Tough Love (Book 2)

23. Moving Along

~Zinhle Mpumelelo~

I walked into my shop with a sigh. I made my way to the staff area greeting staff on the way. I closed the door behind me to see Kanya standing in the middle of nowhere texting.

"Hi," I chuckled awkwardly.

She looked up and came to give me a hug. "Are you ok?"

I broke the hug and nodded.

"Sure?"

"Yeah. In fact, you should be at the shop."

"I know but you were gone for two days, Jude was also gone so there was no one here. I just came to see how things were going."

"Oh... thanks."

We walked into my office and I saw a guy standing by one of the walls and looking at the framed newspaper articles.

He was tall, nicely dressed and had good well maintained figure.

He looked at Kanya and I.

At that moment, I almost fainted.

His defined jaw, his charming smile... oh my gosh he's got dimples too... I could vaguely see a tattoo crawling up his neck. He wore simple shiny studs in his ears and his neat haircut gave his appearance a formal touch.

He didn't seem like the type who got up on Monday dying for Friday. He seemed mature.

His suit, a navy blue, white shirt, a creamy gold tie to match his gold watch on his left and bracelet on his right. The way his suit fit his arms and shoulders looked scrumptious.

Believe it or not, I didn't stare like a creep. Somehow, just by a quick glance I managed to pick up that much about him. His looks, his vibes... it all just hit me.

"Good morning Miss Mpumelelo," he greeted walking up to me.

"Good morning," I greeted giving him a handshake.

"This is Hugo Kayembe," Kanya introduced, "He is the owner and co-founder of Your Next Home. He would like to invest in AfriStyle."

"Really?"

"It's true," Hugo stated, "I attended your Spring Day Festival. It was quite the event. I then proceeded to check your website, your social media accounts, I loved what I saw and thought this had potential. So I would like to invest in AfriStyle."

I loved the way he spoke. He sounded French. His accent held a hint of French which made his English sound... satisfying for a lack of better words. It was satisfying to listen to him.

"Umm... I uhh-"

"I was hoping we could discuss that over coffee today or some other time. Whenever suits your schedule."

I looked at Kanya then at my desk. I saw my diary and grabbed it. I flicked over to today and stared at the blank page.

For some strange reason I was nervous. I wanted to tell him we'll meet another day just so I could dress up better or prepare myself mentally. Which was odd since I was usually always ready to discuss business. Call a meeting at 2 am to discuss business, I'd be ready. But with him I wasnt.

I wanted to put on my best for him. I wanted to try a little harder. Look a little better. Speak a little clearer. It was weird.

"She's available right now," Kanya stated for me.

I shot her a glare.

"Really?" Hugo enquired awkwardly.

"Umm... could you, give us a moment," I requested dragging Kanya out. When we were a few feet from my office I stopped and whisper-yelled, "What the hell are you thinking?! I'm not available! I got work to do!"