I lay quietly on my bed, deep in thought.

Chale! What a crazy two weeks this has been…

Reflecting on all that had happened since the first day I set eyes upon Marilyn when she entered her room, the truth is, I only had myself to blame. I allowed myself to be swayed by her smoldering beauty and charming aura, and totally neglected to take a decisive position when the need arose. Honestly, what happened at the breakfast area should have happened a long time ago; it shouldn’t have come to this before I let her know her true place in my life.

No blame lay at the feet of Marilyn; it was all my doing. The only person responsible in all this was nobody else but Richie Acquah.

Yeah, she might have made it clear she wanted to snatch me from my wife, but I empowered her to feel that way. No way would she even dare to think such if I had put my foot down from the very beginning. From the moment she asked me to join her in her room, she gained more and more confidence to get deeper into my space. I should’ve just drawn the line, man.

As I lay there, I really thought about what the consequences would have been if I had gone all out with this affair and I eventually got caught and exposed to the world. Obviously, they’d be ugly.

Forget the fact that my sweet Ellie would hate me overnight, do you know the number of people who would be ready to give me a Ned Stark execution? Trust me, they’re plenty.

There are our fathers, for one (or two, if you wanna see it that way). Mr. Teddy Acquah would be pissed off with me for seeking satisfaction outside this ‘wonderful daughter’ he esteems so highly. As for Ellie’s dad… do you know the number of mini-sermons Rev. Francis Eshun gave me on Hebrews 13:4 before we got married? Yeah, he’d not take it lightly at all.

And yeah, my Ellie’s a pastor’s kid.

From my mother to my guys Jay Djinn and Hunter to her sisters Martha and Tabby, all these peeps would rip me from limb to limb for having the temerity to cheat on an incredible woman like Eleanor.

You know what would have been the worst part, though? The fact that guys like Kudzo and Cayleb would have made her an object of mockery and embarrassment because of you.

I sat up, horrified by that reminder from Wolf number 1. “Goodness! It’s true!”

So remember I told you that Ellie was being chased by a whole lot of dudes? Well, when our wedding announcement came out, she told me this one dude called Kudzo literally confronted her on WhatsApp and angrily told her she’d regret choosing me over him before blocking her. Cayleb too apparently called her in a fit of rage and swore I’d embarrass her and make her wish she had never chosen me. The way her dad and some of his pastors led us through some heated prayers to neutralize those evil words, eh.

As it came to mind, I shuddered. Just imagine how much mental torment she’d get from those dudes if I had gone ahead with this fling with Marilyn and it came to the light. She’d never forgive me for that. Never.

Man! I really effed it. I may not have gone the long haul with her, thanks be to God, but I certainly messed up big time.

“Dear God, I’m sorry. Lord, I know Ellie may never find out about this, but You definitely saw everything that went down in these past few days. I’m sorry, God. I’m sorry I let my guard down and got involved with a girl who’s not my wife. I truly am. Lord, I love my wife, I take those vows we made before You real serious, and I never wanna lose her. Please, forgive me. This will never happen again, I promise…”

I continued to pray these words over and over until I fell asleep.

***

It was about 2:30 pm when I woke up from my nap. I sat up, wondering what happened. As the recollections came, I sighed and said to myself, “Time to pack up.”

Heading for the wardrobe, I grabbed the suitcase and carried it to my bed as I opened it up.

Well, there was still a lot to be happy about regarding my stay. The Bons Farms conference was a success, the farm visits were fruitful, and I was now fully assured of landing the position, so… a win, no doubt.

After a few minutes of arranging the clothes in the suitcase, I looked to the wardrobe, where my accessories still sat. I moved towards it when something caught the corner of my eye.

It was at the door. Or under the door, actually.

I moved to see what it was.

A little sheet of paper.

“Well, what is this all about?” I murmured as I pulled it from under the door.

I looked at it.

A very simple message was scrawled on it.

All the best with your wife.

I sighed. Absolutely no prizes for guessing who it was coming from.

“What’s she up to?” I murmured to myself. I was seriously wondering if she sent that out of spite or if she had gracefully accepted defeat and was leaving her best wishes. Considering how she left me at the restaurant, I wouldn’t be wrong to assume it was the former.

Looking at the door, I wondered. Do I step out there and confront her about this, or just let it go?

It took less than a fraction of a minute to choose the latter. What would be the use of confronting her? Whether it had a sarcastic source or came from a genuine heart didn’t have to concern me. At the end of the day, I had chosen the woman I had to choose, and she just had to deal with it. She had walked away, and that was the best thing for all of us.

Nonetheless, I just had this feeling to open the door. I hesitated a bit, but it pressed on me, so I did.

I looked outside and saw one of the room service ladies at the entrance to Marilyn’s room. She glanced at me and greeted, to which I responded.

“The lady here is letting you clean her room, eh?” I asked in Fante.

She shook her head. “No, please. She’s left, so we’re cleaning up.”

Surprised? Yep, I was. I had no idea she was supposed to leave that day.

“Oh saa? She left not too long ago?”

“Yes, please. It’s been like an hour now.”

“Okay, okay.”

Nodding at this information, I then slipped back into the room.

So that had been her parting gift.

I shrugged. “Well, that’s fine,” I said to myself as I moved to pick up my accessories.

No matter what her intention was in writing that note, she had clearly accepted that I was not gonna pick her over my Ellie.

And that was all I needed.

Now I could move on, close the chapter on this shameful part of my life, and fully focus on the one I was supposed to give all my attention.

***

“So babe, how do I look in this dress?”

I grinned at the phone screen, keenly watching as Ellie stepped back and posed in her green floral wrap dress.

After I was done packing, I called her up and profusely apologized for not being consistent with my calls that week. She just said no problem, and that I should hurry home. She happened to be preparing for a wedding, so I offered to help her pick out a dress.

“Oh, I love it. You look sweet. Really sweet,” I complimented her. “Good choice for the wedding. Dress code is a touch of green, right?”

“Yep! It doesn’t make me look fat, right?”

I shook my head and did a facepalm. She always asks me that question, and I know what follows afterward. “Nope, Mrs. Acquah. This sweet dress does not make you look fat.”

“Hmm, are you sure? Coz it feels like my tummy looks a little bigger in the dress…”

I sighed as she turned to the mirror and continued to take note of ‘fat areas’.

Yep, it doesn’t matter what I say, she’ll always find something in the dress that makes her ‘look fat’ and change her mind.

“Babe, I’m changing this dress. Makes me look like I’ve gained weight.”

There you go!

“Baaaabe! The dress is fine! It doesn’t make you look fat. Trust me!” I protested.

“Richie, this dress makes my breasts look juicier than they are, for one. Do you wanna have dudes drooling over one of your beloved playthings at the wedding?”

This little woman and twisting my arms, eh.

I sighed. “Nope. Definitely not.”

“Good. The polka-dotted jumpsuit it is, then.”

I shook my head. Another day at the office for Ellie; asking for my opinion on her dresses and totally discarding it.

But as I watched her go for the jumpsuit, I felt the fuzziest of feelings wrap itself around me. This feeling of contentment. Like this was where I needed to be.

Such a beautiful feeling.

This is where you belong, Richie. With this special, incredible, sweet woman! Forget the sweetness of Marilyn, that wasn’t yours to cherish. God’s given you enough sweetness to enjoy and be satisfied with in this woman!

I smiled and nodded in agreement.

No lies there. All the feminine sweetness and loving I needed in this world was stored up in that cute little woman on my screen.

Nowhere else.

Richie has truly come back to his senses, thank goodness! Now let’s see this story out, shall we?