*MALIYAH*I blinked and opened my eyes.The face that greeted mine made me smile.Feeling pressed, I got off the bed and put on a robe.I walked into the bathroom and eased myself.Standing in front of the mirror,I loosened my robe and stared at my small baby bump.I was almost five months pregnant now and it’s been quite an overwhelming experience knowing a life was steadily growing inside of me.Each time Ben and I go to see the doctor for my antenatal care,I was always so happy to watch how much my baby was growing.Ben and I had decided we wanted the gender to be a surprise.We wanted to wait until the very day I give birth to know if it was a boy or a girl.We had set up the baby’s nursery.We had bought clothes already.Unisex baby clothes.Yeah,we were that excited to be parents.My mom and Aunt have been to Ben’s house to visit me,sometimes spending the night and I often go visit them at her house as well.Even if she was still pretending she hadn’t completely accepted Ben,I knew she
*MALIYAH*It’s noon the following day at the boutique when I was told that someone was here to see me.Getting to the front door,I was surprised to see Esme.“Hello,Maliyah.Can we talk please?”She asked and for the first time,she looked friendly and kind.It felt odd because she had always been harsh and mean to me.Curious about what she wanted to talk about,I led her into my office.I offered her a seat and then I sat opposite to her.She was quiet for a while and she looked kind of sad.I asked someone to bring us some juice and I impatiently waited for what she had to say to me.“How is Mr Graham?”She finally asked after what felt like an eternity.“He’s…he’s doing okay.”I replied.“I’m glad.The truth is I had expected you to walk me out of your boutique as soon as you saw me.”My lips thinned.”We might not have gotten along but I don’t have any grudge against you.Afterall,you were only looking out for Ben and I saw how much you care about him like a mother would.I found that amaz
*BENNETT*I had a business meeting at a restaurant downtown and as I walked out of the company,I’m stunned to see Charlotte crying towards me.“He…Ben…he.”She wailed and flew right into my arms.“Charlotte.”I called,trying to pull her away from me.“It’s Rowan…he…he was involved in an accident.He…he didn’t make it.”She wept.Rowan was her immediate younger brother and the last child of her parents.I didn’t know much about the boy but the few times I had dinner at her father’s house in the past,I saw that he was a very cheerful and care-freed boy who was still in college.I don’t know if it’s because I had experienced losing two people dear to me before but I always felt terrible each time I hear about people losing their loved ones.So I tried to comfort her.Letting her know that she should be with her family right now.Though I found it odd that she came right up to me but I guessed she saw me as a friend and I didn’t want to reprimand her for that right now.She got a call that her
*MALIYAH*It happened so fast.I didn’t get the chance to think twice about how dangerous this was especially in my condition.The only thing on my mind was saving the child and getting out unscathed.But as I pushed the child to the other side,the car rammed powerfully against me.*****************BENNETT*I ran into the hospital that was mentioned to me on the phone.I was still at the board meeting when I received a call,informing me that my wife had been in an accident.I could barely breathe as I made inquiry at the receptionist’ desk and I’m told she’s in the operating room.Operating room?Fuck!How serious was it?Two of her boutique’s staff were around,they were the ones whom had probably called the ambulance and me.I was too tensed to even ask them anything right now.I paced to and fro in the hallway.I was told it happened at the front of her boutique.I have a million thoughts running through my head at the same time.But the only thing important right now was knowing th
*BENNETT*Maliyah woke up the following evening.Mrs Roberts was the first to notice the twitching of her eyes before she finally opened them.Felicia hurried out to get the doctor while I and her mother rushed closer to her.“Maliyah,dear…Thank God…thank God you’re awake.”Her mother cried rubbing her hair,gently.“Be…Ben.”She called,weakly.My heart bled as I held her hand.“Wha…what happened?”She asked,staring at me and then at her mother.“You were in an accident.”I replied.And that seemed to make her remember.”Oh…the…the girl…”“She’s fine.You saved her.”I bit out.She tried to move her right arm but winced.“You shouldn’t move right now.You’re hurt.”I said to her, softly.And then she moved her left hand and I watched,ruefully as she placed it on her belly.“Is…is the baby alright?I…I hope I didn’t hurt the baby.“I stared at Mrs Roberts and she was staring back at me.How do I say this to her?I was barely coming to terms with the loss.“Ben…Mom…”She called,noticing how tensed
*BENNETT*Maliyah got discharged,her mom and Felicia spent two days with us,taking care of her and trying to cheer her up.***************“Women process pregnancy loss differently and for Maliyah,this is going to be so hard on her and on you because she blames herself for what happened.”Her mother said to me as I saw them off to the car.She was heading home now with Felicia.“I’ll be working from home for the meantime.We’ll get through this.”I assured her.“We’ll come by to visit her often.She might get cranky,Ben.I hope she doesn’t wear you out too much.”Felicia added,patting my back.“I don’t mind getting worn out by her.” I replied,sincerely.I thanked them and waved as they left.Sighing,I headed back to the house and up the stairs.I walked into the bedroom to find her on the bed.She was always on the bed,barely sleeping and just being dejected.That has to change.I need to make her happy again.I know I wasn’t going to achieve that easily but I have to try everything.I sat on t
