After the storm (14 page)

"Many
people call themselves Christians because they happen to have been
born so. But you know what? I've found out that a lot of people
have no idea what it's all about and can't even defend their
beliefs."

She felt
uncomfortable with the conversation. Akeem sounded like Teju, but
from the opposite end, and she liked his ideas even less. "All I
know is that I'm a Christian," Yemi maintained. "I was born one,
and I'll remain one."

"And I
shall not stop you. You're more than free to believe in whatever
makes you happy."

"But
what about you?"

"I
certainly don't like being told that I'm helpless and unable to
achieve anything on my own without a higher power helping me out."
He looked at her bewildered face. "That's why I love
books like this one," he said, raising the book up. "They
prove my theories right."

Yemi
pursed her lips. "I don't think I like what you're saying, and I
don't want you teaching such things to my kids."

He
laughed. "Christianity is the official religion in this house, but
if the kids decide on something else when they are
older…"

"They
will not," Yemi cut in.

"Nah!"
He wagged his finger playfully at her. "There's freedom of religion
in this household."

Yemi did
not respond. Instead, she stared ahead like she did not hear
him.

"Are you
angry with me?" Akeem asked, looking at her face. "That's why I
don't like talking about my views, Okay, let's forget about
everything I've said." He tried to take her hand in his, but she
shrugged it off. "I'm a Christian, and I believe in everything you
believe. Is that okay?"

"Don't
patronise me."

Akeem
sighed. "I can't win, can I? I expressed my opinion, and it wasn't
accepted. I backtrack and accept what I've been told to believe,
and yet my beautiful boss is still not happy with me. Tell me, what
do I do now?"

"I'm
going upstairs," Yemi said, getting up.

"Can I
have a kiss before you go?"

Yemi
gave him an evil look, but as she made an attempt to move past him,
his arm snaked out and he pulled her onto his knee. She tried to
free herself, but he held on to her firmly.

"So can
I have my kiss?" he asked, tickling her.

"Akeem,
stop," Yemi pleaded, beginning to laugh helplessly. This was one of
his favourite weapons since she had told him that she was ticklish.
"Stop!"

"Can I
have my kiss now?" he asked again, still tickling her.

"Stop…"
Yemi pleaded. "Please…"

He
paused. "All right, are you ready?"

She was
still breathing hard. "Yes, but it's not going to be from my
heart."

"Whatever."

Yemi
tilted her head up, and her lips found his, but as she drew back,
he placed a hand behind her head and deepened the kiss. She did not
know when her arms went around him of their own
volition.

"Mmmm…and this is not from the heart?" he murmured against
her lips a little while later.

"I was
bullied into it," she said, trying to pull herself off his knee. He
kissed her again before he let her go. "Big bully!" She looked at
him reproachfully as she moved towards the door.

He
winked at her. "Yeah…the only bully you're absolutely crazy
about."

∞∞∞

About a
month later, they attended the wedding ceremony of his cousin,
Rhea. Yemi had not been feeling too well and was not really in the
mood for socializing but made the effort because she knew that
Akeem would not go if she didn't. He knew she wasn't comfortable
around his family members, and he tried to avoid going to as many
family functions as he could, but Rhea was his first cousin, and
she knew his mother would expect him to be there.

Because
of the Kadiris' attitude towards her, Yemi always tried to dress as
elegantly as possible for such gatherings. She was grateful
for her fashion sense, and her clothes were like an armour for her
at such times.

She
decided to wear one of her own designs again. She was a lot more
confident about them now. At some events she had attended during
the last couple of months, she'd had strangers asking who her dress
designer was, and a few had even asked if she could make some
clothes for them when they discovered that she made them herself.
She declined, but their requests boosted her confidence. Some other
family friends, courtesy of Fayona and Sara, had also gotten to
know that she could sew, and she had gotten a few more requests.
Those requests she felt a little more comfortable accepting. She
still declined payment but was now confident enough to ask them to
bring their own fabrics, which they were happy to do.

She
finished dressing up and sat on the edge of the bed. She had taken
some painkillers, but her head still had the annoying dull ache
that had plagued her all day. She would need to see a doctor if she
didn't feel any better in the next couple of days.

"What's
with the face? Are you okay?" Akeem asked as he came into the
room.

"I'm
still feeling a bit run down," she told him.

"Are you
sure you want to come with me?" Akeem asked with a concerned
expression on his face. "You don't have to if you are not up to
it."

"It's
okay," Yemi replied. "Hopefully we can leave early."

"Just
let me know when you want to leave, okay?"

"Thanks,
honey." Yemi squeezed his arm.

When
they arrived at the venue, they spotted Mrs. Kadiri and Nadia, who
had arrived before them. Akeem led her over to say hello. They
conversed briefly with Akeem in Hausa, not minding the fact that he
answered them back in English. Yemi kept her face expressionless.
She was aware of Mrs. Kadiri's love for her language whenever she
was around. She had begged Akeem to speak Hausa back to his mum
whether she was there or not, because she could see the annoyed
expression on his mum's face anytime he spoke back to her in
English, but Akeem was having none of it.

Yemi was
relieved when they moved off and could sit at their own
table.

"Oh,
there is my cousin, Aimee!" Akeem said, smiling and waving to a
lady across the hall. "She must have flown in from England
yesterday." He looked around the hall. "Oh, and there is Tariq as
well. Wow, everyone is here!" He turned to Yemi. "Do you mind
coming with me? I need to say hello to them."

"No, you
go ahead, I'll just stay here."

"Are you
sure you'll be okay?"

