CHAPTER 18 - GETTING HER TO KNOW


    Maeve was inside of her office and Wright was sitting in front of her. Wright hade over to Maeve’s


    office for him and Maeve to have a discussion.


    Maeve was having a startling feeling inside of her as she looked at Wright. She wants to bring up an


    issue with Wright but she was not sure of how he would react to that.


    Maeve saw Wright as a very nice fellow, and he had consciously and unconsciously gone out of his


    way to please her countless times. Just as he had done today, he had to squeeze an hour out of his


    very busy schedule to meet up with her here at her office to discuss their ns. He would have been


    the best Alpha of Shadow Rank if not for his evil cousin, Derrick. She had always wanted to talk about


    the issue with Derrick with him, but she knew that that would be thest thing he would want to talk


    about.


    They have been talking about so many other things, and by the time it got to the issue with Riona,


    Wright had suddenly grown cold. She was aware of what might be the reason for that. But however,


    she thinks she still has to talk to him about it if they are going to make any headway in their


    preparations.


    When Maeve finally decided to go on with her question, she said “Have you told her anything yet?”


    Wright hesitated a little before responding “Not yet” he replied.


    “So when do you intend to do that?” Maeve asked.


    Wright thought about Maeve''s question. He has to let Riona in on what he has with Maeve. But he is


    skeptical about how she would take it. She has never hidden her feelings about Maeve, and even


    though Maeve has given her no reason to, she is bent on not wanting to have anything to do with either


    Maeve or her daughter, Riley.


    Considering all of these, he wondered how he was supposed to walk up to Riona and announce to her


    that she would be having a stepmom in the person of Maeve. He just cannot begin to imagine how


    Riona would react to that.


    One might consider him a weakling, but as much as he knows that he is doing the right thing, he still


    would not want to hurt Riona’s feelings even if the feelings were not justified.


    But even if he did finally bring himself to reveal the situation to Riona, he wondered if she would even


    agree to hear him out. He wondered if she would not scream to high heavens, andment how her


    father, the only person that she is left with has finally abandoned her, and all thanks to her supposed


    enemies.


    With all of these thoughts about Riona''s presumed reaction in his mind, Wright sighed and avoided


    Maeve’s eye contact.


    Maeve could tell that Wright was lost in thought. She knew that he was definitely thinking about Riona.


    She knows Riona well enough to be able to envisage how she would react, and breaking the news of


    her rtionship to her would bring down the heavens. But then, she has to be tolde what may.


    To Maeve, there was no denying the fact that she loves Riona, at least to a reasonable extent, but it is


    high time that she has to be taught that the world does not all revolve around her. Her dad has lost his


    wife for some years now, and he deserves to move on with someone else if he chooses to.


    “I can go with you to tell her if you want me to” Maeve


    offered.


    Wright refused to ept her offer “There would be no need for that, Maeve” he said.


    Was she serious about offering to go with him to go see Riona break this news to her? Wright thought.


    He knew that it is good news, but they both know that it will not be so to Riona when she hears of it.


    He has been very careful and has kept his affairs with Maeve as discreet as possible, away from


    Riona. He has been waiting all these while for a time that would be perfect to break the news to Riona,


    but all along, there has never been any such perfect time.


    He has also tried in different ways and has also employed various techniques and strategies to make


    Riona get along with Maeve and her daughter, Riley. But it seemed as if the more he tried, the further


    she drifted apart from them and the fiercer her hatred for them got.


    There was a time that Wright suggested that Riley shoulde and spend a night or two at their ce


    when Maeve had told them that she was going out of town, but Riona tantly kicked against that.


    Even at another time when Wright got an appointment that would take him out of town and had tried to


    make Riona to go stay with Maeve and Riley at their apartment until the time he would be back, she


    had opted to either go with him, or travel to go stay with her aunt Kyra until the arrival of her dad and


    she ended up going with him on the trip.


    Maeve tried to study Wright''s demeanor. She wondered if she and Wright were going to remain in


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    hiding in their rtionship in perpetuity. Anyways, she trusted him and was certain that he knew what


    he is doing, even though with someone like Riona, one can never be too careful.


    “So how are the nsing on, I hope you’ve got everything under control?” Wright asked.


    He decided to take the discussion away from Riona. She is his responsibility, at least in the mean time


    and he knew how to go about talking to her.


    “Yes, they have all been taken care of, except of course for Riona? Maeve said and tried to ce some


    emphasis on Riona.


    Wright noticed that Maeve had rolled her eyes as she mentioned Riona’s name. He could not help but


    feel bad about the way things are. If he had gotten Riona under control when he should have, she


    would not be this hard to crack.


    On her part, Maeve had deliberately answered the way she did. She wanted him to know that she had


    fully taken care of every single thing that needed to be done on her part, and that it was now left for him


    to do his only single task, which was no other thing but Riona. And she hoped that he got her message.


    “Oh, I see. Leave that to me” Wright replied.


    He could see that his inaction is really dying everything. And the truth is, the longer he dys


    approaching Riona on this, the more delicate it bes. And right now, he promised himself that he


    would talk to Riona about him and Maeve today,e what may.


    “Come to think of it, how is the project going?” Maeve asked.


    “Project?”


    Wright was not sure of the project Maeve was referring to. so he asked her which project she was


    asking about for more rity.


    From the look on Wright, Maeve could tell that he was truly lost and did not know what project she was


    referring to. So she decided to rify him on the project she was asking him about.


