Chapter 04

• I leave the bathroom faster than I got there, Francisco laughs making me to be more nervous.
• ‘Are you sure you are okay?’ he asks loudly as I head back to the bedroom
• This is not right, I am married and I shouldn’t be feeling all these emotions towards another man. I get my phone and decide to call Garvin, maybe that way I will be reminded of my place and what is really important to me.
• His line goes unanswered twice and so I decide to call his office.
• ‘Good morning.’ The lady on the other end of the line says
• I recognize the voice, one of the nurses I have seen him flirting with and I have been hoping that it ends at that because I don’t think I can stomach him cheating on me with multiple ladies.
• ‘Good morning, can I talk to Doctor Garvin please.’ I say as composed as possible
• ‘He is on leave and won’t be back in the office till Monday.’
• ‘What do you mean on leave?’
• ‘He is on a vacation with his wife ma’am, so call his personal line if that is important but I doubt he will pick up.’ She says cutting the line
• I feel my stomach turn, Garvin didn’t tell me anything about going on leave and why would I be told that he is on vacation with his wife when in actual sense he is not with me.
• Feeling all sorts of broken, I decide to call the one person I have promised myself never to call. The woman he has been having an on and off relationship with, I feel it in my heart that he is with her.
• I dial the number and she picks up obviously not aware of who I am.
• ‘Can I talk to Garvin.’ I say without even asking if she is with him, my sixth sense tells me they are together and there is no way I am ignoring that.
• ‘Who are you and why do you want to talk to my man.’ She says rudely
• ‘His wife.’ I say before I hear her gasp on the other end of the line
• ‘HayLee.’ Garvin says a Few minutes later
• ‘The maid is supposed to be paid this week, have you done that?’
• ‘I will do it today.’ He responds his voice with a lot of fear
• ‘Alright.’ I say cutting the line
• This is my last blow, probably the only one I needed to get myself out of this façade of a marriage. I have done everything possible to make it work but I am done. Once I am back in Nigeria, I am getting back to work and leaving him.
• As if my day couldn’t get any worse, I receive a text from KayLee saying she will be out one more day so I still have to pretend to be her. I try to call her but her line goes unanswered.
• I decide to dress up, settling for an olive green short floral dress and brown slippers. I tie my hair into a burn and only apply moisturizer on my face, I don’t have the strength to start working on my makeup.
• ‘You look like you could use some air.’
• I look into Francisco’s direction and see that he has already dressed up.
• ‘What time did you dress up?’
• ‘I picked my clothes whilst you were on the phone, you looked like you could use some privacy.’ He says
• ‘Thank you.’ I say trying not to look at him because I have so much going on and I might just break down
• ‘Let’s go back, start afresh.’
• ‘What?’
• ‘B, you know I love you with everything in me right?’
• I just nod my head.
• ‘And I also know you are skeptical about what will happen when you move in with me, I know you are scared you might have to give up parts of yourself just to accommodate me but trust me I won’t do any of that.’
• ‘Why can’t I stay alone? Why can’t we continue this but in two separate houses? Do I really have to live with you?’ I ask
• I even surprise myself with how the questions have come out, because if someone had asked me this years, back I would have given a different view. I guess life situations do teach us much.
• ‘Yes we can live separately.’
• ‘Why do I sense a but?’
• ‘I am opening another branch in France, so I am relocating.’
• ‘Francisco you want me to give up my life in the UK just to be with you?’
• He sighs,
• ‘I love you.’
• ‘Have you even considered how I would feel about all this? I run a business, I am doing so well.’
• ‘Lee I am sorry to say this but we both know your business hasn’t been doing okay.’
• I wish KayLee had told me this because I don’t know how to defend her.
• ‘I have a proposal to make.’
• ‘What?’
• ‘Move in with me for a month, your business will still be running. When you have a client I am promising to make sure you are where the client is and if anything I will pay you whatever you make in a month at the end of it all.’
• ‘And what makes you think I am interested in your money?’
• He opens his mouth to say something but closes it
• ‘I know you are not, I just don’t want you thinking that maybe I am taking your life away from you.’
• I sigh
• ‘After a month what happens?’
• ‘When you don’t like it with me, we call it quits. If you do like it we can pick it up from there.’ He says
• ‘I will move in with you, on condition that I divert my energies to something else. And you will not do to me anything that I am not comfortable with.’
• ‘B, we have done everything there possibly is.’
• ‘If I am moving in with you I need to be totally sure I know what I am signing up for, we might have done everything together but it is also possible to tone down.’
• He smiles
• ‘For you I am willing to wait.’ He says kissing my forehead
• ‘Thank you.’ I respond
• ‘I will book for our flights.’ He says leaving me in the room
• I try calling Bailey again but I am taken straight to voice mail again, then I make a recording for her on whatsapp for her to know the kind of man Garvin is. What he likes and dislikes, I give her all the details on my life with him because if I played her role for two days, how about she plays mine for a month whilst I decide on what to do with my marriage.
• I pack my things and wait for Francisco to come, I haven’t done anything away from Garvin in all the years I have known him, it is time to find myself.
• ..