Village Girl And The CEO

Chapter 4

Tina started crying again, wondering what she had gotten herself into. Where would she sleep? How would she get back home to face her mother? And where would she find the money for transport back to her village at this risky hour of the night, since it was already dark due to the heavy rainfall that made night fall quickly?

While lost in her thoughts, Patrick stepped out of his house and was shocked to see Tina still standing outside, crying and shivering in the cold. Her clothes were soaked and clung to her body, revealing her shape.

Patrick knew Tina was stubborn, but he had to ask her what she was still waiting for. He was surprised to see that Prisca had left her behind. He had stepped out to ask the gate man to lock the main entrance gate, as it was already past 9 p.m., and Sharon had called to say they wouldn't be coming home.

Patrick hesitated to speak to Tina at first, knowing she was stubborn. He walked past her to inform the security guard to lock the gate, since Sharon had called to say she was staying overnight at the hotel they went to.

When Patrick walked past Tina, she shivered in fright and stepped back, not expecting anyone to pass by. Seeing it was Patrick, she immediately called out, "Hello, excuse me, sir!"

Patrick paused and looked back at Tina, hearing her sweet voice. Tina looked down, unable to meet Patrick's intense gaze, remembering she had been rude to him before. She didn't know how to ask Patrick for help again, as she needed money for transport home, but she hoped to find a bike to take her home at that time of night. She stammered, "Please... sir... can you..."

"Wait, I'm coming. Let me tell the security man to lock the gate, since Sharon and Prisca aren't returning, for security purposes," Patrick said, meeting Tina's gaze.

"Okay," Tina gulped as Patrick left her. She watched him walk to the gatehouse to instruct the security guard, continuing to stare at him until he returned.

He said, "Honestly, I thought you'd already gone home with Prisca and Sharon. I'm surprised to see you here, meaning Prisca actually left you behind. Why not come inside and wait? You must be feeling cold by now, and I don't think Prisca will return tonight since she left with Sharon."

Patrick offered Tina his kindness, knowing she might still reject it and prefer to stay outside. But Tina had no other option, standing silently and remembering her previous rudeness to Patrick.

Patrick drew closer as it began to rain again and asked, "Aren't you going to say something, miss?"

"I... I..." Tina stuttered, meeting Patrick's handsome gaze.

She said, "I wanted to ask if you could help me with transport fare to go back home to my village, but I don't even know my way back. Or could you help me with transport fare and directions too? I've never been to this area before, and my mom will be worried and looking for me if I don't return tonight."

"Hmph," Patrick sighed, listening to Tina's sweet voice. He replied, "I can help you with directions, but it's already late. Before you get to the junction leading to your village and start trekking home, it will be very risky and already midnight. So why not stay in for tonight? Tomorrow morning, I'll personally drop you off before heading to work."

Tina remained silent, and Patrick hoped she would understand and calm down. He wasn't happy seeing her sobbing. He shook his head, walked to open the parlor door, and ushered Tina into his house. Her clothes were completely soaked, clinging to her body, making him a little uncomfortable as he actually liked Tina.

Tina was shivering due to her wet clothes. As she stepped into Patrick's living room, she watched him lock the parlor door. He turned to her and said, "Wait here, let me go inside and find some of Sharon's clothes for you."

Patrick went inside and brought out some of Sharon's clothes for Tina to change into, seeing that her clothes were wet and dripping onto the tiled floor. Tina said, "Thank you, sir."

Tina collected the clothes from Patrick's hand, uncomfortable changing in his presence. She asked, "Can I use the restroom?"

"Sure," Patrick replied. Tina immediately went into the restroom, scared and anxious, knowing she and Patrick were the only two people in the house.

Tina had no other option but to change into Sharon's gown. After drying her wet body, she rinsed her wet clothes, squeezed them tightly to dry, and hung them in the restroom window, hoping they would dry by morning so she could wear them back home to her family in the village.

Tina also took off her wet bra and panties, rinsed them, and hung them beside her clothes on the restroom window. After dressing in Sharon's gown, without wearing any underwear, Tina stepped out of the restroom, feeling dread run through her spine as she walked back to the living room to meet Patrick.

Patrick had already set his dinner on a stool in front of his blue couch. He was eating delicious jollof rice and fried fish. When he saw Tina step out, he asked, "Would you like to join me for dinner?"

Tina hesitated at first, but her stomach grumbled loudly in hunger. She nodded, having not eaten since noon when she arrived, due to Prisca's silly gossip and dragging her to visit Sharon.

Patrick knew he was dealing with a stubborn lady. He noticed that since Tina arrived, she hadn't eaten or drunk anything. So he stood up from his blue couch, abandoning his food, and went to the kitchen to serve Tina's meal. He brought it out to her and set it on another stool and blue couch in the parlor.

Patrick had cooked the meal before the rain started, knowing Sharon was lazy and wouldn't agree to cook. He served the tray of food on a stool, walked to the parlor fridge, took out a bottle of water, and set it on the stool before returning to his seat. He looked at Tina, who was still standing and staring at him, and said, "That's your meal, and I hope you like it."

Patrick sat back in his former seat and continued eating his dinner. Tina nervously sat down and replied, "Thank you, sir."

Tina didn't touch the food yet, even though she was hungry and it smelled delicious. She was still unhappy, wondering how her mother and siblings would be worried about her not returning home.

Patrick finished his meal, cleared his plate to the kitchen, and returned to the parlor. He saw that Tina hadn't touched her food and walked up to her, sitting opposite her. He stared directly at her face and asked, "Aren't you going to eat, or do you want to starve? Should I feed you?"

Tina shook her head, meeting Patrick's gaze. She replied, "No, sir, thank you. I will eat it, but I'm just worried about my mom and siblings."

Tina finally picked up her spoon and started eating the jollof rice, little by little. Patrick asked, "Don't you have a phone to at least contact your mom and tell her you're at a friend's place? That the heavy rain fell, and you won't be able to return home until tomorrow?"

"No," Tina replied, shaking her head and looking at her plate. "I don't have a phone."

"How about your mom's phone number? Do you know it by heart? Let me help you contact her," Patrick asked, but Tina shook her head again and replied, "No, I don't know my mom's phone number either."

Patrick sighed and looked away from Tina to the television. Tina managed to eat half of the food, growing tired, while Patrick got engrossed in watching TV. He admired Tina and saw she was dozing off on the couch.

Patrick noticed Tina was sleepy due to the cold weather and her previous sobbing. He interrupted her from dozing off on the couch, as she nearly fell, and asked, "You're already feeling sleepy, miss. Do you want to sleep here? You won't be comfortable. Why not come sleep in my bedroom?"