5. Nanny Therese

"See why you can't tell your mum?"

"O my god!" Amber screamed quietly. "So you remember him now?"

"Maybe."

"What do you mean maybe?"

"I don't remember his face full on, you know."

"So what do you remember?"

"Doesn't matter. I mean it's not like I plan on ever seeing him again, what happened that night was a mistake, and if I ever see him I'll be embarrassed, I swear and mad too."

"Are you crazy?" Amber asked Victoria, surprised at her words."you almost had a one night stand with a rich guy like that and you say it doesn't matter? what doesn't matter, you tell me."

"Everything Amber. Every goddamn thing! For starters, I was drunk as hell that night, and who knows this guy might be married, probably has kids, can we stop talking about all of this."

"No we can't. You can't just assume he has kids, chances are he doesn't and doesn't have a wife also, if we start basing this in probability." Amber said making Victoria sigh, knowing she couldn't win an argument against Amber. She couldn't even win an argument against anyone and most time, people outside termed her more gentle than Amber,only if they knew it was because she's never good at arguments and do avoided them.

"Look Tori, for once in like a million years, you finally have a man in your head again, I'm not letting you throw it off, even if you don't have chances with him, leave it in your memory, don't go throwing it out; I mean you could date him up here."Amber said pointing towards her friends temple.

"When you say it like that ‘a million years’"Victoria made air quotes with her fingers and they both laughed.

"Seriously though, don't get rid of thoughts about him."

"What are you now, a love doctor?" Victoria said and they laughed again.

**********

"Sir, I don't think we can go through this road" The driver said not speaking to Jake nor his assistant specifically. Drew opened the window to look outside. He shook his head negatively.

"Sir, he's right, would be hard to go 

through the road." Drew said to Jake.

"What do you mean? Can we go through or it would be hard to?" Jake asked in a tone that made it hard for Drew to determine his mood.

"It would be hard to." Drew replied nevertheless.

"Let's keep moving then." Jake said with finality in his voice.

The convoy paved through the hilly road and drew couldn't help wonder how important this woman was to his boss.

Jake sat up as the car finally came to a halt. There were now at the house which he planned on visiting. He stepped out of the car.

"Sir?!"Drew also hurried out of the car, it had began to drizzle. One of the men from the other car ran up to him with an umbrella, taking it, Drew put it over his bosses head. Jake was taller, so he had to stand on his toes.

Jake just stood looking at the house.It was a bungalow, it's paint was faded,but the colourful flowers at the entrance gave it a welcoming look. Jake's lips curved upward a little.

'was he smiling?' Drew couldn't believe it. His boss had this rare smile on his lips. If he wasn't witnessing this right now and Evans had told him that Jake smiled, he wouldn't believe it. Jake started towards the house and Drew followed while trying to hold up the umbrella.

Jake knocked on the door still smiling, while Drew tried cleaning the drops of water on his bosses suit jacket with a handkerchief.

"Who's there?" A feminine voice came from behind the door. Jake didn't say anything. He wanted to surprise her. The door opened.The woman gasped while holding her chest.

"Boy!"She hugged him tightly and Jake hugged back.

Drew just stood surprised as they hugged for a while. He took some time to look at her; she was old, maybe in her 50's. Was she the one, who his boss went through all this trouble for?from the hotel to the bad roads.

"You came." She said in a shaky voice, like she was crying. Breaking her hug from Jake, Drew could see that she was actually crying.

"I told you I would, didn't I?"Jake said holding her face in his hands.

"Well, come in son, how was your trip?" She said walking inside the house.

'Horrible." Drew said to himself.

"Adventurous." He heard Jake say.

"Adventurous?are you sure? I mean this part of the town's denigrated." She said walking to another room in the house, while both Jake and Drew both sat down.

"Here."she came back with a tray and two glasses of juice In them.

"Why did you....."Jake couldn't finish his words as he stood and took the tray from her.

"Don't do that son, how old do you think I've gotten."She said laughing as she now sat opposite to drew.

"70?" Jake answered even though he knew it was rhetorical question, which made her laugh more.

"73" She said stretching her legs more comfortably on a small stool.

Drew's eyes widened. She didn't look 73. How could she still walk? Who was she even? For once, he didn't have a clue on who his boss was meeting.

"You don't have someone to help around?" Jake had to ask, he didn't like how she had to be the one to bring the drinks herself. He sat and picked up the glass, drinking it and drew knew he was in for more surprises today, because his boss never ate or drank anything outside.

"Don't need one."She said smiling. She was still pretty even at her age." Is your friend allergic to pineapple juice?" She asked referring to Drew.

