Coming to the school earlier than expected turned out to be a great decision because earlier, Chris Bawa had wanted to go back to his law firm first when he left court.

That day, he had just won his seventieth case as a lawyer. He had represented the citizens of a mining town in their suit against a multi-million international mining conglomerate.

Considering the power of the mining company, represented by six of the best lawyers in the world, the general expectation had been that the brilliant Lawyer Bawa, owner of the law firm Bawa’s Law, was going to lose his first case in his illustrious career.

But, with his usual calm brilliance, he had slain the giant and won a settlement for the community in cash, health and infrastructure recompense in a fiercely-fought legal battle that had lasted two months.

Chris, swamped by his grateful and happy clients and the press, had had a tough time escaping the court premises to his car.

He still had two hours before picking up his daughter from school. He always made it a point to pick Sisi from school as often as he could manipulate his schedule.

That final day in court was also Sisi’s eighth birthday, and Chris had hoped that judgement on the case would be swift and timely so that he could pick up his daughter.

He had fifteen lawyers and fifteen non-legal staff in his firm, and they were besieging him to go to the office for the victory toast. The case had looked dicey somewhere along the line, and they had been despondent that Bawa’s Law would crumble under the barrage from the defence counsel.

But the unpredictable Chris Bawa had bided his time, and when everything was perfect, he began making his moves, and invariably placed the case of his clients on a firm, unshakeable pedestal that had led to the surprising victory.

After the judgement, Chris was tempted to go to the office to celebrate, but he had postponed the victory toast for the next day. He did not want to keep Sisi waiting. He was taking Sisi to the new entertainment centre, Planet Kids, where he had reserved a special performance for her.

His fiancée, Elaine Boateng, would join them later.

Chris and Elaine had been in a relationship for a year now.

They first met at the wedding of a mutual friend. Elaine, who owned a fashion house, had found herself sitting next to the irresistibly handsome lawyer at the VIP table. She had been sitting two tables away, actually, and had seen how Chris was being harassed by an older woman sitting beside him.

Elaine, feeling amused, had watched for a while as the woman’s hand dove continuously under the table to clamp Chris’ thigh and fondle him with a suggestive smile on her face. Finally, Elaine stood up and approached the table. She put an arm around Chris’ shoulders, startling him, and as he looked up at her, she simply lowered her head and kissed him long and slowly.

The chagrined elderly lady had looked on with sudden trepidation and shame as Elaine kissed Chris.

When Elaine lifted her head, she turned and smiled at the lady.

“Thank you, ma’am, for taking care of my fiancé for me,” she said coyly and turned to look at the startled face of Chris. “Sorry for my lateness again, darling.”

The flustered older lady quickly pulled her hand off Chris’ laps from under the table and smiled tightly.

“I didn’t know you had a fiancée, Chris,” she said quickly with a tight smile. “Introductions are in order, I presume.”

“Oh, I’m Elaine,” she said quickly. “Who’s this lovely woman, Chrissy?”

Chris was still gaping at Elaine, and then he chuckled and shook his head with wonder.

“Well, meet Mrs Baiden, one of our esteemed Supreme Court judges,” he said in the deepest, sexiest voice Elaine had ever heard.

“Happy to meet you, Mrs Baiden,” Elaine said with a happy smile. “Oh, seems I don’t have a seat, darling.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” the judge said in a rush. “I see my friends over at the other table. I’ll join them. You can take my seat.”

“Oh, thank you!” Elaine said with feigned respect. “Aren’t you a darling, Mrs Baiden?”

When the woman stood up and moved with a stiff-backed gait towards a table at the far end of the room, Elaine slid into the vacated chair and looked at Chris’ amused face.

She was struck by how incredibly handsome he was, this close up. He was a tall, well-built, muscled man. His smile revealed faint dimples in his cheeks. An aquiline nose, well-groomed hair, clean-shaven chin, sensuous lips and piercing eyes completed his amazingly symmetrical face. His thick eyelashes and brows were almost feminine but combined to make him a spectacle to behold, and the beautiful Elaine found herself lost in his gaze.

