DEAN'S POV

Our two weeks in Nakuru had been epic. Obviously we had challenges especially when it came to River and strenuous activities but I was used to it so it had been easy to navigate through it all.

Everything was fine and dandy until we came back to Nairobi and revisited a conversation that made River uncomfortable.

"I can't believe you're kicking me out."River exclaimed as I zipped up her boots for her.

She thought that refusing to put on her shoes meant we weren't going anywhere but she forgot that I had hands too.

"Waridi I'm not kicking you out."I retorted feeling like we were going around in circles.

When I had first broached the subject a week prior while in Nakuru, River had taken it badly but she had promised to think about it. Apparently she hadn't and now we were fighting over it. It was our first ever argument as a couple which did not please me at all. I didn't like being at odds with my girl.

"Then how do you explain what you're trying to do?"River asked with a pout as I helped her with her second boot.

"We are going house hunting because now that you're staying in Kenya, you need some independence."I repeated having her the same conversation two days in a row.

I would never force River to move out but my mom's words about River being young and infatuated with me wouldn't stop ringing in my mind. I wanted River to experience some form of freedom that didn't come with living with me. She needed to become her own person first before being mine forever. She had jumped straight from father's mansion to my humble studio apartment and that was not good for her. She thought it was but I was older than her and I knew better. I didn't want her to wake up one morning hating me for forcing her to live with me. I'd been the one to instigate us living together after her accident but she was all better now and I knew she had learnt her lesson.

"But I don't want to be on my own."River cried with a huff.

"There's nothing to be scared of."I consoled finishing up with her shoes.

I sat down next to her on the sofa lace up my boots as well. River and I found ourselves coordinating our outfits all the time. At first it had been weird but we had learnt to embrace it and view it as one of those things we liked to do as a couple.

"Scared? Who said I was scared? I'm not scared."River scoffed her pitch getting higher with each statement.

Of course my girl was scared, she would never admit that but I was not abandoning her, just removing the training wheels but still holding onto the seat.

"Yes you are and its okay. You've never been on your own before, let alone in a strange country but I will be with you every step of the way."I encouraged.

"But you are already with me by letting me live with you."River pleaded.

I got to my feet and helped her up handing her the purse she liked best with everything she'd need already in it.

"I'm not abandoning you River, I'm just buying you your own set of wheels but I'm right behind you."I said ushering her out of the house and locking the door.

River knew she couldn't match my strength physically so she didn't even try to fight me as I took her hand and led her downstairs.

"That's a terrible metaphor and besides I hate driving, I love being your passenger princess."My girl declared with a pout.

River knew how to drive, I'd seen her driving license and even convinced her to drive once while in Nakuru but she didn't like it.

"And you always will be, just imagine getting your new house, decorating it how you want. Buying new things, you love shopping."I enticed.

"I do love shopping but I know I don't want to be on my own." River asserted.

I felt like we were getting nowhere thanks to her stubbornness. I blamed her Italian genes. Why was she being so difficult when what I was trying to do was for her own good?

"My studio apartment is too small for you River. I know you want more than that, I've seen you struggling the past two months."I said changing tactics.

"I don't care where I stay as long as I'm with you."River countered beating me at my own game.

No wonder the girl was Valedictorian and school president, she could hold her own in an argument and win.

"Okay fine how about this. View it as if you're buying us a new house. I'll probably be there half the time anyway."I encouraged.

River went silent after my suggestion and I smiled thanking the heavens that I'd finally managed to wear her down.

"You know what you're right."She declared with a smile contrast to the pouts and glares I'd been getting all morning.

"I am?"I asked surprised how quickly things were turning around.

"Yes you are. We are getting us a new house and moving in together." River announced triumphantly.

I stopped midstep and turned to her wondering how the conversation had turned around so fast.

"River that's not what I meant."I defended.

She smiled at me and pinched my cheek kissing me softly."Tomato tomatoh."

"Still not what I meant."I groaned.

"This is awesome. We're getting a new house, oh how I've missed having a big bathroom, that will be the first priority."River declared letting go of my hand as she skipped down the rest of the stairs.

"River."I called out running after her.

"Hush now Dean, I'm thinking."She sushed me retrieving her phone probably to Google vacant houses and apartments in the city.

Unfortunately for her that's not how real estate worked in Kenya. Sure one could find a place online but most of it was a scam so the best way was to get on the ground and do the search personally.

I looked at River's excited face and gave up but only for the moment. At least she was willing to go house hunting now. We would cross the bridge of us living together when we got there. For the moment I got into the car next to her mentally preparing myself for a day of house hunting with River.

