Tasha felt her insecurity levelling up. The thought of her fiancé being alone in his space with another woman made her bite her nails. Her idea of Valerie wasn't she being Chris' helper, but rather she was just a woman. An incredibly beautiful woman. The worst part of it all was that, upon her arrival, it felt like Chris was not at all intrigued by her presence, but was rather enjoying Valerie's company the more.
Regardless of their relationship being more of an alliance, and despite that they had agreed to an open relationship, the reflection of Chris pursuing Valerie vexed her. Yes, she may not have been in love with Chris, but she was confident that someone like Valerie was undeserving of Chris, moreover of taking her place in his life.
The entire night at Chris' house had been a nightmare. Normally, he would be all over her, his eyes aflame with desire, however this time she had taken a bath, and radiated a sweet aroma on her voluptuous body. Presenting her furnished body covered in lingerie that hugged her body in the right places, she kissed him, her hand brushing against his hairy chest, but yet he had oddly remained distant and unattached.
Finally, she had relinquished. Feeling rejected, she rolled over and pulled the sheets to her shoulders, giving him her back as she boiled with fury. He was her husband to be, how then was this happening. "I am just too exhausted", he had explained. But she felt it was only an excuse to get her off him. Well, he didn't seem exhausted when he was talking to Valerie. One reason to all of it seemed to make sense to her. Valerie.
The next day, she woke up as early as she could and stormed off. As she recalled the previous night, she felt regret over her actions, perhaps she had overreacted when Chris couldn't make love to her. He had collapsed and been in hospital on the same . But of course! He had been exhausted but she had not understood him. Maybe she had been insensitive. How foolish of her to think that he , a billionaire could fall for a housekeeper. Yes, she was beautiful but socially, he was way above her league, and as far as she knew, he wouldn't ever stoop as low as having some sort of affair with his helper. As she admitted her mistake, she firmly made a choice to go to him once more and spend another night, making it up to each other.
Concurrently at the Malvins mansion, as Chris stood by the kitchen door, he watched Valerie turn and her lips revealed a gorgeous smile, her hair bouncing . For a moment he stared back at her and then he said, "I…uh, I just wanted to get a glass of water". He moved from the door and pulled his feet to the refrigerator. Valerie raised her eyebrow, showing her doubt to his words. She turned again and said, "I see you are going for the 'just rolled out of bed' look. Very stylish".
He scoffed as he poured water into a glass and sipped a mouthful. "Well ,what can l say", he explained as he swallowed. "Thought l would take a day off to recharge my batteries, watch some Netflix and eat some junk food…",
"And maybe spend time with our fiancée…", she suggested, leading him on. His face dulled at the mention of the word fiancée. "Speaking of which…I apologize for yesterday…"
Valerie wondered to herself, so he felt it too? She had felt quite disappointed to have their chit chatting cut short when Tasha showed up, the thought of him feeling the same disappointment too, meant something.
"You had stretched your hand and she didn't bother greet you back", he revealed his sympathy. Valerie felt foolish and way ahead of herself. So he was sorry that Tasha had been rude to her and not that because his time with her had been cut short. She silently ridiculed herself, but felt glad that he meant what he meant. At least, things were not complicated.
As he ambled around the kitchen, he went closer to her, stood beside her and asked, " So what's for breakfast?".
"Sevruga smoked salmon!", she said with a sly smile, enjoying the confusion etched on his face.
"Sev-what?", he chuckled. "What in the world is that? I mean I have heard of smoked salmon but Sevruga?", he remarked, wondering.
"Its just thinly sliced, sustainably sourced Sevruga smoked salmon, served with a dollop of crème fraiche and a sprinkle of edible gold dust", she explained, her gaze lingering on him.
"Sounds like something out of a luxury cookbook", he said, his tone laced with amusement.
" I can't help but use one if l cook for a billionaire and want to keep my job". She smiled, feeling proud of herself. He grinned. An hour later as she served his breakfast, he made a request to her.
" Valerie, can you sit with me for breakfast…only if you wan..",
"I'd love to!", she said.
As they chatted and laughed over breakfast, the tension between them began to fade off, replaced by a sense of ease. It was as if they'd finally found a common ground, a shared sense of humour and playfulness that could bridge the gap between them.
Chris went on to offer Valerie a day off, as he had taken a day off work too. But the truth of the matter was that he intended to spend the day getting to know her more. He was enjoying her company, and her contagious smile made his worries fade away. They spend the day on Netflix and around five in the evening, they were sitted at the kitchen table , engaged in a heated game of chase. Playfully, they threatened each other.
"You are going down, cheater!", he exclaimed
"Oh, I don't think so, grumpy pants" she retorted, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Just as Valerie was about to make her next move, they heard a clearing of the throat. As they turned, Tasha was standing right there.
"So what's the score, who is winning", she cheerfully said as she sat besides Chris. "Hey", Chris greeted her as she pecked him on the lips. Chris laughed, making a move on the Chase board. "Val has got some serious skills!", he complemented. Tasha wondered, "So now he has already nicknamed her!". As Tasha watched Valerie make another clever move to earn Chris' praise, Tasha masked her growing unease. She noticed his comfort around Valerie. Abruptly, she realized she had to make a plan, fast before it got out of hand.
"I will be upstairs", she said as she stood up. He didn't respond, his eyes fixed on the game. She didn't bother tell him again. She proceeded upstairs. As she walked up the stairs, she turned to look at Valerie, her heart seething with resentment, her mind racing with strategies to get Valerie out of their life for good.