Secret Desire Ep. 04

She found him fresh out of the shower. He stood with a white bath sheet around his waist as he groomed himself while looking into the mirror. She stared at his reflection, "I'm so sorry, babe."

He turned to her, "There's nothing to be sorry about. I just wish you would have told me sooner. I would never want to do anything that jeopardizes your health.

Ashlyn confessed to Chima after three months of trying that she could not risk getting pregnant. She had health concerns that warranted treatment, which would later require her to have a hysterectomy.

He pulled her into his arms, "We have a beautiful daughter, and we have each other."

She caressed his face, "Is it possible for you to be any more wonderful?"

He smiled, "Well, I'm already so wonderful."

She chuckled, "Let me go check on the baby."

"Okay, I'll be home late today. I'm picking my parents up from the airport."

His parents were coming down from Virginia for Simone's first birthday party. Ashlyn acknowledged his statement and headed to the nursery to check on the baby.

Simone was standing at the side of her crib bouncing up and down, "Hello Simone, my love," she said as she lifted her daughter. She felt the diaper. It was squishy, "Looks like you need a fresh pamper."

*****

The baby was in the highchair making a mess of her breakfast. Ashlyn's eyes were glued to the computer. She had sent Kendra many messages but had not heard anything from her in months. She was nervous and fearful.

When Chima entered the kitchen, she looked at him with those eyes. He sighed, "What is it?"

"I haven't heard from Kendra."

He made a face, "The online chick?"

"Yes. Kendra. What if something terrible happened to her."

"Or maybe she's just taking a break. You know being online can bring about a level of toxicity that people need to detox from. Including you, babe."

She sucked her teeth, "Chima."

He huffed, "What do you want me to do?"

"You have a friend who's a private detective. Can't you get him to look into this?"

He knew that the only answer she wanted to hear was, "Yes."

He nodded, "Fine. Give me her name."

Ashlyn screenshotted some pictures of Kendra's social media profiles and sent them to Chima's phone. He kissed her forehead, "I have to go. I'm running late for a meeting."

*****

After meeting with his clients, Chima drove to work. He walked in and greeted his assistant and later went to his office and shut the door. He opened his phone and looked at the pictures of Kendra. He smiled. She looked like Zinchle, the pretty brown-skinned woman he met on a visit to his mother's homeland.

He called his friend who lived in Dallas and spoke of the issue to him, "Who is this woman anyway?" his friend asked.

"A woman my wife knows. It's important to her."

"Say no more. As soon as I know something, I'll let you know."

"Thanks, man."

After the call ended, Chima found himself scrolling through the many pictures and videos of Kendra's page. After an hour drifted by. He put his phone away. _This is crazy, _he thought.

*****

She heard the front door open. Excitedly, Ashlyn grabbed the baby and greeted her guests in the foyer. His parents were excited to see them. They had not been there since Simone's birth. His mother was gorgeous. Her brown skin was flawless and she wore her hair cut short in tiny curls.

"Let me see my grandchild," she said as she took her from Ashlyn's arms, "and how have you been my dear?'

Ashlyn looked at Chima. She wondered if he told his parents. She smiled, "I'm doing well."

"Good to hear."

*****

Chima's father went to bed right after eating. His mother was in the den watching television. Ashlyn and Chima were in their bedroom. "I was going to ask you earlier but--"

"I have Ibrahim working the case. He's really good you know. I think he helped the government track down Osama Bin Laden."

"Chima."

"Sorry." He cuddled close to her, "As soon as he knows something, I will let you know. I promise." He kissed her neck, "now can we?"

"Yes."

******

Christmas came and went. It was not until late January that Chima's cell phone rang with news about his wife's friend. "Hey, man. What's the good news?"

"Interestingly, she's down your way. Living in a town called Ruskin. It's a house that was passed down to her father after her grandmother died. Her parents live in the Bahamas. She was living in Atlanta for a while."

"Yeah, right okay. So living here in Florida now. I wonder why?"

"I don't know. But I sent you her address. Perhaps you or Ashlyn can ask her."

"Thanks. I owe you one."

"You sure do. I don't work for free," he joked.

Chima laughed.

