Making Scandal (The Essien Trilogy, #2)

by Kiru Taye

  "What are you doing with Petersen?"

  "It’s none of your business, Mark."

  "Really?" He eyed her. "Does he know you’re carrying my baby?"

  This close, her scent surrounded him, drawing him into her. His trousers tightened and his pulse thundered in his ears.

  She shifted on her legs and lowered her gaze, swiping her lower lip with her pink tongue. The temptation proved too good to resist.

  Leaning forward, he drew that same lip between his. She gasped, giving him an opening which he took advantage of. The last time he’d tasted her had been in Benin, two weeks ago.

  With his hand on her nape, holding her still, he ravished her mouth. She matched his thrust with hers. For each cut, she parried; for each advance, she countered. Her hand moved up his chest. Even through the fabric, she branded him.

  It drove him wild. Faith had never been submissive and he loved her for it. But they were best when they worked in sync, not against each other.

  He placed his head against hers, both of them panting to catch their breaths.

  "Stop fighting me, Faith," he said in a growly voice.

  "So you can chain me to your kitchen sink?" Her voice came out choked with emotion.

  He lifted his head and studied her face. Her eyes were feverish and over-bright. She seemed to have the same desperate energy that coursed through his veins.

  "Right now, all I want to do is chain you to my bed."

  Desire flared in her eyes. "Sex doesn’t solve every problem."

  "It’s a good place to start."

  He stroked his knuckles against the skin on her neck where it met her shoulder. Her pulse jumped and she closed her eyes. Great to know she still responded to his touch instantly.

  "And I’ve missed you."

  "Mark."

  The sound of his name on her lips became his undoing. He needed to let her go or he’d be taking her right here.

  "It’s okay. I’ll let you get back to your dinner date. But beware of making a deal with the devil, Faith. I’ll see you in a couple of days."

  He turned and walked out, refusing to look back, knowing he might not be able to let her go otherwise. Felix waited for him at the exit.

  "Are you okay?" Felix asked him as they got into the car.

  "I will be once this whole affair is over and she’s my wife."

  Faith had to suck in a few gulps of air before she could catch her breath after Mark left her in the hallway. It didn’t help that the air in the space was filled with his scent—spice and masculinity. That she hadn’t caved in and begged him to nail her to the wall as he took her hard must be a minor miracle.

  Gosh, she missed him. Seeing him again had reminded her how much.

  Straightening up, she headed back into the restaurant. Mr. Petersen had chosen a secluded corner table that gave them some privacy in an otherwise busy top nosh eatery. In fact, she’d been surprised when he’d chosen this place as the venue for their meeting. She knew the place as a favourite haunt for the Essiens; after all, Tony Essien owned it.

  So the probability of running into Mark had been high from the start. But she’d assumed Mr. Petersen didn’t know the Essiens that well. Although, that would be highly unlikely. Any investor worth their salt knew about the Essiens or, at least, their business influence.

  "Sorry about that," she said as she settled back into her chair opposite Petersen.

  "Don’t worry about it." The man waved off her apology. "Would you like some wine?"

  "If you don't mind, I'd like to stick to just water for now. I need a clear head." She didn't want to reveal her pregnancy to anyone yet. Not until her future stood on more solid ground.

  "Of course," he replied and poured some of the South African Rose wine into his glass.

  A smile curled her lips. Mark had introduced her to South African wines. It seemed Mr. Petersen also enjoyed wine from the region, too.

  "What is funny?" he asked as he returned the bottle to the ice bucket.

  "I’m a recent convert to South African wine, so it’s a pleasant surprise that you chose one."

  "I was born in South Africa, on the Western Cape. Worcester, to be exact, although I’ve spent the last thirty years living in Nigeria."

  "Wow. Don’t you miss it?"

  He shrugged. "Not really. I do travel there quite often. But these days, Nigeria is my home. When I came here in my twenties, I fell in love with the place. Moreover, I have family here now, so the more reason to stay."