She understood how the adventurous Mrs Baiden had not been able to keep her hands to herself.

“Well, you’re free from Mrs Baiden now,” Elaine said, and Chris laughed softly, a deep, vibrant sound that added to his allure. Dressed in an exquisite black suit, pristine white shirt and polka tie, he looked more like a god than a man.

“Who are you?” he asked softly. “How could you just walk up to a stranger and kiss him?”

She looked back at him without batting an eye.

“Oh, Elaine Boateng, from the Ashanti Region of Ghana, thirty years old, and just returned from the diaspora. Setting up a fashion house now to see how it would go. The groom and I dated once, a very long time ago, when we were very young and before I left for the United States.”

His beautiful piercing eyes searched her face.

“And you’re not going back to the States?”

“That’s the plan,” she said with a lovely smile. “Had my fill of the chill. Time to put down some roots in the motherland.”

Chris admired her; she was a very lovely woman. Dark, sophisticated, curvy and with a direct approach. She reached over and picked up a piece of lamb meat from his plate with a fork, dipped it in sauce, and popped it into her mouth.

“So, you can’t say no to old ladies who want to paw you, Chrissy?” she asked as she looked directly at him. “May I call you Chrissy?”

“I have a feeling you intend to,” he said softly.

She laughed softly and popped another lamb chop into her lovely mouth.

“Question not answered.”

“She lost her husband a couple of months ago. They were married for thirty years.”

“That’s no excuse for her to paw you when you so evidently didn’t want it,” she said quietly. “That’s harassment.”

“Well, you saved me,” he said.

She did not drop her eyes from his, and she was no longer smiling.

“I intend to go on saving you, Chrissy, if you will let me. You have a surname?”

“Bawa.”

She gasped and looked at him with startled eyes.

“Chris Bawa? You’re that famous lawyer? You came to the States once, ten or twelve years ago, right? The Joe Pinkerton case? I heard a Ghanaian lawyer came to defend him. That was you?”

“Yeah, me.”

She smiled gently.

“Wow, you won over some influential arseholes over there with your display. Heard about you, but was too busy to check out your photo, but I know you made some Africans real proud over there. Married?”

A wry smile crossed his sensuous lips.

“You sound more and more like a lawyer,” he said.

“Must be your influence on me,” she said with a giggle. “So, married?”

He sighed, and a dark shadow passed over his face.

“She died eight years ago.”

“Oh, I’m so terribly sorry, Chrissy!” she said instantly, her beautiful face filled with genuine remorse, and she reached over and squeezed his hand. “I’m terribly sorry.”

“That’s alright. Pain is a bit bearable now.”

She nodded.

“Time heals, they say. But I daresay there has been no other woman.”

“No other woman, Elaine. Still healing.”

She smiled, leaned back, and pointed the fork in her hand at his face.

“I like you, Lawyer Chris Bawa,” she said with twinkling eyes. “Look at this fork. I’m going to fork you, whether you like it or not.”

And Chris Bawa laughed again, as he had never laughed since the death of his precious Baaba Brooks.

“You’re crazy, Elaine Boateng!” he said as they laughed together.

“I am, and I can see I excite you,” she said and took a sip of water without dropping her eyes.

“You do,” Chris said with a chuckle. “I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone like you, Elaine.”

Elaine raised her eyebrows and held up the fork.

“Do you feel horny yet?” she asked softly.

“Goodness!” Chris said, startled, and just at that moment he began to feel a sexual urgency he had never felt in years. “Who the hell are you, Elaine Boateng?”

“Good,” she said and ran her tongue across her lips. “I can see you’re in the zone now, Chrissy. If you’re ready, we can replace the ‘o’ in my fork with a ‘u’ by leaving here right now.”

Chris laughed and picked up a cup of water.

“You are definitely crazy,” he said unsteadily.