Three can tango

It was the best day of my life! I was pregnant for the man I loved! The nurse at our old town clinic regarded me hesitantly when I collected the test slip from her and beamed with excitement. I couldn’t wait to break the news to the love of my life. I was so sure that Chris would be as happy as I was. He had always dreamed of a child of our own, even when we weren’t married, he didn’t mind. He said it would be the start of something beautiful for both of us and with a child, we could further solidify our relationship. “Dear, are you sure this is what you want?” the head nurse asked, “we can terminate the pregnancy before your father finds out.” I glared at her and gasped in shock, “What? Terminate my pregnancy? No way!” I jumped off the seat, clutching my tummy with a new spring of hope. “Chris wouldn’t want that…he wouldn’t.” Everyone in our old town knew who my father was. In fact, they were scared of him to an extent. The only black, successful man in town who ran one of the biggest supermarkets around, where traders from far and wide came to shop for everything they needed. In the last nineteen years, he had kept me away from men, saying that all of them were jerks and would only end up ruining my life. I had believed him all these years, even though his means of keeping them away from me was harsh and sometimes even cruel, I knew that he had my best interests at heart, until I met Chris Montclair. Chris had only just come into town a few months ago and he shook everyone when he bought eighty percent of the shares in a new company my father had opened up. My father usually never accepted men into our small bungalow, but blinded by his greed, he had welcomed Chris with a massive dinner I had prepared. From the moment I laid my eyes on Chris, every moral instinct that had been imbibed into me by my father melted away and I found myself thinking about him day and night until one day, he showed up at our doorstep. “Mr. Steele, I don’t know my way around town, do you by any chance have a companion who could show me around?” he had asked my father; this was three weeks ago. “Of course!” My father exclaimed, “I will get the stable boy.” He said and then glared at me when he saw me peeking from the kitchen, “get back in there!” “Mr. Steele,” Chris had said calmly, “I’d like your daughter to show me around. If that wouldn’t be trouble, of course.” God, did my father loathe the idea of seeing me with a man, even though I had come of age. But Chris was different. He was the same man that was taking over the town, raising buildings and buying out all the banks and local pubs. He had something my father couldn’t resist; money and power. And something I couldn’t resist; his charm and charisma. That day, when I rode in his wagon with him, I was hooked like a harpoon had been sunk deep into me. The perfect cusps of his chiseled jaw, graced by a beautiful spotty beard made my heart flutter. I stole glances at his ludicrous green eyes and perfect full, pink lips. His manly aura was like a hot cloak all over me, scented with his expensive perfume. He brought the wagon to a stop when we were at the outskirts of our town. On the fourth day he took me in his wagon and we had a little picnic by a pond. He cupped my chin that day and my body melted when he kissed me. I couldn’t resist him. My father’s stern words had tugged at the back of my mind. “You will only be a w***e to give a man whom you are not married to your body. You must remain clean until marriage. Only w****s throw themselves around, do you hear me? w****s! Only w****s!” But it felt good to be a w***e for Chris. He was the first man to ever see me naked and I was embarrassed in his presence. He praised my beauty and constantly reminded me of how perfect my body was. At first, it was painful but the more we had s*x and we kissed and he used my body to his will, it felt like a new world of pleasure and euphoria that had been hidden from me all these years had suddenly opened up. And now, I was pregnant with his child. It felt like I was some princess in a fairy tale as I skipped toward the duplex he had bought only two weeks ago, the only storey building in town. I found him in the living room, clad in only a pair of trousers, a cigarette between his fingers and a pair of circular-rimmed glasses perched on his hooked nose. I beamed at the sight of his handsome face and rushed to him. “Chris!” He stared at me impassively, “I wasn’t expecting you today. I told you I’d be busy.” “I know, but I have been feeling awkward recently so I went for a test,” I said and he squinted at me curiously, “I’m pregnant, Chris!” He didn’t move nor react for a few seconds, then a smile slowly spread across his handsome face and he rose to his feet. He scooped me into his arms, swinging me around excitedly. I was over the moon at that point! My heart was pounding with elation. I knew Chris would be excited! He loved me after all! He told me that so many times. “We must tell your father about this, Asha,” he said with a grin, “he will be so excited.” I hesitated, “Uhm, Chris…are you sure about that? My father…he has other thoughts about this and he doesn’t even know about our relationship yet. I don’t-” His lips suddenly crashed onto mine and he smiled at me, “Don’t worry, I will handle everything. We will go together.” In spite of his assurance, my heart was still pounding with fear as we walked into my father’s supermarket. He rushed out from behind the counter when he saw Chris and shot a glare at me before smiling at him. “Mr. Montclair, I had no idea you’ll be with my daughter today,” he said and chortled. “I hope she was good today.” Chris suddenly wrapped his arm around my shoulder and grinned at my father, “Oh, she has always been perfect, Mr. Steele,” he said, his voice suddenly menacing. “Your daughter is going to have a baby!” I watched the color drain from my father’s face and his jaw dropped. He stared at me, then Chris, “Y-You are the father?” he stuttered and Chris nodded, pulling me closer to him. My father suddenly laughed, but I could sense his nervousness, “Great! Then we must begin plans for the wedding before the baby bump shows. That way, it won’t be a sin that she is pregnant, because you both are getting married. We must start now!” he exclaimed, “I will arrange the venue for the wedding.” Chris’s arm dropped from my shoulder, and so did his smile off his face, “A wedding?” His next words hit my chest like cold daggers. “There won’t be any wedding, Mr. Steele.” My father frowned,”What are you talking about? Y-You got her pregnant and to uphold my reputation.” Chris’s face suddenly became a cold, impassive mask, “How can I wed your daughter, Mr. Steele, when I am already engaged to another?” At that moment, I realized that the best day of my life had been a lie from the start.