By seven o'clock, Ariel was giddy with excitement. She couldn't wait for Richard to come back. She stared at the dining room and the design she had done, making sure that everything was in place.By the time she heard the roar of her father's car in the garage, her mother had finished her quick shower and was in a midnight gown that complimented her skin and her cheek bones. Forty years in marriage and her parents were still going at it. She wanted that type of marriage for herself. She wanted her marriage with Richard to be filled with takes of love and how they had met to tell their unborn children.That was why she had agreed to do the design and decorations in the first place. It made her feel closer to her parents than she already was, and at a point, it was as though she was doing it for herself.It was only a matter of time. Her mother stared at her in the darkness, her white teeth showing despite the fact that all the lights in the room had gone off.“How do I look?”“Beau

“Good morning sir. I…I never expected you here. I thought everyone was asleep, that was why I came outside to make the call.”Mr Johnson's smile was huge.“Oh, forget it. I understand you totally. As a teenager back then, I also loved to smoke in solitude. It hits harder, you know.”That wasn't Richard's problem. He was scared. He understood how his call had sounded, and he was wondering if Mr Johnson had overheard him while he had been talking.If the older man had done so, he did a good job of not showing it.“Yes sir.”“So, who were you talking to? Someone else apart from Ariel in the line of women you'd like to marry, huh? Anything that I should know about?”Richard shook his head fiercely.“I love Ariel and would never do anything to hurt her, sir.”Mr Johnson nodded, then smiled.“I understand you perfectly. However, you should know that we are men and we can't change that. We are bound to have urges. We will always think like men, no matter what. That's how it is. You cannot ch

The next morning, Richard drove Mr Johnson's Ford truck into the school premises, and parked directly in the parking lot opposite Douglas’s apartment.He knocked, and in seconds the door opened, revealing his friend and acquaintance who also served as a co-worker that had been waiting for him since he made the call that he was going to be there that morning.“What took you so long?”Richard arched an eyebrow in question.“Long? I literally called minutes ago, bro. You should even be thankful that I'm on time. I know people that would've done worse. People that never keep to time.”Knowing that the dig was referring to him, Douglas grinned, then opened the door. The full crew was there.Hal and Benny sat in a corner, cigarettes in between their fingers as they billowed smoke into the air through the open window.Hal stood up, clutching his hand and shaking him firmly.“It's been quite a while. Are you busy with marriage and family arrangements?”Richard's reply was to shake his head, t

When he came out of the house in a shirt and black trousers that went down all the way to his ankles, he found Claudia next to his Porsche, waiting for him, fiddling with her phone to pass time. He managed to smile at her, his mind on the consortium. He was supposed to be at work, but because he was not immune to his sister and her best friend's shenanigans, he had to do what she wanted, even if it meant that he had to inconvenience himself. He opened the driver's door, then did the same to the passenger door, all the while the smile never leaving his face. In the car, he gunned the engine, then glanced at Claudia as she tried to slip on her seat belt. He found himself wondering if she wasn't wearing the same gown she had worn the previous night. Where other women would've looked uncomfortable, she looked amazing, even though he felt that the gown was supposed to make her look even worse. Instead, it was the exact opposite. “Well, I thought I had seen the best of you this morning

“Why would he treat you in that manner? Come on, you have other things to worry about. Your approaching court case tomorrow, your safety. There are a thousand and one things you should prioritize.”She watched Lut speak, his face showing how angry he was that director Edward had talked to her the way he did a few minutes ago.“It's your choice. If you don't want to be the leader of the workers union, then you don't be. That's all there is to it. Nobody should force you to accept a voluntary position.”She shrugged, knowing that saying something else was adding fuel to fire. Lut already looked angry, and she didn't want him to be more annoyed than he presently was, especially not on an issue that involved her.She was his personal assistant, and he wasn't her babysitter.“It's okay, Lut. It's natural for director Edward to be that way. Have you had breakfast? I can ask the kitchen staff to get something for us.”“No, I'm okay.” He said, shaking his head with a smile. “Mia made me have