Somebody Else (Christian Romance)

TWENTY-NINE

A loud, rumbling sound jerked Stephanie up from her sleep. For a brief moment, she looked around her surroundings confused until she noticed the Bible which had found it's way under her thigh. Memories of last night then began pouring in. Stephanie gasped as she took in the squeezed and battered page of Williams' Bible. How could she have let herself sleep without returning it back to it's rightful place? As she attempted smoothening the page, she noticed a large tear at the bottom of the page and her heart beat faster. What would she tell Williams? It was obvious that this Bible was very important to him because of the way he took good care of it and wrote important stuff in there. Now he'd hate her more. She inhaled.

The sound of the car outside soon registered in her mind. That's probably what had woken her up. She peeped through the window hoping that it wasn't Williams. She wasn't ready to be seen by him. She was still in her yesterday's dress as she'd slept off forgetting to take a bath. She hadn't brushed her teeth; she was so sure her mouth would have an odour. And his Bible; she hadn't figured out what she'd do about it. To her disappointment, she not only recognized his car, but Williams had alighted from the drivers' seat and was making his way to the front door.

instinctively, Stephanie changed into the t-shirt and knickers. She'd have her bath later, but for now she needed to do away with her yesterday's dress because Williams definitely didn't like it and she desperately wanted to get in his good books. She half ran to the bathroom and brushed her teeth counting one to thirty in her mind. She'd barely finished when she heard the gentle knock on the door.
For the first time, Stephanie looked at her face in the mirror. She almost screamed at the sight of her reflection. Her cheeks were smeared with mascara and her red lipstick had found its way to her chin and the sides of her mouth. Her foundation's blend was now inconsistent giving her a multicoloured complexion. Her wig was scattered. She looked like a clown.

Williams knocked again and Stephanie began washing her face as quickly as she could. She was still washing her face when a scary thought came into her mind. 'No, please no.' She walked straight to Williams' bed silently praying that what she was thinking hadn't happened. But the closer she got, the clearer she saw the exact thing she feared. His white pillowcase had been terribly smeared by her makeup.

Stephanie didn't know when her eyes watered. Of all days, why was it today bad luck decided to fall on her. She'd wanted to do everything to get into Williams' good books but it seemed the whole universe was working against her. She deserved it, didn't she? She wasn't a good person. God himself was fighting her. He probably didn't want her near his son. Maybe she wasn't even supposed to sleep in the room of a Christian unmarried man. But she hadn't known.

"Stephanie?" Williams knocked again. "Sorry to disturb you but I need to pick up something important."

"Oh, sorry. Just a minute." Stephanie cleaned her eyes and smoothed her wig as she hurried to open the door. Her heart beat faster as she twisted the doorknob. How would she even look at him after what transpired between them last night?

She opened the door and to her surprise, Williams stood there with a kind smile plastered on his face although his smile faded away when he took in her countenance.

"Good morning." She smiled politely as she opened the door wider and moved to the side making room for him to come in.

Williams didn't move an inch. He stood studying her face. "How are you, Stephanie?"

Stephanie was surprised by the genuine concern in his voice. Wasn't he supposed to yell at her and condemn her for the pervert that she was, and then tell her never to come back to his house again. But here he was asking about her wellbeing. He'd inconvenienced himself by sleeping out yesterday and come back this morning only to knock before entering his own room? In a house that he paid for? What kind of breed was Williams of? And look what she'd done to him in return. She'd damaged his Bible and smeared his pillowcase. Worst of all, she'd tried to seduce him last night. She tried to keep her eyes from watering again but she couldn't fight it. The same way she couldn't keep the sob from escaping her throat.
On noticing her countenance, Williams took a step closer to her and raised his hand to comfort her but he quickly stopped himself. He placed his hand in his pocket and took a step backwards. Stephanie understood him. He was trying to prevent last night's occurrence from repeating itself. But even though she understood him, it didn't change the fact that his little gesture hurt a lot more that she'd expected it to.