Utianle

Giggles bubbled in my stomach, rose to my throat and spilled from my lips as the voice from the other end of my phone chuckled before going into a coughing fit. Instead of consoling her, I laughed harder and clutched my side, causing me to snort in the process. Mischievous Faith was at it again.

I replaced the notepad on the pillow with my phone, placing it on speaker so I could stand up. At first, I thought Faith was joking about Umoh releasing a new single until she went on to play it. The song was about a certain Julie and all the things he should have done when she was still in his life.

Julie indeed.

He was smart enough to change the names and places he mentioned but everything else in the song was relating to us. To think that he made himself look like the victim.

"You should calm down and listen to the song," Faith murmured, laughter laced her words and I nodded even though she couldn't see me. "I think it's about you."

The song was obviously about me, he even mentioned the kiss with King. I puckered my lips as Faith continued rambling. Umoh was a chapter of my life I was glad to be done with and the part of the song I had listened to was more than enough. Whatever he decided to sing about wasn't any of my business so long he wasn't mentioning mine or my babies names.

"Why are you even listening to his song?"

Faith never once liked him nor his songs, the few times she listened was to pick out the lines where his lisp might have slipped. She has an ear for it. I chuckled at the thought of what might happen if Faith saw Umoh. Well, she has my blessings to go crazy on him, he would survive it.

"I didn't. I am not. It just came on the radio," she said and I replied with a noncommittal yeah. She could have skipped it. After a brief pause, she asked, "How's the place?"

With my phone in hand, I walked to the window. My forehead pressed against the cool glass as I watched King and the kids toss a ball in the pool. Even grumpy Esther was not left out, her thin frame launched the ball with an enviable strength, hitting King on the head and a gasp escaped me.

They all laughed and I relaxed. Knowing Esther, that move was deliberate but she would come around, she has to. "It's big."

The swimming pool was clean and clear, so clear I could see the white tiles inside from where I stood. A small box speaker was by the side of the railing but no music was coming from it. Chairs lined the side of the pool with towels draped on it and when they jumped or splashed water on each other, some of it would spill on the chairs.

"How big?" Faith insisted.

The length of the pool could have made up two of my living room, it was that big and I had not even gotten to the rooms and other parts of his house yet. On the surface of the pool were tubes which no one was using, if there was one thing my babies and I could do well, it was swim. We were mini fishes.

"Very big," I answered.

My eyes swept over our room while I thought of the best comparison to give for Faith to understand just how large this place was. From outside, the bungalow looked like it could barely take up to four rooms but I had counted six when King gave us a mini tour of the whole place. The kitchen was not included in those six.

This place was comparable to a celebrity home with more empty rooms, toilets and bathrooms than you would ever need, plus a large, unoccupied mass of land that would probably never be put to use. So much space for a small number of people.

A laugh slipped from me when I recalled what King called this place, a mini pad. I scoffed, this place was bigger than his house in Calabar and I wouldn't even call it mini. I sighed, for now, I could only dream of having a place to call my mini pad.

On our way in, we passed a tiny, modern day hut with a grill inside, I even spotted a small golf course. We had no neighbours so everywhere was always quiet.

The air here was also purer, free of the noise and other forms of pollution that came with living in the city. This was the ideal holiday spot and one weekend seemed too small to explore what it has to offer.

"Faith, I'll call you back," I murmured when a message from Madam Flourish popped in; she was part of the reason why I was inside. I had to deliver her dress by Tuesday and we were yet to decide on a style. She was forever changing her mind and style.

Esther noticed me standing by the window and she waved, soon enough, two additional sets of heads turned in my direction, waving at me like we didn't have breakfast together. King blew me a kiss, Emma copied his action and Esther splashed water on them before going on to blow me a kiss.

I laughed and returned their kisses, seeing them get along gave me great joy.

The boys had gotten rid of their shirts and their upper bodies glistened with water running from their head down to their chest. Whereas King's abs were on display for all--me to see, Emma covered his belly with his hands. It was only a matter of time before he would want uncle Kiki's stomach.

Esther was wearing a one-piece swimsuit she picked out herself, her twists were all over her face and from time to time she would brush it off her forehead. Her face contorted in concentration as she threw the ball up and smacked it right at King.

