Perched on the edge of
his seat, Oliver's fingers tapped and tapped his thighs. Come on, Kema.
"Hey,
bro. Where's your lady?"
Oliver
glanced up. Steven and Tari had arrived. He jumped up.
"Backstage.
With the others." He replied to Steven, smiling at Tari. "How do you
manage to look more beautiful every time I see you?" He bent over to kiss
her cheek.
"I'll
never tell." She murmured cheekily, grinning up at him.
"It's
great to be back here, to see you."
"So
sweet. As always, Oliver, you know just what to say."
Oliver
asked, “How’s baby Korede Alexander?”
“Perfect.
The epitome of cuteness. Just like his mother.” Tari teased, eying Steven. He
rolled his eyes. “And your daughter, Lisa?”
“She’s
vacationing with my dad and mom in Miami. I spoke to her this morning. She’s
having a glorious time.”
Steven
said, “She needs a brother… or a sister.”
Oliver
narrowed his eyes at his friend. “We know. Shut it.”
Steven
chuckled. Tari grinned.
Steering
his girlfriend to her chair, Steven said, "Babe, are you okay to wait? I
don't want to leave you-"
"Shush."
Tari patted his lips with an index finger as she slid into the chair.
"I'll be okay. And anyway, I'm sure Dare will join me as soon as he can
extricate himself from his woman."
"Are
you sure?" Steven asked, gazing down at her with tawny-gold laser orbs.
She
waved him away, rolling her eyes. "I'm sure."
Steven
grinned at her. "Don't roll your eyes at me."
She
stuck out her tongue.
Taking
a step closer, Steven drawled, "Do that again and I'll take that tongue in
my mouth, here, in front of everyone and I won't let go."
Oliver
faked a clearing of his throat. He said, "Take it easy, you two."
Steven
chuckled. Ripping his eyes away from his girlfriend, he glanced up, catching
sight of Kema. "Kema!"
"Steven!"
Curling her right hand into a fist, she bumped it against his rolled fist.
Oliver
shook his head at the two of them.
Kema
said to Steven, "You're late."
"Only
by a few minutes."
"Umhmm. Right."
"I
love the pantsuit... but then, you look perfect in whatever you wear."
Steven murmured, beaming widely.
"Way
to change the subject." Kema murmured and then glanced down at Tari.
She
said, "Hello, Tari dear," and leaned over to embrace her.
Pulling
back, Kema let her eyes travel over Tari, lingering on her feet in six-inch
peep-toe heels. "Your clothes and your shoes are lovely but I don't
understand how you and Wumi manage to walk in these heels."
Kema
flicked a glance at her own platform pumps with two-inch heels. "These are
the highest I can wear without toppling over."
Tari
laughed. She said, "Fortunately you don't need them. You are the only
woman who always looks incredible in flats."
Kema
smiled, squeezing Tari's shoulder. "We'll chat later."
Flapping
a hand at the three of them, Tari said, "I know. You guys have work to do.
Go, save the world."
Oliver
strode out, trailed by Steven and Kema. They passed through the hall double doors
and into the foyer.
Stopping,
and swerving to face the other two, Oliver said, "So. We need to agree on
our plan."
Kema
bit her lips, brow furrowing. She muttered, "What do we know? Our source
in Boko Haram revealed that a senator in the House of Representatives,
Honorable Bala Adoo is working with them. He's given the guy in charge of
remotely detonating the bomb access to this compound. But we don't know who
that guy is. And we don't know who the bomber is, or where he is. Correct, so
far?"
"Yeah."
Steven nodded. Removing his phone from his jacket pocket, he pressed the
screen. A photograph of a man filled the screen. "But we know the good
senator. I'll find him and talk with him."
"And
once you get the information we need, give me a call. I'll locate the other
guy." Oliver said.
"What
about the bomber?" Kema asked, eyes flying from one man to the other.
"We'll
handle that after."
"No."
Kema shook her head. "I'll handle him."
"No!"
Oliver exploded, glaring at his wife.
"What?
So you think I can't help out?" She snapped, glowering at him, fists
clenched at her sides. Gosh, Oliver could be so infuriating sometimes.
Oliver
stared at Kema and then his eyes darted to Steven. "Help me out,
bro."
Folding
his arms over his wide chest, Steven muttered, averting his best friend's gaze.
"Um, you're on your own there."
"What?"
Oliver glared at Steven.
"Look,
bro. At some point, you have to let her do some of the things we do. She's been
trained, she's super intelligent..."
"But
Steven, we're dealing with a bomb."
"I'll
take care of it." Kema eyed Oliver. "And if I sense things are
getting out of hand, you'll be my first call, okay?"
Oliver
took in a deep breath. He muttered, "Okay. But be careful."
"I'm always
careful."Share this post on social media if you enjoyed it.
Learn about the heroes and heroines in the Character Profile page
The Unhinged Book Series; Book 1, 2, and 3 will be out this 2016. Find out more at the Unhinged Books page
