Different Worlds

Chapter Thirty-one

Ijeoma POV

Mr. Kachi and I were seated in a five star restaurant. We were awaiting some important prospective clients to join us. Mr. Emenike was supposed to meet up with them but something came up and so Mr. Kachi had to go in his place. Being Mr. Kachi's acting PA, I had to go along with him.

The restaurant was a massive edifice. It was oppressively magnificent with fancy chandeliers hanging from the roof at strategic parts of the restaurant. Soft music sifted through the air giving the place a very Serene and calm aura. Different aromas of African dishes filled the atmosphere, making it extremely hard not to salivate.

We were sat at the VIP section of the restaurant. The segregation was unbelievable; a VIP section in an already seemingly expensive restaurant. The VIP section was on the top floor of the restaurant, excluded from the view of other guests. It was very spacious and admirably neat, not a thing was out of place.

Not that I would've noticed if something was.

"I'm sorry for the delay" A middle aged man approached our table with two young men in tow.

"No problem, sir" Mr. Kachi Rose from his seat and offered the man his hand.
I rose from my seat as well, as a sign of respect. It would also be weird if I just sat down there while everyone was on their feet.

The man who I guessed was Mr. Okafor and our prospective client took Mr. Kachi's outstretched hand. "Are you the CEO of Emenike Shipping Limited?"

Mr. Okafor stood a couple inches shorter than Mr. Kachi and he was dressed in a white traditional attire. A long thick red bead hung around his neck and left hand that complement the white attire. He was dark skinned and had a long scar that started from his forehead and stopping just above his right eye socket, demarcating his scanty eyebrows. Whatever struck him across the face missed his right eye by an inch.

"No, sir" Mr. Kachi replied. "The CEO had an emergency, so I'm standing in for him. I'm the CFO, Mr. Kachi"

Mr. Okafor muttered something under his breath that I didn't quite catch.

The meeting hadn't even begun but I could already tell that Mr. Okafor would be a hard man to please just by watching how he carried himself.

We all took a seat around the six seater rectangular table, leaving one seat unoccupied. I was seated next to Mr. Kachi on one side while Mr. Okafor was seated opposite us with the two able bodied men in suits. One of them placed beside Mr. Okafor and the other at the head of the table.

"We know that you're looking for a shipping company that can --" Mr. Kachi started.

The meeting drawled on and since it began I had not written one thing on my notepad. They just kept going on and on about business talk, and as much as I wanted to be mentally present the aroma of the delicious dishes wafting through the air kept distracting me.

"Looking at the reviews from a few of your clients, you people deliver the goods very late" Mr. Okafor said in a very thick Igbo accent.

"Yes but these past few weeks, we have been very articulate with delivery time. We just recently changed the ports our ships arrive in" Mr. Kachi replied.

"Nna, I want to build a big mall, very massive. I want that mall to be the biggest one in all of Anambra state, Nigeria if possible..." He gesticulated with his hands. "And I want to import all my materials from abroad. I don't want a company that will delay me in shipments because my architects are working on a schedule". His accent changed words with 'R' to 'L' and vice versa.

"Whatever schedule you are working on, we can deliver as well. I promise you that you can trust us to get your materials to you in time" Mr. Kachi assured them.