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SHE’S MINE 11
Nursery rhymes filled the room as the children took their place in front of the tv. The senior citizens were playing a game of bingo in the backyard. An exhausted but satisfied Jeanine sat at a corner of the room beside a cradle, rocking a baby. Everything was going fine, donations were made and some of the children were taken under foster care for adoption. The thought of them having new families almost made her cry, they deserved all the love in the world and they were finally getting it. She smiled and sang to the baby, hoping she’d fall asleep. If there was any reason she believed in miracles, it was because of baby Milagra. She was brought into the orphanage when she was only ten weeks old, her mother had abandoned her. She was terribly sick and the doctors were scared she wouldn’t make it. Jeanine met her during one of her visits to the children’s wards. Her heart melted at the pink face, the rise and fall of her little chest and her tiny hands. Baby Milagra was a good fig
SHE’S MINE 12
He took in deep breaths and reminded himself to breathe. With the little baby in his arms, it almost felt like his heart was going to rip out of his chest. Her warm smile, bright eyes and red face reminded him of that night. He panicked so much that he had to let go of the baby. It was the first time he held a baby in five years and he had done a horrible job at it. Her cries of protest when he handed her over to Jeanine broke his heart. He wished he could have held her for longer, he had tried his best but he couldn’t. He felt slightly embarrassed for walking out on Jeanine and freaking out because of a harmless baby. He understood how much the charity meant to her which was one of the reasons he decided to show up.The main reason was because he had gotten an email that some of his business partners were coming the next weekend. He had to show them he was a good husband and he was capable of running his father’s business. The media and blogs were going to help him with that. Meet
SHE’S MINE 13
Jeanine hid a smile as they walked towards his Cadillac. She blushed and smiled throughout the event that she was scared her face would split in half. When the older women teased her about Aiden, her cheeks turned crimson red and her heart swelled with pride. She tucked the children in bed while Aiden busied himself with the senior citizens. Their act was so natural that she was proud of herself, she was convinced that if they kept up with it, they would make everyone believe they were truly in love. “I’ll have one of my drivers come pick up your car” he said to her as he unlocked the carShe had almost forgotten about her car. It was nothing compared to his car but it served its purpose anyway. She nodded in agreement, it was going to be nice driving in his nice car. Also, she was going to get a close up view of his tattoos, which was even nicer. “Don’t you think you should hold the door open for me?” She asked, raising an eyebrowShe bit her lip and waited for his reply.
SHE’S MINE 14
An unwanted excitement filled him as he drove to the restaurant she picked out. She asked him to dinner, what was exciting about that? It was just a regular dinner, wasn’t it?So many women asked him on dates, some of them even offered to pay for the dates to which he declined but there was something different about Jeanine asking him to have dinner with her. He could feel heat rise to his face, it was the Jeanine effect. It was probably the way her blue eyes sparked innocently each time she spoke.He mentally checked if it was against the rules of their contract, it wasn’t. He was being paranoid, Aiden Braithwaite was nervous which was rare.He grabbed the steering a little to hard as if to steady his emotions. Being around so many children had ignited emotions he’d rather have locked away. “Here we are” she announced with a smile as he pulled up into the restaurant’s parking lot It wasn’t the kind of place he’d go to on a date but it was somehow perfect. From the way
SHE’S MINE 15
The cheesecake was excellent, just like she remembered it being. It was the perfect thing to melt all the anger she felt towards Aiden. The rub of it all was that she couldn’t single out what made her feel infuriated. Aiden’s bluntness or his disregard for her.He didn’t have to be so blunt about him not wanting her to meet his mother, the way he had said it kind of infuriated her. Was it because she was a stripper or because she was never going to be one of the girl’s he hung out with? A group of girls in low-cut dresses had flocked by their table twice, each giggling and whispering to one another. One had been bold enough to look Aiden in the eye and smile widely at him. It annoyed her so much, they had the guts to look at her husband —her fake husband. Was she jealous? Just a tiny little bit. She didn’t want him for herself, he was too reckless and carefree for her liking. He should be thankful, if she hadn’t shown up in his life, he could have lost his father’s properties
SHE’S MINE 16
One week, two days, six hours and nine minutes later, Jeanine was still stock in a state of confusion, anger and pure delight. Mostly anger, she had seen Aiden only twice after the kiss. The first time she saw him, he mumbled a good morning to her when he was about to leave the house and the second time, he nodded his head to her in acknowledgment. Who kissed someone that passionately and didn’t talk about it? It was almost like it didn’t happen, the only evidence were their pictures on the front pages of gossip magazines and her lips still wishing they were locked in his. She understood it was all an act but she couldn’t pretend that she didn’t feel something that night, she didn’t feel a thousand fireworks go off in her tummy, her knees weak and jelly like from his kiss. The drive home that night was quiet, she had stayed awake all night thinking of him while he was probably fast asleep or working on a new project. The next morning, she was late to her class and she zoned out so
