The Way To A Man’s Heart – Episode 3

The Way To A Man’s Heart

By Hossana Isaac O.
(Hossy Short Story Series)

Chapter 3

Louisa

I soon heard my name from the dining room so I went there. Mrs Mariano was already seated.

“come eat honey” she said and I gently sat down opposite Mr Mariano.

We began to eat in silence though Mr Mariano didn’t take long before he stood up. He had already finished his breakfast and was going to work.

“I’ll be off for Italy before you come back from work Jesse” his mother announced

“what? You’re leaving today?”

“yes. I have to. Your brother has to resume school in two days and I have to help me get some things ready”

“what time are you leaving? I’ll try and come home before then. Maybe I’ll drop you off at the airport then go back to the office”

“I’ll be going by 10am. I already booked my flight” she said and lifted up the mug to her lips. She made a sound while sipping the coffee, that might mean the coffee is still very hot

“I can’t come home then. That’s when my meeting begins”

“don’t worry about me Jesse. I’ll still come over and visit soon” she replied and her son bent down and kissed her cheek

“take care mom. Love you” he said
“OH I love you more pis…” he frowned at her and she paused then looked at me. She chuckled

“I love you more Jesse. Go to work now. You don’t wanna be late” she said and he nodded

“bye” he said then turned and began to walk away. After he had gone for about five minutes, Mrs Mariano cleared her throat.

“how do you see him?” she asked
“see who? Your son?” I asked

She nodded
“he’s… Well… He’s… He looks nice” I managed to say because I really didn’t know what to tell her

“he’s good looking isn’t he?” she asked with a smile

I chuckled “just like Lucas” I said.
Lucas was her other son. He was two years younger than me but he is so good looking. So is his brother

“he can be very naughty at times so be very careful my dear. Don’t forget to always cook in time. And make sure you cook all those lovely delicacies Pablo thought you” she said and drained her mug then cleaned her mouth with a napkin

“I will ma’am” I replied.
But what did she mean by he can be very naughty and that I should be careful. I hope he’s not the type that’s fast to anger. But what does anger have to do with being naughty?

“we’ll go shopping in a few minutes Louisa, I want to get some things for Lucas and Pablo too” she said and stood up

“really? That would be so nice of you” I said as the thought of my father receiving things from London would gladden him. He’s the Pablo she’s talking about and he was a chef almost all his life. Right from when he was fifteen years and now he’s quite old and aged.

“clear the table then go shower. We leave in thirty” she said and walked away

I smiled and quickly drained my mug. I stood up and cleared the table then washed the mugs and plates we used.

After I showered, I wore a pair of jean trousers and I wore a pink shirt on top. I left my hair in braids and I took a little purse then went to the living room. Mrs Mariano was already waiting for me

“oh you look good my darling” she said immediately she saw me

“thank you” I said with a smile. Mrs Mariano likes everything about me.

“but I’m going to prefer pink shoes to go with your outfit. Maybe we’ll buy some pink shoes at the mall” she said

“oh. Okay. Thank you ma’am” I said and she held my hand as I reached her.
We began to walk out of the house. We got to the road and flagged down a taxi then went to the mall.

**
I waved at Mrs Mariano as her uber drove her away. I heaved a sigh and entered the house that suddenly seemed too big and empty for me. Actually, my home in Italy is quite bigger than this. It’s an ancient house. My father is the last descendant of a Roman Prince who decided to live in isolation. He had his own small castle and lived for decades there. He died and his own son continued to live there. It continued on and on till it reached my great great grandfather who is my dad’s great grandfather. He was a lazy man and wasted all the inheritance he got on alcohol. My father said he was going to sell the house after firing all the workers but a week before the sale, he died. And that’s how his grandfather lived in the house without any workers. Just him and his family. Unfortunately they all died early and only his own father remained and now him.

The house is really nice. Like I said, it was a small castle and it’s for only I and Marcel to roam in. Marcel is my youngest brother of two years, he’s the same age with Lucas. Our mother died when he was being born.

I sank into the only couch in the living room. The huge and wide couch.
I turned on the television and settled to watch TV. Then I felt the urge to eat popcorn. I walked to the kitchen and got ready to pop some corn. I made Mrs Mariano buy some for me earlier at the mall.

I made popcorn and left half of it in the fridge for Mr Mariano, just in case he might want it.
I went back to the living room and sat down to watch TV.

After about two hours, the door opened and Mr Mariano walked in.

“Mr Mariano?” I asked in surprise. I thought his mother said he comes home by 5pm.

“just call me Jesse. I can’t hear Mr Mariano at work and still come to my house and hear it. It’s tiring” he said and closed the door

“oh. Uhm, I’m sorry.” I said and stood up. I went to him and collected his suitcase.

“is mom gone?” he asked as he sat down on the couch where I stood up from

“yes. She left two hours ago” I answered. He yawned and removed his shoes

“why are you back so early? I thought you would be back in the evening” I said as I stood holding his suitcase, not really knowing what to do with it.
I was so surprised he was back already. I didn’t even cook anything for lunch yet

“my boss gave us the rest of the day off, after the meeting” he replied

“oh. I’m sorry I didn’t prepare anything to eat” I apologized.

