16. Will
“So I would pick you up by seven p.m. as usual, okay?”
“Of course, Will.”
“I trust you to look the best. See you soon,” I said as I ended the call with a smile on my face.
Elizabeth and I were going out again tonight to some party as usual, and a part of me was excited merely at the thought of seeing her again.
It’s been a week since I saw her last, and that was the time she came over to my place.
Thinking back to that Saturday, oh, I wished she had stayed back. I longed to spend more time with her, talking with her while we snacked over a movie.
Weird, but with Elizabeth, I felt at peace and at ease. Anyway, I was seeing her again, and that was all that mattered.
I had instructed my driver not to worry about driving me. I wanted it to be just Elizabeth and me to keep it private. That way, I would not have to be on guard or feel tense. I could freely express myself and loosen up.
Checking the time, it was still a long way to 7:00 p.m., and for some reason, I felt impatient. Lost in my thoughts, I was suddenly brought back to reality by a knock on the door.
“Yes, come in,” I said, knowing it wasn’t going to be any other person than Anthony.
Once the individual came in, I was immediately surprised to see Lydia.
“Hi, big brother!”
“Lydia, what a surprise. Good to see you,” I said as I stood up to meet her halfway, giving her a warm hug before offering her a seat. “To what do I owe this visit? Would you like something to drink?”
“Oh, no, no. I won’t be here for long. I was just passing by, and I thought to check in on you,” she said.
“Funny how I was going to call you. Just got off the phone with Liz, and I was going to ask you to take her shopping.”
“Another one of your parties tonight?”
“Yes,” I said, smiling.
“You’d better not wear my friend out. And hold on a minute . . .”
“What?” I asked as I watched her lean into my face as though observing something. “What is it? What are you looking at?”
“You’re wearing a smile,” she commented.
“And so?”
“You never wear a smile.”
“Now that’s a lie,” I said as I leaned back into my seat, wondering where she was getting to.
Lydia paused for a minute, observing me before speaking. “Do you, by chance, have feelings for Liz?”
“Feelings?”
Her statement threw me off balance immediately. Feelings? What did she mean by that? Me? Feelings for Liz? That was impossible.
“Never, Lydia. Never. It can never happen.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, Lydia! And that’s that on that topic,” I said, slightly losing my patience.
“Okay! I’m sorry! You just looked different and happy. To be honest, it feels good to see you this way. And if there are feelings beginning to spring forth for Liz, it’s not a problem, Will. I hope you know that.”
“You don’t have to worry about that because there are no feelings here,” I said firmly, closing the topic on that note.
Talking about feelings and emotions was starting to make me uncomfortable. I just wished she never even brought it up to start with. I knew myself, and I was certain there was nothing of that kind.
Yes, I felt at ease with her. Yes, I was at peace whenever I was with her, but it was yet to transcend to such kinds of feelings Lydia spoke about.
“Anyway, I will do well to glam her up well, okay?”
“Thanks,” I said as I looked away from Lydia and out to my view.
Feelings? No way!
***
With my car parked downstairs, as usual, I awaited Elizabeth’s arrival. The moment I saw her walking out the door, all other thoughts paused as I stopped to admire the woman approaching me.
She looked so beautiful, even more beautiful than the other days.
“Hey, you set? Sorry, I took a bit of time,” Elizabeth spoke, but none of the words seemed to bring me out of the stare. My gaze remained fixed on her as she entered my car.
“Umm, no, not at all,” I said in response, finally bringing myself to speak.
“All right then, let’s go.”
“Oh, of course, yes,” I said as I looked at her again before starting the ignition.
The ride to the venue was mostly silent, as I found it difficult to take my eyes off her. Each time I looked at her, it felt fresh, as though I was seeing her for the first time.
That was how beautiful she looked.
I’m not exaggerating when I say she left me speechless, with my hands sweating on the steering and my heart slightly racing faster than usual.
We arrived at the venue in no time, and as usual, we interlocked hands as I led her inside. There were no words to describe the feeling of our hands interlocked; all I knew was that I never wanted to let go.