SHE’S MINE 17
Something about the punching bag tearing open brought him satisfaction. There was no other perfect distraction than boxing, he declined a match with an opponent in the boxing ring because he was scared of what the rage in him would do.The past week had been hell for him, he had been consumed by guilt and blame. He shouldn’t have kissed her, what the heck was he thinking?He shouldn’t have dragged her into his messy life, Jeanine was a girl from a small village who deserved a nice life. Now, there were so many publications on the internet about her, most of which said very horrible things about her. “That’s the second bag you’ve torn” Henry commented and then took a gulp of his waterThe lawyer had spent the past hour trying to talk to his client but Aiden paid him no attention. “I’ve never seen you this way, Aiden” he started as he watched him move to another punching bag“Are you going to talk about what is going on with you?” Aiden sighed as he stared at his bruised
SHE’S MINE 18
She wrapped her scarf carefully around her face as she made her way to the back of mama Lucia’s restaurant. She hoped the oversized glasses and clothes were enough disguise. It was the first time she left the house in three days, she had missed all her classes and spent her time curling up in bed, feeling sorry for herself and her family.She needed someone to talk to. Aiden was busy with one meeting or the other and it didn’t seem like he wanted to talk to her. He was her boss, she knew what she signed up for when she went through the contract, so why bother him? “You look terrible” Aaron commented as she sat opposite himHis voice was cold and distant and she could feel the look of disgust in his eyes.Things between them were never going to be the same. She imagined that they’d get married after college even though she didn’t feel anything for him but now, that was never going to happen. He was the only one that looked at her with love in his eyes, the only man that told h
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SHE’S MINE 42
Was she ever going to fully understand her husband? Probably not but she knew not to ask questions. She was surprised and excited when Aiden showed up. Not that she wanted to ditch her friends but she enjoyed spending time with her husband too. When she woke up each morning, she looked forward to seeing him, hearing his voice and having dinner with him. This made her question if she’d be able to move on when they separated. She’ll most likely be busy with her new job or her master’s program but it would never be the same, she’d always think of him. Aiden Braithwaite, the man that walked into her life and changed it forever. “Why didn’t you reply to my messages?” He asked as he made a U-turnHe sent a text? Aiden Braithwaite sent her a text message. He never sent her a text, he never replied to her texts not like that held much content anyway. It was basically her letting him know her whereabouts and the time she’d be done with whatever she was doing incase they had to go out.Sh
SHE’S MINE 41
When Aiden arrived at the venue, he could feel all heads turn towards his direction. He wasn’t a fan of crowds but he was kind of used to it, the same way he got good and bad publicity. He was the star boy to some people, the man who took over the business world at a young age while to others, who was the trashy guy who broke girls' hearts and slept with them because he wanted to. Whichever the people at Catherine little party saw him as, he didn’t care much. He was Jeanine’s husband and he was going to act like it. His first order of business was to get Donovan away from her, he was beginning to hate their new found friendship not because of anything in particular. Donovan was a great guy and he could teach her a thing or two when it came to business but why teach her anything when she had a husband who had a lot of experience. He watched her smile at Donovan when he whispered something to her. A frown found it’s way to Aiden’s face, had Donovan always been this annoying? He
SHE’S MINE 40
He found his way to Catherine’s house, it wasn’t a long drive anyway. He had a tracker on the car he assigned to jeanine. He texted her and he didn’t get a response which was unlike her. After boxing with Henry, he took a shower and had the chef prepare him a simple breakfast of scrambled eggs. He tried to get some sleep as he had been awake all night. He laid in bed for a while but sleep didn’t come, he picked up his phone again to text Jeanine but he didn’t know what to say. For the first time, he realized how empty and lifeless his apartment felt without Jeanine. In the few months she spent with him, she managed to add a touch in most rooms of his house. She kept fresh flowers in every flower vase. She had a little tea corner in the kitchen where she displayed her vast collection of tea. If she was at home she’d probably be watching rom coms while he locked himself in his den. He hated the silly romance movies she watched but he was now familiar with the opening song of each of
SHE’S MINE 39
