Chapter 5

{Amaka's POV}

I continued with the rest of the day, working and feeling Simon's gaze on me.

*Why was he looking at me?* I pondered but did not ask him.

My phone rang; I unlocked it and saw that Maureen was the one calling me. She would have taken Jason to school, but I did not want to chat with her about Jason here.

Feeling Simon's scrutinising gaze on me, and the fact that Joseph was in his office monitoring me, made me uncomfortable.

"Hello, dear. I will call you back later," I told Maureen, and she replied, "Okay."

I looked at Simon; he frowned and looked away. I did not understand the reason for his frown, but then I heard the buzzer sound.

"It's break time," Simon informed me, and I sighed. "Okay."

I turned off my laptop and stood from my chair. "I believe we will be going to the cafeteria, right?" I asked Simon as he rose from his chair.

"Yes. Or you can request your meal here," he said, and I responded, "Fine. I am still new, so I will go to the cafeteria."

I exited Simon's office, sucking in a deep breath of fresh air, as I was not under surveillance.

My day had been ruined by meeting my baby's father.

*How do I tell him that we have a child? How can Joseph claim not to know me? Was four years too long to forget someone?*

I tried not to sob as I walked ahead to the elevator to go down to the second floor.

As I arrived at the elevator, I entered and looked back, seeing Joseph step out of his office.

My heart skipped a beat, and I looked away from him, wanting to shut the door and leave, but the security man told me to wait.

"Hmm." My eyes narrowed at the security man as Joseph came into the elevator and joined me in going down to the second floor. We did not speak to each other.

A female staff member was in the elevator with us, and she was nervous to be in the same elevator as the boss.

Joseph had grown taller than the last time I saw him. As much as I tried to look away from him, my eyes still travelled to linger on him. He spared me no glance. How ruthless.

Joseph walked out of the elevator with measured strides, maintaining his stance as he entered the second-floor hallway. The security men greeted him as he stopped to speak with the two men, but I marched away, feeling upset that I was being ignored.

My year of being pregnant. Going through that journey alone. The fact that my parents sent me away.

I wanted to confront Joseph about this; he cannot pretend he does not know me.

I moved over to the counter and requested my meal. They served free lunch, and I requested a plate of jollof rice and fried chicken lap. It was one of my favourites.

As I turned to take a seat in the cafeteria, I saw Joseph looking at me. He looked away as my eyes met his.

I saw that look of longing in Joseph's eyes. He was lost for a moment, as though he were admiring me. He looked away and moved from the security man he was speaking with and went to take his seat.

I sat two chairs away from Joseph's seat, but his eyes were on me. Each time I looked at him, he gazed away.

A waitress went to meet Joseph to serve him lunch; I did not know they had waitresses. Most of the staff did not wait to be served and went to request their meals.

As I sat alone, lost in my thoughts, I decided to speak to Maureen about this before I confronted Joseph again. He might have moved on, I guessed, as he had been obsessed with sex.

Joseph wanted to sleep with me until I gave in, but he changed after that night.

"Hi, may I join you for lunch?" Simon asked, snapping me out of my trance. I could feel Joseph's gaze on us, and likewise some other men in the cafeteria.

Many staff were coming in and going out. The space was vast.

"Sure," I told Simon, and he sat across from me.

"How do you enjoy the meal?" he asked, and I smiled.

"It's nice," I replied, feeling Joseph's gaze on us.

"Okay, I am glad that you like it. So can I get your phone number to call you after closing time?" Simon asked, and I looked at his face.

"Why? I don't need any calls," I replied, and he grinned.

"It's just a harmless call to check up on my colleague. Nothing else," Simon said, and I smiled at him.

"Alright. I will think about it. Maybe when we get back to the office, I will give you my phone to put your number in," I told him, and he grinned.

"Alright." Simon waved to the waitress to bring him lunch, and he ordered the same food as mine.

We sat there eating, and I finished my meal and rose to return to my office.

I could still feel Joseph's gaze on me, and I tried not to look at him.

I exited the cafeteria and went back to Simon's office to sit in my chair. My mind filled with thoughts.

I resumed my office work, helping the company advertise their new products online. I finished with all the new products available and signed out. I picked up my phone and signed into my son's account.

I looked at Jason's photos and videos and recalled Joseph denying me, claiming he does not know me.

I did not apply much makeup to my face, so why can Joseph not remember?

Simon came into the office, and I signed out of my son's profile. I kept my phone in my bag and waited until 5 p.m., when the company closes.

It was not a new company after all. I had thought they were just starting, but it was a branch of their main head office on the Island.

I thought about Maureen putting my son in a school and her going back to her husband's house the next day.

They had gotten married, since Chris had paid her dowry, remaining the church wedding.

Maureen was not obsessed with the church wedding, so she wanted to go and live with her husband since he had invited her over.

She would be packing her bags tomorrow, and I did not know if I should tell her about my trouble or not.

~~~~~

It was closing hour; Simon rose from his desk and came over to meet me.

"Hi, I haven't forgotten to ask for your phone number," Simon said. I agreed and collected his phone.

I gave him my number, and he told me he would call tonight. I shook my head, picked up my black handbag, and fled the office.

As I got out, Joseph was not in sight, so I made my way into the elevator and descended to the last floor.

I left the building, looking around the parking area and seeing only three cars there.

I sighed, looked forward, and exited the premises. I hailed a cab, got in and went back home.