"I'll be
fine," Yemi said. "Honestly," she added, as she saw that he
made no attempt to get up.

That
seemed to satisfy him. Yemi watched him as he went over to greet
his cousins. She saw them wave to another set of people who had
just arrived, and then they all moved over to greet the new
arrivals as well. She was very glad that she had not attempted to
go with him because she really could not have handled that with the
way that she was feeling.

She
looked around the hall. It had all the usual markings of anything
the Kadiris or their friends did. They knew how to party, and they
did it with that unmistakable touch of class.

She was
still looking around the hall when her gaze came to rest on a woman
walking into the hall. She was fair and petite, which gave her a
doll-like appearance, but it was not so much her beauty that caught
Yemi's attention as it was the way the lady was received by
everyone—like a long-lost daughter. Even Mrs. Kadiri was making
such a fuss about her that Yemi began to wonder who this woman
was. 

"She is
very beautiful, isn't she?" Nadia asked softly, dropping into an
empty seat beside Yemi and following her gaze. The woman was now
talking to Akeem.

Yemi
smiled politely. Nadia had barely spoken to her earlier on, but
that was vintage Nadia, hot or cold as her mood dictated. "I've
never seen her before," Yemi said, still looking at the lady, who
was batting her doll-like eyes at Akeem. "Is she a
relative?"

"A
relative? Oh no!" Nadia laughed throatily. "That's the lady Akeem
was supposed to marry. At least that was the understanding of both
families…" She smiled maliciously at Yemi. "Until you came
along."

Yemi was
stunned. She tried to process the information while Nadia watched
her discomfort with obvious enjoyment. "Akeem never told me that he
was engaged to anyone when I met him," she finally said.

"Who said anything about an engagement? I said both families
had
an understanding
. But then again, that's all that's needed." She was still
watching Yemi's face. "Leila's family have been friends with my
family for like…forever!" She rolled her eyes dramatically.
"Anyway, let me not bore you anymore. Enjoy the rest of the
evening." And with that, she glided away.

Yemi sat
for a few minutes and continued to watch the woman, who was
obviously trying very hard to hold Akeem's attention. Akeem had
moved to the dance floor with the new couple and other family
members, and Leila was dancing around him and obviously flirting
with him. 

Yemi
felt a surge of anger and stood up. She fixed a bright smile on her
face as she walked up to her husband's side. Akeem smiled warmly on
seeing her and put his arm around her. Leila still hung around for
a couple of minutes and then gave Yemi a venomous look before
moving away. Yemi pretended she didn't see the look, continued
dancing, and then made sure she stuck by her husband's side for the
rest of the evening.

∞∞∞

They
arrived home a few hours later. Yemi went straight upstairs to
their bedroom and lay down. She had put aside all pretenses as soon
as they had got into the car and only answered him when he spoke to
her. She was still in shock at what Nadia had told her. Akeem had
never mentioned Leila to her, and judging from Leila's behavior
tonight and the obvious goodwill and affection she still enjoyed
from the Kadiri clan, maybe they were still hoping that something
could happen between her and Akeem.

The door
to their bedroom opened, and Akeem came in. "Are you feeling
better?" he asked, sitting on the bed and taking off his
shoes.

"Who is
Leila?" Yemi asked, still looking at the ceiling.

He
looked at her for a moment before answering. "She's a family
friend."

"Is it
true that she is the one your family wanted you to
marry?"

"Yes."

He said
it so easily that Yemi looked up at him in surprise. "Why did you
not tell me about her?"

He
shrugged. "Because there was nothing to tell. I've never had any
romantic feelings towards Leila."

"But you
should have still told me," Yemi insisted. "Why did I have to find
out from Nadia?"

An
irritated expression crossed his face. "So she was the one who came
blabbing to you? I have to warn that sister of mine to learn to
keep her tongue in check."

"Oh, are
there more secrets, then?" Yemi asked sarcastically.

Akeem
ran his fingers over his hair. "Baby, please don't allow yourself
to get worked up over nothing…"

"I still
had a right to know," Yemi cut in. "I'd have steered clear of you
if I had known that you were involved with someone
else."

"Are you
not listening to me at all?" Akeem asked wearily. "I said I was not
involved with her, and I never will be."

"It did
not look like that to me tonight," Yemi maintained. "You were
dancing with her before I came over to join you."

"I was
dancing with my cousin, her new husband, and other family members.
Leila chose to join us."

"And
stayed conveniently close to you," Yemi retorted.

Akeem
studied her face with a half-smile playing around his lips. "You
look beautiful even when you are angry," he said softly. "Relax,
honey, no woman can ever compete with you in my heart."

Yemi
felt her anger melting away, but she tried to hold on to it. "But
how come I've never met her?"

"Because
she traveled to the US before our wedding and only just got
back."

Yemi was
quiet as she pondered on what he had told her. "But why did you not
want to marry her? She is a very attractive lady."

"Because
underneath that beautiful head lies nothing but cotton wool." Akeem
laughed. "When we were younger, Adil and I used to joke about the
fact that Leila would not be able to identify the letters of the
alphabet even if they were as big as a house."

"Now you
are exaggerating. She can't be that bad."

"Oh,
trust me, she was worse than that, but her dad got her private
tutors, and they were somehow able to perform some form of magic on
her because she did end up going to the university. But even now,
all she ever talks about are clothes, makeup, and such things. I
get bored within two minutes of talking with her."

Yemi
smiled slightly, but a frown furrowed her brows again as she
remembered his mother's reaction to Leila.