Gabriel laughed outright. “Not some girl anymore, little brother. She’s Mrs. Roman Tesano now.”
Vale rolled his eyes. “I still can’t believe that. Ma’s climbing the walls double time now.” He gave Gabriel a weary once-over. “First you ruin her plans for a big society bash and then Ro elopes to Mozambique of all fucking places-”
“Shit!” Gabriel was glaring at his wristwatch. “I’m late. Should’ve picked Guiya up ten minutes ago.” He hurried to the door more quickly then while praying Vale hadn’t caught his slip.
Of course, he had.
“Whose Guiya? Grek?” Vale moved closer to study his brother’s face. “Grekka?”
A grave element seemed to pale Gabriel’s riveting azure eyes. “Forget I said that, alright?”
“It’s a girl, isn’t it? Grek...Hell Grekka, it hasn’t even been a year yet. What if Giselle finds out-”
“She knows.”
“What?” Vale looked horrified. “Grek, how-”
Gabriel sliced his hand through the air to summon his younger brother’s silence. “Only her family knows her as Guiya, alright? Just forget you ever heard it okay? Vale!”
“Yeah, alright,” Vale nodded obediently, chilled by the ferocity in his brother's glare. “Sure Grek, I swear. I swear it.”
Gabriel studied Vale’s bleak gaze at length and then nodded as if satisfied. He clapped Vale’s shoulder and left the office whistling.
“Guiya.” Vale said.
~17~
The smells of breakfast tugged Imani reluctantly from bed that morning. Reluctant, because she ached all over. Ached, yet felt wonderful at the same time. She wondered how that could be.
There was no time to ponder such mysteries. She was too hungry for that. Allowing her nose to lead her, she slowly made her way through the suite and found what she sought on the balcony outside the living room...with her husband. She hesitated before stepping out onto the bamboo flooring that was covered with an assortment of vibrantly colored rugs. Imani issued a reminder to herself that she was no coward and then stepped outside.
“Asubuhi,” she greeted and watched the smile illuminate his face. She told herself not to gawk at the sight of him garbed only in a pair of boxer shorts.
Roman was reaching for black grapes in a large bowl on the glass table. “What’s that mean?” he asked.
“It’s Swahili for ‘morning’.”
“A good one, I hope,” he settled back on the heavily cushioned bamboo chair and popped one of the grapes into his mouth.
“Very,” she said even while wincing as she took her place at the round, food-laden table.
Roman watched his wife fill her plate and chose not to challenge her on the lie. “Exactly how many languages do you speak?” He asked instead.
“Five, including English. I’m trying to learn Mozambican Sign Language, just now.”
Roman whistled, looking very impressed.
Imani shrugged. “Five is on the low side, actually, considering there are over fifty languages spoken in the country.”
Again, Roman whistled which made Imani smile. Another wince flashed across her face however when she reached for the platter of bacon.
“I could’ve brought food to you in bed,” he said.
“I’m fine, Roman,” she put an excited smile in place then. “So who brought all this?” She looked over the mountain of food.
“I was already up when three of the housestaff knocked. I thought it’d be nice out here.”
“It is,” she agreed, speaking the absolute truth.
A rolling landscape of green lay before them with abundant clusters of trees throughout. Birdsong mingled with the call of insects and other wildlife that roamed unseen, yet their voices carried as one on the wind. The effect was outmatched only by the sky that existed above it all. It was nothing less than a breathtaking view for a meal.
Imani crunched a corner of bacon. “If we’re lucky, we may see a giraffe or a lone wildebeest.”
“Giraffe? You’re serious?”
“Mmm...the species are endless,” she polished off the bacon. “We’ll see a lot more during the trip.”
“Right,” Roman looked as if he were mentally preparing himself for the event.
“You’ll survive,” she promised.
Roman shuddered. “Says the girl who’s been taking safaris since she was three.”
Imani laughed. “Not quite as long as that.”
As a wedding gift to the newlyweds, the Chief and Isis had reserved a coastal villa that would serve as their home for as long as they wished to remain. Imani was sure a week or so would be enough. Roman said he’d be fine with forever.
Instead of traveling by train, family on Isis Kamande’s side offered to make the journey by safari. Roman thought he would have preferred the train.
