Chapter 9: Dangerous Games

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For someone caught cheating, Gwendolyn remained remarkably calm and composed. To her, Constance was just an irritating speck of dust waiting to be brushed away.

She adjusted her clothing, folded her arms over her voluptuous chest, and sat on the armrest of the sofa. Her maroon Masai braids fell over her shoulders.

“Should I give you two some privacy?” she asked Abel, who was struggling to hold back his petite wife, who was desperately trying to attack her best friend-cum-husbands lover.

“Let go of me,”Constance hissed, trying but moserably failing to pry his strong arms from her waist.“I said, let go of me!”

“Only if you promise not to go berserk,” he said, tightening his hold.

“Like you’re in a position to demand anything! Let go, I said let go!”

“Abel, let her go already,”Gwen commanded. She stood and walked barefoot to the minibar.

Abel loosened his grip, and Constance pushed his arms away. She turned and slapped him.

“How could you do this to me?”

“If it’s any consolation,”Gwen said, pouring herself a drink,“It’s nothing personal-just business.”

Constance looked from one to the other in disbelief. The scent of sex hung in the air, nauseating her.

“You sleep with my husband and call that business?”

“Calm down before you do something stupid,”Abel cautioned.

“Don’t tell me what to do,”she yelled. “I’ll rip you both to pieces!”

“Eish, how uncouth,” Gwen murmured, swirling her Caribou Lou and watching them from above the rim of the glass.

Constance lunged for Gwen, but Abel pulled her back. She growled, scratching at his arms, feet kicking in the air.

Abel dumped her unceremoniously on the white sofa.

“Look,”Gwen began,“You can keep your husband in this life and ten others if you want-as long as he gives me what I need.”

Constance stared in disbelief as Gwen told her what she wanted from Abel.

“You’re sick,”she whispered, her stomach churning with disgust.“And you? You’re okay with this?”

Seven years married into the family, she had seen her share of crazy, but this? No. It was sick.

“Of course he is. Besides, he has no choice. I’m collecting an old debt. You have no choice but to roll with it.”

“Debt? What debt? What the hell does that have to do with you whoring yourself?”

Constance didn’t care what reasons they had for justifying this absurdity. It was morally depraved and what was worse was, they expected her to just roll with it!

“We all have ambitions,”Gwen said, moving away from the bar. “Just as yours was fulfilled and you got your happily ever after,”she said with a small smile,“I too need to fulfil mine.”

Constance shook her head.“No. I won’t allow it. I won’t consent.”

“He doesn’t need your permission. This is between us. You-not so much.”

Constance jumped up.“I don’t care what you agreed to. He’s my husband. Mine. Not yours.”

Gwen scoffed behind her glass, looked at Abel, and gave him a dismissive look. “Oh honey, that you can keep.”

Abel was not her type. She liked her men confident and assertive.

Abel was neither.

The only good thing he had going for him was that he charmer who could melt any woman’s heart. And he had the looks and money to go with it.

Giving credit where due, he was better in bed than his cousin.

Abel brought his A-game to bed. He was the kind of lover who made your legs quiver for days, left your brain mashed, lips swollen, skin burning, and the most delicate places deliciously swollen yet yearning for more long after the sexual thrust was over.

Even now, Gwen couldn’t help but swallow hard when she thought of his massive member buried balls deep in her.

She stole a discreet look at his now towel-covered body and sighed in frustration. Constance had walked in on them before she could climax, leaving her sexually frustrated.

Her delicate regions pulsed in protest.

She cast another discreet glance at his now-hidden weapon of mass destruction, then forced herself to look away as she crossed and uncrossed her legs, hoping the motion would quell the pulsing.

Sighing, she forced herself to calm down and focus on the big picture.

Libido fades with age, and she could always fix that. It wasn’t like men were in short supply.

George might be disappointing in bed, but he was the brains behind the family fortune.

Gwen would secure her future-no one would ruin her plans, not even her so-called best friend.

“Does George know?” Constance demanded.

The chearing pair stared at her like she had sprouted a second head.

Constance sneered, the corners of her mouth curling in disdain.“No, right? Of course not. If he did, he’d kill you both! How can you sleep with your brother’s wife?”

“Hey, isn’t that jumping the gun? It’s not like he’s paid her bride price yet,” Abel joked. Gwen glared at him. He shrugged. “Till then, she’s fair game.”

“Betrothed or not, she’s your brother’s woman. Sacred!”

Constance rummaged through her bag and pulled out her phone.

“Don’t get funny ideas. Why don’t you worry about Sinikiwe instead of issues that don’t concern you?”

The couple turned with panic and shock on their faces. Gwen smiled, mentally patting herself on the shoulder.

“I see that, that got your attention faster than if your husband had knocked me up already.”

“What about that slut?” Constance hissed.

Suddenly Gwen wanting to get pregnant by her husband to secure her future with George seemed trivial.

Constance looked at Abel. He seemed shocked too. But she wasn’t sure if it was genuine.

She gauged his reaction as a sense of crisis washed over her. Sinikiwe was Abel’s unattainable moonlight. If she was back in the picture, where did that leave her?

“What about Sinikiwe?”she pressed, her teeth clenched. Though the question was directed at Gwen but her glare was fixed on Abel.

“What? Didn’t your aunt tell you?”

Of course not, Gwen mused. She had asked her not to.

A month ago, on a hot afternoon, she was sitting in the back of the Elgrand. She reached for the hand of the fuming woman next to her, who was glaring at Sinikiwe. Sinikiwe was seated under the mango tree with three other women, chatting happily as they sipped on cold freezits.

“Aunt Elizabeth, calm down.”

“When did that bitch return?”

