Leila rose to her feet slowly. Her husband had not moved an inch, he was staring at her like he couldn’t understand why she hadn’t joined him on the bed yet. They might be getting along now but she wasn’t ready to be intimate with him.He was still a stranger to her, a familiar stranger.Her heart beat faster, she found it difficult to breathe as she dragged one foot in front of the other. Kelvin’s phone rang before she reached the bed, they stared at each other and she sent him a soft, pleading smile to leave the room.Furrowing his brows, her husband shot out of the bed. “I have to take this,” he said. “One second.”The words to reply to him failed her, he gave her a curt nod and her chest deflated with relief once he stepped out of the room. After one last look at the door to be sure he wouldn’t be back soon, she hurried to the wardrobe to get her pyjamas.A polka dot long-sleeved pyjamas. Scowling at her nightwear, Leila questioned her fashion choices. The pyjamas made her look li
“Yes. But I need to go get ready.” Leilani rushed to the door of the bathroom, then stopped. Her eyes closed, she took a deep breath. “I need to make breakfast first.”She felt a presence behind her and her spine stiffened. He was so close to her she could smell his cologne. She didn’t turn, she couldn’t. Her body was reacting to his presence in ways that were unfamiliar to her. She held onto the door frame for support when he placed a hand on her shoulder. She had to get a grip.“Don’t worry about breakfast. I made something.” She cocked her head a little to get a glimpse of him. He made what? Kelvin nodded and her heart clenched in fear and surprise. “I’ll wait for you so we can eat together.”A smile broke out on her lips, she hopped into the bathroom without a reply to him. As soon as the door closed, she leaned on it and placed a hand on her chest. Her heart was beating so fast, so hard. Her husband was making her feel things, things she didn’t want to feel.Laughter from outside
Leila was almost done with her toast when Kelvin’s phone pinged. “The driver is here,” he told her.Kelvin stared at the new Samsung phone on the table for a minute or two, then slipped it into his breast pocket. The short conversation they had about the phone already told him she wouldn't accept it. She was still as dogged.She finished the rest of her food in silence and he watched, doing his best to cover up the discomfort brought by her presence. She was pretty. The kind of pretty that you appreciated better after a second look with a tiny birthmark on her jaw he wanted to kiss. He didn’t expect her to agree so easily to his proposal. He had been prepared to use other means to entice her but he was glad he didn’t have to go that far.“All done.” Leila’s voice broke him out of his trance.Kelvin looked up and the table had been cleared. In his opinion, his beautiful wife stressed too much but that was a conversation he wasn’t willing to have with her.“Let’s go.”“Together?” she sq
So far so good, Leila thought until her husband’s hand slipped into hers. She almost dropped her hand bag. For a split second, she had no idea what to do. He squeezed her hand and something warm exploded in her chest.She was near her floor when he released her. The elevator pinged when she arrived at her floor. Lily stepped out before her and Leila delayed getting out. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to do or say to him and they weren’t alone. In the end, she walked out without saying anything to him.If the Uber driver had not taken a different route that made them stuck in traffic, she would not have met him here. Who was the lady with him anyway? She was pretty. Too pretty and Leila wasn’t sure if to be jealous.“He’s not so bad,” Lily was saying to her as they turned into the corner of her office. “And he’s sexy.”“Yeah,” she answered because she was required to say something.The office was calmer than yesterday, only now, Susie was at her table. Susie looked up at the sound of
Leila gulped. She had not done anything wrong.Had she? Was he mad at her for not sending him a thank you note for the flowers? But she didn’t ask for it. Leila arranged her files and shut down her laptop. Her steps were slow as she meandered to the elevator.Lunch just ended and she didn’t get a chance to eat. Her stomach reminded her of her negligence and she winced. The door opened but there was no one out front. Leila was about to dial Kelvin when she saw Amara. The lady stopped in front of her. No smiles.“Hi,” Leila murmured after a few seconds of awkwardness. She didn’t know if to ask this lady about her husband. What would she state as the reason? Finally, she said, “Can I help you?”Amara chuckled. “Yes, you can.” Leila offered her a tight smile. With Leila’s short heels, she towered over the woman by a few inches. Turning her back on Leila, she said, “Follow me.”Leila hurried to catch up to her. The woman talked and walked as fast as she spoke. “The boss wants to see you ri
The car stopped a few metres from the office complex. They had been silent since they entered the car. Leila looked at her husband for an explanation.“You don’t want people to see us together, right?” Her head automatically bobbed. “You can get off here and walk the remaining distance to avoid any suspicions.”Leila couldn’t consider it a distance because it was less than five minutes on foot but she appreciated his thinking. They shared another glance, he wasn’t smiling but he wasn’t frowning so she did the unthinkable. She kissed him on his cheek.“Thanks, Kev.”Her husband was stupefied. She giggled. That was payback for his morning kiss. Her grin widened when she noted Amara’s small smile. Leila didn’t let it bother her. Kelvin already assured her so she had nothing to worry about.She skipped the remaining distance to the office and her smile fell once she glimpsed the time. Five minutes more until her presentation. She rushed into her office to pick her things but Lily blocked
Kelvin met Leila cooking. There were two things he didn’t like about this. First, she was still in her office clothes. Second, if leaning on the counter was a sign, then his wife was exhausted. He didn’t want her stressing over food when he had cooks on his payroll.After a change of clothes, he went to the kitchen with the intention of helping out but an aroma stopped him in his tracks. Leila was stirring something in the pot so she hadn’t noticed him. Kelvin clutched his stomach, doubling over as a spell of dizziness hit him.The door creaked as he clung to it to steady himself. His stomach churned and bile jumped to his throat. One of the reasons he hired cooks was because of his body’s reaction to some foods. A smell could set him off and it was exactly what was happening to him.He needed to get out of this kitchen and he needed to do it now. The sound of his flip-flops finally alerted Leila, Kelvin dry heaved but she didn’t glance his way.“Hey,” she said without looking at him.
“Freya,” Leila answered.She gripped the sink behind her to steady herself while watching her husband. He was allergic to onions? That was new to her, a downer. The peanut allergy was worse.The shrimp pasta was prepared using her family’s old recipe but she would have to eat the food alone when he wasn’t home. Or take it to Freya’s house as a peace offering.“A guy?” he asked and she shook her head.“A girl.” She moved away from the sink to arrange the dishes into the cabinet. “Freya is my best friend. The one I was waiting for at the wedding.” They had been talking about having a sleepover, the only form of apology her friend would accept. Kelvin took a seat at the dining table and she joined him. “I’ll be going to her place in a bit. Will you be okay on your own?”It was normal for her to spend the night at her friend’s for sleepovers and girls night out. Being a remote worker, Freya always wanted her company. Plus, Leila had missed Blu, Freya’s cat.“You’re not leaving.”Leila wai