King
One of her stockinged legs wrapped around the pole and her back arched as she connected her left hand to the rod, suspending herself mid-air in an arabesque move. In a dangerous yet provocative way, she swung from side to side, her other limbs joining their counterparts on the pole as she glided down to the floor.
Now in a squat position with her arms still wrapped around the beam and high heels planted on the ground, she jutted her butt out, blessing the crowd of horny men with the sight of her scantily clad derriere.
Rising to her feet with her back still to the crowd, she tugged on the straps of her lacy lingerie that barely covered the mounds on her chest, pulling it down her shoulders with the sensuality only a stripper could possess. She raised it up in the air, wiggling her buttocks to the whistles and catcalls of the men seated at the front row.
Ever so slowly she turned and threw the bra into their midst while her other hand covered her chest. They called out to her to remove the barrier but she refused, smiling seductively at them; throwing her head back, she let her index finger run over her lower lip with her hair cascading down her waist. The upper part of her face was hidden behind a mask, revealing lips that were coated in the darkest shade of purple.
Bundles of naira notes flew to the stage, the cries of the libidinous men increasing with every second that passed. Only then did she lower her hand, exposing breasts that were covered in nipple pasties.
Suddenly the door to my office opened and I jumped up in fright, nearly tossing my iPhone to the ground; thankfully, my earpiece was plugged in, muting the sound from the Instagram video.
"Mr. Adams." I groaned out as he walked further into the large office, hiding the lower part of my body that chose to betray me behind the mahogany desk.
"Mr. Daniels," he was the only one who insisted on calling me by my last name and no matter how many times he did that, I never got used to it.
"You do understand that you don't have to stand up when I come in?" His deep baritone voice mocked, his eyes running over my features.
Lowering myself onto my seat, I offered my best smile as the Chairman of the board stared directly into my eyes. He shook his head pitifully, as if aware of my shenanigans before his arrival; producing a file that looked familiar on closer inspection, he opened it up, flipping pages upon pages until he got to a page that was folded at the edge.
"You want a permanent position on the board?" He gestured to a highlighted line on the page of the proposal I submitted to him and I nodded sheepishly.
It was the way he said it like he just found out I had plans of usurping him that turned me to into a nervous entrepreneur at his first elevation pitch. Being the acting CEO had its perks but there were limits to what I could do without the permission of the board.
Usually, the position of the Chief Executive Officer came with an automatic entrance into the board but for some reason, my case was an exception. Perhaps it had something to do with me messing around with the female staff in the office, a vice I had long dropped upon ascending into this new role.
The only way to gain 100% control of my position, remove the acting from my new title was by convincing the other board members that I was capable, not by words but by actions.
"Why should the board agree to that?"
"Because the three months probationary period is over." His expression didn't crack and I immediately switched tactics, "because I can convince Chief Edward to sell his land to us."
Silence hung in the air and I could picture the wheels turning in his head, probably trying to figure out how I intended to do that.
There were two most patronised real estate agencies in Calabar - Madiba Property Services, the one founded by Mr. Adams with him as her Chairman and Landmark Corporate Realty Limited, the one owned by Chief Edward. The world of business was cruel, almost no place for friendship as was seen in the case of Edward and Adams, close friends turned archenemy; sworn rivals that were always on the lookout for ways to outsmart each other.
Our latest interest was on a land of 325 square feet located in the heart of Calabar, a perfect spot for an extension of our baby hotel, Pavilion. The only problem was that Chief Edward suddenly sprouted out as the owner of the property, a land that we were almost done closing the sales on. He had refused to sell even with the enticing offers we made, neither had he made any plans for it; it was just a souvenir to show he won that round.
"Six weeks," he finally spoke; I suppressed my grin from growing wider when he turned sharply to face me. "If you fail, you will be stripped of your current title. We don't need a CEO that can't keep to his words."
He didn't wait for my response, not that I could have given a meaningful one with the adrenaline surging through me at this point. Pumping my balled fist into the air, I did a five-second happy dance; though the confrontation was unexpected, it had gone exceptionally well, better than I could imagine.
My phone pinged, reminding me of my previous leisure activity. Unwilling, I exited the Instagram app, consoled by the proximity of the strip club and the name of my new favourite stripper, Amber Lee, the owner of the account. I knew now where and how I would spend the weekend celebrating this small victory.
Ignoring all other notifications that popped up on my phone, I went straight to our WhatsApp group chat. There was only one message and it was from Umar, the last member of our Fantastic Five group who was missing at our last outing.
At 35, he was the oldest one amongst us, a widower with one pretty daughter, Samia. Between starring in blockbuster movies and playing both roles of father and mother to his only child, he had little or no time to himself. Hence, we took turns to babysit Samia, to relieve him of some of that burden and also come out to show our support whenever it was needed.
Umar
Guys! I'm back and the movie premiere is in two weeks. I'm excited about this one because Samia can come this time.
Umar was not just good at what he did, he was one of the bests, which meant he starred in movies that were sometimes not children friendly. But that wasn't the reason for the smile on my face; this new information was the icing on the cake for my new mission - serenade Chief Edward's daughter.
Me
I need extra tickets.
Without waiting for his reply, I sent a message to Tibiebi, Chief Edward's daughter. She was a tough nut to crack, getting her to give up her number after coincidentally bumping into her at the golf course had been a herculean task. She wasn't impressed by my skills, outfits or handsome appearance but that wasn't going to stop me from recruiting her help. And I was certain an invitation to see her favourite actors was sure to change her mind.
Too excited to stay in the office a second longer, I picked up my coat, making my way to the private elevator as I hummed the familiar tune of Davido's if under my breath. There was one more thing needed to set my plans into motion and that was a new outfit; I knew just the right designer to make me one.
*****
So far, what do you think of King?
Readers of One Friday Evening know that I have always liked him. But anyways, I'm looking forward to their meeting (King and Uti).
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