100 Days With Mr Romero

Emily had been leaving the best life she could ask for, she had with her the best of friends, a supportive family, and an amazing partner who provided an equally amazing time in bed. Their son Rayn was almost clocking a year now. The past months have been a joy ride, more than she ever imagined she would be living, but they have also been little bumps here and there.

“You know he’s started going to the office every day… he’ll be back soon though. Why do you ask, need his help with something?” It was her mum, who had phoned that morning.

“No, not at all,” she said. “I just… holding a party to celebrate the opening of the new shop. I was wondering if you two will be able to make it, but if Gideon is busy, it will be nice if you showed up.”

“Of course. I mean, it’s not like I have somewhere to be. I’ll be there with Rayn.”

“Great. I should go now, your father’s having a little trouble in the garden. Uh… things are going well over there right?”

“Of course, everything is fine. Gideon has just been busy nowadays… we have hardly seen him at home ever since he went back to work. But we’re fine, it’s nothing too serious, we will work things out.”

“OK dear, I have to go. Talk to you later.”

~~~

“Why don’t you come with us to the club tonight,” Roderick decided to ask again, making a frustrated sigh escape Gideon’s lips. It wouldn’t be the first time he was trying to get him to go out with the guys. “And before you bring Ellie up again, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind.”

“Rick you have to understand now that I’m a married man and I have a son.” He chuckled at the pout on his friend’s face. “I’m sorry but I need to get home to the wife and son.” He winked at his friend whose face immediately squeezed in irritation.

“Eww, you sound like an old man. Well,” Rick sighed and pushed himself up. “I’ll leave you to do… whatever those files contain. You’re not going to listen to me.”

“Goodbye Roderick, you should go get a wife, it would do you good. I may sound like an old man, but you are the old one. Aren’t you way past thirty already? Soon, you’ll be clocking forty, and you are not exactly Greek god material to attract all the girls, your hairline is not to write home about and you-”

“I get it, enough with the insult, I won’t bother you again.” Gideon smiled, but he knew Roderick would be back the next day, it had become like a daily ritual. Roderick ended his relationship of five years with his ex-girlfriend, Cynthia, a few months ago. Ever since he saw that she had gotten a new boyfriend, he had turned to clubbing and drinking and just needed Gideon beside him to be his drinking buddy once again. “See you tomorrow.”

“Sure, take care.” The minute Roderick left, he reached for his telephone, phoning the front office for his PA.

A knock came a few minutes later and the door was pushed open. “Good afternoon sir,” the young lady greeted timidly. Gideon frowned, eyeing her for a moment. He had asked for his assistant, but he was facing someone else. “I brought the files that you asked for.”

“What files? Who are you, where is my PA?”

“Uh…” She looked around the room awkwardly, avoiding the intense-looking eyes Gideon had on her. “Sir you might have forgotten but I’m signing in for Anne, she’s on a vacation, remember?”

“Oh right, I forgot about that… sorry. Drop the files over there…” He pointed to a table at a far corner of the room, where some books were dumped. They were neatly arranged on the table, next to a picture frame of Gideon, Ellie, and little Rayn. “I’ll get to it later… is there a problem?” He asked when he noticed the way she was staring at the frame in shock.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized, jumping a bit, her face was flushed in an embarrassment of being caught staring. “This woman, is she your wife? I’m sorry for asking, it’s just that she was a very good friend of mine back in secondary school.”

Gideon relaxed a little after hearing that. “Really?”

“Yeah. Emilia right?” Gideon nodded. “Help me extend my greetings to her.”

“I will,” he muttered watching her leave. Minutes after she was gone, Gideon still found himself staring straight at the door, at the sound of the long hand striking two, he was pulled out of his thoughts and slowly his eyes moved to the picture frame. He pushed his chair back getting up.

Unlike Ellie who makes it known every day how great her life was, Gideon couldn’t say the same. He loved his wife very much, and this feeling had nothing much to do with her, but having a family came with responsibilities. They’re both so dedicated to these responsibilities they barely had time for each other. They hadn’t gone on a date in months and whenever he suggested it, Emilia was always worried about Rayn although Estelle was around to take care of the child. He also wished she would try more in taking care of herself. Before she was someone he could show off proudly and he wasn’t ashamed of his wife but nowadays she was always looking wild and untamed, nothing like the woman he remembered marrying.

She was in the kitchen when he arrived, Estelle was nowhere around, but there was something on fire. She smiled when she saw him walking in, and immediately reached behind her to take off the dirty apron. “Hey, how was work? You’re home early.”

“Well, since there’s no one who could fire me, why not use the sweet privileged.” He laid a kiss on her forehead and went on to pick up Rayn who had been drawing with crayons beside Emmalia’s leg. “How is the little prince doing today?”

“He misses his Dada,” Emmalia muttered, watching them play around. “I’m still surprised you’re home by this time. Lately, your work seems to be the only thing you consider important.” She frowned, crossing her arms before her. Though she had been excited at first when Gideon decided to start going to the office daily and she had supported this, but after the first few months she regretted ever doing that and she didn’t fail to sleep this known to him.

Gideon sighed, looking at her from Rayn’s chubby cheeks. “Where is that coming from?”

“Oh please Gideon, don’t act like I’m throwing you a serious accusation here, it’s the truth.”

“I saw a friend of yours at work today,” he decided to say instead.

“A friend?”

“She said you two attended the same high school? Her name is…” Gideon paused as he remembered he didn’t know the name of his new PA.Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“What’s her name?”

“I honestly don’t know. She’s uh… really pretty.” Emmalia crossed her arms before her, cocking her head a bit to the right. “Calm down, I’m not good at describing people,” he said quickly before she sent him an accusing look. “Long hair, one of the brightest green eyes, and freckles over her face. She had this Australian accent and uh… a really big breast.”

“Judy?”

“I don’t know her name.”

She cocked her head to the side in disbelief. “You don’t know the name of your PA, but you know she has a big breast? You are unbelievable Gideon.”

“Hey, they were really big, you should have seen them.” But she was already walking away, not listening to anything he had to say.