While Tanaga was reading the contract, his forehead wrinkled when he read over the one part he disliked. It was the clause stating that once she conceived, they would no longer continue to be intimate.
Whose idea was it to put that in the contract? I should change it before she signs it...he thought to himself.
Tanaga stood up and called his secretary. He instructed her to make the desired changes to the contract. Without question, she quickly made the changes, and within minutes he had the revised agreement in his hand. It included all the provisions he wanted, exactly as he wanted them. He read it through once more. Satisfied, he thought to himself, Much better. I think when Ashley reads this, she will not hesitate to sign it.
As he stood there, inwardly praising the revised contract, Tanaga heard a knock at the door. "Come in!" He said as he stood there, grinning like a teenager who was excited to see his crush. He dusted off an imaginary speck of dust from his sleeve, straightened his posture, and straightening a nonexistent wrinkle from his shirt.
In one swift movement, he arranged the chair where Ashley was intended to sit. He quickly combed his fingers through his hair and took his sear. He put on the most charming smile he had in his arsenal. He looked immaculately handsome.
Slowly the door opened, and Ashley stepped inside. She looked beautiful as she walked towards him with her head down. She didn’t look up at him at all. His efforts to look perfect had been wasted.
Here she is, standing right in front of me. The girl that causes me sleepless nights. The very reason for the rage I felt yesterday in that horrible place... Tanaga thought as he stared intently at Ashley.
The butler interrupted his boss’s thoughts. "If there is nothing else, I will go prepare lunch, Sir." He looked at Tanaga with a secretive smile on his face, waiting for his response.
Tanaga simply nodded and motioned with his hand, indicating for the butler to leave. Once his faithful employee had closed the door, he invited Ashley to sit down.
She hesitated. "Come in. Sit. I don’t bite," he said. She slowly approached the empty chair in front of Tanaga’s desk and did as she had been instructed. Ashley sat, looking down at her feet and nervously wringing her hands. Her chest was heavy with anxiety.
As the silent moments passed, Ashley grew more anxious. Her heart was pounding.
What is happening, Lord? This is not what I imagined! I wanted to help my family. Why did you allow me to fall into this situation? Tanaga stared, his forehead furrowed as Ashley silently pleaded with God.
"Excuse me, but if you’re done praying, can we get started?" Tanaga joked, but his face was emotionless.
It’s bound to happen, whether I’m done or not. I’m here in the middle of this mess. She thought to herself before nodding. As she looked at Tanaga, he couldn’t help but notice the sorrowful look on her face, with eyes full of dread, as you would expect from someone who is about to be hanged.
Seeing her expression, he couldn’t help himself. He burst into a fit of laughter. His laughter was so loud that it startled the maid who was cleaning in the next room. Laughter was not something she was used to hearing from her boss. Usually calm, cool, and collected, this struck her as very odd behavior. She hurried toward the kitchen to find the butler.
"What?! Are you sure it was him laughing?" He couldn’t believe what she was telling him. It occurred to him that the last time he heard Tanaga’s laughter was ten years ago when his parents were still alive. The thought of a decade without laughter and the chance of his master finding joy again brought tears to the loyal servant’s eyes.
Grateful for this sign of hope, the butler prayed, "Thank you, Lord. You brought this young lady into his life. If she can bring happiness to my Young Master, I will do anything to see it last. Please, let her stay in his life. I’ll do anything in my power to see he doesn’t lose her." The butler’s voice trembled as he prayed, tears freely flowing down his face.
He suddenly realized his emotions were distracting him from his duty of seeing that lunch was prepared. He quickly gave the cooks their instructions. He had drinks prepared and decided to serve them himself.
Once he was in front of Tanaga’s office door, he contemplated knocking. Overtaken by curiosity, he slowly and quietly eased the door open. He was hoping not to interrupt them so he could tell what was going on. He was pleasantly surprised by what he found.