Hana had fast learned that lying was a terrible idea with Kyle. She didn’t know how he found out her tell-tale, but she couldn’t deny the butterflies that exploded in her stomach each time he kissed her. She had agreed for him to stay in the room with her, but the tension was palpable. It also didn’t help that she wasn’t feeling sleepy.
Kyle pointed at the flat TV on the cream wall. He had been silent for longer than she thought possible. While she sat, he stood.
“Do you want to see a movie? Anything?”
“No, thanks.” Running a hand over her dress, she replied, “This is fine. Thanks.”
“Are you sure you’re not hungry?” Kyle asked. He had asked more than once, and she had given him the same answer. He backed away from the door to sit on a chair further from the bed. Hana didn’t like the distance between them, but it helped to keep her thoughts clean. “Even a bite?”
“You can get something if you’re hungry.”
The words were hardly out in the
The room was deathly still, same with the two occupants on the bed. Calvin had not moved an inch since he switched off the lights, and Angel rolled off to the other side. It was past midnight, and the rain had only worsened. He couldn’t sleep. How could he with an angel in his bed? Angel was stiff, but her light snores told him she was asleep. Calvin wanted to hug and kiss her. Even in her sleep, she wasn’t completely relaxed. What could she have experienced that made her so standoffish? Was it the incident with those bastards? That alone was enough to make anyone wary, but he suspected there was more to Angel’s behaviour. She was guarded. And he wanted to be let in. To take away her pain, and that alone made him worry for himself. He wasn’t the type to get attached to anyone. His sister would tease the hell out of him if she knew he had a crush. Diane Ross wasn’t permanent. A fuck buddy who had forced her way into a less temporary position. S
Hana’s heart galloped like a crazed horse. Kyle was staring at her like he wanted to devour her. The longer he stared at her, the less she thought about her mother. She wet her lips. He was kidding about the kiss, but she wasn’t joking about her reply. Kissing him made her forget about life. She wanted to live in the moment with this man. She touched the pendant peeking from his collar when he didn’t move or act on his joke. “What’s this, Kyle?” Kyle broke out of his trance. His eyes lowered to her object of interest, and he took it off. He moved to a kneeling position, and Hana sat up because it didn’t feel right lying down when he wasn’t. She was shy, confused, and shocked as he hooked the necklace around her neck. Her fingertips brushed the heart pendant with a green gem in its centre. There were initials engraved into the silver pendant. She couldn’t read the letter, didn’t want to because her attention was only on Kyle.&nb
Calvin woke up alone. Alone and naked. At first, he didn’t think too much of it until he went to the bathroom. It was empty. No, no way would Angel have left without telling him. Right? That was not how to repay a kindness. Didn’t last night mean anything to her? What if she went downstairs to get them breakfast? The thought sounded ludicrous, but he held onto it. He looked out of the bathroom window to the skies that were bluer after last night’s rain. His angel wouldn’t have done that to him. He didn’t even get her name or address or anything. Calvin wobbled to the room, dragging the sweatpants he picked up from the foot of the bed over his waist. Angel had folded Calvin’s clothes, but his sister’s dress was nowhere to be found. Her side of the bed was still warm. It couldn’t have been long since she left the room, but how did he miss her getting up or the sound of the door opening? He wasn’t such a deep sleeper. A pathetic sound tore out of his lip
The house was quiet when Hana got home. A trip of twenty minutes had turned into forty-five minutes, and she spent the next fifteen minutes preparing herself to face the entire family. Cara would always have her back, but her nineteen-year-old sister could only do so much for her. Her mother would defend her until it was her father attacking her. In summary, she was alone. Gathering courage, she walked up the stairs and opened the door. Her breath faltered as she got a look at the people in the living room. Her father jumped to his feet, and her mother rushed after him to hold him back from hitting her. He had never hit her before, but he looked ready to start today. Hana shrank into the corner. Cara offered her a small smile, unable to do more. “Where have you been?” he yelled. “Hi, Baba,” she replied with a little wave. “Baba?” he said, face twisting in disgust like he didn’t want to be associated with his first daughter. Hana’s mother s
Baba’s car stopped in front of the big gate. He hit a button on the side of his car, and Hana’s door unlocked. She remained hunched in her seat, but her fingers trembled with rage and exhaustion. “You were lucky,” her father said. Among the emotions that gurgled in her stomach, luck was the last. Her eyes clenched shut. She forced the image of the doctor shoving his fingers into her vagina to check for an intact hymen or vaginal laxity out of her mind. The memory made her skin prickle. She squeezed her legs like it would wash away his touch. Kyle spent the night erasing the feel of those men’s hands on her body, but all it took was a trip to the doctor’s to remind her of it. He touched her even in places Kyle didn’t. Hana flung the passenger door open. Her foot was out of the car when her father’s voice stopped her. “No more funny stunts, Hana. You will be twenty-five soon. Don’t ruin something you’ve spent all y
Calvin walked into Kenna Lounge, the hotel he had brought Angel to. Unlike that night when he came in, he was in a foul mood today. It was only 6 am on Monday, but the city was busy. He ignored the greeting from the receptionist as he made his way to the private elevator that would take him to his suite. Knowing the memories it held, he had no idea why this was the first place he thought of visiting, but he couldn’t bring himself to head to his condo instead. The elevator pinged, and he stepped out. Getting inside the living area, he dumped his briefcase on a sofa without checking to know where it landed. His next destination was the bar. He poured himself a glass of whiskey, no ice, and returned to the living room. Sitting on the floor, he dragged the coffee table closer to him and dropped the glass on it. The glass was barely on the table when a memory slammed into him. Images of him and Angel drinking hot chocolates pushed into his mind. Calvin shove
Sweat rolled down Calvin’s palms, and he reached inside the collar of his shirt for the necklace his mother gifted him but found it empty. Fuck. Why did he keep forgetting that it was still with Angel? Familiar rage engulfed him as thoughts of her threatened to take over his mind. KJ nudged him with his knee and nodded to the table.Different pairs of eyes were staring at them, mostly Calvin. He grabbed a bottle from the table and finished half its content.“If you will,” KJ spoke on Calvin’s behalf. There were three men on each side of the table. They were usually more than that, but he couldn’t remember if some of them had been excused. “Please repeat the question.”Calvin looked around the table. He had an idea what all of them would say if asked to state their opinion on this. They would tell him to give up his spot in Tech Valley so he could run his own company, but he wasn’t ready for that. That w
Calvin started his day on an awful note. Mr Tommy wanted to know if there was any progress, and the others were asking for an update. He ignored his assistant hot on his heels as he fled to his office. His office door opened moments after he was inside. He slung his jacket over his chair and stood behind it. Destinee edged away from the door, her face a cold mask of professionalism. Calvin stared at his wristwatch and back at her. She was yet to speak.“What is it, Destinee?” Calvin asked. He wasn’t always this snappy, but he had grown awful at controlling his temper since that blue-eyed woman walked out on him. Sitting, he tapped on his keyboard and scrolled through the list of other publishers on his monitor screen. Destinee stopped behind the chair in front of his desk. She was too silent today. “What do you want?”Fucking Diane had not helped. Thoughts of the woman he would not mention still plagued his mind, and the only thing h