AMBER ROMANCE

AMBER ROMANCE

WHEN THE HEART KNOWS

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX


Nma woke up in the morning to see Uche knotting his tie in front of the dressing mirror, she glanced at the table clock, it was barely seven and she wondered if this was the time he usually left for work or was he just trying to avoid her.
“Good morning” she greeted him, getting out of the bed in her short pink night gown.
“Good morning, hope you slept well?”
“Yes, I slept very well” she didn’t want him thinking she tossed and turned last night wanting him. Not knowing what else to say to him she walked into the bathroom to shower. By the time she came out Uche had gone to work.
That became the routine for them. Uche worked late and slept in his study then came into their room in the morning to get ready for work, sometime he would have left by the time she would wake up.
Nma was very unhappy and it showed. Even though the people close to her have mistaken her tired looks as a sign of pregnancy and teased her about it she denied their accusation half-heartedly. It was better that they thought that her tired look was a result of pregnancy than for them to guess the truth. She and Uche were drifting apart more each day. They rarely spoke to each other, and in fact he was becoming a perfect stranger to her with each passing day. She hardly knew what to do, she had no one to talk to, and she was bearing her burden alone. How could she tell someone that her marriage wasn’t working out when she and Uche behaved like they were the only two people in love in this world in public? She could only pray for a miracle so they could return as they were before Angela spoilt it for them.
The only thing that kept her sane was her work. Especially Eva’s wedding gown had kept her busy. Sometimes she didn’t have to think or worry about Uche and their failing marriage. But then sometimes in the night after they finished dinner civilly and Uche retired to his study to work, she would go to her studio and work till the wee hours of the morning. Then she would drag herself off to bed where she would sleep late and wake up tired and nauseous. She put it down to the problems and emotional aches her marriage was causing her. She hardly had appetite for anything these days; she always missed breakfast and only ate lunch when she remembered to.
“Nma don’t you think you are over doing it? With your condition you should be doing this much” Helen said worriedly some days later.
“What condition?”
“Don’t kid me, or are you saying that you are not pregnant”
“I am not, how many times will I tell you that”
“But you have it written all over you, or can’t you see the changes your body is under-going” Helen told her, she was a little upset with her friend and employer for being so wrapped in her job and loosing sense what is more important in her life right now. She should be taking care of herself, husband and their unborn child.
“I have just been working too hard, you are right, I will slow down, and I worked throughout last night”
“Nma you can’t mean that, where was Uche when you were holed up in your studio all night”
“He understands I have to work, after all it is his sister’s wedding gown I’m working on. He wouldn’t want his sister without a gown on her wedding day and he works pretty hard himself”
“Nma you are now married, you should stop working all night, you’ll kill the passion in your relationship and when that dies, the love will gradually follow suit”
Nma smiled ruefully. If only Helen knew the truth she thought and sighed.
“I’ll go home now and work on Eva’s dress so I don’t have to work tonight and thanks for everything” she left feeling very empty
Nma was still working in her studio when she heard a light tap on the door and the housekeeper came in.
“I’m sorry to disturb you, but I was wondering if I should bring you lunch up here”
Nma was astonished and she stared Mrs. Ekpo dumbfounded.
“Mrs. Ekpo what are you doing here?”
“My sister, your house keeper, you know she is my sister right?”
Nma nodded smiling
“Her other daughter just put to bed and she got called away so filling up for her”
“Oh my goodness I am mightily glad to see you”
“You missed your breakfast and now you are almost missing lunch.
“I have not been having appetite lately”
“I understand it is usually like this in the first stages” the woman smiled.
“I’ll come down, just give me a few minutes to finish these” as the woman left, Nma burst into crying. She didn’t know why she was crying but the woman’s kindness touched her. Her head was bent on the sewing machine when the door opened the second time and Uche came in and was shocked to see her crying, he closed the door and went out feeling sad, he knew he had succeeded in turning one happy girl into an unhappy woman.
