“Threats don’t move me.” Rachael countered as fire kindled in her chest.
Seven
“Thanks for trying to get on with Rachael,” Tinu commended Banjo after breakfast while they lounged on the patio surrounded by the swimming pool and the sea.
Wondering what exactly his mum was getting at, Banjo replied with caution. “Mum, I did it for your peace of mind.” Of course, he withheld the fact his relationship with Rachael had skipped from friendship to something more.
Tinu made a show of crossing her feet at the ankle, sipping lemonade while her gaze stretched as far as the sea beyond. “You could have fooled me. Thank God I have two eyes to see.”
Banjo sat up on his lounger. “What are you insinuating?” he croaked. Already his chest pumped with excitement at the reference to Rachael.
Grinning from ear to ear, his mum shook her head. “Is there something you want to tell me? Like where did you go after shopping last night?”
Knowing his mum would keep at this heart-to-heart for a while, Banjo relaxed and linked his arms behind his head. “We went for a meal in a nice restaurant.” Mentally, he counted the plants and trees scattered around the massive garden.
“Did Rachael have as much fun as you did?”
Thank God Rachael was off to work this morning. Banjo toyed with the idea of telling his mum to shoo off. But something held back his tongue.
“I hope she did. The restaurant terrace offered a stunning view of the city.”
When they let themselves inside the house last night, his mum was purportedly asleep. But he knew Tinu would have stayed up waiting for their return and only went to bed minutes before they got in.
“Do I look like I care about the sights, Banjo? Just don’t break Rachael’s heart.” His mum’s warning rang out loud and clear.
Again, he sat forward and swung his legs down. “What do you mean I shouldn’t break her heart? I thought Rachael had a boyfriend. She told me there was someone in her life.”
Bit by bit, Tinu sipped her drink as if it was the finest wine in Monaco. He wanted to snatch the straw out of her mouth to get her to speak.
“It isn’t my place to speak about her personal issues. If that’s what she told you, accept it.” As if her reply was not off-putting enough, Tinu added a dismissive shrug.
Irritation crawled over his skin. Nothing was more infuriating than being kept in the dark. “Mum, what is it you’re not telling me about Rachael and the man in her life? I need to know.”
Patting her flowery dress down at the sides, Tinu retorted. “You went out with the woman all night, and here you are asking me what she should be telling you. All I’m saying is if you want to fool around, find another woman. Leave Rachael alone. She doesn’t need any more pain.”
Fear piled up in his gut and he jumped to his feet. “What pain is she going through I don’t know about? Give me the answers, Mum. I never knew you to be so secretive!”
Gesturing with one hand, his mum sighed. “Never mind. Soon you’ll be out of here. There’s no need for you to worry yourself about any of it. Everything will be alright.”
Banjo’s heart beat faster. He had to know what was going on. If there was one thing his mum was good at, it was being fiercely loyal to her family and friends.
“Are you keeping me in the dark to punish me for not coming home to see you in the past two years?” Banjo pushed in a blunt tone. “I told you I had to toil day and night to start up and build my business. Stop dribbling me like a child and tell me what’s going on with Rachael. I want to help.”
Tinu exhaled, sipping out of her glass slowly. “And I told you I didn’t hold grudges against you. How can I? You’re my cherished son and there’s no offense I can’t forgive. This has nothing to do with you. Rachael loves to keep things close to her chest. Until she trusts you, there’s no way she would open up. Be patient and don’t mess about with her. I love her like my own child.”
“Obviously you do. By the way, how did she end up here? And why haven’t I met her before?” Rachael was super attractive, the sort of woman you would not forget in a hurry.
Snatching a paper napkin to wipe her lips, his mum grunted. “How she ended up here is her story to tell. Your father and I have a list of god-children in different parts of the world. Even though we don’t get to see all of them, we’ve always kept in touch with every one of them. Rachael reached out to me two years ago. She needed me. And I helped her process her visa to come over from the US.”
There was no use asking his mum questions. Yet, he could not stop. An overriding need to unearth what Rachael was hiding kept him probing. “Is her stay in Monaco regularized?”
