Chapter 10

Adajay's pov

I had the taxi driver dropped me off at the top of the next road from where I was living, I knew Bartley must have heard the landlady this morning telling me that someone said I had people visiting the house.

"Yes! My cousin and his girlfriend came to give me something yesterday. Is that a problem?" I had said and asked feeling irritable.

She had started to say that she was a christian and I had hissed and walked off, I walked up to my unfinished home and saw Bartley sitting inside with Righteous and Quefer.

"Good evening," I said and they all responded in kind.

My eyes immediately went to all the building materials packed to one side of the house and I stared for a moment then turned to Righteous. He got up calling Quefer and they walked past the building materials going to the back, I blinked and sighed in confusion.

"We need fi talk," Bartley said breaking through my confusion.

Then I remembered to ask him. "Did the landlady saw yuh when you a leave?"

"Maybe," he said.

Good Lord, wey him mean maybe, mi caan tek dah 'oman dey ina mi ears ino, I thought looking at him and he stared back at me. I looked away as the memory of last night surface in my mind and my heart begins to race.

"Mi tell Righteous fi call di workman dis morning and him come and order all a dem here and mi gi Righteous di money fi pay fi dem. Mi a help yuh done build yuh house an' yuh pay mi back likkle likkle," he told me.

I sighed then said, "all a wey yuh buy a di price fi di hot fuck lastnight."

He grabbed unto my hand and pulled me to him, his arms circled around me and I felt good in his embrace. He stood towering over me and I gingerly wrapped my hands around him, keeping my head down.

"Your landlady nuh easy at all, di woman sey yuh fi pay har extra fi bring in visitors in a har place. She cuss the whole time afta yuh gone and mi get up and put on mi clothes a wonder how mi a guh go out, mi dey dhere fi bout fifteen to twenty minutes and mi hear di grill open and lock back, when mi prip through di window she a guh through di gate. Mi jus tek up mi bag and come out after five minutes, mi nuh see nuh sign a har but mi see one man pon him verandah couple gate away a bruk off him neck a look," he told me.

"A must him a gi har news, mi caan bother wid har mi well want my own place," I said tiredly.

"Yea, when mi come here and mi a show Righteous di pree we do some calculation and mi just tell him fi call di contractor. Me a tell yuh from now- me a guh live up ina yuh crotches," he said adding the latter bluntly.

I said nothing as I felt a tingling past through my body, my phone began to ring and I pulled away from him and took it from my skirt pocket and answered Kelsey.

"Hey sis."

"Quickly, mi see some man a look round di house, dem nuh look like dem have nuh key fi it mi nuh know if a yuh same friend wey yuh sey did tell yuh fi ask mi," she explained.

"No, mi a guh tell him right now," I said walking quickly to the back.

"A'right den bye," she said.

"Thanks sis," I said and the call ended.

"Righteous, excuse mi. Kelsey sey some man round a di house, she think a uno suh mi know," I told Righteous.

He looked at Quenger in alarm and then he was on his phone, a short while later him and Quenger left in Taynia's brother's open back van. They made several trips carrying furnitures and placing them to the far corner of my back yard. It was worrying as they packed the things on the ground, a walk around my house shewed me some sheets of zinc and over twenty ply boards.

Taynia brought cold bottle waters and juices, which Righteous took some of in the van with them and Taynia's brother Lance. When they came with the last trip Quenger was with them, he was shirtless and had a fat matic sitting in his jeans waistband.

"Only di solar panel dem dey pon di top fi come off, mi a guh call call di team fi pull dem off tomorrow," he said sternly to Bartley who was sitting just inside my unfinished house.

"Just becareful ino, mek dem keep dem fi a while a di place an' when da house yah done wi tek dem," Bartley told him.

He sighed and walked off to the back, the sound of someone taking an ouside shower was heard soon after and he came and took up the car keys that was beside Bartley.

"Mi soon forward," he said and went into the car.

Righteous opened the gate and he drive through it, he pulled it shut again and walk up to where I was sitting and asked, "yuh waan food?"

"Yea, a little," I told him.

I wasn't really hungry and I watched as he goes to the stove and clicked two burners on underneath two pots. I ate beside Bartley while Righteous ate beside Taynia, the place was getting darker and I was washing the plates when Quenger came back with two huge Tapaulins. He ate and then took off his shirt, Bartley went inside the building and took off his ganzie and pants, he put on a shorts and went to the back behind Quenger.

"When uno ready tell mi mek mi follow uno guh home. Taynia, mi a stay up here tonight wid Quenger in case rain come dung," he said directing the last part of his statement to Taynia.

"A'right," she replied.

"Righteous, mi a ask yuh fi come fi one clothes basket and two basin a mawnin' before mi guh a work. Mi waan wash up here ina di evening when mi come home tomorrow- di line dem dey far from di workman dem," I said to Righteous.

"No problem," he said lighting up a spliff,

His phone ring and he hissed ignoring it, he got up and carried it inside my unfinished tarpaulin covered room and came out and went to the back leaving it ringing in there.

"A him 'oman a call him ino, she annoying," Taynia said and I thought but what is this not this.

I only blinked my eyes at her. "She a tell him sey she waan come to him and him a tell har sey him and Alkaline affi lef from di house and a pure cuss she a cuss. Every minute she call last night and him a sey him nuh really waan lock off him phone just incase any emergency, girl mi hardly sleep and a doubt if him sleep non at all. Him say him stress," she chatted lowly.

"Mnnhuh?!" I went, I did not want to get into that part of their business.

I washed the pots and wiped down the stove, they came in and began carrying out the things from inside the room saying they won't have it to do when the work men arrived tomorrow. The stove was last and a sweaty Quenger and Bartley hoisted it and carried it out. Bartley was so tall and slender, though I think it fits his built perfectly.

I told Righteous I was ready at ten and he followed me to the corner and stood with Taynia until I went inside the yard. I hope the landlady was asleep as I quietly opened the verandah grill leaving the lock on it unlocked and opened the door going inside. A throat cleared and I hissed loudly.

"Good night, I'm going to ask you to kindly leave a'right the sooner the better," the landlady said.

I opened my room door and went inside, "yes I will," I said loudly and shut the door.

"Out a order bout you a carry man ina mi place and nuh waan pay more fi mi rent," she said scornfully.

"Unuh fi tek man wey can mind uno," she added.

A bunch of things came into my mouth to light har up an' tell har but I didn't bother, I was in her place. I showered and lie down to await Bartley's call, but I wake up the next morning to not even a text message from him. I made some tea and packed up the clothes basket, I put my washing soaps and other things in the bath pans after taking them from under my bed and putting them together.

I felt even more uncertain of myself when Righteous came for me with Tania in the front seat of the car and Bartley wasn't present. The whole day at work I was worried if things were ok with us, I chastised myself for having sex with him so soon and I questioned what kind of help he was helping me by purchasing the materials to finish building my house.

To be continued...