A few minutes later, Nma came down for lunch not knowing that Uche had come and gone. She only ate to please Mrs. Ekpo who has taken so much trouble to prepare the special meal in order to tempt her appetite. When she had eaten enough, tiredly she went to get some sleep. She did not get up until the next morning.
Feeling tired and nauseous, she saw a cup of cocoa waiting and blessed the Mrs. Ekpo and took a sip. Then she sat and tried to remember the last time she saw her period, it was difficult because she has never been regular, but it’s been two months since her wedding night, that’s kind of unusual even for her.  She panicked, it couldn’t be. It wasn’t possible, she thought. But it was she said to herself as she recalled her wedding night. Remembering alone filled with a longing. Was she pregnant? She asked. Were they right? She walked to the mirror and removed her clothes. Frankly she didn’t know the signs to look for. The only difference in her body was that she seemed a lot slimmer.
She sat down on her bed and felt tears on her cheeks. How was she going to break the news to Uche that she was pregnant, how were they going to bring up a baby in this strangeness that existed between. Helplessly she flopped down on the bed face down and covered her face with her pillow sobbing. That was how Uche found her when he came in to take what he had forgotten and his heart went out to her. He never knew that marriage to him would make her this unhappy. When he had forced her to marry him, he thought that in time she would come to feel the same love he felt for her but he had only succeeded in making her unhappy. He knew he made a mistake going against her wish on their wedding night but he had tried, even though it had been difficult to respect her wishes till she was ready to accept the full intensity of his passion, He thought sadly. Maybe what he should do is give her back her freedom, with that conclusion he took what he wanted and left without disturbing her.
When she calmed down she got ready for work, applying more make-up to cover her distresses. She entered the studio and caught Helen looking worried but as she saw her, she covered it and smiled airily at her.
“Now you look almost good” Helen smiled.
“I took your advice and slept half of the day.”
“I didn’t ask you to sleep, only spend some time with Prince Charming” she joked. “But anyway it did you some good; you are looking like your old self”
“Sorry, I can’t say the same for you; I caught that worried look on your face just some moments ago”
“Oh! It is just that arrogant man you call Chuck”
“Really? What about him?”
“I forgot my purse in his car and he arrogantly asked me to come and get it myself, when I asked him to bring it here”
“Hmm, so my dear girl, what’s the big deal in going to his house to pick up your purse?”
“You don’t understand, I can’t face him, not after what happened when he brought me home that night”
“Interesting, go on”
“He insisted on driving me home when we got to my place, he insisted that I give him a good night kiss, I reminded him again that I wasn’t his date but he said as far as he was concerned bringing me home qualified him as my date. So I decided to give him a peck and rest the case but somehow the kiss landed on his lips but the shameful thing is that I kissed him and when I realized what I was doing I ran out, therefore forgetting my purse”
“Why do I feel it’s my turn to start teasing?”
“Come on, I hate his guts; he makes me feel like fifteen instead of twenty five”
“You know, I will only tell you to go there with your heads held high and pretend as if you are blind to his wealth, his looks and even to the fact that he is a man, you will get even by getting under his skin. Believe me I’m talking from experience” Nma thought about her failing marriage as she spoke and wondered what moral right she had to give relationship advice to another. Well first, she had to go to the hospital to confirm her suspicions. After that she would think of what to do to salvage her marriage.
As soon as she received the news that the test was positive, she didn’t know how to feel about it. Of course she was happy that a life was growing inside her, not just any life but a life she and Uche made together. At the same time she was sad and scared because she didn’t know what kind of life the little innocent growing would be subjected to. She was sure Uche would make a good father and she didn’t doubt that she would make a good mother either, but their relationship now was not the kind to raise a child in. Then she made a resolution to take matters into her hands, they either raise this baby together in love or they would do it apart. She was going to Uche’s office. It was high time they stopped living like strangers.