"I'm actually his assistant." Drew said after his boss stared at him with those unreadable eyes. He picked up the second glass and took a sip." Thanks" He smiled.

"What do you mean you don't need one, what about your granddaughter."

"You remember her?"The old lady was surprised at Jake.

"Of course I do, I carried her a lot." Jake chuckled lightly.

"She on the other side of town, living with her friend. Her career demands it, don't judge her for not staying with grandma." she smiled and Jake didn't want to press it further.

*******

Back at the Clayton's.

"Hurry up Tori!, It's starting to drizzle." Amber yelled out to Victoria who had gone back inside to get her purse.

"See even the weather doesn't want us to leave the house." Victoria said seeing it was drizzling.

"We could make it, look at you, making no effort to go visit ur grandma." Amber opened the umbrella above her head and went out to get a cab, while Victoria just watched her from the verandah.

Amber stood there, waving whenever she thought she saw a cab coming, but it would turn out to be a private car. She didn't want to give up; wanting so badly to prove to Victoria that the weather had nothing to do with them visiting her grandma.

Suddenly the rain increased, pouring down like it hadn't rained for years meanwhile it rained just yesterday. Amber had no choice but to run back to the verandah, as she was now fighting with the wind over her umbrella and Victoria just stood there watching with an 'i told you so' expression on her face.

Victoria quickly shut the door to the house as they both went back inside. Victoria took off her coat with a smirk on her face.

"Yeah, Keep smiling, it's not fair you know." Amber said looking at disappointed.

"She'll understand, it's pouring out there." Victoria replied as she went to the kitchen and Amber followed.

"She lied to you fine, it's been years girl, can't believe you're still angry at your grandma, she's your grandma for crying out loud!"

"Whoever said I'm angry with her " Victoria said handing her a cup of hot tea while she made hers.

"Do you know how horrible you are at lying?" Amber placed the tea on the table, folding her ams.

"I'm not angry with her I swearrr!" Victoria stressed and walked pass her friend with her own cup of tea.

"Really?"

"Yesss." Victoria now sat at the dinning room, sipping her tea after replying Amber. She could feel Amber's stare on her, raising her eyes only still sipping the tea,she saw her actually staring. She sighed, then dropped the cup.

"Look she lied to me, almost my whole life and trust me, I'm not mad about that,the problem's she won't give me the answers I want, you know she knows she just won't tell me anything because she knows I can't get the answers I need myself even if I try." Victoria said almost sobbing.

"And you think leaving her house and not speaking to her will help matters?"

"I do call her to check up on her." Victoria defended and all Amber could do was sigh.

"Come on, she's an old woman living alone in the worst part of this town and the least you could do is visit her." Amber said softly.

"I know. It's just....I don't know, it's hard to go visit her all smiley knowing she knows and is just been stubborn." Victoria replied pouting.

"We visit her tommorow ok?, it's the last free time we have before we return to the modelling house, agreed?"

"Ok." Her reply was simple,she knew she couldn't argue with Amber.

"If you guys are done talking, could you make dinner, I'm hungry."Mrs Clayton said and they both turned to the direction of the voice.

"We could be in nana Therese's, eating porridge, you know." Amber whispered to Victoria, and they both giggled.

*******

"Nanny Therese?" Jake called to her from the kitchen, a knitted apron round his waist, he had taken off his suit jacket, and Drew wasn't surprised anymore about his boss being in the kitchen; he had offered to help but his boss asked him to help her tidy around.

The house wasn't scattered,but anyone who entered it could detect that an old woman lived here, and though she was strong at her age, she was old afterall.

"Yes son." She answered from the living room.

"The salt's finished, anymore?"

"Oh, I'll come get it." She said standing.

"No don't, just tell me where it is,I'll get it." Jake came out to kitchen's entrance where he could see she wasn't coming like she said.

"Ok, look to the left corner of the room, you'll see a sack, there's some items my granddaughter got me last time she was here, there should be some salt in there."

"Ok, don't get up ok." He said to her before returning to the kitchen.

"If you spoil me like this,how I'm I going to be able to lift a finger when you leave?" He heard her ask him.

"You won't have to, I promise" He replied her and she laughed loudly.

"You plan to stay and take care of me till I die?, I'm not dying soon you know, I think I still have few more years to go." With that he didn't have a reply for her, so he just kept mute and so did drew.

*********

Heyy, it's your author geni. Please note that everything written here is nothing but fiction.Please vote as you read, comment your thoughts and don't forget to leave a review, I am very open to constructive criticism. I'm on all socials as @genika3na.