“it’s okay. We were served at the meeting. But I might get hungry soon”

“okay sir. Uhm, where should I keep this?” I lifted up his suitcase

“you can give me that, I’m heading upstairs” he said and I handed it to him.

He went upstairs with it and with the shoes he removed. He looked really tired and I wanted to do something for him to at least take to give him a little energy.
I entered the kitchen and checked his fruit basket. I took two apples and I washed them and diced them. I got a bottle of milk and poured it into the blender with the apples then blended it into a very smooth smoothie

I poured it into a glass cup and added some ice then took a straw and kept it in it. I had seen some crackers in the fridge. I brought them out and kept them on a plate.

I arranged both the smoothie and crackers in a plate then gently carried it to the living room.
Jesse was already there.

“Mr Mariano… I mean Jesse. You can take this for now. I’ll go get lunch ready” I said and I dropped the tray on the table before him.

He looked surprised. Why should he be surprised?

“wow!” he exclaimed
“why didn’t you come here earlier?” he said and I chuckled

“thank you” he added
“you’re welcome sir” I said and went back into the kitchen

💌Jesse💌
I settled down on the couch after I got down from upstairs. I had taken a cold shower and I was determined to rest. Thank God the CEO gave us the rest of the day off. The meeting was successful. Our company had won the contract we’ve so been working for.

As I looked at the television, I heard movements beside me so I looked up. It was Louisa, holding a tray

“Mr Mariano… I mean Jesse. You can take this for now. I’ll go get lunch ready” she said and dropped the tray on the table. It contained a plate of my favorite crackers and a smoothie. From the aroma, it should be apple.

“wow!” I exclaimed. So food can come my way easily like this without me suffering myself to enter into the kitchen.

“why didn’t you come earlier?” I asked and she chuckled.

“thank you” I said
“you’re welcome sir” she replied and left the living room.

I began to eat while watching the TV. I would have hired a chef a long time ago if I knew it would be like this. It was some of my friends that discouraged me from having a chef. They said their own chefs always starve them by not preparing the food when they ought to. They are always delaying meals. And with the man I am, you delay my food for two minutes, I eat you raw. That’s why I always went to restaurants where the food was always ready.

When I finished up, I picked up the tray and took it to the kitchen. She was there kneading dough and her face had a bit of flour

“hey” I said as I dropped the tray on the counter

“are you done? Sir?” she asked and she stopped kneading

“yes. Uhm, thank you” I said and she smiled and tried to take the tray but I stopped that

“no. You continue with what you’re doing. I’ll take care of this”

“okay” she said and continued to knead. I dropped the tray in the sink and washed the cup and dish then I faced her

“what are you making?” I asked and crossed my arms

“margherita” she replied and I smiled. She pronounces every word in the Italian accent

“pizza margherita?” I asked

“yes. You don’t like it?” she asked looking at me

“no, I like it. I do”

“okay” she simply replied

***

It’s been a week since Louisa came. Her meals are superb and the stress of picking which restaurant to go to for each meal has been taken away from me. Now, I just relax and all my meals are set with no stress on my part.

I had already finished the day’s work. My closing time has been adjusted. I now close by 4pm.
As I opened the door to come out, I saw Alyson standing right there.

‘‘whoah” I exclaimed
“I’m spending the night at your place” she said with a voice that seemed like that was an order.
Her face was in a frown and it seemed she just had a fight with someone

“you can’t spend the night at my place. We didn’t plan to” I said and stepped out of the office.
My secretary was sitting on her chair and she was frowning too

“and when did we start planning our sleepovers?” Alyson asked me.

“I’ve got plans for tonight okay. I really have to get going” I said and walked past her.

“see you tomorrow” I said to my secretary as I hurried away

“see you tomorrow sir” she replied

I heard a loud laughter from her afterwards and then I heard “looks like you just got rejected. Hahahaha”

Those ladies were definitely fighting.

I entered the elevator and went down then left the building, entered my car and drove off.

When I reached the house, Louisa was watching TV. We exchanged pleasantries and I went upstairs for a shower.
When I got back, I met her going to open the door.
She was eating some fries 🍟 when I came and they were still on the table. I sat down on the couch and took a fry then began to eat.

She opened the door and I heard an exclamation from a voice I heard few minutes ago at the office.

“whoah! Wow! Really?” Alyson said.

I stood up immediately and went to the door.

“Alyson. What are you doing here?” I asked in surprise. I thought I told her not to come over

“I can see you’re busy with the ‘plans’ you have for tonight just as you told me” she had stressed the word ‘plans’.

“did you follow me?” I asked her
“hell yeah I did” she replied

“I’m just going to excuse you both” Louisa said and left

“Italian model I see. No wonder you were in such a hurry to come home alone. Because you have some Italian hands to keep you warm tonight” she said

“Italian hands? No… Louisa is just my…”

“…new bed mate. I get it, I’ve been replaced by some skinny sexy girl. But our contract’s not even over till next week. And I thought we were gonna renew it” she said and crossed her arms. I sighed and looked at her

“come in” I said
“what? You want a threesome now or what?” she asked

“Just come in Alyson” I said and helped her in.
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To Be Continued
Written by Hossy