Again.

Biting the insides of my cheek, I waited with bated breath to see his reaction, then tensed when King started heading towards her. My hands balled into a fist, I was about knocking on the window but decided against it. I wouldn't always be around, I had to see how he would handle this.

King was a foot away from where she was standing when he changed direction and moved to Emma who was floating. He whispered something in his ears and both of them turned to Esther, trying to mimic a zombie walk or swim inside the pool.

Different emotions flitted across Esther's face as the duo approached her but she stood her ground. I smiled, that was my girl.

Realisation dawned on Esther when she saw them scoop water, she made to swim away but it was too late, a water attack already began and the boys were having no mercy on her. I threw my head back and let out a laugh when Esther frowned at Emma before fighting back while also trying to swim to safety, she looked betrayed.

I wasn't down there but their excitement was contagious and I found myself mentally rooting for Esther to get to the other end of the pool when their water fight moved from an attack to a swimming race. I tapped on my camera icon to record them and when Esther finished first, I hit the glass with all smiles and gave her a thumbs up. The boys received a thumbs down and Esther's tongue which she happily stuck out at them.

My phone pinged, it was Madam Flourish. If she was not bent on getting her gown by Tuesday and King had not insisted on this weekend, I might have joined them. Madam Flourish was one demanding yet indecisive woman. She wanted a gown that was long but short, baggy but fitted, revealing but decent. In short, she wanted everything and nothing at once, which would have been possible if this wasn't an emergency dress.

My consolation was in the price she offered, it was the kind of amount that made all her disturbances bearable. If she continued doing business with me, bringing in clients like she promised to, I would be joining the seven-digit earners club pretty soon.

I didn't get a chance to check her message before my phone pinged again. I groaned, she changed the style. Again. I plastered a fake smile on my lip as if she was before me and my fingers set to work typing on the screen as I tried to sweet talk her out of the mermaid gown she just sent me.

Her hips were almost as narrow as mine yet she was sending me pictures of beautiful women with curves as tight as Toolz with a caption that said: I want the exact same thing. Of course, I could give her that since the sewing business also came with magical hips expansion. Stubborn woman.

I looked out the window right in time to see Esther hold out a towel to King who accepted it with a grin before hoisting Emma on his shoulders and I smiled. I suddenly didn't feel so bad about missing out on swimming with them. I wouldn't have been of much help to the team, if there was any, because I had the aim of a blind woman. Cutting and sewing was my forte.

Besides, that was the perfect time for King and the kids to bond. Our bonding could happen at night so long Emma didn't think it a great idea to sleep with Uncle Kiki rather than the assigned room with Esther.

Grudgingly, I pushed myself away from the window when I saw them leaving the pool and the mild slapping sound of my bare feet as it connected with the tiled floors reverberated throughout the room as I found my way to the kitchen. I promised my babies food. Left to King, we would have ordered in for the period of our stay here, that man cannot even boil water. Good thing he has me, I enjoyed cooking.

My phone pinged again, it was Madam Flourish with a new style. At least she took my advice. I shook my head, exhaled and switched off the phone. I would turn it on later, maybe after myself and everyone was well fed. My conversations with her sometimes required strength.

Opening the fridge, my eyes swiped over the groceries present, what could I do with eggs? I groaned, deciding what to cook was even more stressful than cooking.

With one hand on the fridge's door, lips pursed as if staring hard enough would give me a clue, my senses came alive when a hand wrapped around my waist from behind and a solid body pressed into my back. I closed my eyes briefly and smiled.

"You will get me wet," I murmured as drops of water from his body seeped into my shirt.

"That's the plan."

My elbow dug into his side, King cried out and I whirled to face him. A white towel was draped around his waist and a shorter towel hung from his shoulder. He was also barefooted. I chuckled and rolled my eyes when I saw the way he was clutching his stomach; I didn't even hit him that hard.

"What was that for?" he whined, his hands still on his stomach. "I demand an apology in form of a kiss," he finished with a pout.

Pressing my index and middle finger together, I kissed them first before bringing them to King's lips. "You will be alright."

"It's not fair," King protested but did not attempt to close the distance between us. I preferred it that way, his body was distracting and he was only half-dressed.

