The new girl walked around the office shaking hands and introducing herself. I watched her as she smiled and flipped her long, silky Brazilian wig from her face. She was enchanting and I was one of the many who had noticed her. As she approached my desk, I tried to stay composed and rehearse a joke that I would say to leave an impression.

“Did it hurt?” I blurted out as soon as she said her name.

“What hurt?”

“When you fell from heaven.”

There was a moment of silence in the office as everyone looked at me in amazement.

“Abu!” One of them shouted.

The HR then whispered to the new girl, “Don’t mind him. He’s a comedian.”

I didn’t even catch her name but that wasn’t important at the moment. I continued to watch her as she walked from desk to desk swinging her wide hips and tapping her acrylic nails against the wooden desk.

Everyone seemed to like her. She was polite and respectful which took most of us by surprise since we all had a stereotype about girls who looked like her. During lunch hour, I invited her to go with me so I could show her the best places to eat.

“Do you like eating fish?”

“Of course. I’m from the lakeside. I was raised on fish.”

“Perfect. That woman makes the best fish in the whole area. I’ll take you there one day.”

“Okay. So where are we headed now?”

“Somewhere more relaxing so I can get to know you more.”

She smiled as we walked side by side. Whenever we passed a group of men, they all turned to check her out then murmured to themselves.

“Do you ever get used to the attention?” I asked

“Not really, but I have learnt to ignore them.”

“Well, for me, I like the attention. It’s not every day that people turn to look at me.”

She laughed. It seemed like I was already making a good impression on her. I was quite proud of myself.

We got to a popular restaurant where the ambience matched the price tag. I let her walk in front of me and she made her way to a table by the wall-to-wall glass windows. Even in the restaurant, she continued to turn heads and cause a stir. We made our orders and the waiter disappeared.

“How’s your day so far?”

“It’s great. You are all so warm and welcoming.”

“I’m glad. Yes, we are very close to each other so we like to make everyone feel welcome.”

“It’s amazing. I haven’t experienced this kind of reception anywhere else.”

“Well, you’re also friendly so it helps.”

We chatted about our lives as we enjoyed our lunch then headed back to the office.

“I had fun. We should do this more often.” I said, hoping she agreed.

“Definitely. The next one is on me.” She answered and we both smiled.

The office was a bit quiet as everyone went about their business but I could barely get any work done. I kept replaying the lunch over and over in my head and looking forward to the next one.

It became like a tradition to go for lunch with Beatrice or as I had come to nickname her, Betty. The stares never went aware. In fact, I ended up becoming friends with some of the men who had been ogling Betty for weeks. Some were top managers and CEOs of different companies all seeking to know whether she was available and if I could introduce them to her.

“She’s married,” I answered every time.

Part of me was lying to protect her but a part of me had selfish intentions. I figured if I eliminated my competitors, especially the CEOs and managers, I had a better chance of being with her.

We continued to grow closer and soon, we were office besties. It felt like we were inseparable to the point that she would come over to my desk and we would talk for almost one hour.

As we grew closer, I thought it was important to let Betty know about my wife and kids since I didn’t want her to feel like I was lying to her or leading her on. On the other hand, she hadn’t asked and it’s not lying if they don’t ask, right? I decided to keep it to myself for as long as I could.

Our lunch dates turned into dinner dates and weekend outings. At that point, I was spending more time with her than I was with my own family. It felt good. I felt like a young man again going on cute dates trying to impress my crush.

However, I had to be careful since I knew when word got out in the office, they would tell her about my wife and kids.

“What’s going on with you and Betty?” My deskmate asked.

“Nothing. We just enjoy each other’s company.”

“There are rumours that you guys are dating.”

I let out a nervous laugh.

“Don’t listen to them.”

“Just be careful because if she finds out about your family, it will be another story.”

“What if she knows?”

“She doesn’t know. She has rejected several men here, including me because we have families.”

I wasn’t aware of this and Betty hadn’t said anything about it. It made me wonder what other things she was keeping from me. However, my main priority at that point was to make sure she didn’t find out about my wife and kids.

I was lucky since I only did a traditional wedding and I didn’t wear a wedding ring. Additionally, my wife lived in the village and she only called in the evening after work. I was able to keep my marriage a secret as long as no one at work told her. However, I knew sooner or later she was going to find out and I had to come up with a plan of what and how I would tell her. I also suspected that some of the men at the office were getting jealous of my relationship with her and they were planning on spilling the beans. I had to act fast.

Betty arrived at the office earlier than usual. I had been on high alert and any unusual behaviour made my mind race. This was no exception. I wondered if she wanted to confront me about my marriage since she knew that I was always the first person in the office.

