Tonia is a strong and independent woman who is insecure about love and commitment. She meets Duke, a young, handsome billionaire, and the siren whisper of love blows through her heart like a warm breeze. But all she wants from him is pleasure without promises, no strings, no emotional commitments.
Duke never commits to a woman. His Modus operandi is; Meet. Get in. Have fun. Get out. One night of fiery passion with Tonia and Duke is breaking some of his rules for her and will break more with gusto to get to her icy heart.
Tonia is on the run, to protect her heart, afraid if she opens her heart to Duke, she would wake up to an empty dream.
Chapter one
Tonia Ogunleye pushed open the office main door and greeted the cleaner at the reception. The sound of her high-heeled shoes sounded loud in her ears as she clinked clanked down the empty hall to her cubicle. Switching on the ceiling fan, she plumped down on her chair, heaved a deep breath and offered a silent prayer of thanksgiving for making it to the office in time despite the bumper to bumper ride on the way.
Since she joined Adeyemi O. Adeyemi chambers two years ago, except she had a morning appointment that required her to go from home, she made it a point of duty to get to the office ten or fifteen minutes before the normal resumption time and with a flask of coffee to wake up her brain cells.
She took the small flask out of her bag, opened it, and poured coffee on the cover. The sensual aroma whiffed to her nose. She inhaled and took a tentative sip. The creamy liquid tasted so sweet and yummy, a soft moan of pleasure escaped her lips, and her face relaxed into a contented smile.
As a caffeine addict, she needed her morning ‘fix’, to put her in the right frame of mind to face the day; be cool and poised. She prided herself as a savvy single and independent woman. A mockery smile flashed through her face; single and independent indeed!
Words women like her used to make themselves feel better about their alone status. They put up the attitude of being single and not searching when, in fact, they’re pining for a man’s attention.
Her long hours of work acted as a shield against loneliness. Though she enjoyed the responsibility that comes with doing her job and the freedom to be herself, live her life and have fun. Most often, her weekends are boring, especially when she had no social engagement and had no case to keep her poring over briefs.
It was a Friday and likely to be another boring weekend. Apart from having dinner with her girlfriends later today, there was nothing on her social calendar and no pressing workload to keep her busy.
Probably going for a man’s hunt would be the ideal way to spend her weekend. She needed a man. Not for love; she was emotionally dead for that. Just a warm body. But a night of meaningless sex with just any man wasn’t cheering anymore. Swiping a hand through the air, and waving the idea off, she raised the cup to her lips, took another sip, and dropped it back on the table.
Relaxing back in her swivel chair, she closed her eyes. The distant sound of traffic on the highway across the street from her office floated to her ears. Solitude and coffee. Bliss! These would do for now. Happiness, love, and desire, are all fleeting specks of emotions. Each comes and goes, life goes on, and she has to live it.
Opening her eyes, she shook away the melancholy; brought out her laptop, and powered it on. While waiting for it to boot, she mentally ticked off her agenda for the day. Not much. She filled her cup again and down it in one swallow, recapped the flask and set it aside. Her glance fell on a file by the side of the table; it contained preliminary data of a client, a woman on the verge of a divorce.
After ten years of marriage, her husband pushed her out with their three children; empty. The woman was not fighting to get back into the marriage but for due compensation and child support from the man.
She had asked her colleague, James, to get all the information about the man, especially his financial status. When the case goes to trial, she would make sure the court adequately compensates her client.
The thrill of her career was being in court defending the weak, especially women and children, as a defence attorney. She couldn’t bear to see a child go through the shitty childhood she had, or a woman suffering the anguish of a toxic relationship the way her mother did.
Her childhood experience hugged around her like a hundred-pound weight she lugged everywhere. It was a part of her life she couldn’t dislodge or purge. A charred part of her life she hid so well, people only saw her daily mask of boldness and self-confidence.
Her purported boldness pushed her through the days, but nights have stories of their own. Alone and behind a closed door, the demons plaguing her life clamoured for release - all her fears, insecurity and self-doubt would come tumbling out. Her mind, their field of play.
She heard voices and knew her alone time had ended. Soon, the office would come alive with the buzz and hum of a busy office environment. She clicked on the Google Mail icon and while waiting for it to load; she listened to the voices of her colleagues outside her door. When James’ voice filtered into her ears, her lips curled up in a smile knowing he would soon barge into her office for their puppy love moment. His bugging her every morning with his love overture had become a daily ritual.
No comments:
Post a Comment