Chapter 42

★IVAN★

I kept staring at the door, my heart banged so hard against my ribs I feared it might break through the bones.

My mum's voice was the last voice I expected to hear, and now she was outside my room, about to open the door.

I knew she'd become furious if she opened the door and see me and Sasha naked on the bed, so I quickly thought of a lie that'd stop her from coming inside my room.

"Mum, don't come in. I'm indecent!" I shouted before mum could open the door.

"What?!" She asked from outside the room.

"I'm naked, mum, so just, umm..... just go and wait downstairs for me. I'll quickly find something to wear and meet you downstairs." I replied.

"Okay." Mum said, and I heaved a sigh of relief when I heard her retreating footsteps.

"Ivan, why didn't you tell me that your mum would return back to New York tonight?" Sasha asked beside me, and I turned my gaze to her.

"I wouldn't have allowed you to come to my place if I knew that my mum would return tonight." I replied, and furrowed her eyebrows at me.

"So you mean your mum didn't inform you about her arrival?" She inquired.

"Yeah, she didn't," I replied. "I guess she wanted to surprise me, and that's why she didn't inform me about it."

"So what do we do now? How do I leave here without being spotted by your mum?" Sasha asked in a worried tone.

"You sound worried, Sasha. Why? Are you scared of my mum?" I asked with a teasing smile across my face.

"And why wouldn't I be scared of her?" She replied. "Your mum is a very strict woman and once she sees me here, she'll know that we had sex. We both know that your mum is someone who is strongly against causal sex, so it's best we think of something real fast before she comes back here."

"Don't worry, sweetheart. My mum won't find out about anything." I said with a reassuring smile, and I gave her a brief kiss on her lips.

"I hope she doesn't 'cause I don't wanna be in her blacklist." She replied.

"She won't find out about a single thing, and you won't enter her blacklist. So let's get dressed." I said, and we both climbed out of the king-sized bed, then we wore out clothes.

"So, what's next?" She asked as she adjused her black gown on her slender body.

"You're gonna love this." I replied with a wide grin.

"Love what?" She asked in a confused tone. She also had confused expression on her face.

"Just wait right here and get ready to have your mind blown by me." I replied, but she just stared at me confusedly.

I chuckled at the expression on her face before walking towards a big portrait in the bedroom. I removed the portrait, and a red button came into view.

I dropped the portrait on the tiled floor and I pushed the red button.

Suddenly, the wall divided into two like a door and it revealed another room which was quite large and well furnished.

"Oh my fuck!" I heard Sasha gasping loudly behind me, and I turned around to see her standing with her mouth agape and her eyes widen in shock.

"How the fuck is there another room in your bedroom?" She asked as she began walking towards me slowly.

"One of the engineers who constructed this house told me about this secret room years ago." I replied as we both stepped inside the secret room.

The room was rugged from wall to wall in a very good red underlay. The colour of the curtains matched perfectly with the rug.

There were also two large black couches, a fridge with lots of wine and fruits, a 72inches flat screen TV, and two double split air-conditioning systems which kept the room cool.

"This is unbelievable." Sasha muttered as she kept glancing around the room in awe.

"I always thought this room was meaningless and useless, but I never knew it would be of use." I said, and Sasha turned her gaze to me.

"And does your mum knows about this room?" She asked.

"No, she doesn't." I shook my head negatively.

"That's good." She said and continued staring around the room.

"Just stay inside this room till mum falls asleep, then I'll take you home." I said.

"No problem." She replied with a smile.

"Please don't come out of this room until I come back, okay?"

"Alright." She nodded.

"I'll be right back." I said, and turned around, then I walked out of the secret room. I pressed the red button on the wall and the wall closed back.

I exhaled sharply before walking out of the bedroom, and I descended the stairway that led to the living room.

Mum was sitting on a couch, pressing her phone.

"Mum!" I smiled as I walked towards her.

She immediately rose up from the couch and she spread out her arms.

"Hey, son." She said as I pulled her into a warm hug which lasted for about five minutes.

"You've grown up so much." She said, staring at my face mmediately she broke the hug.

"And you've added more weight." I replied, and she frowned playfully.

"Do you mean I'm now fat?" She asked.

"No. What I mean is that you look more younger and beautiful than the last time I saw you." I replied, and she smiled.

I sniffed the air and smelled something burning.

"Are you cooking something?" I asked.

"Oh my God!" Mum gasped. "The spaghetti must be burning."

We both rushed to the kitchen, and I immediately turned off the gas, then I placed the pot of food on the counter.

Mum took the lid off the pot and fortunately, only a small portion of the food got burnt.

Mum dished out the food in two plates and I placed the plates of food on a tray.

Mum took out two cold bottled water from the fridge and she placed them on a tray, then we both walked out of the kitchen to the dining room.

We sat down close to each other and we began eating. The room was silent as we ate without saying a word to each other.

"So, how've you been these past three months?" Mum finally broke the silence as she uncapped a bottled water.

I finished chewing the food on mouth before speaking.

"At first, I was bored when you left for Canada three months ago, but when aunt Maya came last month, I had so much fun, and to be honest, last month was the best month of my life."

"Really?" She asked after taking a swig of water.

"Yeah. Last month was so great" I replied. "I experienced new things, did lots of fun activities at college, made new friends and visited some interesting places here in New York."

"You mean you now have other friends apart from Brad and Sasha?" Mum asked, a note of surprise in her voice.

"Yeah." I nodded affirmatively. "I've got dozens of new friends and they are all amazing."

"I'm so glad you've finally stepped out of your comfort zone." Mum said with a beautiful smile on her face. "I never thought you'd make new friends apart from Sasha and Brad."

I chuckled and we continued eating.

We finished eating some minutes later, and I packed the dishes to the kitchen.

I returned back to the living room and sat beside mum, then we chatted for almost an hour.

I yawned when I started feeling sleepy.

"Seems like you're already feeling sleepy." Mum said.

"Yeah." I nodded. "Goodnight mum." I pecked her cheek before rising up from the couch.

"Wait." Mum's voice halted me as I was about to climb the stairway.

"Yes?" I responded, turning around to look at her.

"Ivan, did any lady pay you a visit this night?" Mum asked as she rose up to her feet.

I started wondering why mum asked that question.

'Did she already find out that Sasha came here?, Or did she hear me and Sasha talking in my room?' I thought to myself as I kept staring at mum without giving her a response.

"Answer me, Ivan." Mum's voice snapped me out of my thoughts. "Did any lady come here this night?"

"No, mum. No lady came to visit me this night." I replied.

"Then what's this doing here?" She picked up a purse from the couch she was sitting on before.

I swallowed hard when I recognized the purse. The purse was Sasha's,

"This purse is for ladies, so tell me, who owns it?" She raised Sasha's purse as she began walking towards me.

I remained quiet while my brain worked like a ticking clock; thinking up something to say. And whatever I was going to say would either prevent my mum from finding out about the truth or it would reveal the truth.

My mum would be so angry with me if she found out that Sasha came to visit me at a late hour -- which is why I needed to use my words wisely.

"Is there something you're hiding, Ivan?" Mum asked, staring at my face suspiciously as she stood in my front.

The look on her face we as like that of a detective, and she was staring deep into my eyes like she was searching for answers.