****

It was an older house which rested on a nice plot of land. The grass however looked thirsty. The plants were mostly dead. He sighed as he approached the home which looked less than one thousand square feet.

His hand touched the old white door badly in need of a paint job. He heard footsteps approaching. The door opened slowly and he stared into her eyes. Her hair was pulled up into a bun. She wore large framed eyeglasses. Her skin glowed.

"Hello," she said pleasantly.

"Hi. I'm Chima. This is going to sound weird."

She listened intently as he spoke but somehow, she felt as if she knew him or at least had seen him."

"Chima? That's a very South African name."

He smiled, "It is. My mother is from South Africa and my father is from New York. I've lived here all my life though."

She smiled, "That's so wild, my mother is from South Africa as well. My father is Bahamian."

He chuckled, "Small world."

"Come in."

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Of course," she replied and stepped aside. "It's not much. Please excuse the mess. I just moved here about a couple of months ago."

There were clothes on top of the sofa that needed to be folded and put away. There were some boxes in the small space and the kitchen, "May I offer you a drink?" she asked.

"I'm fine," he replied as he sat on the recliner, "I came by because my wife was worried about you."

"Your wife?" she made a face.

"Ashlyn. She follows you--"

"Oh my goodness, yes, Ashlyn. How is she?"

He nodded, "She's okay. I guess you two became friends online. And when she hadn't heard from you in months, she got worried."

That's so sweet, she thought. Kendra wore baggy sweats and a large oversized hoodie. She pulled the hoodie tight. Chima's eyes widened. She sighed, "I've been trying to figure things out."

"Oh wow, and the baby's father?"

"He was deported to Germany. I was able to contact him after several weeks of not knowing where he was, but he told me that he had too much going on. And that I should do whatever I felt I needed to do."

Chima shook his head in disgust, "That's terrible."

"Yeah, but it is what it is. I know I could have had an abortion but, I don't know. I kind of want to have a baby. Maybe he'll change his mind one day."

Chima nodded.

She stood, "Are you sure you don't want anything to drink?"

He looked around. It was getting late and there weren't any lights on in her house. "Is the power on?"

She chuckled as she walked to the kitchen, "Yes. I don't use the lights unless I need to. The energy bills here are insane."

He chuckled, "Yeah." He stood and walked to the kitchen and stood. He watched her open the refrigerator which barely had any food. "Why don't you come to my house for dinner? I'm sure Ashlyn would love to catch up. And she's an amazing cook."

Kendra nodded, "Okay. I think I will."

"We can ride in my car and I'll send you back in an Uber," he said because he noticed no car outside.

"Thanks so much. My car is in the shop."

****

As Chima drove, Afrobeats music played. He looked over and saw Kendra bobbing her head, "You're into Afrobeats."

"Of course. I love the music. I love dancing to it. It's a whole vibe."

"Have you been to South Africa yet?"

She nodded, "Yes. My parents and I went to Jo'burg. And you?"

"Capetown."

"Nice. That's on my bucket list."

"What about any of the languages?"

"Ndiyakwazi ukuthetha isibini," she replied, which meant, "I can speak a couple."

"Not bad. Ndithetha isiXhosa kakhulu kunye nabanye abambalwa," he replied which meant, "I can speak Xhosa too and a few other languages."

When they pulled into the driveway of the huge white home, Kendra's eyes widened, "Oh my goodness, what do you do for a living," she asked.

He shut off the engine, "I'm a commercial real estate agent."

She nodded, "Nice. You can put my father's house in the living room of your house."

He laughed, "It's not that big."

Kendra tilted her head.

He laughed, "Okay, maybe it is. We were planning to have a large family."

"Beautiful."

He exited the vehicle and hurried to open her door. He took her hand, "This way," he said. "I'm one of the few people in the world who still prefers to use the front door to enter the house."

"Nothing wrong with that," she replied as they walked to the beautifully designed door with a small glass window pane.

The door swung open. Chima saw Simone walking with quick steps toward him, "There's my baby girl," he said as he scooped her up. He placed his finger over his lips. Kendra nodded.