***

Oh yeah I definitely should have braced myself better. River's standards when it came to finding the perfect house were top tier. Considering that my spoilt princess could afford a mansion in the most expensive Kenyan estate only encouraged her to be more picky. We had been all over the city and she was yet to find a place she loved. I knew she was not doing it to spite me because she was really into it, it's just that none of those places had 'spoken to her' as she liked to phrase it.

"What's wrong with this one?"I asked River as we walked through a one bedroom apartment in a recently completed building.

It hadn't even been moved in so she would be one of the first tenants to occupy the building at the end of March. According to me the place was perfect but River has a subtle disinterested look on her face that one could easily miss unless you knew her as well as I did.

"The kitchen is too small."She whispered in fear of hurting the feelings of the superintendent who was right behind us.

The kitchen was definitely bigger than the one at my apartment coming with multiple overhead and foot cabinets, a double sink and a granite counter top separating the kitchen from the living room.

"I don't like the positioning of the bathroom sink and it doesn't have a mirror in the bedroom or bathroom."She added.

See what I meant by picky? She wouldn't be able to find the perfect apartment, definitely not in Kenya. They would all have something wrong but she did not want to hear that from me.

"Let's go."I said taking her hand and leading her out of the bedroom.

The superintendent was waiting for us in the living room with a big smile on his face. Too bad we wouldn't be making the deal but he didn't have to know that.

"Asanti, tutakupigia."I said using the same line I'd used in all other places.

"Karibu sana."He replied shaking our hands.

"We will definitely not call back."River whispered as we made our way outside.

"I know but it's nice to be polite."I replied unlocking the car.

They had an amazing parking lot too but even that didn't appeal to River.

"So where do we go now?"I asked River already exhausted yet it had only been a couple of hours since we began.

Mentally I had already checked out but I held on because River was still excited and as long as she was happy to house hunt so was I. After all it had been my idea in the first place.

"We've been looking at apartments all morning how about we upgrade to houses? A two bedroom bungalow doesn't sound so bad."River suggested.

"You want to buy a bungalow?"I exclaimed.

What did she need a two bedroom for when it was just her? She didn't even have any friends besides me so it's not like she needed the extra bedroom for guests.

"Why not? I can afford it and its better to make one big payment than to make tiny ones at the end of each month paying rent."She reasoned.

Her reasoning made absolutely no sense to me.

"Baby that's a nice way of looking at it but a house is too big, why don't you start with an apartment for now and move to a house after a year or two."I suggested hoping to change her mind.

The look I got in return assured me that we were only doing this the River way or not doing it at all.

"Dean please, I thought you wanted me to move out."She coaxed.

"Yes but not in the way you're doing it."I argued.

"Please drive, we have time to hit a couple of places before we call it a day."She demanded softly leaving no room for an argument.

Since the decision was out of my hands, I took her to Karen, one of the most affluent estates in Kenya hoping she would find something she liked. After a couple of visits to housing agents there River was still not satisfied with anything they showed her.

"Let's call it a day and continue this tomorrow. We were aiming a bit high hoping we'd get this done in a day."I said as we left the fourth housing agent disappointed yet again.

"I'm tired too, let's go."River finally relented making me the happiest I'd been all day.

We were driving past a couple of mansions when River screamed.

"What?"I asked looking around for any signs of danger.

"Stop the car."She demanded.

"River we're in the middle of a residential estate, I can't just stop the car."I scolded.

"Dean find somewhere to park and stop the car."She asserted.

Having no idea what had gotten into her, I found a parking spot outside the gate of what seemed to be an abandoned mansion.

River jumped out of the car as soon as we were parked and ran across the road. I quickly got of the car and locked it running after her.

"Where exactly are we going?"I asked my little Dora the explorer after catching up to her.

"Right here."River replied stopping infront of a house that was currently under renovation.

It was a flat roofed two storey mansion as far as we could see from outside the perimeter wall.

"If you haven't noticed its under renovation, they are probably not even selling it."River reasoned.

"Yes they are, see."River said pointing at a for sale sign hidden under a couple of trash bags outside the gate.

How had she even managed to see that while in the car?

"Let's go ask."River cheered excitedly walking up to the gate before I could stop her.

"River I don't think this is a good idea."I whisper yelled but she had already rung the bell.

A couple of minutes later a greying old man in a pair of coveralls unlocked the gate with a polite smile on his face.

"You ask."River demanded under her breath since her Swahili wasn't that good yet.

I was about to when the old man spoke up using flawless English.

