Diablo's desire

Chapter five

Diablo

The moment I opened the doors to her bedroom, I saw her eyes light up seeing her favorite color. She scanned the room maintaining the glee only a child would have. It made me warm inside knowing even if all seemed bleak for her, Something would always brighten her, reminded her of home. Plus, I paid good money to have the room renovated. If she was going to spend forever with me, I best make her feel at home. 

"So, Do you like it?"

The bright demeanor disappeared as quickly as it came and she faced me with a frown that always seemed to brighten up my day.

"No."

What a liar! I remembered her always bragging about morality and how it was best to stick to the truth no matter what. What changed?

"I'll give you some alone time to settle in and freshen up before joining me in the dining room. I learned you were picked up early and couldn't eat." I started reading the door.

She ignored my gaze, clutching hard to her other wrist to cope with the range of different emotions flooding her system.

"...Don't be a lady though. I'll be going somewhere pretty soon."

I exited the room giving her some privacy before bumping into Mrs. Josephine, The housekeeper. She had been here long before I knew I had a wealthy father and she had been my mother figure after being abandoned by my mom.

"How's she coping?" She queried, adjusting her hairnet as she spoke.

"Good," I replied.

"How would you know? Poor girl must be so broken separated from her father. I have to see her."

I knew her well. She wasn't going to back down till she got what she wanted. On the positive side, Anjola wouldn't be alone once I returned to the force and she would have someone to talk to about her feelings if she was still bent on despising me.

"Ok, But don't spoil her. She's embolden enough as it is already."

The jolly old woman nodded and waved me off before disappearing down the hall. I headed to my study room to have a much-needed call. Collapsing on the armchair, I picked my phone and dialed Mr. Julius.

"Hello?"

"Meet me at the usual place at exactly twelve o'clock."

I overheard him curse me blatantly over the phone before answering me politely.

"Of course Diablo."

"Just make it on time," I repeated before cutting the call.

I then took a moment to enjoy the feeling of fulfillment. The winning mentality. I had conquered Anjola. After all these years of rejection and never really moving on. I couldn't believe she would soon be mine. She was already. I didn't have her heart or an ounce of her affection but I could build on that. It all felt like a dream. One of those daydreams you had as a child where you played in the open field and not giving a f**k about the world. Who knew luck would shine in my direction? I did have to applaud three parties; The bastard who shot me,  Anjola herself and of course, Mr. Julius. Without them, This might have never become a reality.

***

Anjola

Upon the kind old woman's request, I grudgingly had decided to have breakfast with Diablo. It was ironic that I would be dining with the devil. It was going to be one hell of a breakfast. I made sure I dressed unappealing. I wasn't here to impress and if there was any hope of me getting off this trap anytime soon, I best-made preparation. An oversized sweater and a pair of jeans felt unappealing enough.

"Anjy," He called out immediately I stepped into the magnificent dining room. "I'm surprised you took so long if you're wearing this."

  It was nice he noticed but the moment he revealed he has some meeting, I made sure I took my good time. It was a bummer he still had time to stay. Breakfast alone would have been graceful enough.

"This is going to be tough, Anjy," I said to myself, attempting to walk straight but with great difficulty, Not with him staring at my every move.

God knows I didn't deserve this. Why did he make me feel this way? To have this effect on me and still remain chill himself. It was nauseating. I distracted myself with the splendor of the room. Like other places I've seen within these walls, The dining-room was exquisite. The walls were covered with a shimmering gold paper and in the middle of the ceiling above the carved oak table was a candelabra. Down the center of the table was a runner with Celtic design woven in gold and black into the fabric itself. At the end of the table were floor to ceiling french doors, left slightly ajar letting in the aromatic food that made my mouth water.

I sat down at the end of the table, far from Diablo: it felt safe.

It held unto the polished silver cutlery which was heavy to the hand and shone brightly in the golden light. It was another excuse to avoid looking into Diablo's overwhelming direction. I could tell he was staring and even if I was tempted to return the creepy behavior, I knew better than to test murky waters.

"What's taking the food so long!" He snapped suddenly making my heart jump into my throat.

I righted myself, rethinking if the food was worth it. My stomach definitely had other ideas and grumbled to warn me. The smell from the kitchen was awfully familiar. I could almost bet it was Cassava flour or eba as my dad liked to call it. Oh, It was definitely eba. I knew it the moment a chef walked into the room with the delicacy on his hand. I was served first; I could only guess it was per Diablo's request. I opened the dish to see another shocker.

Eba and Efo riro.

There was no way he could have guessed this was my favorite meal. There was an insider and I already suspected my father. This was his messed up way of making me feel at home. I couldn't believe he was falling for Diablo's antics again.

"You think putting in place my favorite things will earn you my forgiveness?" I asked, trying to keep my tone mild even if my words were snarky.

"Don't flatter yourself. I'm simply trying to make you feel at home."

Gooodddd! Why couldn't I just get to him?

"Well, Just so you know, I don't have heavy meals this early."

"So you starve yourself?"

"If you say so but Diablo, Can you just cut this act? I know why I'm here so stop treating this like it's something different. What happens now?"

"I was really hoping you'll just enjoy your first day here but if you insist," I watched him reach his hand into his button-up and retrieve some kind of paper.

"Eli," He called upon a bodyguard I hadn't seen before and instructed him to hand me the paper. I imagined it was some sick contract of how things between us were going to be. I shuddered just thinking about it. Mr. Eli handed me the paper which turned out to be a card. The hard paper was cream colored and had roses on them. It looked a lot like an invitation card. I shot Diablo a look but seeing the smile plastered to his face made me suspect foul play. I tore the card open and it read;

"Diablo and Anjola cordially request the pleasure of your company on the joyous occasion of their marriage..."

This couldn't be possible. The occasion was to hold next week at some fancy reception I hadn't even heard of. Tears poured freely as I imagined tieing the knot with someone I didn't love. As a child, I had always played out how my wedding was going to be and although Diablo requested marriage, I didn't expect this rollercoaster sure for disaster was actually going to be so close.  Add that to another of my dreams shattered. I squeezed the paper in a fit of rage and in a state of pure hate for the man that sat across the room, I vowed I wasn't going to make him break me.

"I hate you."I raged.

He simply smiled and said, " I know Love."