Throughout the rest of the day, Mara lived in suspense. Whenever she heard any footsteps, she started in fear, thinking it was Leo's wife come to throw her out of the house or Leo himself coming to ask her to leave.
Earlier in the morning, after fixing her with her worst withering glare, Leo's wife had left her alone and she had not seen her since. She knew she was somewhere in the house. God knows the house was large enough for many people to live in it and still not come in regular contact with one another. But she had seen Leo and despite trying so hard to see if his manner towards her had changed, she could not find any proof of it. Instead, he had eagerly asked about her health and went on to play with the baby after she had repeatedly assured him that she did not need to see a doctor. He seemed happy to have her in the house and he and little Leo (she had decided to keep it as the baby's name) were strongly attached to each other. This made Mara wonder when or if his wife would ever express her displeasure at having them in the house. Not that she had received any guarantee from Leo himself that she was welcome to stay, but she had seen enough of his kindness and good sense to know that he wouldn't throw her out if she had nowhere to go. And she was sure that he knew she was homeless and helpless, even though she had not told him anything about it. Somehow, they had this mutual understanding of each other.The dreaded blow eventually came on the morning of the next day. After breakfast and breastfeeding little Leo, her host came to see her personally. He was as happy and solicitous as usual and played and laughed with the baby for so long that Mara was beginning to think that her stay in the house was guaranteed for now, but eventually, he asked to have a little talk with her. Mara's heart sank.Struggling to breathe evenly, she composed herself and prepared to meet the inevitable blow. Leo began by clearing his throat."Ahem. You see, I've thought about it and I think it would do you a world of good if you and Leo were to move to a more conducive environment. This place usually... um... I mean, it gets crowded sometimes and... and a lot of people come to visit... and it could be very noisy, you know."Mara nodded as if she really knew. But in fact, her heart was pounding like a jackhammer."So I think you should go to somewhere better," Leo continued, his confidence boosted by her apparent agreement. "I have already seen to the arrangements, so all you have to do is um... go there. It's a really beautiful place, small and warm. In fact, I'm sure you'll like it.""Thank you very much," Mara croaked with tears in her eyes. She would have loved to give him much greater thanks, but she could not trust herself to not break down in tears. Ha! She would not be thrown out after all. Even though she knew that the idea to move her to a new place was certainly his wife's, she appreciated the manner in which he had expressed it to her - with so much care and concern. Christ, she loved this man!**********It had taken a while before Mara and her baby finally moved into the new place. Leo himself had driven them there. That was the first time Mara had a view of the compound and its occupants. It was grander than anything she had ever imagined and it was clear that Leo owned it all.
The large number of staff she saw, many of which looked like bodyguards, as Leo led her out of the house was nothing short of shocking to her. She never thought so many people could work in one compound. Her father was the richest man she had ever known, but he seemed like a pauper compared to Leo. Everywhere she turned, there was someone anticipating their needs and there were several others bowing to Leo. She loved that he was nice and warm to all of them and it only made her love him more than ever. Christ, she wished she was his... his sister. She couldn't dare imagine herself to be his... his... Christ, she couldn't even think of the word. He was already married, even though he was clearly a young man, and she could only imagine what his wife would do to her if she found out the kind of thoughts that were going through her mind.Eventually, they had gotten into a car the like of which Mara had never seen in her life. But despite all the people around, Leo himself got her and the baby into the passenger side before getting into the driver side and she overheard him rejecting a suggestion from one of the men around that he should be allowed to drive them. This was the first time Mara had seen Leo come close to something like anger. Obviously, the man had made the suggestion before and clearly, it had been rejected, and he was making it again, to the chagrin of his boss. Just what rich guy would personally drive a homeless girl when he had so many people available to do it? This was a question Mara couldn't help but ask herself. Obviously, Leo was one in a million. And again, she wished she could be his... Oh Lord.After Leo had taken her to the new house, which was a small bungalow in a semi-rural area, nice and warm, with fields all around, he had decided to hire a maid for her, but Mara begged him not to do it. He had already done so much for her - a total stranger. If he did too much more, his wife could find out about it and there would certainly be trouble. She didn't tell him all this, but he seemed to understand in that queer way they understood each other. Before he left, he showed her around the house, pointed out the fact that everything she needed was available and if she ever needed anything else, she should simply call him. Mara was grateful beyond words, but she could only thank him with words. She wished she could hug him, but that would be going too far. If only she was his wife, she wouldn't have to worry about that, would she?Over the next few days, Leo came by often on his way to work to check on her and play with the baby. It was on one of those visits that he hinted at getting a job for her in case she felt the need to do something when Leo got old enough for pre-school. Mara seized the opportunity immediately. She was so glad to be of use. That was how she ended up working for him as a secretarial assistant which was in fact a fancy word for office messenger. But neither of them could ever have imagined what lay ahead for both of them, especially Leo."Sh... should I take this one back to them?", the new secretarial assistant stuttered in confusion.Leo said nothing; he simply turned to her with an "are you okay" look on his face. This was the office and the familiarity between them was for the house alone."Sorry. I'm sorry, sir," she apologized, gathering the papers with trembling hands and dropping them on the floor in the process. It was her first day on the job - her first job ever - and she was so nervous."Will you pack this stuff and take your clumsy ass out of here!", Marks roared, startling her and nearly making her trip. But Leo raised his hand immediately to quiet his friend.One fuming and the other patient, they both watched as the trembling Mara struggled to gather the sheets of paper on the ground. When she was done, she held them to her chest and bolted from the office as fast as her legs could carry her.Marks exhaled deeply as soon as she'd left the office. He had been holding onto his temper all the time she had
