The land phone and his cell phone went off at the same time in his office. Sosanya Nathaniel ignored the less important one and picked up his cellphone due to the name it showed. It was one of the men he'd hired to help him look for a woman, a young woman of about twenty - eight with the name, Lillian and with a tattoo on her left arm.
So far, there hadn't been any tangible result but he hoped there would as he picked up the phone. "Yes? Any news?"
"We saw Lillian and the tattoo was boldly written," the man reported from the other end.
At that, hope soared in him. "What's written? LillyNath?" Nath asked after a swallow. He was really anxious.
"No."
Nath's head fell into his other palm. His hope went down the drain. "Then, what?" He was struggling to keep calm. He had told these men all they needed to look for. He couldn't help but think they are the dumbest spies ever.
"My one love," the voice in the phone said .
Nath hissed hard and flared up. "One love, ten loves, I don't give a damn! I have already told you every detail you need to know. If you have none of that, then get off the phone, please," he managed not to shout his last word and waited for the man to hang up.
"God," he muttered and the land phone went off again. He picked the receiver and put it in his ear. "Yes. Okay, let her come in," he said and retrieved the receiver back to its holder.
Two knocks sounded on the door and he gazed up as he answered, "Come in."
A lady walked in with a broad smile and went to sit before him. "Hello," she greeted. "I'm Dorcas."
Nathaniel nodded. "Yeah, I know. The advert's model. You've been settled, right?" he asked.
Dorcas nodded with a seductive smile.
"Do you need anything else, then?" he inquired.
"Not really," she answered as he leaned backward against his seat with a furrowed brow. "I'm just hoping I can treat you to dinner tonight," she offered. She was obviously interested in him and she wasn't the type to make it vague.
Nath seemed to notice that as well with the way she talked and moved on her seat, but ignored them all. He was in no mood to flirt. " Well, thank you but I won't be available tonight. I have loads of work on my desk and by the time I finished, I would have been too tired and would want to go home straight away," he explained.
"Oh! I guess I'm disappointed," Dorcas said shamefully with her head down.
Nath leaned forward and put his hands on his desk. He didn't want to make her feel bad, so he said, "Don't be. You can treat me next time or let's do it this way, since I let you down today, I'll be the one to treat you next time. How about that?"
She laughed briefly. "Okay, then. Shall we fix the date on Saturday evening?"
He nodded. "Okay. See you, then," he said and she rose up and went outside.
***
Lillian and Dorcas went shopping on a Thursday afternoon. Dorcas had told her that she had a date on Saturday and needed her help to choose the best dress for the date.
Her friend had agreed and now, they were there with Dorcas changing from one dress to another before settling on a purple one.
"Lillian," Dorcas called and she looked at her side as the cashier rang their items up and they paid with Dorcas's debit card. "Why don't you follow me to meet him?" she suggested as they walked outside the mall.
"Hello, there," a young man approached them and greeted them.
"Hi," the two friends answered and made the attempt to continue walking,but were stopped by the man's voice.
"Hold on, please. My name is Richard. May I know your names?" Richard introduced.
Dorcas smiled. "I am Dorcas and she is — Ouch! Why did you match me with your shoe?"
"Sorry, Richard. We really have to go. Bye," Lillian said and held her friend's hands, then walked out. "Don't you ever try to tell my name to strangers," she scolded.
"Whatever! So, will you follow me to meet the guy?" Dorcas went back to their previous discussion.
"That won't be proper. You might need some privacy, y'know?" Lillian replied as she opened the door to her car and entered.
"Come on, Lillian. You know you can always tell who a person is just by looking. Help me again, please. I don't want another heartbreak," Dorcas pleaded.
"Okay, okay, fine," she said amidst laughter, her palms on the steering wheel. "If he won't mind, I'll be there. Text me the address and I'll meet you there," she said. Sometimes, her best friend treated her as if she was some fortune teller
"Thank you very much."
"You're welcome. You know I can do anything for your happiness," Lillian said with a charming smile. "Who's this guy, anyway?" She asked. She didn't even know the lucky man she was talking about.
"Wait till you meet him,babe," Dorcas replied and they laughed.
Lilly ignited her car after telling her friend to fasten her seat belt and drove off.
***
"I guess it took you so long to find this restaurant," Nathaniel said to Dorcas as she arrived. He'd been there for a while.
"I'm sorry, I'm late," Dorcas apologized and took her seat. "Have you been here for long?" she asked.