"That's not a real kiss. I want a real kiss."

Placing a hand on my waist, I said, "That was a real kiss." Then my eyes returned to the fridge, since King was here, maybe he could be of help. In the food selection, not the cooking. That was the best he could do.

"It's not even a peck," he argued back.

My mind was made up and I nodded absentmindedly as I retrieved eggs, fresh tomatoes and pepper, walking to the kitchen island to place them.

King followed behind me like a lost puppy and his hands came to rest on each side of me, sandwiching me between him and the island. His breath fanned the nape of my neck, my heart quickened and I shivered as he began littering kisses behind my ear.

His growing erection poked my backside, his hands found their way to my chest and my shirt rode up. I bit my lip, cocked my head to one side and let out a stifled moan.

"What about my babies?" I asked.

"They are inside." His hands ceased their movements and he turned me to face him. "What about me, am I not your baby?"

King's fingers worked the hem of his shirt I was wearing, lightening up my senses with each casual touch. Putting my hands on his chest, I shook my head and said, "Nope."

He hoisted me on the island, bunched his shirt up to my thighs then his fingers trailed an invisible line on my legs. My breath caught in my throat when he inserted a finger into the waistband of my underwear and his other hand squeezed my breasts.

His tongue swept over his lower lip and he arched an eyebrow. "Then what am I?"

"Baby daddy," I replied with a straight face, my hands lingering on his shoulders.

King drew back to stare at me, maybe to see if I was joking and I had to bite down on my tongue to keep the smile off my face. I stuck my tongue out at him, flicked a finger over his nose and he narrowed his eyes to slits.

My gaze wandered to his chest and I gulped. He was too handsome and he shouldn't be walking around the house without a shirt.

"Baby daddy," he murmured, his lips pursed as if he was testing the words, "I don't like it." He frowned. "But I can work with it."

He flashed me a flirty smile and winked, then I burst out laughing. He was hot, too hot and he was mine, my baby. His stomach growled, causing us to laugh. It was time to cook. I hopped down, placed a kiss on his cheeks and started dicing the tomatoes.

"You should get dressed," I whispered when he didn't make a move to leave the kitchen.

"What are you cooking?" he asked instead.

King was beside me, replacing each tomato I diced with another one, just like a diligent kitchen assistant. With the towel hanging from his waist, he looked like he belonged more with the swimming pool than here.

"I don't know," I replied and stopped cutting. I was still unsure if the sauce would be for yam or rice. "What do you want to eat?"

"Fried rice, salad, chicken and plantain."

My eyes raised to his face, expecting him to laugh and say he was messing with me but he didn't. Alright then. I placed the knife on the chopping board, pushed him gently to my former position. I returned to his side with a bowl of carrots, green peas I found in the fridge and a bunch of plantain.

"Okay. Start slicing," I started, "when you are done, you will fry the plantain. I'll steam the chicken and you will also fry it."

The shock on King's handsome face was priceless; if I had a camera I would have taken a picture to preserve that moment. I coughed, only realising how hard I had been laughing when I felt a pain in my side.

Oh, King. He was genuinely surprised.

"You asked me what I wanted to eat," he cried out, throwing his hands up.

"I know, that's your share of the work."

"I don't want again," he murmured and I giggled. I didn't even trust his dicing skills, I liked my vegetables in a particular shape.

"Okay, King," I said while snaking my hands around his waist with my head tilted to one side, then I smiled. "What do you want?"

King raised two fingers and said, "To get dressed." I chuckled at his childlike tone of voice. One of the two fingers came down and I nodded, waiting for him to voice out the other request. "And to kiss you."

His lips descended on mine before I got a chance to accept or deny his request and we engaged in a heated kiss that was only broken off at the sound of plates breaking.

*****

BOTC: Stories about Women, an anthology by _eyewrite_. Each story takes you to a different place and the best part is that the book is less than 25 chapters. You can read it at a go.

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Who missed us? We missed you too. I just finished one writing project, that shit DRAINED me. But we are here now. Updates will be slow, at least once a week, when the vibe fully returns, we'll resume our schedule of two chapters a week.

Q: Can you cook or you are a King in the kitchen? And how have you been?