“Good morning.” I greeted her trying to assess the situation.

“Good morning? Come and hug me.” She answered as bubbly as ever.

I let out an audible sigh and then went in for a hug. We embraced for a while before letting go. I instantly felt relaxed and my mood went up.

“You’re early,” I commented.

“Yes, I’m going on my leave soon so I want to clear up things in the office.”

I almost forgot how long she had been at the office. Almost 8 months. Each time I see her, it feels like I’m seeing her for the first time. I never get tired of admiring her and I learn something new about her every day.

“Really? When?”

“On Friday.”

“Oh no. The office is going to be boring without you.”

“I’ll be back soon but you can visit me anytime you want.”

I had been to her house twice. The first time was during her birthday and the second time she invited me to a movie. I didn’t sleep over but that wasn’t my plan. I wanted to know if she was truly single or if we were both playing with each other. After the second visit, I confirmed it. It was during her birthday and though there were a lot of men present, none of them made a move on Betty.

“I’ll definitely come over.”

She smiled and then went to her desk to get some work done.

I knew the invitation was my opportunity to finally make her mine. She had been giving me signals and I felt ready to go for it. The only problem was I was married with kids and I felt bad lying to Betty and betraying my wife. I had to make a hard decision of whether to come clean to Betty or to break things off.

As people came into the office, they noticed that Betty was already there. Normally, she would be among the last ones to arrive.

“Congrats, girl.” Her desk mate said jokingly.

They both laughed and she immediately went back to work as her desk mate unpacked her bags and settled in.

By the end of the day, everyone knew that she was going on leave on Friday which made it hard for me to ask her out on that day. So, I asked her deskmate to invite her out on Friday and then make an excuse to leave. Her deskmate, Stella, was the only person I fully trusted in the office. We joined the company the same day, five years ago and I have seen her grow from a girl into a woman.

“Okay, Sam. I’ll do it for you but you have to be careful. People are starting to talk in the office and sooner or later she will find out about your wife.”

“I know. I’ll tell her. I don’t like keeping things from her.”

“I’m only doing this because I know she genuinely likes you.”

********************************************************

Coming clean was harder than I thought. Every time I tried, my throat went dry and I couldn’t get my words out. Additionally, we were having such a good time and I didn’t want to ruin the moment. So, I decided to keep my secret for one more day.

One drink led to another and I found myself in Betty’s apartment. I knew exactly what was going to happen but I was getting cold feet. I don’t know whether it was the whiskey or the guilt that was killing my mood but I couldn’t get turned on despite Betty’s efforts to seduce me.

“What’s wrong?” She asked after trying repeatedly to make a move.

“Nothing. I just have a lot on my mind.”

“Like what? I’m all ears. Let it all out.” She said sweetly.

I managed to smile but I wasn’t happy.

“I don’t think you want to know my problems.”

“Why would you think that? Have I not made it obvious that I have feelings for you.”

This was the first time I heard it from her though I had known for months now. It was one of the best things that had ever happened to me yet I couldn’t enjoy the moment.

“I have to tell you something.” I started.

She moved closer to the point that her thigh was partially on my lap.

“Can it wait? I really want to go to the bedroom.” She said seductively.

I tried to resist but I couldn’t. We slept together that night and I spent the whole weekend with her. However, I still couldn’t tell her about my marriage.

When I got to the office on Monday, everyone was waiting eagerly to know how the weekend went.

“We heard you went out with Betty.”

I was stunned that they knew since I thought Stella was a loyal friend.

“Yeah. I went home after that, though.”

“Lies. We saw her WhatsApp stories. Breakfast for two, eh? We see you, Sam.” One of my colleagues said but I knew most of them weren’t happy for me.

It was only a matter of time before someone told Betty that I was married so I went the coward’s way and texted her.

“I know I should do this over a text but I think you should know I’m married. I have a wife and kids.” The text read.

A few minutes passed and I got a call from her.

“Hello,” I said trying to sound as casual as possible.

“Please tell me this is a joke.”

I could hear her sobbing and it broke my heart.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before. I just didn’t know how to.”

“So you do it right after we sleep together? I have feelings for you, Sam. Real feelings.”

“I have feelings for you too, Betty. I’ll fix it.”

“How?”

“My wife is in the village. She doesn’t know anything about us and she doesn’t have to know.”

“I hope you’re not suggesting that I become your second wife because I’ll slap the nonsense out of you.” Her Luo accent made the threat sound more aggressive.

“No, but we could start somewhere.”

When she came back to the office, she didn’t even look at me let alone speak to me. It didn’t take long for Betty to resign after she came back. She was gone within a month. That was the end of my short affair with the most beautiful woman I had ever met.