  She glanced at her notes on her tablet. The information she had on Petersen indicated he wasn’t married. Perhaps he meant a live-in spouse.

  "I didn’t realise you were married," she said, hoping she would find out more about the man she would have as a business partner.

  "I’m not. I came close to getting married once." His grey-hazel eyes glazed over. "But that was a very long time ago."

  "I’m sorry." She'd heard hurt in his voice.

  "Don’t be. I was young and foolish and broke. She chose to marry a wealthy man, instead. She did me a favour, really. I swore that I would become very rich and these days, I am. I can buy anything I want."

  Despite the bravado in his speech, she still felt something missing. As if he tried to say he could buy anything and perhaps one day buy back the woman he once loved.

  But she dismissed the thought. Pregnancy was screwing up with her head and making her read meaning into things that weren’t there. Right now, all she was interested in would be securing the money she needed for her counterbid for City Investments.

  Of all the other investors she’d chatted with, only Petersen had decided to get to the next stage once they’d found out they would be going against Mark Essien. None of them had wanted to make an enemy of Mark. It seemed Petersen was the only man not afraid of the Essiens.

  "Which brings me to buying City," the man said. "I read your proposal and I think you have a very good plan. I am willing to back you with the funds you need."

  "Wow, thank you so much." A huge smile split her lips as relief washed over her body.

  "Don’t thank me yet. I have a couple of stipulations."

  "Okay." She held her breath.

  "I’m going to get my lawyer to draft a contract ready for Friday."

  "That’s not a problem. I’m looking to get this deal done immediately. I need the funds ready by Friday, anyway."

  "Good. The second thing is that I want shares with a buy-back option only available after two years."

  "Sir, my proposal had the buy-back time option as six months."

  "Well, Faith...it’s okay if I call you by your first name?"

  "Yes, sure."

  "Faith, you know, I’m investing a lot of money, and you are a relative unknown in the business, so I’m putting a lot of ‘faith’ in you" He air quoted the word faith. "I want to be sure that my investment yields a good return before you can buy me out, so I think two years is very reasonable."

  "How about a one-year option as a compromise?" she asked, not willing to give away so much outside of her original proposal.

  He fingered his goatee as he scrutinised her. "I like your spirit, Faith, so here’s what I’m offering. Eighteen months, with an increase in shares of ten-percent."

  "First of all, sir, that proposal is so good that the Essiens want to get a hold of it. I’m going to make you a lot of money in a short time. So I’m willing to settle for twelve months buy-back and a five-percent increase in shares."

  "You drive a hard bargain. But I will take it." He extended his hand.

  "Thank you, Mr. Petersen. You won’t regret it." She shook his hand firmly. Something niggled at the back of her mind at how easily he caved in to her offer. Had she negotiated too low? Could she have gotten more out of him?

  "I hope not." He took out his phone. "Excuse me while I call my lawyer to get work on the contract started."

  She nodded and excused herself. In the ladies’, she called Stella and told her the news. She was going to meet t
he deadline Mr. Okolo had set her, after all.

  The rest of dinner with Mr. Petersen went smoothly.

  The next morning, a copy of the contract landed in her inbox. She sent a copy to her lawyer and read through it. She found nothing in it that she hadn’t already discussed and agreed to with Mr. Petersen. After meeting with the rest of the people who would form part of the new leadership team at City, they agreed the contract looked good.

  That evening, she signed the contract in Petersen’s office in the presence of both lawyers. She declined the celebratory glass of champagne and settled for a glass of sparkling water instead and headed home so she could have a clear head for her meeting with Mr. Okolo the next day.

  At ten am on Friday morning, Faith walked into Mr. Okolo’s office with confident steps.

  "Faith, come in. How are you doing?" he asked her from the other side of his desk as he stood.

  "I’m doing very well, sir." She smiled.

  "Good," he said and settled into the sofa before waving for her to take a seat.

  She sat down opposite him and folded her legs to the side, crossing them at the ankles.