"Good afternoon, how may I help you?"He asked.

River's eyes as well as mine widened in awe. River was much quicker to recover than I was.

"Good afternoon, we saw the for sale sign and wanted to inquire about the house."River replied.

"Wonderful, come in please. My boss is inside."He said stepping aside to let us in.

River could barely contain her excitement once we saw the house fully. It was still under renovation but it was obvious that it was a beautiful house which also meant that it was expensive. The frontyard was well maintained with beautiful green grass, tall luscious trees and different types of flower bushes. The driveway led up to a two door garage attached to the main house where a white maybach parked.

"Right this way please, I'm Jomo, the groundskeeper."

"It's nice to meet you, I'm River and this is Dean."River introduced as we were led to the backyard.

The house had a beautiful white exterior built to look like Italian style houses. It expanded all the way to the back opening up to a huge backyard with a small kitchen garden, a swing seat, a hammock, a cabana and a small pond. An older white woman was working on the kitchen garden wearing gardening gloves dressed in a long green dress with flower patterns on it and rain boots. Her silver gray hair was piled up into a neat bun at the top of her head.

"Madam, we have guests."Jomo announced.

The woman lifted her head and turned to us with a welcoming smile. It looked like she had been expecting us because she didn't even bat an eye at two strangers walking into her home.

"Welcome, Jomo show them where to sit while I clean up."She requested making her way out do the garden and into the house.

"She will be with you in just a moment."Jomo said ushering us into the cabana seats.

They were comfortable looking like they she just been plucked from a high end hotel and planted in the beautiful backyard.

"Dean this is it."River whispered bouncing her foot in excitement.

"Are you sure? Baby this looks like a small hotel, not a home."I argued trying to make her see reason.

The look in her eyes let me know that I wouldn't win this fight. She was looking at the house the same was she always looked at when I got out of the shower.

"Yes I'm sure."River beamed.

There's nothing more I could say to convince her otherwise so I shut my mouth and waited to see how the whole scene would unfold.

The old lady came back a few minutes later minus the gloves and boots with another older black woman carrying a tray with three glasses and a pitcher of juice.

"Welcome to my home, I'm Miriam."Our host introduced herself shaking our hands.

"I'm River and this is Dean."My girl replied.

Juice was served and the lady excused herself with a polite bow.

"How can I help you this afternoon?"Miriam asked.

"We saw the for sale sign at the outside while house hunting and I've got to say, your house is beautiful."River complimented.

"Thank you, I've lived here for the past twenty six years but I'm moving back to Canada to spend my final days with my children so I'm selling the house."Miriam replied.

"Wow, why did you move to Kenya?"River asked.

"My husband was running the USAID branch here in Kenya until his retirement three years ago due to disease but he passed mid last year and it hasn't been the same without him."Miriam expressed.

"Oh, I'm so sorry."River consoled.

"It's okay dear, we had a long life together but now it's time to let him go and the beautiful memories we created in this house."Miriam answered.

It was clear that Miriam had loved her husband, she had moved across the world for him and now she was selling the house they had spent their life in. It had to be painful.

"We would like to buy the house if you haven't already sold it. I'm in love and I haven't even see the interior."River replied.

"It's a five bedroom, six bath house with a two car garage and a rooftop swimming pool."Miriam summarized.

Five bedrooms? River didn't need five bedrooms, what were they all for. And the swimming pool? Did River know just how expensive those were to maintain?

"It's a little bigger than what we were looking for but we are just starting out and our family will grow, right Deanie?" River asked.

A little bigger? When we left the house earlier that morning I had been under the impression that we would be looking for a one bedroom apartment not a five bedroom mansion in Karen.

"Yes."I nodded because I couldn't as well contradict River in the presence of a stranger.

Miriam and River looked at each other and laughed.

"Oh men, you are so obvious but we women see the future. My husband was the same when when I bought this house. He didn't see the need for all the space, the we went ahead and had five kids and it suddenly wasn't enough."Miriam said with a laugh.

It was amusing that they were getting along so fast but the house was still too big.

"Have you registered the house with an agent?"River asked.

"No I don't want to go through all that trouble. I was just going to make an ad in the newspaper once the renovations were done but it's good to see people interested even before its back to its original beauty."Miriam explained.

"Are you kidding, it's beautiful."River gushed.

"It's is and I've had a couple of people ask for it but they haven't been able to stick to my terms so nobody has made a final offer yet."Miriam said.

"What are you conditions?"River asked.