In Uche’s office the secretary told her he was not around.
“But has he come in today?” she demanded firmly
“Yes he has”
“When is he coming back into office” Nma saw the woman squirming uncomfortably
“He didn’t say but I guess it will be soon”
Nma left then heading home, with any luck she would meet him at home. Even though it seemed unlikely but her hope was up
It was the first question she asked Mrs. Ekpo once she got home.
“He came home but he left again”
Disappointed she went into the bedroom. A large envelope caught her eyes and she picked it up, to her surprise it was addressed to her. Hurriedly she opened it wondering who it could be from and it looked official. She brought out the sparkling white forms and kept the envelope and carefully read the forms. The blood drained from her face and she gasped severally for breathe.
She couldn’t believe it, divorce papers. Uche has just given her di…vo…rce papers. She couldn’t believe it; she didn’t want to believe it as it all dawned on her. She started crying, she didn’t want a divorce she wanted a second chance. She sobbed as if she was dying “Oh God please” she was feeling faint. She thought of the unborn baby, and her hopeless love for him. “No!” she muttered firmly, “not without a fight Uche, for our baby and our love”
She picked up her phone and called his phones but it wasn’t going through then she called his office to ask if he had returned but the secretary said he hadn’t.
Nma rang off and waited for him to come home. Nma took a long soak in the tub later in the evening. She had already asked the housekeeper to prepare Uche’s favorite dinner; she would have done so herself but the smell of food was becoming very irritating to her. She wore a red lace and satin short night gown and left the dark wavy weave on flowing. By the time she came into the living room Mrs. Ekpo had gone for the day but the dinner was steaming and ready. She sat down in one of the Persian couches and waited impatiently for him to come back. She watched the clock tick by and worried if he would not come home at all. It hadn’t occurred to her that he might have left her already; maybe he was waiting until she packed out or signed the divorce papers before he returned home.
Anxiously she waited, closing her mind to any negative thinking and concentrating on the speech she had so well planed and rehearsed to say to him.
Time was flying from eight o’clock to nine o’clock, when it was ten o’clock she stood up and tried to walk off her anxiety. She thought of what to do, he had never returned home this late before. Then a new and a very scary feeling began to creep into her. An accident, picking the phone she called his phones again, it kept ringing but no answer, she taught of calling his friends but she didn’t know what explanations she would give them if he wasn’t at any of their houses. She dialed all his mobile phones again but none was reachable.  She also turned on the television to see if there had been any accident of any kind, by eleven thirty she was contemplating going out to look for him but she didn’t know where to look for him. She watched as the clock it ticked midnight. No, if Uche had an accident somebody would have contacted her by now, maybe he had left, waiting and giving her time to pack out or hear from her lawyer.
“I wont give up” she said “what would I do without him?” he had become an integral part of her life and she didn’t know what else to do with her life other than being married to him.
Nma woke up on the couch, the next morning, she smelled the tempting aroma coming out from the kitchen and she knew that the Mrs. ekpo was already around. She wondered what she would think finding her on the couch and dressed up, not to talk of the untouched meal. Tired and fed up with her sickness that morning she dragged herself to the bedroom.
In the bedroom she took a hot shower and dressed in a flowery fit and flay gown, minutes later the housekeeper brought her a steaming cup of cocoa and she smiled her thanks.
“What will you have for breakfast madam?”
“I’m not hungry; this drink is okay for me”
“I know just what to tempt your appetite. Banana muffins and cherry pies, now tell me you’re not hungry”
“How can I?” laughed Nma and watched as the woman left. She decided that she was going to let Mrs. Ekpo work here permanently and send her surly sister to Eden castle.
Then she looked at the helplessness of her situation, she couldn’t believe Uche wanted to divorce her. Was this the revenge he talked about, leaving so suddenly when she needed him most, Pregnant, confused and afraid? What was she going to do with herself?  She couldn’t even think of life without him, his love was the compass that directed her, now she was being forced to live without his affection. How could life be so cruel, would there never be an end to her sorrows?
“But Uche, I wont let you go” she muttered. Even if you are at the end of the world and I don’t even know how to get there, I will wander until I find you and make you mine again. With that she picked up her mobile phone and dialed Uche’s office and she was told he was not in yet, she dialed his mobile phone for the umpteenth time and it didn’t ring. Feeling dejected she dropped the phone and smiled at the housekeeper as she brought the delicacy, just the aroma watered her mouth. While she fed with eager haste, she thought of what to do, when she finished she dialed Eva, Stanley and Chuck but nobody had seen him, she lied and pretended that she was just calling to say hi and then tactfully asked
“Haven’t you seen him lately” when they asked after her husband. Assured that no one has seen him in two days, she decided to ask the house keeper if she knew anything.

In the living room, Nma saw the house keeper's daughter lying down on the couch and watching a movie, if her mind wasn’t preoccupied with her own problems she would have thought it was strange but she could only think of finding the Mrs. Ekpo.
“Where is your aunt?” she asked the girl
“Right behind you” the girl answered with a smile.
Just as she was turning, she was hit with something hard and she collapsed on the ground.



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