they started again, but three-quarters of the way
through the game, she knew her efforts were futile as it was
obvious he was going to win again. She glanced at him; he was still
keeping his face studiously straight, but she could see the mirth
dancing in his eyes.

"Stop
looking so smug, you've not won yet," she said. He looked at her
but said nothing. They continued playing, and a few minutes later,
he won the game.

She
looked up to see his eyes on her.

"What?"
she asked a little crossly.

He
shrugged "Nothing...I mean, I wouldn't dare say I've almost
forgotten what a sore loser you are." He chuckled at the expression
on her face.

Yemi
scowled, but a hint of a smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
"You're going to make up for beating me. You owe me big
time."

Akeem
shook his head in protest. "I beat you and then I pay you? What if
you had won?"

Yemi
shrugged. That was how they had operated in the past. Anytime he
beat her at a game, she would sulk until he agreed to treat her to
anything she demanded.

"We'll
deal with that when it happens. For now, just know that you owe
me."

"What do
you want?"

"Is that
a blank check?" she queried. "Can I ask for anything I
like?"

His
expression remained unaltered. "Anything."

"Hmmm…"
She tilted her head to an angle and eyed him. Buying her things was
going to be easy stuff for him. She wanted something that would
make him sweat. "Get ready."

"I'm
waiting."

She
cupped her chin in her hands and made a great show of appearing to
think hard. He smiled and began to put the game into its
pack.

"Is it
that difficult?" he asked a couple of minutes later when she still
hadn't said anything.

She put
her finger to her lips. "Shhh…I'm trying to think here."

He sat
back, watching her, a smile playing at the corner of his
lips.

A couple
of minutes later, she tapped the table. "Aha! I know what I want!"
she said triumphantly.

"What?"

She
smirked. "You'll have to make me dinner from scratch. A
three-course meal too, and not ordered from any
restaurant."

He
laughed. "Okay…I won't order it."

She
looked at him suspiciously. He had given in too easily. Had his
culinary skills improved so much in the time they had been
apart?

He shot
her a playful frown. "Why are you looking at me like
that?"