Having no one else to call and with nowhere else to go, she picked up a novel from one of her bedside drawers and settled on her bed to read it. Just when she started becoming engrossed in the book, she heard the sound of her doorbell. Thinking it was Benne, she sprang up from her bed and raced to her door barefooted.
Once she pulled the door open, she frowned in disappointment when she realized that it wasn’t Benne.
“I guess you were expecting someone else. Sorry to disappoint you,” Alicia said, flashing her an apologetic smile.
“It is fine. You want something?” Celsie asked with a polite smile.
“I noticed your car was parked outside, so I stopped by to see if you were in, and to also make sure you’re fine. I noticed someone else drove you home earlier and you didn’t look like you were feeling fine,” Alicia said holding up a mini tray of cookies.
Celsie smiled at the kind gesture, “Thanks. That’s very nice of you,” Celsie said, stepping aside for Alicia to enter the house.
“It’s what neighbors do,” Alicia said with a smile as she walked in with her tray of cookies and set it on the table before sitting down.
“What would you like to have? Tea to go with the cookies? Or perhaps a can of drink?” Celsie asked, and Alicia smiled up at her.
“A can of soda is just perfect,” Alicia said, and Celsie gave her a nod before going to get it from her refrigerator.
“By the way, did something happen?” Alicia asked the moment Celsie returned with two cans of soft drink and handed her one.
“Something like what?” Celsie asked as she settled down on the same couch, but turned in the seat so that she was facing Alicia, before opening her can of drink and taking a long sip.
“I noticed that someone came to look around Benne’s house earlier. Is he moving out? Does it have anything to do with what we talked about during dinner on Sunday?” Alicia asked with curiosity in her eyes as she opened her can of drink.
“Someone came to check the house today?” Already? Celsie wondered with a frown. When Alicia bobbed her head, Celsie sighed.
He had said he wasn’t moving away because he was scared of her or avoiding her. Perhaps he was doing this because she had implied at the initial time that he was stalking her? And so had decided to move out after hearing about how she had been stalked as a teenager? But she didn’t think he was a stalker anymore, so there was no reason for him to leave. She was just going to have to talk to him about it.
“He didn’t happen to mention anything to you about moving, did he?” Alicia asked, breaking into her thoughts.
Not wanting to think about Benne at the moment, or what would become of their relationship if he stopped being her next-door neighbor and driver, she tried to focus on Alicia.
“He did. I just didn’t expect it to be this soon. Do you both still plan on asking him to be your sperm donor?” Celsie asked curiously, hoping they had changed their mind. For some reason, it didn’t sit well with her anymore to have any other lady around Benne, talk more of having another woman carry his child.
Alicia cleared her throat, as that was another reason she had actually come to see Celsie, “Well, Jas wants us to hold on for a while until we are sure about Benne’s personality. But seeing how he is moving out soon, I don’t think we have the luxury of time to wait,” Alicia said, making Celsie look at her with patient curiosity as she waited to hear what Alicia wanted to say.
“What do you think about him?” Alicia asked, watching Celsie closely.
“What do I think about Benne?” Celsie repeated, imagining herself telling Alicia that she thought it would be a very terrible idea to have Benne father their child, “Well, Benne is a very nice guy,” Celsie said with a shrug.
Alicia pursed her lips as she contemplated whether or not she should tell Celsie the truth about the real occupants of the building where Benne was living and when Benne moved in there. Jas would probably be very upset if she told got herself involved in this.
“You don’t think that perhaps Benne is stalking you?” Alicia asked after a little pause, making Celsie raise a brow.
“What do you mean, stalking me?”
“Showing up at the club, and then at your house, as well as the company where you work? Don’t you think there is something fishy about it?” Alicia pointed out.
Celsie didn’t like the direction the conversation was going. She had enough trust issues already that she was still trying to clear, and she didn’t need Alicia or anyone else fueling her doubts, “He applied for the job before I arrived unless you are saying he applied for the job on the day I resumed and got it that same day, which we both know doesn’t make any sense. And according to you and Jas, he has been living here long before I got here. I even met him at the club, not the other way around. So who would you say is stalking the other between us both?” Celsie asked matter of factly.
Alicia shrugged, “Well, I’m all for women looking out for women. I just think perhaps you should be more careful around him. Things might not always be as they seem.”
“Is there something you’re trying to say to me?” Celsie asked, remembering that she had thought they were keeping something from her that night during dinner.
“I’m just saying that maybe there is more to Benne than we all know. Jas thinks so too. He seems to be hiding something, and that is why Jasmine wants us to hold off talking to him about the sperm donation. So you should be careful too, and not trust him too much.”
“Is there a particular reason you feel this way?” Celsie asked, remembering Benne’s outburst during dinner that night.
“You can’t tell Benne or Jas that you heard this from me, okay? The other night, Benne asked us not to tell you that he is new to the neighborhood.. An older couple used to live in that apartment, and we only saw Benne for the first time after you moved in.”
Standing by the window of his office, Benne waited for Celsie to come in so that he could finally reveal the truth to her about who he truly was. He didn’t want to keep lying to her or feeling guilty about it anymore.
“What are you doing here?” Celsie asked in alarm when she walked into the CEO’s office and saw Benne standing by the window.
“Who let you in here? Come with me, you should leave now before he comes in and sees you here. He can be really mean,” Celsie said reaching out to grab his hand, but Benne made no move to reach for her hand, and just kept staring at her with a slightly amused expression.
“I came to fulfill your fantasy,” Benne said in a teasing tone while looking into her eyes with an unreadable expression.
“Fantasy? What fantasy?” She asked with a frown as she glanced at the private elevator entrance in the office before hurrying to the door to shut it so that neither her boss nor Harry would walk in on them.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.