“I don’t know, auntie,”she replied, rubbing the older woman’s hand in comfort before her face morphed into concern.
“Let’s not tell George or the family yet. It might upset them unnecessarily.”

“You are right. There is no reason to upset everyone with this unpleasant news,” Elizabeth agreed, her fierce glare locked on Sinikiwe’s smiling face.“I will deal with her myself. Soon enough, she’ll crawl back into the hole she’s been hiding in for the past seven years.”

Gwen’s face twitched with concern.“Aunt, promise me you won’t do anything drastic.”

Elizabeth sneered and patted her hand. “Don’t worry. I won’t do anything illegal, but I will make sure that wretched woman regrets messing with my family. Seems she didn’t learn her lesson seven years ago.”

Putting away her fierce look,Elizabeth turned to look at the young woman before her, her eyes filled with admiration.

“Not only are you hardworking, but you are sensible too. Thank you for looking out for the family.”

She shyly looked down.“It’s nothing. It’s what my job entails.”

“I wish George could be sensible too and marry you already. Don’t worry. Once I deal with this pest Sinikiwe, I will straighten George out. I won’t miss out on a great daughter-in-law like you just because his heart is messed up.”

With her head lowered, Elizabeth merely thought Gwen was shy. Little did she know the young woman’s eyes were flashing with malice and cold intent.

Gwen never did anything that did not benefit her. Their unexpected run-in with Sinikiwe; her concern and plea to keep it quiet was all part of her perfectly orchestrated plan.

The only reason she told Elizabeth not to tell anyone about Sinikiwe’s reappearance was because she wanted to be in charge of the flow of information, and it looked like today was that day.

She smirked and looked up.

Both Abel and Constance looked like ants on a hot pan. News of Sinikiwe’s reappearance had them both unsettled, with Constance being the most affected.

“Where is she?”

“It’s all taken care of,” Gwen said innocently.

“Taken care of? What’s that supposed to mean?”Constance asked.

“Just that,”Gwen replied with a casual shrug of her shoulders.“I did my best to make sure she doesn’t cause trouble for either of you, but we all know she’s sneaky. Who knows the real reason she’s back?”

She shot a suggestive look at Abel before withdrawing her gaze.

Constance turned to look at Abel.

He had a wistful look on his face; a look Constance knew too well. Even after all these years and the bad blood between them, Abel still longed for Sinikiwe.

In that moment, she knew she had just been deluding herself. She might have snatched the title of Mrs. Abel Mwango, but she would never own his heart.

From the side, Gwen watched her pawn’s face-a canvas reflecting every storm: the sudden white of panic, the crimson bloom of fury, the sallow wash of shame, and finally, the blue-grey pall of defeat.

Constance grabbed her Andiamo clutch bag from the floor, which she had thrown at the couple when she walked in on them and then stumbled out.

“Is it true?”

Gwen stared at him blankly.

“Is Sinikiwe back, or did you say that to rile her up?” Abel asked as he closed the door.

“What do you think?”

“I think your manipulative skills are getting sharper.”

“Oh? Is that a compliment?”

“You may have riled Consi for nothing.”

Gwen stretched and yawned lazily, making her already short gown hike up, exposing more of her tantalizing thighs.“From my vantage point,it doesn’t seem like it.”

Abel cast her an amused look.

“And you? Are you scared? Think she might be back for revenge?”

Abel covered the distance between them.“It’s good to be clever, but when you become too clever, you might end up burning yourself.”

Gwen sneered disdainfully.“So, you are scared?”

Abel tsked.“What can she do against my family’s influence and power? She’s just a bug waiting to be squashed under my feet.”

“Oh?”Gwen chuckled, amused.“I seem to recall a different scenario from seven years ago. Where did this confidence come from?”

Abel ignored her provocation, slid out his arm, and pulled her close until her chest pressed against his.

“Have you ever wondered why George dislikes someone as cool, calm, loving, and serene as Sinikiwe?”Abel asked, caressing her arm.

“She was a slut. She dated you but wanted to bed him. What other reason?”

He leaned down, brushing his lips lightly against her neck, sending her heart racing. She threw back her head, offering more space, her body instinctively responding.

Abel obliged, nibbling softly.

A soft moan slipped from her lips as his roaming hand squeezed, kneading her ample breast.

“No, my love,” he whispered, chuckling softly, his hot breath tickling her ear. “You couldn’t be more wrong.”

His words doused the fire within her. She tried to pull away, but his grip held firm.He rained kisses over her neck, face, and mouth.

How could she be in the mood when his words threatened to undo everything? She turned her head away, pressing against his chest.

“Explain yourself,” she demanded, cold dread pooling in her stomach.

“Why spoil such a good moment with nonsense?”

“Abel.” She hissed, narrowing her eyes.

He paused, eyes thoughtful.“Sure you want to hear this?”

“Spit it out,”she snapped.

“It’s simple-Sinikiwe is Yvonne’s mirror image.”

Eight words shattered Gwen’s world.

Her breathe rushed out of her lungs. She stumbled back, face paling.She knew Yvonne-the woman George had loved in his youth, the woman who not only broke his heart but nearly ruined him into bankruptcy.

For ten years, she had loved him silently, hoping time would thaw his icy heart. How could she accept that the woman she despised was the very one George had fallen for?

Abel’s amusement glinted in his eyes as he stepped forward, pulling her close again.

He tilted her chin and kissed her roughly.

“Even if I got you pregnant and tricked him into believing it’s his, you’ll never have his heart. The day he saw Sinikiwe, she stole it,” he whispered hotly.

Gwen shook her head, protesting.

Abel chuckled and headed to the bedroom.

“He loves her and doesn’t know it yet. If I were you, I’d do everything to keep them apart,” he said at the door, nodding to her tummy. “Or all that work would have been for nothing.”

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