Chapter 3: One Rainy Day

Rayla is on her way to work one day as she left the house, her husband already left that morning to take their daughter to school, so she was the last one to leave the house, "on time as usual" she said under her breath, driving on her way to work. Since she didn't need to start until 10am, she had a little time to get some coffee on the way while she was on her way to work.

That morning, as she walked into the office, walking up to the lifts and heading to her office floor, she passed by Laura Blade's office, wife of Adrian Blade of Blade industries as she was visiting the office this morning on behalf of her husband Adrian. "Last I heard, she quit LMN and became a successful author, and joined her husband Adrian on a business endeavor, looks like they opened their own consulting firm by the looks of it…" Rayla thought to herself, walking passed Blade Consulting Inc. on the 20th Floor, to get to her work floor on the 30th floor.

That morning as she walked into the conference room, the meeting was just about to start the team briefing drinking her coffee, as she is in a team briefing with her executive board meeting, discussing their new addition to their team. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have a recruit whom I have just hired, he is passionate about the IT industry, loves supporting and leading people, he got high honors in University and is now currently the head of his department, ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce to you, Mr. Evan Blade. Please, make him feel at home." The CEO introduced and instructed his team. "Welcome Mr. Blade, welcome aboard" Everyone greeted, including Rayla. "Mrs. Rayla Porter? I read your work on HR and Administration systems, I must say I was overly impressed." Evan Blade complimented as he shook her hand professionally. "thank you, Mr. Blade. I am honored." She smiled softly. "If there is anything you need, please feel free to email me and I will make sure you have all you need for your team." She said kindly handing him her card. "Thank you, Mrs. Porter." He smiled at her.

As Rayla walked through the corridors at work, everyone respected her and made her feel important. She felt more respected at work than she did at home sometimes, she thought to herself.

At the end of a long day, everyone said their goodbyes and left the offices for the day.

That day after work, she went to pay her mother a visit after work as she had promised. She sent her husband a text to tell him, so he was aware. He messaged her back, "I told you, you don't need to message me when you are out, I know where you are." He messaged back coldly, as he had a policy at home, that she wasn't allowed to message him or call him when he was with his side of his family and she was not allowed to call her own husband, as his family thought it was rude that his wife, being Rayla, thought it was rude and that she was checking up on him, even though he was with his family. There was no communication on the air waves at all when she was out, he would not message her, seeing he was sleeping throughout the day and would work night shifts when he did work, or he would be busy with his daughter. She looked at her phone with contempt, "What's the point of having a phone if you don't even use it!" She grunted as she threw her phone across her car seat in frustration and anger, as she sat there in her car, sighing in grief putting her hand on her head trying to calm herself down before she gets to her mother's place, so her mother would not sense the tension.

As she leaves the car park from her work building, she sees her work mates and waves goodbye at them, with a fake smile as if nothing happened to cover her sadness what she was going through. As she is driving, she looked to the left and to the right to make sure no cars were there, when suddenly, a man popped in front of her car, not watching where he was going just as she was leaving the car park. She slammed the breaks and grasped, "Oh my goodness!" She grasped and got out the car, it was Evan. "Evan, are you ok?! I nearly hit you!" She said concerned, hoping she did not have a lawsuit against her. "Mrs. Porter, Oh, I apologies, I wasn't watching where I was going. It is raining pouring outside, I was just calling a friend to come pick me up, but they can't make it." He told her kindly. She thought for a moment, "Do you need a lift? Where do you live?" Rayla asked him softly. He told her the address, "I am going passed that way, I can give you a lift if you like?" She offered kindly. "Are you sure? If it does not go out of your way? I will give you petrol money." He offered her. "No need, jump in." She smiled kindly at him, and he got in her car.

As they are driving on the highway out of the city towards the suburbs on this clear night as the rain had stopped, "So, has the team made you feel welcome at the office?" Rayla asked him kindly as she was driving her car. "Yes definitely. My girlfriend actually suggested me bring her muffins to work haha!" Evan joked. Rayla chuckled, "that's very kind of her. I am sure everyone at the office would love them." She smiled at him as they continue to drive. Evan blushed for a moment as he smirked and looked to the side out of the passenger seat window, not to make it obvious. "This woman…. Her smile…" Evan thought to himself.

They reach their destination and she dropped him off home to his girlfriend's house, "Thank you, Mrs. Porter, you really saved me there." He smiled at her as he got out the car, "Don't mention it." She smiled and drove off. "Nice guy" She thought to herself as she drove off to see her mother.

When she arrives at her mother's place, she is greeted kindly by her mother and brother. "Laura!" They hugged and embraced each other affectionately. "Mother…" She said kindly. Rayla had so much to say but she didn't know where to start, she was the type of individual who kept most things inside, she had an introvert personality type, which made it hard for her to express how she truly felt.

"How is your husband and his daughter?" Her mother asked. "Yes, they are good." She simply replied drinking tea. "I know you wasn't alright with his decision to surrogate his child, Rayla. You should speak up a little more, girl." Her mother said sternly in defense to her daughter, as she knew Rayla didn't fully support it. Rayla's mother was the type of person who could see through the most lying people and she did not take crap from people. She is one of those tough sort of mothers who had a hard life and would do anything for her children. "Mother… I couldn't have kids anyways and I didn't want any to start with, you know that… so what was I supposed to do?" Rayla questioned in defense, even though, she knew her mother was right, however she still defended her husband in blind ignorance, as was her mannerism to defend her own family, yet her husband didn't even lift a finger to defend her when her from her in-laws when they would speak about her, would to him, and booze him up on her so that he would have contempt towards his wife.

Her mother frustratingly rolled her eyes back and lit up a cigarette, "its your life." She said simply in frustration, taking a puff of her cigarette as they both sit on her mother's balcony at her apartment complex just out the outskirts of town overlooking the city.

Rayla was quiet as always, waiting for her mother to bring up something to talk about, such as the weekly gossip, or usual family problems with a niece of an aunty, or typical women's problems with other women, as she called it. As they are drinking tea together on her mother's balcony, her mother received a call from her sister (Rayla's aunty). If you ever wanted to know what was going on in the family, you would ask Rayla's Aunt Karen, she knew everything and anything that was going on with the relatives and she would always inform Rayla's mother Anne.

Rayla's aunt was the one you would have wanted to talk to, to get information from on anybody and who's who of family dramas. You know the saying, don't trust anyone who gossips too much, because however they talk about others to you, is the same way that they would talk about you to others, she thought to herself. "Honey, your aunt wants to say hello, do you want to say hi?" her mother asked. Rayla smiled and shook her head waving her hand, "No thanks, Ma, I got to head home soon anyways, but tell her I said hello" Rayla smiled at her mother.

She stayed there for about an hour max, and then decided to go home. "Goodnight ma, I will see you next week." She smiled at her mother and decided to go home, which was about a half an hour drive back, to a little country town, just a little further away about half an extra 20 minutes away. Living on the outer suburbs away from the city both had its pros and cons, pros being cheap mortgage repayments and utilities, cons was the long drive into the city for work.