Chapter 15: Real
1317 Words
Morning came soft and slow.
Ada woke to sunlight spilling across Kene’s bed and the weight of his arm still around her waist. For a second, she forgot everything—Victor, the garage, the contract.
Then memory hit.
She didn’t pull away.
Kene stirred behind her, his breathing deep and even. His thumb brushed lightly over her hip, unconscious, possessive. Ada’s stomach flipped.
“Morning,” he murmured against her hair, voice rough with sleep.
“Morning,” Ada replied.
Neither of them moved. The room was quiet except for the sound of their breathing, and for the first time in days, it didn’t feel heavy. It felt safe.
Kene shifted, propping himself up on one elbow so he could see her face. “You slept.”
“Barely,” Ada admitted. “You?”
“Same.” His eyes were darker than usual, but not with anger. With something warmer. Focused. “Victor’s in custody. It’s over.”
Ada nodded. “I know.”
Kene’s gaze dropped to her lips for half a second before meeting her eyes again. “You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to. The contract’s void. You’re free.”
Ada sat up, pulling the sheet with her. “I know that too.”
“So why are you still here?” Kene asked.
Ada looked at him—really looked. At the cut on his eyebrow, now scabbed over. At the dark circles under his eyes from nights he’d spent watching her door. At the way he was looking at her now like she was the only thing in the room that mattered.
“Because I want to be,” she said simply.
Kene’s jaw tightened. “Say it again.”
Ada smiled, small and real. “I want to be here, Kene.”
He didn’t say anything. He didn’t need to. He reached out and brushed his knuckles against her cheek, gentle in a way that didn’t fit the ruthless man the world knew.
“Good,” he said quietly. “Because I’m not letting you go this time.”
---
They didn’t talk about the contract again.
Kene made breakfast—burned toast and eggs that were more scrambled than they should’ve been—and they ate it sitting on the floor of his kitchen, laughing for the first time in weeks.
“You’re terrible at this,” Ada said, picking at her eggs.
“So I’ve been told,” Kene said, grinning. It transformed his face. “But you’re eating it.”
“Because I’m starving.”
“Fair.”
After breakfast, Ada went home.
Kene didn’t argue when she said she needed to see her mother alone. He just sent two of his men to follow at a distance and told her, “Call me when you’re ready.”
Madam Ngozi opened the door before Ada even knocked.
“You’re alive,” she said, pulling Ada into a hug so tight it hurt.
“I’m alive, Mama,” Ada said, hugging her back.
They sat in the living room, tea going cold between them. Ada told her everything—not the gory details, but enough. The contract. Victor. The garage. Kene.
When she finished, Madam Ngozi was quiet for a long time.
“And you love him?” she asked finally.
Ada’s cheeks flushed. “I think I do.”
Madam Ngozi sighed, but it wasn’t angry. It was resigned. “He’s a good man, Ada. Arrogant. Stubborn. But good. If he says he’ll protect you, he will.”
Ada nodded. “He already has.”
“Then what are you waiting for?” Madam Ngozi asked.
Ada smiled. “Nothing anymore.”
---
Kene was waiting in the driveway when she got back.
He leaned against his car, arms crossed, watching her like he’d been counting the minutes.
“All good?” he asked as she approached.
Ada nodded. “She said I’m an i***t if I let you go.”
Kene’s lips quirked. “She’s not wrong.”
Ada stopped in front of him. “Kene, about last night—”
“I know,” Kene said quickly. “No pressure. We can take this slow. Whatever you want.”
Ada shook her head. “I don’t want slow.”
Kene blinked. “What?”
“I don’t want to pretend anymore,” Ada said. “Not with you. Not with us.”
Kene stepped closer, close enough that Ada could feel the heat of him. “What are you saying, Ada?”
“I’m saying I’m tired of almosts,” Ada said. “Almost kissing you in the office. Almost telling you yes in the garage. Almost losing you in Apapa.”
Kene’s breathing changed. “And now?”
Ada reached up and smoothed her thumb over the cut on his eyebrow. “Now I want the real thing.”
Kene didn’t hesitate.
He cupped her face in both hands and kissed her.
It wasn’t gentle. It wasn’t careful. It was months of tension, fear, and want finally snapping into something real.
Ada kissed him back, fisting her hands in his shirt to pull him closer.
When they finally broke apart, both of them were breathing hard.
Kene rested his forehead against hers. “Real enough?”
Ada smiled against his mouth. “Real enough.”
---
That evening, Kene called a meeting with his board.
Ada sat beside him in the conference room, wearing one of his jackets because hers was still at her mother’s.
“Effective immediately,” Kene said, “the contract between myself and Ada Okeke is dissolved.”
There were murmurs around the table.
“And,” Kene continued, “Ada Okeke is now my wife. For real.”
The room went silent.
One of the board members, an older man named Mr. Bassey, cleared his throat. “Mr. Okonkwo, this is highly unorthodox.”
Kene leaned back in his chair, calm and dangerous. “I’m aware.”
“You’re risking the company’s reputation,” Mr. Bassey said.
Kene smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “The company’s reputation has survived worse. If anyone has a problem with my marriage, they can take it up with me personally.”
Nobody did.
After the meeting, Ada found Kene on the balcony overlooking the city.
“Nervous?” she asked.
Kene shook his head. “No.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’ve made harder decisions than this,” Kene said. He turned to her and took her hand. “And none of them mattered as much.”
Ada squeezed his fingers. “Me either.”
Kene pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her waist. “You’re stuck with me now, you know.”
Ada laughed. “I know.”
Kene’s lips brushed her temple. “Good.”
They stood there for a long time, watching the city lights flicker on.
No threats. No gunshots. Just quiet.
Just them.
---
Later that night, back in Kene’s bedroom, Ada sat on the edge of the bed while Kene stood in front of her, holding her hands.
“You’re sure?” he asked.
Ada nodded. “I’m sure.”
Kene exhaled and pulled her up against him. “Then let’s stop pretending.”
He kissed her again, slower this time. Deeper. Like he had all the time in the world and planned to use it.
Ada melted into him, her hands sliding up to his shoulders.
Kene’s hands moved to her back, holding her like she was something precious, something he wasn’t going to break.
When they finally pulled apart, Ada rested her forehead against his chest.
“Real,” she whispered.
“Real,” Kene agreed.
He lifted her chin and kissed her one more time, soft and lingering.
“Welcome home, Mrs. Okonkwo,” he murmured.
Ada smiled. “I like the sound of that.”
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