“It’s crazy how you two are opposites” Catherine commentedNow, Jeanine wished they would refocus their conversation on her career path and what she was interested in doing after college. She understood that everyone was curious about her marriage and her husband, she was curious about her husband too but she knew one slip up or mistake would cost her a lot. She wasn’t surprised at the attention she was getting but it still felt strange. So many people had walked up to her to try to start a conversation, one asked for a selfie which she politely refused. It was pitiful that most people only knew her as Aiden’s wife, she had written quite a number of articles and she wished that would gain as much attention too. “Aiden and I balance each other out. He likes his space” Jeanine explained She sighed as she poured herself some water. She wished Aiden was around, not like he would have contributed to the conversation or paid any attention but she loved having him around. He a
SHE’S MINE 38
This was what life was about, drinking champagne, networking with colleagues and discussing business. One day you could be working as a stripper and the next day your life would be changed for better, you’d be discussing business plans and networking with people in your field.Catherine Lukeman’s home was beautiful, the garden was the perfect place for their little get together. After three weeks of working at Ray.co, Jeanine had quickly made friends with quite a number of people. She couldn’t be more thankful to have people who had more experience guide her in her career path. Aiden wasn’t left out, most times he gave her advice and when he had important meetings, he invited her to join him in the board room so she could learn a thing or two from whatever was being discussed. He was supportive and he also helped her with her school work. For someone who had a cold demeanor, he knew how to explain things to her like a five year old and she wasn’t sure if it was by her focusing on
SHE’S MINE 37
All he could think of was her as he landed heavy blows on Henry’s boxing glove. It was his usual routine to go boxing with Henry on Saturday mornings, thankfully they were the only ones in the ring. He felt his hands hurt from the heavy impact but he wouldn’t stop until he got rid of all the anger he felt. Streaks of sweat found its way to his neck from his forehead but that was not enough to get rid of the anger. “Chill out man!” Henry cried as he pushed him off.He took off his gloves and tossed them to a corner of the ring.“What the heck is wrong with you man? We are supposed to be boxing not you physically assaulting me” Aiden fell on his knees as he tried to catch his breath, he was now weak and all he felt was pain in his joints. “What’s up with you?” Henry asked and joined him on the floor He ran a hand to his wet hair and waited for his pulse to return to normal. He’d never felt so much anger and sadness in a long time. Aiden loved to be in charge of hi
SHE’S MINE 36
She clasped her hands in excitement at the sight of food from Mama Lucia, it was a good way to ease her of her emotional stress. She hadn’t been there in almost a month for a number of reasons and she missed the taste of her food. Mama Lucia was the first place Aiden kissed her and she hadn’t felt the same since then. Her feelings for him had heightened and although he was a few feet away from her, she could feel the hairs on her nape stand. It was at Mama Lucia’s that she questioned if she could obey the rules of the contract, if they could act like husband and wife without her catching feelings and becoming obsessive.Recently, she heard Aaron started holding his publication meetings at Mama Lucia, publications that may jeopardize her marriage. She had made too many memories at the restaurant that she couldn’t abandon it but still, it was too risky. “You got Mama Lucia?” She asked, her voice high pitched from excitement She didn’t ask him if she liked their food after their
SHE’S MINE 35
Filthy? He wondered the kind of things that went on in her head. How would she think that he’d ever find her filthy? When he asked her to be his contracted wife, he wasn’t skeptical about it. There was something about her that gave him the reassurance that she’d not tell anybody about it or try to make fame from being his wife. Had she seen the way Donovan and the other men looked at her? Although Jeanine wasn’t the lady he’d go for on a normal day, he was proud to show her off. She was worthy of everything, in character and beauty. While he wasn’t sure she was seeing anyone, he hoped that she found a good man who would cherish and take care of her after their marriage. She hadn’t necessarily made mention of any man or lover and he didn’t wish to know but he hated to admit that he was awkwardly pleased to know her whereabouts and control it. She kept her routine simple, school, the orphanage, the library on some days and mama Lucia’s diner on some other days. “Do I hav
SHE’S MINE 34
She clenched her teeth as he let go of her waist the moment they stepped into his office. The few minutes it took them to walk to his office felt like heaven, she was wrapped up in his manly scent and she felt protected by his strong arms. Aiden was a complicated man, his outrageous and unnecessary display of affection in front of their colleagues and now he was back to being his usual self. They weren’t supposed to display affection unless it was necessary, he could have texted her to come to his office instead of being dramatic. Now that he moved away from her, he body wanted more, she wished he’d take her in his arms again. She almost punched herself and tried to focus on other things like his office. His office was super organized, no surprise there. Most of the offices had filed overflowing from their drawers but Aiden took his time to classify each. There was a center table that had different kinds of tea and business magazines on it. Then there was a huge mahogany table w
