Courting Trouble

Truce.

"What on... ?" Duke pulled back his head shocked. He could not explain his action and neither could Malisha seeing that a surprised look was also plastered on her face. She was surprised, but also quite silenced and for that Duke could not help the smug look that made its way to his face. He was pleased to say the least. Pleased with himself and the outcome which despite his actions being rash and his methods quite unorthodox had panned out well considering his given circumstance. Even then, his thoughts celebrated, drinking in that small victory as his eyes watched her huge hazel orbs blink and dainty hands worm their way up to her lips. Her shaking hands stilled as her fingers grazed her pinkened lips softly. Slowly her lifted to his and their gazes locked as her mind finally registered what had happened to her.

Suddenly her eyes hardened, narrowing as a resounding crack filled the air. Duke's hands flew up to cradle his cheek as he turned a stunned expression to her. 

“Ouch! What was that for?” he questioned even though he already knew deep down what the true answer was.

“You all probably think that I am so loose, right?” She threw up her hands as she gestured wildly.

“No! You just wouldn’t shut up and I did it for you!” 

Stunned, Malisha dropped her hands to her sides as she finally stopped to look at him with a most unbelieving look that spoke great volumes of the struggle within her. The struggle to reconcile her past with her very conflicting present.

"You were screaming and saying all those horrible things about yourself and I... Well I just reacted." He explained even as he continued to caress his flaming cheek. With his fairer complexion, the slap was sure to leave a mark, but the man did not care. To him, it was a small price to pay to make things right with the mule of a girl that was standing before him. Not also to forget his mother. That woman that was sure to make his life hell. That would not allow him back home until he handled the matter and not just handle it, but handle it well and with the finesse that it required. Still, all these threats did not really scare him, for there was that penthouse back in town and other places he was sure could accommodate himself for his rank assured this if not the wealth that he had to his name. However, certain things mattered more to him, like not becoming his own father and his relationship with his mother which could end up destroyed if he did not handle the matter right and then, there was that whole other issue that he felt he was not quite ready to think about.

"Why do you even care?" Malisha finally asked him, speaking more to her thoughts than the enigmatic man that was still standing before her.

"It's just not right! Don't you see Malisha?"

"Why do you even care?" She asked injecting sass into the tone of her voice. "I mean, it is what everyone says, what they see when they look at me so I don't see why you should think any differently... "

"Malisha!" He sighed knowing fully well whom she was referring to. Her parents, her family, everyone in Urbe Civitas looked at her that way. The capitol of Veterum was a big place and they all despised her ever since that day those four years ago. It had not helped that was from a high family. No, Veterum Society had chewed her up and spat her out the moment the scandal had hit the vine. She had lost everything and all semblance to a social life back here in Veterum and Duke knew that she was wondering why he was now 'pretending' not to hate her when he had clearly been at helm of it all.

From what he could see, Malisha seemed to come to a conclusion pretty quickly. As the memories of her past drifted from her mind and the trance lifted, Duke, once again found himself as a subject of being manhandled. The girl shoved him and pushed him, turning him towards the door and when he resisted, she resulted to pummeling his back, grunting as she applied her tiny angry fists.

There is something about assaulting a person, that captures your concentration and makes you oblivious to your sorroundings as you hone in on your target and attempt to demolish them. It captures your complete attention so much that you fail to perceive even the smallest of things like sounds and even simple movements and for Malisha, this was the opening of the door and the soft padding of footsteps that followed it. That is until the presence was directly beside her and pulling at her skirts in order to gain her attention.

“Mum? What are you doing?" A small voice spoke penetrating the haze that had once more descended on her. She panicked and shoved the man away rather roughly that he turned back to her this time complaining.

“Damn it woman! What's wrong with you? You're way too violent for what it to be considered normal!"

"Ssh!" she shushed him as subtlely tried to pointed to their new addition.

"What? Are we playing charades now?"

She glared back, willing him to shut up before he traumatised her son with his coarse joking. When that did not work, Malisha pinched him and pointed at the little boy that was standing beside him. It was not that subtle, but it worked where useless hinting and inconspicuous pointing had failed.

"Oh!" he nodded with understanding. That handled, the woman shook her head to rid herself of her murderous thoughts and turned to face her son as if nothing had just happenned.

"Mum, what is charades?" the boy asked as his mother shot him a dazzling smile.

"Oh God, This is crazy!" Duke rumbled, his fingers running through his hair as Malisha shot him another glare before turning to address her son.

“Hi baby, how was school today?” she asked as pulled on another wide smile. The man's jaws dropped and her inner voice guffawed at the sudden turn of events.

"You are not serious! The boy just saw everything and you are going to play it off as if nothing just happened? "

"Watch me! "  She thought back, even though she knew very well that her son was very intelligent and that it would take much more to fully convince him or evade his questions. As if to confirm that, Thomas crinkled his nose and furrowed his brow before turning to study Duke with a fascinated glint in his eyes.

