CHAPTER SEVEN
Amanda sulked as soon as the car drove into the compound and she walked into the house. She had been put in a foul mood since what happened between her and Kayden at school. She hadn’t just put herself in his bad books and the guilt that was threatening to eat her up from the thought that what happened must indeed must have not been her intention but had indeed looked like that.
She slumped on the sofa while staring at the ceiling. She needed to apologize but there was no way she could at the moment. She had to wait till the next day at school and this time around she had no ideas on how to pull Kayden aside and apologize to him. She sighed softly again as she rose to her feet.
“We’ll figure that out tomorrow” she murmured into the empty seating room as she made her way towards her room while still wearing a sulking face.
“What does he have to say over a cup of drink?” Zane asked as he rubbed his forehead.
“I don’t have any idea” Dylan replied as Zane glared at him.
“You always don’t know why” Zane replied as Dylan coughed lightly without saying anything.
“When its eight o’clock, let me know” Zane said as he turned to the files on his table.
“Okay sir” Dylan said as he grabbed his phone and set an alarm to some few minutes before eight pm.
He watched quietly as Zane worked, his brows furrowed as he made all kinds of comments on the files in front of him. Dylan could feel a heavy workload piling on his table already. He walked back to his office while making adjustments to the rest of the work he had.
Zane looked at the street lights on the road as the car sped pass each of them and Zane found himself funnily counting the streetlights. Realizing what he was doing, he let out a low chuckle as he turned to Dylan who was seated across him in the limousine.
“I used to do this in my younger years” Zane said as he chuckled lightly.
“I used to count the street lamps while we passed. Amanda used to enjoy it a lot” Zane said as Dylan found himself laughing.
“Count the street lamps? Why?” Dylan asked as Zane stared outside once more.
“Whenever we were hungry and we had nothing to eat. We counted the streetlamps to forget time and to forget that we were hungry” Zane replied as Dylan found himself numb and unable to form words in his mouth.
Hungry?
Nothing to eat?
Counted streetlamps to forget hunger?
Just how much were they suffering back then?
Dylan watched Zane intently as a small smile blossomed on the latter’s lips. Dylan had always known that Zane had suffered a lot before he could get back the company his uncles he had taken away from him but he had no idea how much he must have suffered. Zane never said a thing about it. But Dylan had never imagined that it would have been this serious. He swallowed his saliva as he realized that Zane had just shared with him a past he had been hiding from everyone.
“That was then, now when you are hungry. You just have to snap your fingers and whatever you want to eat, whatever Amanda wants to eat; you can eat it” Dylan said as Zane turned to him.
“That’s how far you’ve come Mr President. You’ve come a really long way” Dylan said his voice quivering while he tried to supress the tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.
“You’ve come a really, really, really long way” Dylan said again this time quietly as Zane smiled while nodding.
“Thank you Dylan. Thank you” he said as the car came to a stop and Dylan quickly got down while one of the bodyguards opened the door for Zane.
Zane squinted his eyes at the building in front of him as he stepped inside with Dylan following him. They stepped into the elevator and Dylan quickly pressed the elevator for the seventh floor.
The waiters in the room bowed immediately Zane and Dylan stepped into the room and Zane quickly wore a formal smile as soon as he saw the older man seating down on the couch few meters from him.
“President Yu” Zane greeted as he sat down and the latter smiled at him.
“I thought you weren’t going to come” the older man said as Zane found himself chuckling.
“Why would you think so?” Zane asked as Yu Mian chuckled.
“You are well known for standing people up. Be it dinner, be it parties, be it whatever” He replied as Zane chuckled.
“I am a young man with many responsibilities. I certainly don’t have time to waste accompanying some old men to drink” Zane said as one of the waiters poured wine into two wine cups.
“Why are you here then?” Yu Mian asked as Zane turned to him.
“You are my old man man’s. naturally; I’ll accompany you to drink or whatever you like” Zane replied as the older man laughed as he carried his own glass of wine.
“No matter that old man always wants you around. You have a sweet mouth” he said as the waiter brought Zane’s cup closer to him and Dylan immediately turned to the waiter with an expressionless face.
“Can you serve food first?” he asked but the question sounded more like a command than a request and the waiter turned to meet Dylan’s unfriendly eyes. Dylan snickered as he turned to another waiter.
“Tell the kitchen to bring another wine and food for the President” Dylan said as Yu Mian stared at the wine cup that he had brought to his mouth but was yet to take a sip.
“I really wanted to enjoy a nice evening” Yu Mian said as the door opened and a well-dressed man rushed into the room.
“My Apologies President Wilson” he said as he bowed while Zane rested his back into the couch.
“For one, I’m actually hungry” Zane started as he chuckled.
“What happened to the strict training for protocol?” Zane asked as he chuckled.
“I was going to be poisoned at my own hotel. Doesn’t that sound hilarious to you as well?” Zane asked as his expression grew cold.
“Get out” he commanded as the man scampered out.
Harley managed a smile at the man in front of her as soon as she sat down. “I apologize for coming late President Andrew” Harley said as soon as she sat down and the man in front of her smiled at her.
“It’s okay. I heard you were so busy today” he said as Harley nodded forcing another smile.
She had decided not to attend the meeting with him after much deliberation but some minutes to 10pm, he had even called to remind Joanne about the meeting. As the owner of her entertainment company he was signed on; it was courtesy for her to attend and meet up with him.
“What would you like to drink?” he asked as Harley waved her hands. She definitely wasn’t going to drink with someone she found as creepy as him.
“No need President Andrew. I’m fine” she refused as the man seating across her raised an eyebrow lightly.
“You don’t want to drink with me?” he asked laughing as Harley laughed lightly.
“President Andrew, you are jumping to conclusions so quick. According to the company plans, I might be featuring one of Marie’s album that is releasing next month and we are in the middle of recording. Drinking at night would affect my voice. I don’t want to be the reason why Marie’s album would be slowed down” Harley replied while watching Andrew.
Andrew was one of the biggest Presidents in the country. He owned two huge entertainment companies that had produced not just award winning actors and actresses but models, singers, TV anchors and lots more. He was really handsome and friendly and was also single. And the fact that he had never gotten into a scandal with any of his artistes got him the respect of the public.
To everyone he was the perfect gentleman and was also a nice man but for some reason, Harley had always found him creepy. She also tried to avoid contact with him, she reduced contact with him as much as possible. The fact that Joanne had been stopped at the door because the talk she and President Andrew wanted to have was very private according to his secretary even made her feel unnerved.
“President Andrew; you said you wanted to discuss something important with me. What is it?” she asked as Andrew adjusted himself in his chair while slowly swirling his wine cup.
“You really don’t have an idea?” Andrew asked his lips forming a small arc as Harley shook her head.
“If I knew I wouldn’t be asking” Harley replied as Andrew laughed.
“True, true, true, true. All these years, no one has touched. You are the flower I left to blossom well so that it would be mature enough before I plucked it. What do you think?” Andrew asked as sickening smile appeared on his face. Even if Harley was an idiot, she could perfectly understand what Andrew was insinuating. She felt disgusted as she rose to her feet.
“That won’t be happening President Andrews, you didn’t raise this flower by the way. She raised herself, why would you pluck it?” she asked as she grabbed her bag and attempted to walk out of the room.
“You want to quit your acting career at your peak?” Andrew suddenly asked as Harley froze without moving. She shockingly turned to face Andrew but before she could say anything, someone else spoke.
“You aren’t going to be plucking this flower and neither is she going to quit her acting her career” someone said as Harley turned to see an unfamiliar man in suit staring at Andrew.
“You dare not” he added.