  "At the start of the week, I set you a challenge. How is it going?" he asked as he leaned back into the brocade-upholstered sofa.

  "Very well, sir. I have the funds for the management buyout."

  "You have?" His bushy brows arched high.

  She smiled, pleased she had surprised him, and reached into the folder she had placed on the table. "Here is a letter from my bank with proof of the funds available for the transaction."

  She handed him the sheet of paper with the bank’s embossed logo and stamp. His eyes widened into saucers.

  "Amazing!" He looked from the paper to her and back to the paper. "You have surprised me. I knew that if I challenged you, you would rise to the challenge." He handed her back the sheet.

  "But I wasn’t expecting it to be done. In fact, I thought you’d come asking for an extension of the deadline and I was going to give it to you, anyway, because I knew the timescales were tight." He shook his head and smiled at the same time.

  "Really?"

  "Yes. But you have exceeded my expectations. Since you have the funds, you certainly deserve to be the next Managing Director of City Investments."

  "Thank you, sir."

  "But I have to ask, where did you get the money?"

  "Does it matter, as long as you get your money and can retire?"

  "Perhaps not. But I would hope that you didn’t get involved in anything unscrupulous to get the money. Ambition is great. But integrity is better."

  For the first time since she signed the contract with Petersen, Faith’s joy became tainted with doubt. Mark had warned her about getting involved with Petersen, and now, Mr. Okolo implied she’d acquired the money through foul means.

  Her blood boiled. What was it with men, anyway? Her father had been the same. He thought she prostituted her body in Lagos and that was how she made her money.

  "Sir, I don’t like the implications of what you’re saying. You know I would never stoop so low."

  Mr. Okolo sighed and leaned over to pat her hand. "I do not mean to upset you. You know I think of you as a daughter, and I would never wish anything bad on you. I’m just worried that getting the funds so quickly would cost you a price too dear."

  "I understand, sir."

  "Good. I will call a meeting of the senior team this afternoon and we can announce it to them. Of course, it will take longer to work out the details but, congratulations, Faith. I am pleased for you."

  "Thank you, sir."

  Elated, she walked out of his office practically floating. On her way back, she grabbed Stella and barely concealed her news until she closed the door to her office.

  "We got it," she said.

  "Oh my God!" Stella shouted and they hugged each other, jumping up and down.

  "I can’t believe this is actually happening."

  "I’m so pleased for you," Stella said, grinning from ear to ear. "You are going to be my new boss."

  "And you’re going to be the next Finance Director—"

  Faith’s office door burst open and she swivelled to find Wumi standing there.

  "You bitch!" Wumi said as she stormed in and slammed the door shut.

  "What?" Faith gasped.

  "You’ve been fucking him." Wumi stood in her personal space, her hands balled by her side and her face contorted in anger.

  "What’s going on, Wumi?" Stella asked, looking from one woman to the other.

  "You ask the woman who has been sleeping with my boyfriend."

  "I don’t know what you’re talking about, Wumi." Faith tried to keep her tone neutral but her voice came out with a squeak.

  "You don’t know what I’m talking about, abi?" Wumi snapped her fingers in the air. "Okay. Wait. I will show you." She pulled out a phone from her pocket and fiddled with the screen before shoving it in Faith’s face.

  Faith squinted and pulled her glasses from her desk to see properly.

  MARK ESSIEN SEEN WITH MYSTERY WOMAN IN BENIN CITY.

  Her heart thudded in her chest as she looked at the image on the screen. The face of the woman hugging Mark Essien at a bar looked slightly obscured, but Faith recognised herself immediately and heat flooded her face.

  She scrolled down to read the rest of the post on the Lori Booth blog.

  Bad boy playboy Mark Essien seen at a nightclub in Benin City with a mysterious woman while it is rumoured that he is engaged to childhood friend, Wumi Adekunle. He was featured last week enjoying the company of said fiancée at the Reams nightclub. But it seems Mr. Essien cannot shed his bad boy ways even with marriage looming.