"Told you!"

“Who is he?”

"and that was totally to be expected. " the voice laughed as her hands found their way to the skirt of her dress, fingering the crêpe ruffles nervously as she attempted to think up an egress.

"Mum?" Thomas asked her, unware of how nervous he made his mother feel. "Who is he?"

Malisha let out a sigh and tucked away a stray curly strand before dropping to her knees in front of her little boy.

"What do I tell him now?" She thought as her fingers played with the lapels of his maroon starched jacket and black tie emblazoned with his school's logo.

"What's the plan here? Groom him to oblivion?" She let out another sigh, the nervous and the weight of a task to heavy to formulate a retort.

“Mum...?” Thomas whined, pulling his tie from her grip with an embarassed look on his face.

"So Thomas, this nice gentleman.." She started pointing at Duke and he smiled back at her ruefully, waiting to hear what masterpiece she would concort in her loony brain. " ...is Mr Carlisle and he was just leaving."

"Wait, what?" An amused Duke blurted out, obviously disappointed at the outcome of the narration.

Not only was it substandard, but it also an invitation for him to act nice and scurry away with his tailed between his legs, something that he was not used to, but would have to try if only for the sake of the innocence of the little boy that was before them.

Before he could change his mind or cook up some weird excuse to linger longer, Malisha turned to him and shot him a glare, unaware of his newly formed resolve to walk away without a fight.

“Mummy? Mummy!"

"Yes, Thomas." She replied, rising to her feet with her eyes still trained on Duke.

"Can he stay?” The boy asked, causing two shocked heads, one with green eyes and the other hazel to turn around and zone in on him.

"No!" Malisha snapped shaking her head vigorously, but Thomas was not listening.

He let go of her hand and ran towards the youngman, who according to Malisha had had the dcency to look shocked, before it evaporated and turned into an annoyingly smug expression.

"Thomas!" Malisha screeched out, but it was too late. Thomas had already reached Duke's side and was already turning on his charm on the unsuspecting 'gentleman'.

“Will you stay and play charades with me?” Malisha's jaw dropped as she gaped at her little boy.

"Imagine that, charades!" the voice chuckled, clearly amused by that sudden turn of events.

"Shut up!" Malisha hissed back as inched forward to retrieve her son.

“ I'm afraid, that is not possible, my love." She said pulling him back towards her but Thomas had a mind if his own as he held on tight to the man's hand and refused to badge." You see, he cannot stay and play. "

"Why?"  They both asked simultaneously, one from sheer curiosity and the other, just to hear what kind of reason the woman would cook up this time round.

"Well...?"

"He has a doctor’s appointment!” Malisha spewed out, blurting out the very first lie that came into her mind, which turned out to be actually a true reflection of what she really felt about him inside.

“ Really Lisha? A doctor’s appointment. ” Duke asked her completely oblivious of the hidden warning that was lying beneath her seemingly uncreative excuse. Either that, or he knew and was just pretending not to for the sake of the little one that was still standing and listening among them.

"Can't blame a girl for trying..."

“Does that mean he will stay and play with me?”

“That's right, young man, we an play puzzles... Charades is a quite complicated game you see... ” he winked at Malisha causing the boy's mother to respond with a groan of frustration. Things were definitely awry and this was not how she had imagined spending her friday afternoon with her son and in the presence of her antagonist. However and despite his mother's evident gloom, Thomas seemed delighted with the idea and it almost made her relent, but then she remembered whom they were dealing with and her gloom multiplied ten fold.

The two males high fived each other and the younger one pulled his elder by the hand, leading him to a corner that he had turned into his Playstation right after his mother was moved up there. He set out to lay down his biggest puzzle, all the while keeping Duke's ears busy, chattering about everything from school, to his relatives and even how cool his mother's new room was, a sentiment that made his mother scoff as she turned to slip into bed with a book in hand. As Thomas chatted away, Duke listened attentively hoping to catch a few snatchets that would help him in unlocking the enigma that was his mother.

"What is he up to now?" Malisha innervoice asked her in a voice laced with a little bit of curiosity and a whole lot of mischievousness, that meant that it was up to no good.

"I don't know. Why don't you go and ask him? "

"You're no fun. You know that?"

"I have better things to do than entertain the whims of my nagging, whinning and quite iritating alter ego."

"That's funny coz I thought you said that I was your conscience?" The voice riposted.

"It doesn't matter what I think. All I know is that before four years ago you didn't exist and now you're here bugging the heck out of me." She responded snapping her book shut and drawing the attention of a certain pair of green curious eyes. The lips below those green eyes smiled before turning to mumble something to her son. Thomas looked up at her and chuckled before bowing down to complete his puzzle.

"Look at that! Your own flesh and blood is fraternising with the enemy."