Ashlyn's voice sounded, "Babe, did you hear anything about Kendra? I'm really starting to get worried."

He removed his shoes. Kendra followed close behind him, "Babe, I just haven't had time. I'll call Ibrahim tomorrow."

"Tomorrow, Chima? That's unacceptable."

She turned from the stove and screamed, "Oh my God! Kendra!" she ran over and hugged her, "Where have you been?"

Kendra touched her belly, "I got myself knocked up. Long story short, he went back to Germany and is not interested in being a dad. So."

"Oh no. Are you not doing your videos anymore?"

She shook her head, "Honestly, I just need a little time to myself. I need to get my life right. This baby and figuring out work and daycare. I'm so glad my parents had this house here in the area. It's been paid off for years. My dad sends me money. I have a few applications in with the federal government."

Chima handed Ashlyn the baby, "I'm going to go get out of these clothes."

Kendra touched Simone's chubby cheek, "She's so pretty. I see you figured out how to get the curls to pop."

"Thanks to your videos. They were my lifeline. I just want to be the best mom I can be to her."

"And you are. May I?"

"Yes," she replied as she handed her the baby. "Have a seat. We're about to have dinner."

Kendra sat at the large rectangular table. Simone was on her lap. Ashlyn walked over and took Simone, "Let me put her in the high chair." She placed the baby down and then provided her with a small plate of food. She turned to Kendra, "I know you said it's a long story but I do hope we can speak later after dinner."

Kendra nodded, "Yes. It makes me feel good that you were so concerned. Sometimes it's hard to gauge online acquaintances."

"I know what you mean."

*****

After a wonderful meal, Ashlyn put Simone to sleep and Chima went to their bedroom. Ashlyn took Kendra outside. They say on a soft white sofa underneath two Moasis Palm Leaf style ceiling fans. They had a view of the pool which glistened under the night lights.

Ashlyn sipped on a glass of wine. Kendra drank water. Kendra smiled, "Chima is nice."

She nodded, "I couldn't ask for a better husband. I know you must be angry with--"

"Jon. I'm not. I sort of played with fire. This is a consequence." Kendra admitted as she rubbed her belly, "My parents have not come out and said they were disappointed in me but I know they expected more from me. I left college to pursue this whole influencer thing and it didn't pay as well as I thought. Then, I met Jon and Sara."

"Who's Sara?"

"Sara was Jon's wife, but...I later learned they were never married legally. So. She was his woman."

Ashlyn's eyes popped, "So, she knew about you and him?"

Kendra nodded, "Yeah. We were together."

"Shut up! No way!"

"Yes, girl. I loved Sara. She had an eclectic soul. She was into all kinds of music. We'd sit for hours just listening to music...no words. Just music and wine. Then at the end of the night, she'd reach for my hand, kiss me sweetly on the mouth while touching me below."

"Oh my god, I'm so fucking jealous."

Kendra chuckled, "Wait are you?"

"I don't know. But I do want that experience."

"Have you talked to Chima?"

"God, no. He would never go for that."

Kendra shrugged, "You never know unless you ask."

"I suppose you're right. Maybe one day I will."

*****

The bed was warm. It had to be. Her legs were spread wide. His tongue traced every fold. Her eyes closed. She saw her face. Suddenly, it was no longer Chima tasting her wine. It was Kendra. She bit her finger and smiled lost in the fantasy of girl-on-girl wonder.

She imagined running her fingers through Kendra's pretty curls. Her hips jolted forward repeatedly. Then, her body trembled, "Oh god, fuck!"

Chima wiped his mouth. He eased on top of his wife. He had no reason to wander any place. He was happy where he was. Yet as his thick cock dipped into his wife's precious center, he couldn't help but see the pretty brown skin woman.

He saw her pretty hands caressing his face and chest. He imagined her right leg over his shoulder and drilling deeper.

He stroked so slowly and began to grind that it provoked sounds he had not yet heard from his wife. He leaned in for a kiss, "I love you, babe," he gasped as his semen flowed into his wife. He knew the possibility of more children was off the table. Sex would be for pure enjoyment.

He rolled off slowly and hummed. He heard Ashlyn humming lost in her delight of the moment they shared.