*BENNETT*“Bring him to me.I need to get to him before the police do.”I ordered.“He…we’re at his house right now and we found him dead.”Drew replied.“What?!”“It appears he committed suicide.”“Send me the address.I’m coming over.”I hung up and stood from the chair.“What’s going on?”Logan asked,standing as well.“The driver who had ran over Maliyah has been found dead.”“Fuck!”***************Logan went with me to the house.It was a dilapidated apartment building.Drew and the rest of my men were already there.He told me the driver had hung himself.He was already in that position before they got there.There was a suicide note as well.I read through.The Bastard had written that he was tired of life,he owed so many debts and the debtors were after his life,accidentally running over someone made him completely fed up of living.I glanced at the dead body.“Did you find his phone?”Drew handed it to me.”I found nothing odd in it.“Sighing,I let out.”Call the cops.”The cops arrived a
*BENNETT*Maliyah ate dinner more than usual since the accident and I was glad.She fell soundly asleep too.Emily’s visit was really helpful and I decided to make use of the opportunity to paint her.I wanted to give it to her as a surprise when she wakes up.By midnight,I got all the drawing tools ready in our bedroom.Because it had been years since I last painted,I wasn’t too confident about painting offhand yet.She looked as meek as a dove in her sleep.It was a work of art and I just had to paint her like this.I tried to be as quiet as possible,not wanting to disturb her sleep.The big bandage wrapped around her head had been removed now.She only had a small bandage on her temple which was covered by her hair at the moment.The blanket covered her body,stopping at her arms.For a moment,all I did was stare at her.She’s mesmerizing,fascinating,I can never get enough of her beautiful face.Picking up the brush,I took a deep breath and made a light outline of her face.I swallowed
THREE MONTHS LATER…*MALIYAH*“He just got here.”I announced to the others and we quickly took out positions.As soon as Ben walked into the house,we turned on the lights and yelled.“SURPRISE!”“HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!”We began to sing for him.I knew he won’t be overly thrilled but he tried his best to look thrilled.He had said before he’d prefer spending his birthday with just me.But I wanted him to be surrounded by other people,to know more people found him amazing.In attendance were Logan,Leah,Timothy,Miles,Simon,Madam Valentina,my mom and Aunt FeliciaI could his smile fade as he saw Madam Valentina and I quickly walked up to him,whispering and warning him not to chase her away.He had been talking into forgiving my mom but he won’t forgive his grandmother.He always says what his Grandma did was unforgivable but she was remorseful about it and I felt that was all that matters now.Not that things were back to the way they were with my mom,I was still pretty wary of her but she
*MALIYAH*I moved in with Ben that day because I just couldn’t spend another day away from him.The following day,I got to the office super late.It had been hard for Ben and I to go our separate ways to work this morning.He had dropped me off at the front of Mobilotech and it was another struggle to get down from his car.He had to walk me into the company’s lobby hand in hand and we eventually let go of each other,promising each other that we would close from work early.“Look who finally decided to show up.”Timothy teased when I walked into his office to submit some documents to him.“I’m sorry…I was stuck in traffic.”That made him laugh,because it was an obvious lie.“My God,look at you,you’re glowing.You two are so in love.I was watching from my window…he practically walked you into the company,I thought he might just start work here because of you.”I laughed.”I’m missing him already.Tim,can I close early today?”“No.”He chuckled.“Please…”“Maliyah,look at the time…you’re very
“You’re always in my head.”He said to me.I was going to go up in flames.“You’re in my blood.”I let out a shaky breath as he continued thrusting into me with the vibrator.“You’re in every one of my fucking veins.”Oh I needed him,I needed him right now.“Ben…Ben…wait…I need…I need your cock.”I panted,trying to control the movements of my hips to prevent myself from coming.“I want you inside of me when I come.”I murmured.He grinned at me.I gasped as the bulbous head slid from me.He knelt on the bed,positioning himself between my legs,nudging my legs wide with his powerful hair roughened thighs.I tried to catch my breath as I looked up at him,I tried to calm the thundering of my heart,the roar in my ears, but all I wanted was to feel his weight on me…in me.He was poised against me,I could feel him.One push and he’d be inside me.He leaned down over me, his legs opening me wider,his forearms resting next to my head as he looked straight down into my eyes.His jaw flexed before h