Leo hummed a tune as he brushed his teeth vigorously. He was late for work and he was so much in a hurry. Being late was not his usual MO but somehow, he had overslept last night. So much that Dalia who usually went to work after he did had already left before he woke up."Hmm," he sniffed as the bell on the front door rang for the second time. Wouldn't someone go answer whoever the hell was ringing??He continued brushing until... the third ring of the bell. This time, it was long and obviously anger-driven. Furious at the inefficiency of the domestic staff, Leo slammed his brush on the sink and hurriedly washed his mouth before rushing over to the front door. He expected to see one of the staff also rushing to open the door, but none of them were in sight! What mad inefficiency and stupidity! He would give them a piece of his mind before leaving for work this morning."Yes?", Leo questioned almost angrily as he pulled open the door to find a young man in a ironed white shirt standin
Leo made himself comfortable, or at least he tried to. To avoid suspicion, he ordered a cheap drink with a part of the money he had on him - currently the only thing he had in the world. Even though he shifted anxiously in his seat just outside the coffee shop, he was determined to wait patiently till he achieved his goal. He tried not to think of his current predicament; it was a conspiracy or maybe just a huge misunderstanding. Maybe his friend, Marks, had not seen him and was mocking someone else. No matter which it was, it would be fixed. He was sure of that.Even when he had finished his coffee, Leo kept sipping at the empty cup to give him enough excuse to remain in the shop. He certainly would not dare to buy another cup of coffee, not till he was sure of his future. Hour after hour passed. He had no watch, but the clock in the shop served him well and when noon struck, he kept all his attention on the building - his building.The staff filed out in pairs and trios, to enjoy th
He was deep in thought as he climbed off the taxi, planning and arranging his next line of action. He knew that his enemies were determined to put him down and keep him there. With all that had happened, it was clear that this was no warning or a dry run either. Whew! What a tough life.Absentmindedly, he pushed the gate so he could get in, but to his surprise it didn't budge. Woah. He didn't remember locking it, so what was the problem? With a quick sweep of the eye, he found what the problem was: he had been evicted."Huh?", Leo gasped as he went closer to read the notice pasted on the gate. What on Earth was all this? Surely, this had to be against some laws? He had rights, didn't he??He looked around to see if he could find anybody who could give the slightest clue as to who had pasted the notice and locked the gate, but the entire place was quiet. Christ! This was the biggest blow yet. Where would he live? From a billionaire to a homeless beggar, in less than 24 hours?Confused,
"Please make yourself comfortable, sir," Mara said, showing Leo to a sofa as they stepped into the house he had given her back when they first met."Thank you," Leo nodded with a smile and he couldn't help but sigh in tiredness as he slumped on the soft piece of furniture. That walk from his house to the coffee shop was a long and tedious one under the hot sun. He could use some cool water now, but he felt it would be disrespectful to ask for it so soon."Here, sir," Mara said, bringing him a glass of cold water in anticipation of his need.Leo didn't even remember to say 'thank you' before he grabbed the glass and downed its contents in a few gulps. He was that thirsty! When he was done drinking, he looked up to find that Mara was holding out a jug, offering to refill the glass."Thank you," he rasped as he held out the glass to her and she filled it for him. Whew. His wife never did this for him. He wondered where Mara had learned to be so nice and attentive. He never really did get
Leo walked fast, casting his eyes all around him at the quiet and peaceful environment. It was very much unlike the city. No noise, no crowd of constantly moving people, vehicles and stationary buildings. It was all sunny, calm and quiet with the occasional chirping of insects and birds. This was why he had chosen this spot to have a secret retreat. He had been looking forward to surprise his wife with it before Mara came into their lives and he had to put that plan on hold. Good thing he did. If his wife had known of the house, he would have lost it too and both he and Mara would have been completely homeless now.Shading his eyes to see better through the glaring sunlight, he caught sight of a house up ahead. It was a house on a farm. It would do for what he had in mind. Doubling his steps, he made straight for the building.When he bought the bungalow that now housed Mara, he had not had the time to take a detailed tour of the area to know his neighbors. Back then, he had thought i
As Mara celebrated the retention of her job, Leo was there at the farm stumbling through his. It was no easy task for him. He had been saddled with the task of digging out stumps of trees from a small area of land. All the trees had been cut down and chopped into bits and all the grasses had been burned too, but the roots of the trees were still in the ground. These were the roots Leo had to take out.The area he had to cover was just less than half the size of a football field and the sun was blazing hot. So, shovel in hand, sweat streaming down his body, grunting and huffing with exertion, the former CEO was hard at work doing something he had never thought he would ever do, at least before he lost everything. Once in a while, he took a glance at the old man who was seated in front of the farm house and staring at him with the ghost of a smile on his face. He didn't need anyone to tell him that the old man was quietly mocking him, and it made him even more determined to prove himsel
When Mara returned home, she had no idea she was beaming until she walked in to find Leo in the kitchen. At the sight of her happy face, he gave her a bright smile and then turned back to his work. But somehow, something felt off to her. His smile though bright did not seem to reach his eyes. Involuntarily, her own happiness dropped a few notches and she found herself dying to know what was wrong or what had happened in her absence. As far as she knew, he was much happier when she left him in the morning.Mara could ask him what had gone wrong, but she knew he would deny it. Not that she could prove that he was unhappy or bothered by something. There was just no concrete proof. All she had to go on was a gut feeling. She just knew in her heart that everything was not okay."Whew," she sighed and put the sleeping Little Leo down on the couch."How was work? Busy day today?", Leo asked, thinking she had sighed from exhaustion."Hmmmm. Not much," Mara shrugged, keeping her eyes on him to