“Can I get you something to drink?” I asked the moment we were comfortably settled.
“Well, anything but alcohol is fine. I’m not in the mood for a glass of wine today.”
“Same here,” I said, chuckling slightly as I went to get us drinks.
Upon returning, I noticed she had already found company, or perhaps it had found her, as a group of women I recognized had gathered around her. Hopefully, they were just catching up and getting to know her and nothing more.
“Hello, ladies,” I said as I approached them.
“Oh, just the man we were waiting for! How are you doing, Will?” Jecintha, one of the ladies, said as she flirtatiously looked at me through her lashes.
I quickly glanced at Elizabeth, relieved to see that she had not noticed what had just happened.
“I’m great, thank you,” I said before handing over the glass to Elizabeth.
“I need to go to the restroom. I’ll be back in a jiffy,” Elizabeth whispered in my ear as she took the glass and placed it on the nearest table before walking away.
Watching her walk with confidence made me proud. She was definitely getting used to these gatherings, unlike before, when she found it hard to blend in.
“Oh, what a shame!”
I immediately turned to face Jecintha, confused by the statement she had just uttered.
“Excuse me?” I asked.
“I thought she was going to stay. I was going to ask how the wedding preparations were going.”
“Well, you can as well ask me. It’s going well, thank you for asking.”
“Well, you know if you need any help, you can let me know.”
“Of course,” I said as I turned to look out for Elizabeth.
As I stood there, not so far off from the ladies, I could overhear them talking.
“I can’t believe he’s actually getting married to that woman. She isn’t even pretty.”
“I know, right? He could have done better. Let’s not even mention the fact that she’s a nobody!”
“I know, right? He could have at least managed a politician’s daughter and not a nobody.”
“You know, I hear he’s trying to build up the business for her.”
“Oh, so sad. I wish he could open his eyes to see that she might as well be a gold digger, just doing all of this for his money.”
At that point, I lost it. I turned to face them immediately, surprising them as they had forgotten I was still nearby.
“Really? Is that all you guys can do? Talk and gossip?”
“Who are you to call my fiancée a gold digger? No, tell me, what gives you the right?”
“Look, Will, I know the truth can be hard, but we’re only looking out for you. You can have any other woman in the world, so why does it have to be her?”
“I don’t see how that is any of your business, to start with, and I choose to date whoever I want to date.”
“Just so you know, I will choose her a hundred times over any of you here.”
“Now, there is no need for us to be rude now, is there?”
“Last I checked, Jecintha, you started it,” I said in pure annoyance at their audacity.
I couldn’t help but wonder what gave them the audacity to speak as they did.
“She might not have all of the money, but at least she has the values and the discipline. And she’s way prettier than any of you here, so I will appreciate it if you refrain from insulting my fiancée,” I said before turning, only to be met with Elizabeth behind me.
Oh no! How long has she been there? Did she overhear the entire conversation?I couldn’t help but wonder how much she had heard.
As I was about to ask, she immediately put on a smile before speaking. “What did I miss?” Elizabeth asked innocently, as though she was oblivious to everything the ladies had said.
“Umm, nothing much. We were just discussing some work stuff,” I lied to her face, even though I could tell she knew I was lying.
“Oh, I see. Good thing I didn’t miss out on much then.”
The expression on her face that she was trying so hard to hide beneath her smile told me all I needed to know. She had heard it all.
We spent the rest of the evening communicating with a whole lot of other people, with Elizabeth glued to my side—of course, there was no other way I was going to have it.
After hearing what those ladies said, I now felt a strong desire to have her by my side every minute and second to protect her from meeting such people again.
As I stole glances at her from time to time, I wondered if she would display any signs of emotion in response to the conversation I had with Jecintha and her crew. But there was nothing—no emotions other than the smile on her face as she interacted with a few of my clients.
That smile.
Still as beautiful and warm.
I took a deep breath as I tried to put myself together.