Tanya soon fell asleep as soon as they got home.He held her like he never wanted to let her go and she fell asleep feeling his eyes on her.When the disturbing memories of screeching tyres and deflating airbags wanted to ruin her sleep, she only needed to feel his arms around her to know that it was over and they were safe.She opened her eyes to see that he was still looking down at her with a thoughtful look on his face.“You are not sleeping?” she asked sleepily.He shrugged slightly as he answered, “I love watching you sleep,”She raised her eyebrows and mumbled, “Then I guess you are in for a treat because I am so tired right now that I can’t keep my lids open.”“Then sleep,” he said as he kissed her nose, “I will be here.” She nodded half asleep, then she opened her eyes again, sluggish, “You are fine?”“Never been better,” he answered with a smile.“Good,” she murmured and she soon slipped into a peaceful sleep.When she woke up, she couldn’t find him beside her.She frowned
The man sat in a darkened room with a land phone to his ear.His eyes were fixed on Ayo and Tanya’s video even as he nodded.In a chilling tone, he asked the person on the phone.“Are you sure?”He waited for an answer from the other end and said, “No mistakes this time.” He disconnected the call, placed the phone on its holder, and reached for the smouldering cigar above the ashtray.The cigar glowed in the dark as he puffed on it.The hand he had to his side was raised swiftly and a silent pinging sound echoed in the room as he shot the target on the other side of the study.Pinned to the target was the face of Mr Tomori.“Fucking bastard,” he said, then emptied five more bullets into the electronic target.***********The next few weeks after Ayo’s live video was filled with lots of activities for the couple.Most brands who had shunned Tanya because of the scandal began to call back and many new ones started to send her offer upon offer too.Not only was she back on the chart as
Dressed in a vibrant crimson gown with a gold belt, paired with diamond-encrusted stilettos and chandelier earrings, Vera Devane ignored Tanya and turned up her megawatt smile as she raised her hand to Ayo.“Hi, Mr Taiwo. It’s my pleasure to finally meet you up close,” she purred. “Has anyone mentioned that you are a yummy piece? If you get tired of this one, you can call my number, you know.”Tanya’s body tightened at the direct jab, and she was pleased that Ayo didn’t take the hand Vera offered to kiss.“I don’t know if I should say I am honoured or insulted, miss, but I think I can return the compliment that you look…” he gave her a once-over before completing with a straight face, “...like you are ready for a theme party,”Tanya had to suppress her smile at the veiled insult when she saw the way Vera’s smile dimmed.Then the lady kept her plastic smile in place as she looked from Ayo to her, “Awn, you got yourself the loyal one. I am almost happy for you, babe.”The mocking refere
“What?”“What?”“Why would Martinez hit his girlfriend for…?”Tanya gaped in shock as she saw Susan remove her hand from her face.The imprint of Martinez’s hand on her face was clear for all to see.“Mart…”“Don’t you dare talk to Tanya like that! You are nothing compared to her, you hear me?! This is between me and her. Go away!”What?Tanya was as surprised as the whisperers around them exclaiming in shock while taking videos.Martinez ignored Susan’s teary face and tried to hold Tanya’s hand again. Tanya didn’t hesitate to smack his hand away.Despite that, he desperately said “It is you I love, Tan. I am so sorry. It was this bitch. She seduced me and I let her confuse me for a moment. I am back for you now, baby. We can go back to…”“Are you not ashamed of saying that shit to another man’s wife?” Tanya was so relieved by Ayo’s voice that she smiled automatically.He hit Martinez out of the way with his shoulder as he came to put his arm around Tanya, “I am sorry that you can’t e
“I love you, baby. You know that?”“Yes, mommy. I love you too. I can’t wait to see you!” “Very soon, baby. Very soon.” Tanya said fondly.She listened to her daughter being called by her host mother. Then the girl returned to the video, “I need to go, Mommy. Charlotte is taking me to get my ballet kit! Cindy is coming too! She is getting ready right now.”“Cool, look at you, ballerina. You start next week, right?”Emerald preened with excitement as she nodded vigorously, “Yes, the teacher said I have good form, Mommy. Cindy will be there too. I am going to have so much fun!”“I bet you will. Say my goodbyes to Charlotte, Cindy and Rouarke. Go on now. Don’t keep her waiting. Promise to model everything for me later?” she asked with a grin.“Of course! Love you, Mommy, bye!” As Ayo came into the frame, Emerald hastily waved at him as well, “Bye, Mr Taiwo. I have to go get my ballet kit now!”“Oh? That’s cool. I wish I could do ballet too, you know.”Emerald laughed, “That’s silly. Yo
She stood up while still holding his hand and placed the wine glass on the table. “You are right. We should get some sleep. Also, Ruffs is right. You should get an assistant. You would be surprised at how much an assistant could save a day. You have a one-month shoot with Laureve and trust me when I say it can be draining.”“Ughh,” he said with a mock shudder. “Now, I am getting a bit scared. Do you think I can still unsign that contract now?”“Yeah, just be ready to pay a lot for the damages,” she said simply as they got into bed.“Hey, what damages? I could say I backed out based on health issues. That is a valid reason.”“You look healthy as a horse to me and Laureve knows it too,” she sighed as she laid her head on his chest. “You are going to be fine. I can ask Meg to help you interview some assistants before we leave tomorrow.”“No, no, she has enough to handle already, with your travels and everything. Between me and Ruffs, we will handle it. Just take good care of yourself on
Dressed in her best finery, Nancy Salazar sent two of her girls before her to deliver exotic gifts to the Queen Dowager.She had to bribe the dowager’s handmaiden to know the details of the type of brocades and other exotic gifts the woman would accept.As much as the expenses drained more of her family’s already draining fortune, she knew it was a worthy investment.“If not for my silly son who decided to slap me in the face like this, would I be doing all this?” she thought as she calmly waited in the dowager’s waiting room.Gone were the days when the dowager stayed in the main palace. Now she stayed in one of the mansions on Darlington’s estate.Even at that, the mansion was way bigger than Nancy’s home. She was a woman who had scrimped and scraped her way up the ladder of society. If it was left to her simple-minded husband alone, they would probably still be struggling with his meagre monthly salary.What would she have done when he suddenly died?Thankfully, God had heard her pr
Nancy saw that she had caught her attention and quickly added, “That is the only explanation for this, my queen, and as a mother, I made sure I didn’t sit about it too. Once I knew, I started praying and even asked many priests to pray too. You won’t believe how much I had to spend on it. But it is the sacrifice of love that I did not just for my son but also for the princess as well. For our long-lasting union, you know. Have you heard that my son has already left that shameless girl? It was because of my efforts, my queen. The moment my son’s eyes opened like this, he left her immediately.”“Hmmm,” Charlotte said in thought as she nodded to herself.Nancy gave her a sly look, then she made her voice pitiful as she said, “Now, he finally realised the damage he had caused, but as you can see, the princess wouldn’t accept him back. He had been thinking so much now that it had affected his career. He could barely eat or drink. He has even cancelled many of the shows that should fetch mon