“Oh that’s on track. It isn’t a problem at all.”
Banjo exhaled. “Okay, what’s this big problem of hers you’re reluctant to share?”
Tinu sighed. “Take your time to get to know her first. Then ask her all your questions. She’ll confide in you.” Her mum raised her eyebrows. “Time is one thing you don’t have. You may not find out before you leave.”
Rubbing his face with both hands, Banjo sputtered. “I’ve a sinking feeling you put Rachael up to this secret operation. I’m not going to ask you any more questions.” He laid back on his lounger and pressed his lips into a thin line. When he looked sideways, he glimpsed a curious grin swiping across his mum’s face.
Anger. Frustration. Irritation. Each emotion took turns torturing him.
“That’s a good idea,” Tinu concurred. “By the way, I got a call from Antonin this morning. He said you need to take a final look at all the mortgage documents and sign off.”
“I already gave him the go-ahead late last week. You’ve appended your signature. All that’s left is for me to sign the document.”
“That’s what he meant. Go and see him later.”
“I will.” At the back of Banjo’s mind, the most important thing was for him to find out what was going on with Rachael. He had never met a woman who kept all her personal issues locked up inside. Usually, most women were ready to share their problems at the drop of a hat. Not Rachael. Aided by his mum, Rachael was secretive to a fault.
“Thank you for bailing me out of my financial mess, Banjo. I appreciate you coming over to help me out as quickly as you did. The banks had concluded plans to foreclose the house. I was terrified.”
Pushing himself out of the recliner, Banjo squatted by his mum and clasped her hands. “I want to say thank you for calling me. I work hard so I can give you the lifestyle you had when dad was around. There’s no reason for you to be unhappy because he had the poor judgment to walk out when he did. It’s his loss. You’re a strong woman and I love you.”
Tinu put her left hand over Banjo’s. “It means a lot to me you don’t blame me for the way your dad ran off with his mistress. I did my best. You know that, don’t you?”
Bringing up his dad’s infidelity and abandonment was excruciating, but if his mum wanted it out in the open, so be it. “You’re the best wife he can ever have. I don’t blame you, Mum. Marriage is supposed to be a lifetime commitment. He made a choice. All I want you to do is sit back and enjoy a life of leisure. I’ll take good care of you. And I’ll derive satisfaction from knowing you have everything you need.”
“God bless you, Adebanjo Bettino. I love you and I’m mighty proud of you.”
“That’s my line,” he teased, planting pecks on her cheeks.
They both laughed.
Then Banjo got on his feet and went inside the house. A single thought assailed his mind–what the heck was wrong with Rachael? The minute he stepped inside the main reception room, warmth streamed down his spine.
Following his hunch, Banjo slowed his steps and dragged in a sharp breath. Rachael’s distinctive floral perfume lingered in the air. Lavender. Orchids. Rosewood. As he moved toward the hallway, her scent grew stronger. His heart beat in rapid tunes.
“Rachael!” he called out, dashing to the living room. She was not there, but her fragrance h
ung in the air, teasing his senses. He swallowed and rushed to the stairs. “Rachael, are you home?”
Then, like a pregnant swan, Rachael appeared on the landing bare footed with a grin on her face. He put a hand on his chest to still the racing of his heartbeat.
“Looks like someone missed me,” Rachael chuckled, staring down at him.
After last night, he felt a sense of duty toward her because they’d shared more than a meal. There was no time to think through how he felt. Quick on his feet, Banjo sped up the stairs and was by Rachael’s side in less than four seconds. He placed both hands on the banister on either side of her. Although he did not touch her, heat sprayed from her body to his arms, trickling down to his chest.
“What’s up with you, the big boy without a shirt?” On her face, a shy smile lurked and her eyes hovered around his neck.
Gritting his teeth to control his urge, Banjo shook his head. Then against every warning in his head, he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. There was so much he wanted to say to her, but he was scared she would run and hide.
