Episode 25

I guess I should have known the whole thing from the very beginning because I knew when my uncle and aunty did their wedding, so they mustn't have given birth and hidden him purposely for no reason.

Lisa found a place and she is moving in today, I also found out her boyfriend has been the one calling her and chatting her up asking to see her which she is yet to do.

I understand, she's still contemplating because of her last experience but in my opinion, since the guy has realised his mistake and is ready to make up, I know with time, she will reciprocate.

I can still remember her saying that she still loves the idiot...or did she say fool? Lolz, love is wicked.

I guess I will even go to her wedding ceremony first and I will actually catch the magic for my own day.

"What are you thinking about?" 

I looked up from the book I held to my face and faced Chris. He just finished bathing and he has made a habit of coming into the room naked ever since we started sharing his room.

"I'm thinking about you moving around naked, one-day Nancy might just come in here and freak out!" I teased.

He took the book away from me and kissed my forehead, "Then I will know you called her in to pay me for making you blush like this" he tapped my cheeks.

"Aunty Jennifer! Mum said you can help me do my assignment!!" 

Speaking of the devil! I laughed loudly as he ran back into the bathroom and Nancy came in almost at the same time.

"Count yourself lucky!" I threw myself on the bed and laughed until tears came out from the corners of my eyes.

"What are you saying?" Nancy asked and struggled to climb up the bed.

"Don't worry, darling... you will not understand!" 

"Uhm...Babe! Help me get a towel, please?" He called from the bathroom.

"You will remain there until our baby kicks" I mocked him, which normal human being goes to the bathroom without a towel... I'm going to catch an evening cruise.

* Few minutes later *

"What if we were really cousins?" I asked in wonder as we lay side to side on his bed.

"Well, God is not stupid, we wouldn't have met in the first place" he replied simply.

His sister had left immediately. I helped her finish up her homework, we had gone out for dinner and a really long evening walk and here we are... exhausted. Everyone has already gone to bed.

"Right. And I would live a boring life forever" 

"You could have met your soulmate and he might be more lovable than I am" he said again.

"Lie, I don't need another lovable person, I love you just the way you are" I smiled at the darkness.

He had switched off the light ready for bed but we enjoyed the night talks. "I miss you" he murmured and brought his face closer to mine.

"But I'm right here by your side, here to stay forever and you will never miss me again" I replied, pinching his nose playfully.

"Do you know it's been two months and we haven't...ridden a horse and my baby wants to tear off my jeans'," he winked and I covered my mouth to subdue the laughter that threatened to erupt.

"I was thinking you are a gentleman, no more horse riding for me oh!" I joked and he turned feigning anger. "What's wrong with this one?" I laughed.

"Just wait until we move into our new house, I will make sure you scream and wake all the neighbors every night" 

"Oh I'm shivering! Is that what you want to hear?" I kicked him away from the bed. "Go and buy s*x control" I said, throwing the sheets over my head.

"Even if I buy a load of it, your presence alone is enough to destroy it, don't you see how irresistible you are?" He laughed and jumped on top of me.

"Am going to shout" I played trying hard to push him off me.

"That's a good idea, my mother will congratulate me and my father will call me son of the soil" he threw the sheets away and pinned me to the bed.

"Okay! Fine... I will... I have really missed you, I was thinking the accident has broken your spinal cord and you won't be able to ride a horse again" I teased submissively and bent his head for a kiss.

"Holy ghost fire! God knows I can't deal with that while I have a sexy young wife" he grinned sheepishly.

He has shaved off all the prickles of hair that has tried growing on his body except the ones on his chest and he's back to the hairless Romeo I used to know.

"Why didn't you cut these ones?" I asked, splaying my palm on his chest.

"Because I know your fingers will always want reins to hold onto when we get on a horse back" he chuckled pinching my cheeks.

"You are crazy! Stop playing with horse riding so it won't be the first word our baby will learn" I wound my arms around his neck and bent his head for another kiss.