"Quite a while, I guess," Nath answered and signaled to a waiter to take their order. He ordered for the two of them after asking her what she would love to have.
Dorcas couldn't help not staring at the waiter. He was quite tall, fit and way too handsome for her. Her gaze followed him to the counter as he gave the order to the lady there who started getting plates and all.
"Hey, Dorcas," Nath called and she intentionally glanced around the room which made him smile. He knew what was going on in her mind but it wasn't his business. It was not like he got anything to do with her other than the compensating dinner which was mainly because he turned her down the other day. He wanted nothing from her.
How could she be swayed so easily by another man when there's one before her? She loved the one before her or so she thought. What else did she want? She didn't get why she was drawn to the waiter, though. It couldn't be his looks because Nath got the better looks.
"Are you looking for someone?" he asked.
"Huh? Actually, yes. My friend will be joining us soon. The one I told you will be here," Dorcas uttered.
"Okay. What's her name, by the way?" Nath asked.
"Huh? Her name is — Um...." Lillian was the type who didn't tell her real name to strangers, so she should make one up. "Zeece. That's her name," she lied. Did that name make sense? Zeece? Who bears that name? She just hoped it would not end up being the name of an animal because she just voiced it as it popped up in her mind.
"Zeece?" Nath asked in confirmation. He was obviously confused. "What does that mean? Sorry to say, but it sounds weird," he said in withal.
Meaning? What meaning could she give the name? Well, Lillian was an epitome of beauty. That should be a hint. "It means 'Beauty'," Dorcas formed.
"Okay. That's nice," he complimented.
Lillian got to the address she was given and watched in shock as she saw the man Dorcas was talking about. The man she had told her she loved. They were both sitting by the huge transparent glass window of the restaurant. The screen gave a clear view of the inside of the place.
She looked from her best friend to Nathaniel. She couldn't bring herself to go in. She had promised herself that the first time she met him would be the day she would show him the inscription on her arm if he happened not to recognize her. But she couldn't and wouldn't be able to do that now.
She decided it would be better to just leave.
*****
GUYS, HOPE YOU ARE ENJOYING THIS BOOK BECAUSE I REALLY AM. I LIKE WHERE THIS IS GOING.
So, what do you think about this? Do you think she would leave? What would you do if you were in her shoes? Don't hesitate to let me know in the comment section and do not forget our reviews.
NOTE: ZEECE & NESTER ARE NOT REAL NAMES. I FORMED THEM MYSELF. Lol...
She decided it would be better to just leave, but as she looked at her best friend for what she supposed to be the last time before she started leaving, she met her smiling face as she waved and gestured for her to come in. She obeyed unwillingly as she braced herself and walked towards the entrance."Hello, there," she greeted with a smile as she made her seat beside Dorcas.
Lillian stirred awake, imbued with the flow of adrenaline in her car. She had fallen asleep there after leaving the restaurant. Was that a dream? Had she been dreaming? What kind of a dream was that? It seemed so real.She heard another knock and looked at the windscreen beside her. There was a man in cop uniform standing and looking through the untainted screen at her. She wound it down and saluted the
Dorcas opened the bottle and poured the glasses to halves."How could you be so comfortable at a time like this? What kind of a lady does that?" he questioned.
"Yes, I do. She's Zeece, Dorcas's friend."All glimmers of hope went down the drain for Grace. Even Lillian buried her face in her palms. Shocked, Grace exclaimed, "What! What did you just call her name?" She looked from Nath to her daughter who was quiet and she could tell she understood what was going on.
"Let's go to the canteen together, Lillian," Dorcas said in her friend's huge office the next morning."Yeah, let me round up," Lilian said as she worked in her system.
Nath got home, took off his clothes, showered and went downstairs into his living room. He turned on his large plasma TV and switched the channel to BBN show on his DSTV.He loved watching the show, but looking at it now, he could only see. He could not figure out a word out of what they were saying. His mind had traveled so far that it was hard to drive himself back to the present.
Lillian finished cooking for her father and set the table for him. She hummed and moved her body from side to side. She was listening to Me and love don't get along by Tatiana Manaios in her headset.The volume was so loud that she did not hear the footsteps of her father as he came into the dining room. She had come to spend the weekend with him, just like the old days. Even though it had been a while since he visited her f
Her father was surprised to hear that from her. That was not the first time she had told him that. The first time, he had overlooked it because he thought she was joking, but now that she mentioned it again, he could not help being surprised."Only Nath?" He knew who Nath was. She had told him about him several times. He knew every story behind the two of them till the present moment. "That boy tha