At first, Rachael stiffened. So, Banjo picked her chin with one finger. Dark eyes revealed her wariness. Yet, passion blew up his chest and he groaned. He caught her nape with one hand and crushed her lips with his mouth. Sweet as honey, current gushed into his head, flushing through him like a blind river.
Passionate fingers ravaged his chest, shoulders and hair, cracking his resistance. Rachael moaned and kissed him back with fiery hunger. He dipped his tongue inside her mouth, teasing inside her cheeks and she swirled her tongue across the roof of his mouth. Whales of firecrackers set off in his gut, threatening to rip apart his chest. And he pulled her flush against him, but her bump came between their bodies, bringing reality along.
“What are we doing?” Rachael asked looking at him straight in the eye. A hint of sadness tinged her eyes.
Banjo grabbed her shoulders and led her to sit with him on the top step. “Should I apologize?” he asked without enthusiasm. In his heart, he had no words of apology to offer. He was attracted to her and she was definitely not immune to his charm.
“Only if you want to,” she told him, rubbing one hand over her bump.
Angling to face her, Banjo reached for her hand. “Are you okay?”
“I’ll be fine,” she replied after a short pause.
“What do you mean you’ll be fine? Is there something wrong with you?”
Shaking her head, Rachael waved off his concern. “Oh, don’t worry about me. Everyone has one thing or the other wrong with them.”
“Stop pushing me away. I’m asking because I care. And I’m worried. Are you going to tell me?”
“Not yet, Banjo. I’ll be fine by God’s grace.”
Panic flowed through his veins. Yes, he’d only known her for less than three weeks, but he wanted to share her problems. Confused by her attitude, he raved. “Why is it so hard for you to confide in me? Is there a complication with the baby? Or is the baby’s dad on the run?”
Sighing, Rachael got on her feet, but she staggered. He placed one hand under her arm and helped her stand up.
“Thank you, Banjo. I need to go lie down. I’m really tired.”
Around her eyes, he now saw tired lines. Banjo caressed her face with two fingers. She looked down at his fingers and grinned.
“Rachael?”
Her eyes flew up at him and he got a thrill in his chest.
“Are you in pain?”
“Stop worrying, Banjo. All I need to do is go to sleep and I’ll be good again. Remember we have a date at seven.” A wobbly grin passed by her lips, but it did not reassure him all was well.
“You went to work, but you’re home early.”
“I couldn’t get through the last hour because I was so tired,” she muttered, wearily.
Guessing she needed his help, Banjo bent low and lifted Rachael in his arms. And she wrapped her arms around his neck, but her arms fell back, floppy by her sides. And her neck lolled as if she had passed out.
“Rachael!” he barked as fear clutched his body. He rushed toward her bedroom and placed her on the unmade bed. Banjo shook her shoulders.
Although Rachael’s eyes flapped open, they drooped with sleep. “I n-e-e-d t-o s-l-e-e-p,” she said, slurring her speech.
“Okay. Sleep.” With his heart pounding, Banjo offloaded clothes and a handbag from the bed and stretched the bedsheet at the edges. He covered her body with the quilt, sat on the single seat and watched her sleep.
Putting his palms together, Banjo squeezed his eyes shut and prayed. “Oh God, help Rachael. Heal her from whatever is wrong with her. I don’t know what it is, but you do.” From time to time, he leaned forward, touched her forehead and removed tendrils of dark hair from her temples.
“Rachael will be fine,” he heard his mum say from the doorway sometime later.
Banjo glanced at Rachael. She slept like a doll. Then he sped to his mum’s side and led her out of the room into the corridor.
“What the heck is going on with Rachael? She just went all floppy in my arms.”
Averting her gaze, Tinu shrugged. “It happens every now and again when she has exerted herself too much. That’s why I had that chat with you earlier. You took her shopping for hours and then you kept her out most of the night.”
“Is it the baby exhausting her then?”
Tinu looked over his shoulder at Rachael. “Just don’t let her over exert herself. Now, she will need to rest a lot to recover. I’m telling you because you’ve seen it for yourself.”
Frowning with one hand pressed against the wall, Banjo ground out. “Seen what for myself? And why are you not worried?”
