CHAPTER TWO
1029 Words
She had been surprised when Kevin had dismissed her because of her growling stomach, but she was more surprised when she received food from an anonymous sender a few minutes later. She suspected it was from him, but she couldn’t risk embarrassing herself again by being wrong.
The meal was her favorite too. It had to be from someone who knew her well. Kevin and her father were the only men in her life. And her friend, Ava, was not that nice to send her lunch.
She peeled a portion of the pizza as she made final touches to the spreadsheet. Everything looked perfect. She just had to work on her presentation next, and then create the list of workers the financial secretary needed.
A slight tap and a gentle push on her door interrupted her almost an hour later. David walked in.
‘’Hey,’’ he said, walking towards her.
‘’Hi David,’’ she responded without looking at him. She was reading a line in her presentation, dissatisfied with how it sounded.
He dropped a flash drive on the table. ‘’I’m done with that.’’
She picked it, inspected it briefly to confirm it was what she had given him before dropping it in her cabinet.
‘’You got pizza?’’ He asked, declaring his intention for a slice.
‘’I received it. And yes, you can have some.’’
He picked a slice. ‘’Secret admirer?’’
She chuckled. ‘’Maybe.’’ Then she lowered her voice. ‘’Between you and me, I think the President sent it.’’
He knew Kevin treated her with some sort of quiet respect, but the thought of him getting food for her sounded strange.
‘’Could be. ‘’
Tyla seemed pleased he thought so too. She didn’t want to allow herself to fantasize, but she thought she had seen him looking at her fondly once. She sensed David was in chatty mode and decided to ask him some questions.
‘’The boss seems to be in a sour mood today. Do you know why?’’
He stared at her without saying a thing.
‘’Come on, David.’’
Reluctantly, he said: ‘’There’s some pressure for him to get married.’’
Tyla stopped looking at the computer screen and faced him. ‘’He’s unmarried?’’
David shrugged. ‘’It’s common knowledge.’’
It had never occurred to her that Kevin was single. She had heard that he had a child, so she just assumed that he was married. ‘’I’m just discovering.’’ She responded.
—
When she saw the lights in her apartment on, she knew her mother had arrived. She had called the previous week that she would be spending a night at her house. She eased her car into the parkway and switched off the engine. She had forgotten to get some groceries on her way again.
She met the aroma of home prepared meal when she stepped in. She had been so worried that she had to get a take-out for her mum since she didn’t have some essentials to prepare a meal.
‘’I’m home,’’ she called out as she dropped her bag and laptop on the dining table and went in search of her mum.
She found her in the kitchen.
‘’Mumm!’’ She hugged her tightly from behind. ‘’That smells so nice.’’
Her mother used her free hand to rub her hand. ‘’You close so late from work, Tyla. It’s almost 7pm. When do you have time for yourself?’’
Tyla rolled her eyes. It was in her mum’s nature to always complain about anything she didn’t like. And she didn’t like it that her daughter was working for another man. Albeit, a billionaire. She wanted her to work in her father’s company. It was a small company, nothing to compare with where she was working now, but no one would keep her working so late.
‘’You said just a year, then,’’ she continued, mixing some vegetables in hot oil. ‘’You made me beg your father. It’s been three years now, Tyla. What other experiences are you still looking for?’’
‘’Mum.’’ She placed her head on her forehead. She had had a stressful day. ‘’Can we talk about this later? Let’s not fight please.’’
Her mum faced her. ‘’Later? I’m worried about what you are turning your life into. Slaving away for a billionaire with a bad reputation.’’ She turned to her vegetables. ‘’You aren’t feeding well. I found nothing in the house. I had to go shopping.’’
Tyla knew she was not winning this argument. Everything her mum was saying was right.
‘’What would you have eaten tonight? Pizza? Noodles?’’ She shook her head and Tyla laughed because her plan was actually to finish the leftover pizza from work and have an early night.
‘’You don’t have time to even have a proper relationship,’’ Mrs Brooklyn continued, clearly not done.
‘’Mum, please.’’ Tyla begged.
‘’Don’t ‘mum please’ me. You are twenty five! You are going to get old soon and realize how you wasted your youth.’’
That blow was below the belt. It wasn’t as though she wasn’t trying at all. She had tried. She had dated twice. Both of them knew her family and both of them left her heartbroken. Of course her mum blamed her for sacrificing her relationship on the altar of the corporate world.
‘’I need to see changes, Tyla.’’
‘’Yes, mum,’’ she replied, accepting the argument.
She went to her room for a quick shower. She still had some final touches she had to make to her presentation, but she would do that after she had some rest. She sighed at her reflection in the mirror. She had hoped work would give her satisfaction, but her mum was right, she needed a family of her own and she longed for one. She just didn’t envision it would be a case of either career or love. She chuckled a bit as she recalled that Kevin was going through something similar.
‘’I would marry him without thinking twice,’’ she joked to herself as she applied moisturizer on her face. ‘’The perfect work- relationship balance.’’
- Writer