"Thank you, Jenny, you stopped me from making the most horrible mistake of my life," he said with a serious look.

"I'm also sorry for causing you pain in the process, what could I have done if I had lost you" I said, hugging him tight.

He smiled and thrust his tongue into my mouth without warning. Johnny Drille's song slipped into the room through the open window, it flowed with the night air.

"Did you hear that?" He asked as he tongued the back of my ear and slowly to my neck. "You be my Juliet and I will be your Romeo, my love" he followed the song when I nodded.

"That voice will close the studio, don't ever think of choosing music as a career" I grinned though he has a good voice just like his father.

"Why hasn't my dad's voice closed the studio?" He laughed, lifted his face to look at me and licked his lips. "I want to see who I'm making mine, tonight" he jumped off the bed and went to switch the light on.

"You have always seen me, horse rider! When are we moving into our new house?" I asked when he joined me in bed again.

"I know you can't wait to scream the walls down in pleasure, I trust you" 

"Oh gosh! I won't marry you again, how can I marry a man whose mind is always going negative like neutron"

"And I don't want to marry a lady who is always being sassy indirectly and says I'm false" he ripped the buttons of my gown in one swift movement and sent it flying.

"Did you lock the door? You know your sister has recently started sleepwalking and beware is boldly written on her forehead" I commented and helped him out of his Jean trouser. 

"Yep!" He kissed my tummy as his trouser fell on the floor, I felt excited for no reason as I watched the love of my life make me his over again.

*

*

*

"Hold my waist you fool!" I hit him hard on the cheek.

It's nine months already and my water just broke, he doesn't even know what to do, he's running helter skelter.

"Oh my God! Why did you do this to me, Chris?!!" I screamed, the pain was excruciating and the baby wanted to push his head through.

"I'm sorry, baby. We will get to the hospital soon!" He said as he helped me into the car.

We moved into our new house...home recently and refused blatantly to heed to my aunt's advice that we should stay with them until I give birth. 

We have been enjoying our home until this morning. Now, I'm experiencing the pains a mother faces that makes them love their children with their lives.

My uncle and Aunt must be on their way by now because they were the first people Chris called and no doubt, my parents too.

"Drive!!!!! Chris, you have killed me oo! Hei !!!" I screamed bitterly, grinding my teeth as he drove out of the gates.

"Baby, I'm sorry...we... I..."

"Stop babying me! Concentrate... focus and just drive!! I will kill you if I survive this!!!" I swore and held my waist.

"Sorry"

"God punish you! You only know how to ride a horse and am the one carrying the cross, Chineke mooo!!" I cried again.

It was a thirty minutes drive to the hospital, I was taken into the labour room by the nurses and after minutes of gnashing my teeth, I gave birth.

I saved a breath and looked at my baby before I fainted and when I woke up, my whole family was right by my side, what else does happiness look like when you feel loved.

"Thanks, honey" my husband kissed me and my mother danced around her grandson.

"So, it's true!" Lisa ran into the room, a man was behind her and he carried her beautiful daughter.

She pecked me and said a big congrats to her friend. 

"Welcome to the father's club, man!" The guy grinned and shook hands with my Chris.

"This calls for celebration, I am now a grandfather!" My uncle smiled, Nancy hasn't moved away from the baby's bed ever since I opened my eyes and her full attention is on him.

Does she think the baby will fly away if she looks away? Children can be so funny.

"I'm also a grand Papa!" My father chuckled.

"What am I then?" The door opened and Chris's father joined us, he wore the best dress and smiled brightly than other times.

"You guys are busy making noise, the owner of the baby is already playing with him!" My aunt joked and every head turned to look at our big Aunty.

"Which name is suitable for him?" Lisa threw the question.

"Chris Jr.!" Chris said immediately and captured my lips with his.

I closed my eyes and dreamed all the way to our bright future of a beautiful castle and a garden filled with the best children.

EPILOGUE.