With her gaze fixed on his, Tinu responded with a grin. “Because I pray. There’s nothing I can do about it except to make sure she doesn’t do too much at any time.”
Pacing the corridor for a short period, he rushed back to face his mum. “You should have told me,” Banjo spat out, ruffling his hair with his fingers. “I was scared she had passed out.”
“Thank God you were with her. I had no idea she had sneaked into the house. Rachael doesn’t like to bother me or anyone else.”
“Well, I want to be bothered!” he hissed.
“Then tell her when she wakes up. And don’t lead her on if you have no plans to keep her. Or you’ll have me to answer to, Banjo!”
The repeated warning bell in his mum’s voice was not lost on him. “How can I keep her when she has someone else and I’m not ready?”
“That’s for you to work out,” Tinu said, turning on her heel and leaving him with his thoughts in disarray.
Eight
For three hours, Banjo listened to Rachael snore softly as she slept. The hum filled him with satisfaction. Because it meant she was alive. He adjusted the quilt now and again.
Taking a look at his watch, Banjo hastened out of her bedroom and raced down the stairs to his room. As quick as a shooting star, he changed into a pair of respectable blue jeans and a white shirt. In a matter of minutes, Banjo raced out of the house and made his way to Barclays Bank.
At the entrance door of the brown brick building, Banjo met Antonin, the bank manager who ushered him to his office. Once Banjo was comfortably seated, Antonin explained the finer points and they concluded the mortgage deal.
A little over a week ago, Banjo faxed a copy of the agreement to his lawyer, who gave him the go ahead.
“Once you sign here, Mr. Ricci, the deal is completed.” The tall man used his thick, black rimmed glasses to point at the dotted lines on several papers.
“Thank you, Antonin.”
Without hesitation, Banjo scribbled his signature on the documents, seven sheets in all. “If that’s all, I’ll be on my way,” said Banjo, standing up and adjusting his sleeves.
Antonin stretched out his hand, a wide smile on his long face and Banjo shook his hand firmly. “Congratulations! Once the cheque clears, the mortgage will be fully paid up and the house now belongs to
Mrs Ricci. You’ll get a copy of the documents in the post.”
Nodding, Banjo got out of Antonin’s office before he finished speaking. One would have thought the world was coming to an end.
At the shopping mall, Banjo ordered African takeaway food. He bought fresh fruits, assorted nuts, dried apricots, packets of fruit juices and malt drinks. With the paper bags in both hands, he jumped inside a taxi.
All through the journey, Banjo did not observe the stunning sea views or landmarks flashing past as he urged the driver to get him home as fast as he could. Right now, it felt as if he was riding in a dark tunnel.
The minute the driver pulled up by the gate of the house, Banjo hurried out of the taxi and dug out Euro bills from his back pocket. The man who spotted a full beard and a black face cap had an expectant grin on his face. Without counting the money, Banjo pushed a few Euro bills in the driver’s hands.
“Thank you.” The driver smiled and waved.
Banjo did not take note of the driver’s excitement as he sprinted from the gate toward the house.
Tinu met him at the door.
“Is Rachael awake?” he asked without saying hello. It had been five hours since Rachael dropped off to sleep.
“Welcome back. Yes and she’s been babbling your name.” A knowing smile lit up his mum’s face.
Banjo did not stop to find out why his mum was smiling like the cat that got the cream. Up the stairs, he jogged with the bags in his hands. Once he got to Rachael’s bedroom, Banjo pushed the door open with one knee and let himself inside.
Even though Rachael still laid on the bed, she grinned at him. It was a weary grin, as if she had run a marathon. But it was such a relief to Banjo, as he dumped the bags on the dressing table and quickly sat beside her on the bed. Bending over her body slightly, he dropped a kiss on her forehead and took her hand in his own. “You still look weak. I brought you food.”
Even with her hair strewn around the pillows and her face drenched with fatigue, Rachael still looked hot. Her breasts popped up in his face, he had to swallow to calm down any rising craving.
You're Mine ~ A Sweet & Steamy Romance Page 6