  Can anyone name and shame this mystery woman?

  Nausea churned her stomach and her head swam. Faith wanted the ground to open up and swallow her. Now, she was being labelled ‘the other woman’ because people didn’t know that Mark and she were an item and Wumi was the one encroaching on another woman’s territory.

  Her blood boiled with rage and she spluttered, "He is not your fiancé!" before she could think better of it and shoved the phone back at Wumi.

  But the open-mouthed shock on both Wumi and Stella’s faces made her regret her words.

  "So you are not denying it, you shameless woman."

  "There’s nothing to deny." She turned her back and walked to her desk, wanting some distance between her and Wumi before she would do something she would later regret.

  "Look at that." Wumi handed the phone to Stella. "And tell me if I’m not right."

  Stella frowned as she stared at the phone. When she looked back up, Faith thought she glimpsed sadness in her eyes.

  "Is it true? Are you sleeping with Mark Essien?"

  Faith couldn’t lie to her friend so she answered, "Yes."

  Stella's face fell in disappointment and Faith’s heart clenched.

  "But it’s not what the blog post is making it out to be. Mark is not engaged to Wumi. Never has been. Never will be."

  "That’s a lie. How come I was in his family home for dinner the other week and we’ve been hanging out together playing tennis and stuff?"

  "I know his mother invited you to dinner without Mark’s permission, and I know you used to play tennis before. But I’m the one he asked to marry him and I’m the one expecting his baby!"

  The two women in front of her gasped. Wumi covered her mouth, opened the door, and ran out. Faith wished she hadn’t blurted out about the pregnancy. But now with the cat out of the bag, she could not go back. She just hoped she hadn’t lost her friendship with Stella, as well.

  Slowly, she walked over to the door and shut it. When she turned around, Stella was standing behind her.

  "I have to go," Stella said, avoiding eye contact.

  "Please don’t go," Faith said. "I’m sorry."

  "Why didn’t you tell me? All this while, you’ve been going out with him, and you never said a word."

  "I was avoiding bust ups like this
. I didn’t want it to be all over the news that I was dating Mark Essien and people speculating if I was going to be the next Mrs. Essien."

  "But you are going to be. You are pregnant and he asked you to marry him."

  Faith sighed. "He did, but I turned him down."

  "Woman, you have to be crazy. You turned down a proposal from a king of Finance? Why?"

  At this moment, thinking about the reason she’d said no seemed so trivial.

  "I was angry at him for wanting to buy City Investments without telling me first. I guess I was just lashing out."

  "I can see how that would piss you off. But do you love him?"

  "Sadly, I do."

  "And does he love you?"

  "I don’t know. I don’t think he cares about me after that stunt he pulled."

  "It seems to me a man like Mark won't propose to a woman unless he really cares about her. You might want to reconsider. Unless you really want him to marry Wumi."

  The clenching around her heart tightened. For sure, she wanted Wumi nowhere near Mark. his left her confused. What did she want from Mark?

  She sighed and slumped into her chair. Her mobile phone started ringing.

  "I’m going to leave you to it," Stella said and headed for the door.

  "Thank you for understanding."

  "That’s what friends are for." Stella smiled and shut the door behind her.

  She recognized her brother’s caller ID before she picked up the phone.

  "Odion, is everything all right?" she said as soon as she pressed the answer button.

  "Sister, it’s Mum. She's really sick."

  Those words sent Faith’s world careening out of control.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The weekend didn’t come fast enough for Mark. For starters, things didn’t get any smoother. Friday brought more pictures of him in the gossip press to add to the one already circulating with him and Wumi. This time, it was of him and Faith in the nightclub in Benin while she had been hugging him.

  Faith’s face looked slightly obscured in the photo but anyone who knew her well would recognise her from the angle.

  In a way, he was glad whoever had taken the photo had handed it in to the press. At least, it quashed the rumours of an involvement between him and Wumi. He had never been interested in the woman.