Besotted (18+) ✔️ [A Nigerian Romance]

Twenty Seven

Feeling guilty about leaving Chike hanging two nights before, Ada decided to surprise him. It had taken a lot of stern talking to before she made that decision. After all, she couldn't blame Chike for having plans with the girl. It was not like she didn't ditch him a lot when she was in a relationship. So, she was going to be the mature best friend and move on like nothing happened.

Chike hadn't called or texted since she told him she couldn't do dinner until this morning when they'd spoken for a few minutes on the phone. From their little chit chat, she found out that he wouldn't be home till late in the evening, which gave her a perfect two hours to plan her surprise.

She was going to make Chile's favorite food; egusi soup and had even gone out of her way to order pounded yam to give him the full experience. Ada was pleased with herself, she was sure that nobody else beat her in this bestie thing because she'd put in the work. The food was ready in no time and she set about plating the food.

It had to be the music from her phone that covered the sounds of his entry because in the five minutes that she'd taken to set the kitchen to rights and get a bowl of water, Chike had returned. Only he wasn't alone. Ada watched the scene, shock freezing her in place.

Cynthia seemed to be attacking Chike who didn't really look like a willing participant. When she didn't get the reaction she wanted, Cynthia left his face alone and decided to maul something else. If Ada was not so horrified by what she was seeing, she would have laughed. The shorter woman had a lot of skills and was fast, Ada had to give it to her, because in a few seconds, Chike's pants were pulled down and Cynthia was going for the goods.

It was then Ada's brain decided to function, allowing a loud gasp out of her. Two sets of eyes turned to her, one confused and the other horrified.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry," Ada said in a rush. Her feet finally started working again as she rushed back into the kitchen, slamming the door behind her. She didn't know how to react to what she'd seen and there was no way she was coming out of the kitchen till the couple disappeared.

She could hear loud arguing and a few curses being thrown and then, a door slammed, further shocking her. The house was quiet for a few minutes before she heard footsteps coming towards her. Ada looked down to where she still gripped the bowl of water, a little bit in awe of the fact she hadn't dropped the bowl or even spilled water. The door opened before she could do anything else and Chike was standing there.

He looked good in his t-shirt and jeans; jeans that he'd obviously righted. But he looked mad and confused at the same time.

"I'm sorry," she apologized again. Then finally turned so she could empty the bowl of water in the sink.

Chike was quiet so she turned again to face him. The man let out a breathe and then scratched the back of his neck. "What are you even doing here, Ada? I gave you the spare key for emergency situations."

"I just wanted to prepare dinner to make up for the one I skipped, and I wanted it to be a surprise that's why I didn't tell you. I had no idea your girlfriend will be here again." She stopped to take a breath. "I should have known that food will not work."

"She's not my girlfriend," Chike said.

"But you two were..." Ada trailed off. What was she even supposed to say in this situation?

"You can have sex with someone you're not dating, Ada. I thought you would know since that seems to be your forte."

It took a few seconds for it to hit and Ada physically recoiled from his words. He didn't have to be so mean. "I'll just go," she said, trying to walk past him.

Chike caught her wrist, pulling her back to his front. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Today was not such a good day and I think I just messed everything up."

"It's fine, I get it. I'm complicating things for you with your fuck buddy. It won't happen again, don't worry."

He didn't say anything for a while, just stared at her, his fingers still curled around her wrist. It was Ada who looked away first, unsure of what the dipping sensation in her tummy was.

"Well she's gone and I don't want to let perfectly good soup go to waste. Will you stay and eat with me? Please?"

She took her time to reply too, letting them stew in the awkward silence before finally speaking. "And I even got pounded yam."

That seemed to break the awkwardness because Chike threw his head back and laughed. Her best friend was really a beautiful man. He was tall, dark, built with nice facial features and had an amazing smile that showed off a tiny dimple in his right cheek. But when Chike laughed like this, you'd find that he actually had two perfect dimples on the sides of his face, ones that always tempted her to poke her fingers in the indents it left. It was very hard being best friends with a guy that looked like this.

Chike led her out to the dining room and they had dinner in silence occasionally broken by Chike's praises for the meal. He didn't spare her when it came to compliments and by the end of dinner, Ada felt light-hearted with two pink spots that refused to go away from her cheeks. The evening was perfect and it was like the two years separation had never happened.

Ada wished things could always be like this. That they could have fun and still maintain their friendship. After all, she'd known Chike the longest and they were both sexually attracted to the other. What could go wrong? They were adults and with the right boundaries in place, they could actually enjoy themselves without souring their friendship.

She knew they would work better than what he had with Cynthia and she was done pretending that she didn't want Chike for much more than friendship.

"Would it be so bad to continue what we started?" Ada asked after mulling over the idea.

"What?" Chike blinked in confusion.

"We are best friends, that means we understand each other best out of everyone else. I'm obviously attracted to you and same with you. I know you are not looking for a relationship but that doesn't mean we can't still go for it. With communication and set boundaries, this will be perfect," she said in a rush, not giving any chance for doubt to creep in.

Chike didn't seem like he was breathing as he held her gaze. After what felt like hours, he finally looked away. "Are you asking me for sex, Ada?"

"Yes, I am."

"Just sex?" he reiterated.

"Yes. I know not to expect anything from you. We can do this and not turn it into something more or jeopardize our friendship."

"What if you change your mind and then disappear on me again?"

"I won't," she replied earnestly. "We make sure to communicate properly and we can fix date that we do the um..." She looked away. "Stuff."

"You want to have sex with me? Just sex, nothing else attached?"

"Is it so bad? Don't you want me too?"

Chike's eyes were focused on her and she could feel the heat as if laser beams were being projected on her. "This will get complicated fast."

"If it does, we take a break and talk things out. What matters is that we stay friends when this is done. I don't want to lose my best friend," Ada said.

"How can I say no to that?"

***

I promise I'm already working on the next chapter. Update will be out by weekend.

This was the perfect opportunity for Chike to tell Ada that he wanted an actual relationship. I wonder why my guy is keeping quiet.

What do you think?