Mrs Mahmud, Mrs Mas'ood

Bonus Chapter 01

November, 2023

Mahmud looked weird in her Picanto and she laughed, unable to help herself. With a shake of his head, he shut the door and pulled down the tinted window glass so he could ask "Are you sure you'll be fine?"

Hauwa nodded. "Of course I will. It's just a meeting with the other Cosgrove women, Qalb. What could go wrong?"

An hour later, she was on her way to the Cosgrove estate in Guzape, driving Mahmud's Tundra since he was taking her car to the mechanic to get it serviced. Apart from the time they were house hunting, Hauwa never came towards Guzape. She didn't have a reason to do so.

The invite to the Cosgrove's Women Meeting came from their next door neighbour a week after she and Mahmud returned from Ghana. According to their neighbour, the women of the Cosgrove family met in one of the villas bi-weekly to talk about issues in the various communities and come up with solutions. Hauwa thought it was a good initiative and she looked forward to meeting every other person.

Every property in the Guzape estate was a gated seven bedroomed villa and Hauwa fell in love with the surroundings. She easily found the villa which served as the meeting venue. Due to the fact that there was not enough space to take the Tundra thanks to the cars already parked, she got permission from those next door and left the vehicle in their compound. She walked back to the venue and rang the doorbell. Two minutes later, she was being welcomed in.

The foyer screamed royalty and it had to be the largest one she had seen. She was led past the private lounge and into the living room where about fifteen women sat, laughing. They all turned when she walked in and Hauwa smiled nervously, giving them a small wave. "Hi."

They rose to their feet and warmly welcomed her. Well, Hauwa assumed they warmly welcomed her with their smiles and hugs. What she didn't see were the judging looks they gave, especially since she was the only one in jeans and a loose, thigh-length, long-sleeved top with a matching veil draped over her head when the rest of them wore atampa.

Once they were seated, Hauwa spoke. "Sorry, I didn't know what to bring even though Layla said I didn't have to."

Layla, she and Mahmud's next door neighbour in Mabushi, laughed. "You like to bother yourself. There's nothing more that Kawthar needs. She has everything. Right, Kawthar?"

Hauwa turned to the woman being addressed and immediately knew she was the owner of the villa and the main host. Kawthar laughed, adjusting her headpiece.

"Oh, Layla. You never change." She turned to Hauwa. "We thought you weren't coming. It won't be the first time someone felt too big for these meetings."

Hauwa shook her head. "Believe me, I don't feel too big. I'm honoured to be here. I lost track of time and there was little traffic on the way. Sorry I'm late."

Another woman picked up her cup of tea. "I hope there was enough space for your car?"

"Not really." Hauwa replied. "I went to the next house. They're really nice people. My car's there."

The woman smiled tightly and sipped her tea while Kawthar introduced every woman in the room to Hauwa who committed their names and titles to memory to the best of her ability. They were all wealthy women and thankfully she didn't feel inadequate. The meeting resumed once Hauwa had been served a cup of tea and for ten good minutes the women gossiped about one person or the other.

Hauwa frowned when the conversation turned towards what they had been up to and where they visited during the week. She noticed then that the women only sipped their teas and didn't touch any of the cupcakes and small chops provided. She was the only one eating.