Chapter 9

We have been on the road for almost an hour now and I still have no idea where we are going. We don't talk much but we have been listening to a lot of music. We apparently have the same taste in music which makes this road trip really fun. Any drive that lasts longer than 30mins I consider it a road trip.

We take a turn from the main road and take an all weather road. I can only see trees as far as my eyes can see. Perfect place to hide a body. We drive for 10 minutes then enter through a large gate. Hotel Lovana that's what the sign board says. I have never heard of this hotel before, maybe it new.

And how does he know of this hotel if I don't know it yet. The entrance is beautiful and green, their is a large fountain in the middle which gives a relaxing ambience. We park the car at the designated parking space, get off and walk towards the reception.

A beautiful black woman wearing a nice green uniform is at the reception desk. Her smile is radiant and inviting.

Hello, this is Hotel Lovana, how may I be of service" she says in that sweet customer care voice.

" Hey, I booked a reservation here for today, it's under Marcus"

She taps on the keyboard checking something probably the reservation.

" Am sorry sir, the table is not ready. We need 15 more minutes to set up if you don't mind. You can wait at bar area and order a drink on the hotel as you wait"

Marcus placed his hand at my lower back and leads me to the bar area which apparently is on the other side. We pass some couples drinking and eating together. If I didn't know any better I would say this is a couple's hotel. I haven't seen any single person. Maybe that is why I have never heard of this hotel.

We get to the bar area and a mixologist is on the other side of the bar. The drinks are well lit making you feel like you want to buy them all. Marcus pulls the chair for me to sit before he settles on his seat.

From the bar area you can see the hotel fully. It looks like a castle made of stone which are well constructed to give it a modern castle look. Underneath the hotel is a huge infinity shaped pool. On one side of the pool are patio umbrellas and some furniture for anyone who wants shade from the sun.

The bar area is outside so it's convenient for everyone including those who want to smoke. We order our drinks .I order a cocktail and him it's always whiskey.

We talk about our jobs. He asks me what I do for a living and I tell him I work in the medical field as a laboratory technologist. Most people don't know what a laboratory technologist does but he seems to have an idea though which makes me feel warm and appreciated.

He tells me he owns a chain of hotels all over the world and he opened one in CBD. He shows me an app where you can book any of his hotels around the world. It makes it easier for the customer. The hotels look amazing and I couldn't stop looking at one picture after another. Being the nosy person that I am, I went through almost all the pictures before he took his phone away.

They are huge and mostly six or seven star ,which is way above anything I can afford. I didn't realize how rich this guy is until now. I always thought that rich people are snobs because most of the ones I have met are snobs but as for him you wouldn't know unless you look at his watch or his car.

He tells me that they actually opened the hotel on Friday and it's already fully booked for a month. Which is a good start. A good start, that's a great start in my book. People do really have money in this country, in spite of the high cost of living.

After thirty minutes a waiter comes to inform us that our table is ready. We follow her as she leads the way to our table. We pass through a door we hadn't seen before that leads to the back of the hotel. Behind the door is a garden. Okaay not really a garden but it looks like a garden. There are trees and flowers everywhere ,so undisturbed by people.

As we walk behind her ,I notice the rose petals on the ground. Are they supposed to be there or this is part of the surprise?

We stop at a table in the middle of the garden and tears spring in my eyes. I try to blink to prevent them from falling and making me look like a fool. The table is made of glass ,there are two purple candles near the middle. A huge vase of red roses as the centre piece and red petals around the chairs.

The silverware is all gold ,from the champagne glasses to the forks and knives. On his side is a huge bouquet of flowers. He takes the flowers from his side of the table and offer them to me. At this point I couldn't hold the tears anymore and a few just fell.

This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. I feel so excited and grateful which is weird and overjoyed that I throw myself at him. Fortunately he catches me before I take us both down. He seems surprised but he hugs me back, pressing my front to his front . I feel so safe in his huge arms.

He pulls away and kisses my cheek before he rubs it for a while. He pulls a seat for me and then for himself. We look around while we wait for the food to arrive.

" I didn't know what you'd like ,so I ordered chicken. If that okay with you?" He seems nervous.

" I love chicken" I say smiling at him and he smiles back.

The first dish is a salad as an appetizer. Am not a fan of salad but it is well done, so I can't complain. The main dish is a skillet chicken with garlic herb sauce ,which was delicious and desert is my favorite a piece of chocolate ganache cake.

I am extremely full by the time I am done with desert. The dishes are taken away immediately we are done and a bottle of Moët & chandon is brought. The bottle is opened and then offered to him by the waiter. He pours the champagne in my glass ,hands it over to me and then his glass.

We toast to new a relationship and friendship as we take a sip of the drink.

" So I would like to know one important thing" he says

" What is it?"

" Are you single?" He asks without any hesitation.

He takes a good look at me, watching my body language trying to see if will lie.

" Yes I am ,are you? " I ask watching to see if he'll lie to me .

" I am single and I like you very much, more than I thought possible" he says looking into my eyes.

I can't stand staring at him any longer ,so I look away blushing. He grabs my hands and hold onto them. I feel sparks where my skin meets his palms. That's new. I look to check if he felt it too or am delusional and I find him looking at me. He releases one of my hands so that I can be able to drink, while he rubs his thumb on the hand that he is still holding.

We talk about our hobbies ,likes and dislikes and some habits that other people have that are annoying. We finish our champagne ,then he settles the tab and we walk back to the car with the bouquet of flowers on my hands.

We drive home silent, probably thinking about how successful the date was. He keeps on holding my hand even when he's driving and I like it. When we get to my gate ,we both get off the car. I feel so relieved that we had an amazing date . We had fun and I wanted to say that we should do this again but I stop myself.

" I hope you had a great time' he says

" I did ,it was amazing and well planned. Thank you"

" Am relieved that you liked it and am open to doing this again"

" I would love that very much" I say smiling.

" Look at me" he commands.

I look at him and he places his hands on my waist and pulls me towards him.

" I like you Zee and I would love to know you better if you give the chance"

I start squirming in his hands but he tightens his hold waiting for me to respond.

" I would like that too" I say looking at his chest.

He is taller than me and I reach his chest so that's all I see if I don't tilt my head backwards. He brings his hand to my chin raising my face so that I can look into his eyes.

We stare at each other for what seems like an eternity but was just a few minutes. He bends his head forward bring his face closer to mine and am sure he is going to kiss me but to my greatest disappointment he kisses both my cheeks.

He releases his hold on me and tells me goodnight. I say goodnight in a disappointed voice and open the gate. He stands there waiting for me to get into the compound and secure the gate. When I do that he gets in his car and drives away.