Chapter 5 CRACKS IN THE HEART

The weekend came too slowly for Ema.

She hoped that silence would give her peace, but instead, it only amplified everything she was trying to run from - Chuka's accusations, Shedrack's unexpected protectiveness, the whispers in the office, the tension that kept tightening between her and her boss.

She needed a break from everything.

On Saturday morning, she decided to visit her mother in Oguanga village, hoping fresh air and home would clear her head. But even there, Shedrack's voice replayed in her mind:

"Whoever is hurting you... doesn't deserve you."

Why did his words feel like they were sinking deep into her chest?

Why did his presence linger in her thoughts even when he wasn't there?

Her mother noticed her mood immediately.

"Ema, you're not fine," she said, slicing plantain in the kitchen.

"Mummy, I'm just tired."

"Tired from what? Work or man?"

Ema paused.

Her heart stung.

She forced a weak smile. "Work."

Her mother's eyes narrowed. "You can lie to the whole world, but you can't lie to me. Sit down and talk."

Ema dropped the spoon she was holding.

Her eyes grew hot.

"It's Chuka," she whispered.

"Mhmm." Her mother nodded as if she already knew. "What did he do this time?"

"He thinks I'm cheating with my boss."

The knife fell from her mother's hand in shock.

"Cheating? With your boss? That man you told me is strict and serious?"

"Yes."

"But are you?" her mother asked softly.

Ema froze. "Mummy! No!"

She said it quickly...

but something in her chest tightened.

Hard.

Her mother watched her carefully, studying her like she was reading more than what was being said.

"Mmm. Okay. I hear you," she said quietly. "But Ema... the way your voice shakes when you said 'no'..."

She looked straight into her daughter's eyes.

"...it tells a different story."

Ema's breath trembled.

"I don't... want anything with him," she said.

But even she could hear the uncertainty.

"Then why is he on your mind this much?" her mother asked.

"Why is your heart beating like drum anytime you talk about him?"

Ema looked away, unable to answer.

............

She returned to the city on Sunday evening, drained but a bit calmer. As she reached her apartment door, her phone vibrated.

Shedrack 🤍

Message: "Be in the office early tomorrow. 7AM. We need to review a proposal."

Her stomach fluttered.

He rarely messaged her outside work.

The fact that he did made her pulse race.

She typed a reply:

Okay, sir.

Erased it.

Wrote again:

Noted, sir.

Erased again.

Why was she nervous?

Why did she care how he saw her?

Finally, she sent:

I'll be there, sir.

A few seconds later, he replied:

"Good."

So simple - yet it made her heart thump.

........

Monday morning, she entered the office and immediately noticed something was different.

The building felt tense.

People were whispering, moving fast, glancing in Shedrack's direction.

She hurried to his glass office.

He stood by the window, suit jacket off, sleeves rolled to his elbows. His veins were visible. His shoulders were tense. His expression was darker than usual - sharp, cold, dangerous.

Something happened.

"Sir? You sent for me?" she asked.

He didn't turn immediately.

When he finally did, his eyes were stormy.

"Where were you this weekend?" he asked.

She blinked, confused. "I went to visit my mother."

"You didn't tell me."

Her heart skipped. "Sir... I didn't think I needed to."

He walked closer.

Slow, intense.

"I called you."

"I didn't see it. My network was bad."

He looked down at her, jaw tight, breathing slow.

"That explains it."

"Is... everything okay?" she asked softly.

"No."

His tone was low. Controlled.

And for the first time, it carried something personal.

"What happened?"

He took a long breath.

Then looked into her eyes.

"My ex is back."

Ema felt something cold run through her.

The ex.

The one the office girls whispered about.

The one who broke him.

The one some people said he almost married.

"Oh..." she said quietly.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not," he said. "I'm just... irritated."

She swallowed. "Did she come to the office?"

"No."

His eyes darkened.

"She came to my house."

Ema's stomach flipped.

"Your house?"

"She wants us to 'fix things'," he said bitterly.

"She thinks she can walk in and out of my life like she owns it."

Ema didn't know what to say.

Shedrack stepped closer.

Too close.

"Do you know what annoys me the most?" he asked.

"What, sir?"

"That she assumed I've been lonely."

Ema's heart thumped.

Why was he looking at her like that?

Why did his voice drop so low?

Why did the air feel thick?

"I told her I wasn't alone," he said quietly.

Ema took a step back, breath shaky.

"Sir... who did you mean?"

He stared at her.

Deep.

Unblinking.

Intense.

"You," he said simply.

Her heart slammed painfully.

She felt heat spread across her skin.

"S-sir..."

Her voice cracked.

"I'm just your assistant."

"No," he said.

"Not to me."

She opened her mouth, but nothing came out.

He didn't touch her.

Didn't move any closer.

He just... watched her.

Like she was the only person in the room.

Like the world stopped existing around them.

"Sir... that's not appropriate," she whispered.

"I know."

"People will talk."

"Let them talk."

Her chest rose and fell fast.

Her heart was beating too loud.

"Shedrack... please," she whispered, her voice breaking.

The moment she used his name, his eyes softened - dangerously.

His voice dropped to a whisper.

"Be careful how you say my name, Ema."

Her knees almost buckled.

He stepped back slowly, like he had to force himself.

"We have a proposal to review," he said.

His tone was clipped, controlled.

Professional - on the surface only.

"But this conversation..."

His eyes dragged down to her lips, then back up.

"...is not over."

Ema was frozen.

Shaken.

Breathless.

Because today confirmed something she had been fighting since the moment she met him.

Shedrack didn't just care.

He wanted her.

Deeply.

Dangerously.

And her heart...

was starting to want him too.