"Whoever takes on the house must do so with all its staff and maintain their current salaries, there's only two, Jomo the groundskeeper and Wangeci my housekeeper. They have been with me for the last twenty years and I do not want to see them without a job when I leave. So if you want this house you have to know that that is a clause in the contract."Miriam explained.

"My dream house and it comes with its own staff, where do I sign?"River asked making Miriam laugh.

"I love your enthusiasm young lady, why don't I give you a tour of the house."Miriam offered.

"That would be perfect."River smiled.

We got to our feet and followed Miriam across the vast backyard to the backdoor.

"River this house will cost you half your savings."I warned my little spendthrift.

"It'll be worth it."River replied her smile unwavering.

At that moment I knew that as long as River could afford what Miriam was asking for then we would walk out of there as home owners in Karen.

As Miriam gave us a tour of the house there wasn't a doubt that it was magnificent but I also knew that that meant it wouldn't come cheap. The rooftop swimming pool was even more impressive witch lounge chairs and a rooftop bar.

Who has a rooftop bar at home?

"My husband made that for him and his friends, they to come up here and drink while me and the girls relaxed by the pool."Miriam explained as if reading my mind.

"I absolutely love that."River gushed.

The moment River saw the master bathroom I knew we weren't leaving without purchasing the house. I could see the love hearts swimming in her eyes as she took it the glass shower and marble pristine all white bathroom with a sunken bathtub.

"What if we can't afford it?"I asked River as we followed Miriam to the home office slash library to review the contract.

"Then we're selling one of your kidneys."River grinned at me.

"Why mine?"I challenged.

"Because I can't have any scars on me. Have you seen how flawless my skin is?"River teased.

I rolled my eyes at her hoping that for her sake we would be able to afford the house.

"Since the house if fully furnished and will be completely renovated when you move in, this is my price quote. It's negotiable but you it gives you an idea of where to start."Miriam expressed.

The woman hadn't even asked where we were supposed to get the money to afford such a house. But one only needed to look at River once to know that she was loaded.

"Wow, this is not what I expected."River mumbled handing me the contract.

Too many zeros. They were so many I nearly lost count but Miriam was selling the house for much less than I thought.

"The house won't be ready for another three weeks but I like you two so I'll give you time to think about it. How about a week? Call me back with your answer and we'll know the next move."Miriam said when neither of us said anything.

"We're taking the house."River declared without even blinking.

"You are?"Miriam asked sounding as surprised as I was.

"Yes, I'm in love and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't take it. Dean what do you think?"River asked phrasing it as if I had a choice to say no when we both knew I didn't.

It was her money and as much as I advised her to be responsible with it, there's only so much I could say.

"Happy wife, happy life."I replied mustering my best genuine smile.

"Wonderful so how much is your offer?"Miriam asked.

After much negotiation Miriam agreed to sell us the house for forty five million Kenyan shillings if we paid in one instalment which we were definitely able to do. There was much more to it than just signing the contract like meeting with the lawyers and visiting government offices but the hard part was done.

"You two will be very happy here, I will see you tomorrow at my lawyers office."Miriam said as she ushered us out of the house.

"Most definitely, have a goodnight Miriam."River replied.

"Drive safe."She replied closing the gate behind us.

"Don't be mad."River said holding me back as we walked to the car.

"Why would I be mad? It's your money."I replied.

"I don't like that attitude. Please just trust me on this, it's a good move."She pleaded.

"It's a five bedroom mansion waridi, what do you need all that space for?"I demanded.

"For the family you and I are gonna have?"She answered timidly.

"River we only started dating. We won't be starting a family for a while."I reasoned.

"A man always knows." River mumbled.

"What?"

"A man always knows within the first week if he's gonna make you his wife or not so Dean do you see a future with us?" River asked.

"You know I do."I answered lowering my tone.

I was falling in love with River of I wasn't already so of course I saw a future with her.

"Then trust me."She begged.

I wanted to, I really did but what she had just done was irrational and not well thought out.

"I'm hungry let's go eat."I replied.

"Deanie." River pleaded.

"Just give me time to wrap my head around this please."I requested needing some space and time to think.

"Okay, I won't push." River relented kissing my cheek and getting into the passenger seat.

I closed her door and got behind the wheel. River had no idea the commitment she had just made or made me make. She wasn't a legal citizen so just like the car, the house was going to be in my name. It was just a lot to think about and I needed time.

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Thank you very much for 1K followers on this app. It has taken six years to get there but they have been worth it. Thank you to all my loyal followers who have been with me from the start. To my new followers, welcome to the family, we love it here.

I love you all so much, take care and see you in the next chapter.