*MALIYAH*I tried to ease my tensed muscles,to calm the erratic breathing,the roaring of my blood,but only managed to gasp again as he rocked back and forth once more.“It’s okay.”He groaned.”Relax”I swallowed at the blunt pressure,squeezed my eyes shut and tried to do just that.I shifted my hips a little on the bed in a futile effort to ease his way, for a better angle,to help alleviate the feeling of fullness.“Easy.”He ground out.I was holding myself taut in anticipation of his next retreat and entry.I could feel it,but my muscles wound tighter,nerves strung taut.My body just wouldn’t cooperate.It felt as if he was breaking into me all over again.He moved completely out of me and I quickly held his hand.“No…please…don’t stop.I…I just…it’s been awhile since I…”I paused,not sure if I should talk about the men I had tried to be with in London.“I don’t want to hear about your sex experience with other men.”He informed me,calmly.“Does that make you love me less?”I asked,my heart
*BENNETT*“Kiss me,Ben…please.”She urged,pulling her face close to mine.I caressed her gently in my arms.She was warm and soft.I lowered my head and molded my lips to hers.Fuck!I ran my tongue over her lips and between them.I groaned at the shaft of heat that arrowed down right into my cock and tightened my balls.I dipped my tongue inside her mouth,once,twice, a third time before I pulled sharply back.God I had been avoiding kissing or touching her,because I knew that would wear off the tiny bit of resistant I had left.I took a deep breath in a futile effort to stem the rapid thud in my heart and fight the urge to kiss her again.But when she rubbed herself against me,I gave in again.I pressed my lips against hers.Maliyah nibbled along my bottom lip,used her tongue to taste the shape of my mouth.The soft,tentative moments caused a curl in my gut.I felt her soft breath fan out against my mouth as she pulled back and that sigh was my undoing.Before I had the time to think about
*MALIYAH*It’s a Saturday morning and I awoke without Ben in bed.I knew he wasn’t going to work today.Running my hand through my hair,I walked out of the bedroom and went in search for him.I found him at the gym.I leaned against the door as I watched him do some exercises.I nibbled my lower lip watching him do some pulls up.He was bare chested and his muscles bulged with his every movement.I squeezed my thighs together feeling hot and bothered.Oh God,I wanted him to touch me so bad.I stood there,watching until he was done.When he started to gulp down a bottle of water,I finally walked in,trying to keep my hands to myself.“I might just take you by force,Mr Graham.I don’t know how long I can resist this temptation.”I said to him.I could see he was trying hard not to smile.God,how much longer was he going to make me chase him?Not that I was tired of chasing him but I wish he could just give in a bit.He clearly was still very much attracted to me and he’s equally been trying
*MALIYAH*Things were pretty messy at the office that day.With so many calls,the news of him coming out was pretty scandalous,because it also had to do with a divorce.People were throwing shades,saying whatever they felt about the whole thing but Timothy was unbothered.I could tell he wasn’t fully unbothered though.He loved his family and it would make him happy if they accepted him.But he didn’t really care about what the public thought though.He felt people who didn’t know him personally had no right to judge him.Hell,he had even set up a date with Miles.Miles seemed to like him too but was still pretty hurt by Timothy’s rejection in high school so he was currently playing hard to get.I hope they could get back together soon.At the close of work,I walked out of the office,excited to go see Ben.I frowned seeing someone else at the receptionist stand.My mom.The receptionist had called earlier that she wanted to see me but I had specifically told her to send this woman away.
*MALIYAH*Since he might not come down for dinner,I’ll bring it up to him.I dished out the meals and headed upstairs with the tray.Getting to his bedroom,I walked in to finding him pulling on a sweatpants.“Jesus!”He seemed,startled.”Why are you still here?”“Let’s eat together and get some sleep.”I announced,setting down the tray.When I turned to face him,he was covering his bare chest with a robe.“You could’ve at least knocked.I could’ve been naked.”He lashed out.I laughed.”So?Well now that you mentioned it,I want to see all of you…I’ve missed seeing you.”I purred and started walking up to him.He walked back.”What is wrong with you?Where the hell is Timothy?I thought I heard the sound of a car.”“He knows I belong here.”“You don’t belong anywhere near me.Get out.”“I don’t want to.”I backed him against the wall.Oh how the tables had turned.He used to be the one chasing after me.Not that I mind being in this position right now.It’s actually quite fun.“Maliyah,go home.Stop
“I don’t care what happens to me now.I just want to be with him.”“Then don’t give up.Don’t give up on him.He needs someone.He needs love.He’s just scared to say he needs you.You have to show him that he doesn’t need to be scared,okay?”I nodded.”Thank you,Emily.I should have come see you sooner.”She hugged me,tightly.”Thanks for being alive,Maliyah.Drew will be so happy knowing you found your way back to Ben.”I sobbed into her arms.A sound came from the door and I lifted up my head to see a boy and a girl walking in,obviously returning from school.I wiped my cheeks as I stared at them.“Aiden has gotten so much bigger.”I cooed.“He’ll be thirteen in a few days.”“Mommy.”The little girl ran up to her and hugged her.“How was school,baby?”“It was fine.I learnt a poem.”“This is Ava.”Emily introduced.”I was pregnant with her when Drew…passed.”Oh.I hope Charlotte rots in hell.“Hello.”Aiden beamed at me,politely.“Aiden,this is Ben’s wife.”And then he frowned.”I thought she…”“It