*FIVE YEARS GONE*

"What in God's name is going on here?" I shrieked looking at the condition of my kitchen, flour and baking powder is massively used to paint the whole kitchen from ceiling to floor and the two men in it as well.

I sneezed repeatedly and managed to wait for an explanation of what Chris and his son had just done.

"Oh! Junior, kindly tell your mother that the men in the house are fixing the best food ever for the ladies!!" Chris said untying his apron.

"Mum! Dad and I have made all the favorites of the ladies in the house and it's gonna be ready soon, just go take a shower, chill and wait for the surprise masters!!" Junior beamed and scratched his head, which left tickles of wet flour on his hair.

Unlike his father, he likes his shiny brown hair and he doesn't like cutting even after his school declared haircutting, that's the last thing he would do and I think that tells a bit about Chris' father in him and their accent too.

"Do you guys know how many hours of scrubbing and mobbing it's going to take me to keep this kitchen tidy and in order again?!" I asked in awe, moving away when Chris came to kiss me.

"Am not supposed to touch my wife because I did a very bad thing by cooking, Junior, is it a crime to cook?" he played and stood like a gangster, that was to make me laugh but I didn't even find it funny with the load of work they just added to my chores.

"No no, Dad, I think my mother has finally learnt how to nag, it lives in every woman, Sis Nancy told me" Junior drawled.

Now, Nancy is teaching my son all her expensive words. She's six years older than her cousin now and they are best of friends.

"Who knows? Honey, don't worry, we got this and I will revive your kitchen for you" he smiled and drew me into his arms.

"You had better return my kitchen to its normal view and talk some sense into your I-too-know son" I hissed and feigned anger, they don't know how funny they look, snow-white.

The door opened and Nancy's head popped in, her eyes widened before she opened the door fully and came into the kitchen, Tania's arms clutched round her neck and she held her tightly around her tiny waist.

"Oh my goodness! Have we suddenly employed millers to cook for us in this house? What's all this paints about, Junior?" Nancy asked, looking from father to son.

"Help me ask them, if this is the way to bake" I hummed and covered my lips when Chris brought his head down to kiss me "abeg, go clean your mouth" I said referring to the streaks of flour visible on his lips.

"Sis Nancy, our baking tastes a lot better than the ones you and mum make because we made it with a heart full of undying love" Junior mumbled and knelt down to pack some baking sugar skittered around the floor.

"What exactly did you bake, bread or cake? Or maybe, your big head because I still don't get it," Nancy asked and went to open the microwave. Junior stopped her and told us to leave the kitchen because it belongs to men for that day.

"Nancy, let's go and freshen up, let them finish what they started because I don't have the strength to clean any mess, especially not ones as big as this one" I said and we left the men as Chris and our son put it.

That has been our life ever since we got married. Simple and what I call perfect!

After the birth of my son, five years ago, we got married in the simplest way but the best for me; we spent our honeymoon in Paris. When we moved back to Nigeria, I took a one year and three months course in computer training at Ikeja, Lagos.

After the course, I started up a cyber café and to the glory of God, it's doing great. My Romeo….NO! ...hairless Romeo moved his business to Lagos and we now live there.

We would be celebrating our six years wedding anniversary soon alongside our daughter's one year birthday party.

Nancy comes to spend her holidays with us and we visit our parents often, Chris's biological father doesn't fail to come around and he got married recently after Chris pressured him to, for his own good as he said and the lady is helping him.

Lisa has three kids already and we keep in touch, I don't want to dig deep into what you and I already know. Smiles.

Caleb...mmm...for him, he's doing good, he even came to our child's dedication with his fiancée. He was hurt because of everything that happened but thankfully, he is very understanding and he found love and we are happy for him.

Everyone is doing well, as I am concluding this story, they are sending their greetings and I can't stop thanking God Almighty.

It wasn't an easy journey but God in his infinite mercy made it end with cheers, merriment and joy.

WRITER:

"What else are you writing, sweetie? Come let's go ride a horse"

Chris lifted her into his arms and she buried her face in the strength of his shoulder.