    “The one you told me about the other day, remember?” she said


    Wright just stared at her as he was still confused on what project she was asking for.


    “The project that was just awarded to yourpany and you are personally supervising” she said.


    “Yeah, now I remember” Wright said.


    “I had almost forgotten that I told you about it you know” he added.


    “You better not Wright. Have you forgotten that you promised to contact mypany toe do the


    analysis once the project kicks off?” she asked.


    “Of course I did, and yes I have not forgotten” he said.


    “And we are still waiting for the offer from yourpany” she said.


    “Sure. The project would kick off in a week or so, we would send our proposal before that time” he


    responded.


    Wright put up a smile. He has always marveled at how serious Maeve goes about her business. She


    would never let an opportunity pass her by. She expands and spreads her tentacles far and wide in


    pursuant of clients and development. Who would have thought that she would talk about business


    when only about a moment ago, all that had mattered to her was nothing else but Riona.


    ………………………………………………………..


    Wright walked into the sitting room from the staircase and looked around. He is on the lookout for


    Riona. When he saw that she was not in the sitting room, he decided to look at the back of the house.


    He had earlier searched for her in her room and also in Evolette’s room and when he had not found


    her, he had gone ahead to search the library and other rooms too. It was when all these efforts were


    fruitless that he decided to look for her in the sitting room and then in the garden at the back of the


    house.


    As he walked into the garden, he saw her sitting on the ground under a shed and was going through


    her phone. Wright was so sure that whatever would make Riona to be seated here, and seriously


    engrossed on her phone must definitely be novels, her E-books. He calls out to her as he walks up to


    where she is.


    “Rio, I have been looking for you all around the house”.


    Riona looks up from her phone and she was surprised to see that her dad was already back from work.


    “Dad, you are back already, I was not expecting you back this early” Riona said.


    “Yes dear, I am back” Wright replied.


    “Actually, I have been in-door all day. It was getting too boring so I decided toe and read over


    here” she replied.


    “I can see that honey” Wright said.


    “It is cool over here dad. I love it here” Riona said.


    “Yes it is” Wright replied.


    He goes to sit on the ground beside her.


    Riona smiled at him. She was both surprised and d that he hade to sit beside her. It had been


    so long that he did such.


    “How are you Rio?” He asked.


    “I am fine and also very happy today” she replied.


    She was obviously very excited, and Wright was so curious to know more about that.


    “That is nice Rio. Do you mind telling me about that?” he requested.


    Riona was happy, and she grinned from ear to ear. She was also excited to share what she has with


    her dad and Wright on his part cannot wait to share in her excitement.


    “It is about the novel that I am reading dad” she said.


    “So what about it?” he asked.


    Wright on his part was not surprised to hear that Riona could be this excited about a novel. E-Books


    have been her most cherishedpanion and after her mum’s demise, she finds sce in them.


    She had always loved reading, especially with Evolette when she was alive. But now, her love for


    novels has skyrocketed. This also was thanks to her dad who could not perfectly fill the vacuum that


    Evolette’s death had created in Riona’s life and had allowed Riona’s lovely novels to do that for her.


    “It’s Hydrangea daddy, things are beginning to fall in ce for her, it’s all adding up” she said.


    She was excited as she rtes the story to her dad, but Wright was a little bit lost. The name


    Hydrangea sounds very familiar to him, but he doubt if he had read the book. In a bid to get further


    rifications, he asked.


    “What about Hydrangea dear?”


    “She is beginning to know it all, her name, purpose, guardian and it rest” she narrated.


    Riona was actually surprised to discover that her dad did not know the book that she was talking about.


    “But you asked me to read it. Remember I saw it on your phone the other day?” she said.


    “I did?” he asked.


    Right now, Wright is getting more confused as he does not think he remembered what Riona is talking


    about.


    “It’s The Prophecy of Hydrangea dad, you told me how interesting it was, and how much I would love


    it”. Riona exined


    “Oh yes, are you already reading it”. He said.


    He paused for a while before he continued.


    “It was Evolette that told me about it when she finished reading it. She so loved it, and so I started


    reading it, though I stopped halfway, somewhere when Eddy realized that he was Hydrangea’s mate, I


    feared for him and I could not bear the fact that his past and loose mistakes would cause him someone


    he loves”


    Wright was very emotional as he spoke. While thinking of the story, he thought about how much he


    could personally rte to the events in the story.


    “But dad, I think he will soon have her” she said.


    “You think so, but how can you be so sure, you have not even read up to that part, or have you?” he


    asked her.


    Riona looked at him and smiled because of what she was about to reveal to him.


    “I got to know about that from spoilers, daddy” she chuckled.


    Hearing that the details were from spoilers, Wright raised his hands in surrender to the amusement of


    Riona and he said.


    “No, no, no. I need nothing from spoilers. I better go back to reading my precious novel myself, I want


    to unravel the suspense myself as theye”


    Wright was happy to see how excited Riona had be. His heart was filled with joy as he watched


    herugh happily at his words and how freely their conversation flows. He realized that he had missed


    Riona even more than he himself realizes it, and he could tell that she had greatly missed this part of


    him too.


    He allowed the moments with his daughter to flow freely and he wished that everything would remain


    still for him and his daughter to share this moment with themselves all alone.


    Amidst the fun, he paused to take a look at Riona, and fighting against all odds, he finally said. “Rio?”


    Riona looks at her dad, she knew something does not seem right by the way he had called her. All the


    same, she answered him.


    “Yes dad”


    “I would like to have an important discussion with you” he announced.