Love's Second Chance by Myne Whitman Read Free Book Online Page A

atmosphere even more charming than the food. Asking Nneka to put off all talk till they were done, s he’d ordered the excellent roast lamb the restaurant was known for , the meat grilled and then prepared within their sight.
    Nneka said something as she adjusted her white cotton baby-doll blouse over her Capris, her baby snoring against her left arm.
    “ Say that again?” As they ate, she’d enjoyed how the breeze from the open windows wafted in the spicy scent of grilling meat, but the non-shuttered windows also meant the noisy traffic was right in the room. Swirling her drink around her mouth to clear her teeth, Efe tried to tune out the afternoon bustle as Nneka repeated.
    “ What is the gist you promised me?”
    “ Stanley is coming to Abuja this Sunday.”
    A slow smile broke over Nneka’s face and then she nodded. “I like his timing. He reminds me of Dozie in those earlier years, a persistent man.”
    Efe felt Nneka’s sharp gaze on her as she speared the last of her lamb chops into her mouth, and she chewed with fervor. Nneka didn’t ask her why she was reluctant to continue with Stanley now he was back in the country. Efe guessed she already knew the answer. She’d told Nneka the break up in America was because of the distance since Efe wanted to return to Nigeria, and Stanley hadn’t been ready. Now it had to be clear it was tied to Kevwe, and the unresolved feelings Efe had for him.
    “ I wish he wasn’t coming, though,” she finally said.
    “ He’s coming to sweep you off your feet,” Nneka pointed at her with a laugh.
    Efe laughed too, even though she didn’t find Stanley’s renewed pursuit welcome, or funny in any way. “I don’t want any more complications in my life,” she said, her voice low but vehement. “I made a mistake when I dated him in the United States, and I’m not about to repeat it. When he called this morning and said I should meet him at Sheraton, I agreed, but I’ll use the opportunity to break it up with him.”
    Her best attempts to dissuade Stanley had not worked so far. He’d called her three times since Temi informed her of his return to the country. The first time he’d called, she picked it and had what she thought was a final chat with him. She wasn’t happy he still harbored romantic ideas about both of them getting back together. She’d made her displeasure on this issue plain, but he hadn’t been fazed one bit. Efe took a last sip from the glass of Coke and gathered the papers scattered on the slatted table into her outsized handbag.
    “ You’re so stubborn, Efe. Why won’t you take my advice?”
    “ Did I tell you I joined Ovie and Bernard at Play Sports Bar yesterday, for ‘Thursday’s Bring your own bottle’?” Efe said, changing the subject. Nneka might choose to be a champion for Stanley, but she didn’t have listen. When he got here on Sunday, she would close his page once and for all.
    “ I trust Ovie,” Nneka replied. “Who else was there?”
    Efe searched Nneka’s face for sarcasm. “You know Ovie’s crowd. They are fun, so I don’t complain. The more the merrier.”
    “ It was never hard for Ovie to roll like that, but what about you? Are you sure this is what you want, clubbing every day?”
    “ Nneka…” Sometimes, her friend’s nagging got on her nerves.
    “ I know you, Efe. You may say I don’t know what happened while you were in America, but I’ve watched since you got back.”
    “ Nneka, abeg I don tire for this talk. I have to go.”
    Nneka shrugged and then got to her feet. “Where are you off to?” She strapped Anuli back into the mobile carrier beside her. The baby had been shunted between their laps and shoulders while they ate, but now she slept soundly.
    Efe got to her feet too. “I think I’ll go straight to see Kevwe’s brother, the doctor. By the way, I know that’s why you asked for us to have lunch together o.”
    This was the reason she had avoided any phone calls, knowing Nneka would ask for