There is nothing that can make a girl happy and smiling for nothing like some good morning sex. And with Ona, it is so good. It is so explosive. It is clothed in power and characterized with passion. It is wholesome and it is the most filling meal of the day.
I hear him moan aloud, tensing up then releasing it all inside of me. I smile at him. He smiles at me then he nibbles on my neck and we both giggle.
He climbs off me and lies next to me.
We are both trying to catch our breaths.

“Are you alright?” I ask him. He doesn’t seem too great.
“Thandeka was my biggest mistake.” He says.
I could’ve told him that.
“It’s as if I inherited all the loud and disruptive shit in her life the moment I met her and decided to fuck her.” He says.
“And Tholoana? Do you regret having him too?” I ask.
“Tholoana is my son and I love him.”
“Yeah. But had he never been born, Thandeka wouldn’t be the problem that she is now. You would have successfully hit and run, and no one would know about it. But she got pregnant, then your problems started.”
“T, I don’t know what you are trying to say here, but I love my child. I just wish his mother wasn’t Thandeka.”
“Thandeka may have given birth to him, but that’s not his mother. He cries for every woman but her. He’s being raised by everyone but Thandeka. You are the one that became Martin Luther King and had a dream. You had a dream that you and Thandeka could raise Tholoana together so they could bond and and and – He’s laughing.
I look at him.
“Did you just call me Martin Luther King?” He says as he laughs.
I giggle.
“My point is, Ona, you are a man that can make problems go away and there will be no meaningful consequences. She could die and Tholoana wouldn’t even be moved.”
“But he will grow up. And if he learns that I killed his mother –
“His mother is Lulu.”
Silence.
I turn my front body towards him, pull his face towards me and say, “Baby.”
He looks at me. He faces his body towards me.
“What do you want?” I ask him.
“Huh?”
“You are Onaleruna Mohale. I’m your wife – Rethabile Mohale – I don’t lose unless it’s against you. You are the only person I’m prepared to lose against. So when it’s not against you, I’m not going to lose. The two of us together – we just wake up and go after what we want and we both know that we can get it. So, I’m asking you… what do you want? And if you are not prepared to go out there and do it, I’ll get my hands dirty for you and make sure that when we come home tonight and have sex again, you release happiness inside of me.”
He smiles at me.
“So… Onaleruna Mohale, the next king of Tholoana Kingdom and the youngest leader of this capacity that we know… what do you want?”
“I want you to never leave my side.” He says.
“That goes without saying.” I say.
“And I want Thandeka to never bother me, Lulu or Tholoana again. I don’t want her to die, but I want her to disappear from our lives forever.” He says.
“Do you want me to make sure that happens?” I ask him.
“I’ll forever be grateful”, he says.
I kiss him.
I climb on top of him.
I insert his erect penis inside of me.
I start riding him.
He closes his eyes in pleasure and I know I’m doing a good job at servicing the next king of Tholoana Kingdom.
I wind and grind on top of him, hopping to the beat of his moaning and his heavy breathing.
I’m tensing up.
He is tensing up.
When I shake, his face and body are tense then release it all as we come back to earth.
“Good morning, love.” Me.
He laughs and says, “What a fucken wife you are.”
Trust me, I know that they don’t make them like me no more.

…

We walk into the main house for breakfast holding hands. We are a very happy couple. Trust me.
Tholoana runs from Lulu’s lap to Ona. Ona picks him up and plays with him. That’s my cue to just find something to do.
I greet everyone and find my way to a seat at the table. Ona comes to sit next to me. Rena is sitting on top of Khotso and Mohale is a big boy and he doesn’t sit on people’s laps. But he is next to Lulu because that’s where they are their most warm.

“Makoti, how do you feel about today being your first day at work?” Morena asks me.
Oh ja, I’ll be working at the government offices now. The health department to be exact. I’ll be heading a department that deals with health policies and practices. I’m so excited. I will also be the key face of the PR and branding of the government health department.
“I’m excited, morena. Thank you.” I say.
“We know that you will make us proud. You are keeping us busy by giving Teboho these ideas of us travelling. So we know you’ll make people work for their salaries in that department.” Morena says and we all laugh.
“We’ve just been through so much, morena. It’s time we started painting a new narrative behind the Mohale name. We plan to lead for generations to come. Our influence should extend beyond our boarders and beyond the continent. We will be known. And we will be known for the right reasons.” I say.
“You are really passionate about this, aren’t you?” Mofomahadi asks me.
I honestly fear her the most. This woman is ruthless. More ruthless than her husband. I fear her more than I fear morena.
“I’m the next queen, right? These kinds of things should be my passion. Else what more can I be than just an accessory on Ona’s arm?” I say.
Mofomahadi nods her head.
Then she looks at Lulu and says, “Lulu, we’ve received requests to franchise The Sip & Read. People are coming to us and are asking if we could branch across Tholoana Kingdom.”
She’s never hidden her distaste for me. Ever! And she always makes sure that I know and feel that Lulu is her favourite. It irks her that Ona chose to marry me even after I pissed her off. She treats me as if we are in a competition for Ona’s attention and affection and I don’t get it. I’m his wife and she’s his mother. While she carried him on her back and wrapped a towel around him to make sure his secure on her back, I ride his front naked and his penis keeps me secure on his front.
“I don’t know, mofomahadi. I feel like if we make this a huge business, we will lose the essence of it. I thought I’d write a book series this time now that all the kids are at school during the day. Expanding the business will take up my time and I might just start betraying my craft.” Lulu says.
Why did she even open the business? Was it a passion project? Isn’t the purpose of a business to make money? And if there’s potential for growth and more money, why are we sitting here discussing it like it’s a no-brainer?
“Makoti, we have a reading and literacy issue in Tholoana Kingdom. The fact that people are saying they are interested in a place where they can go and read… that’s powerful. You are doing something that many ministers and leaders in the education department have failed to do. You can still push your agenda of opening that spot and still expand.” Morena says.
Why is no one saying, ‘Lulu, get the money. What’s your problem?’ This is what we all want to say. But it’s Lulu. We all assume she’s a tender heart, but shame, she’s an underdog shark. I don’t understand how they haven’t seen it.
“I guess you are right. Maybe I’m just not up for it. After what’s happened, I just want to pay more attention to the kids.” Lulu says and the entire table is down instantly.
She’s been camping outside the school gate with her laptop for the past week. We are all worried. Trust me. She says she’s inspired to write and she can write from there. But we all know it’s deeper than that.
“Makoti, what are you going to do if someone comes and takes them from their classroom? You camp outside the gate with no gun. If they come and try to do something, what are you going to do? Scream?” Morena asks. Good question. I actually giggle and I get disapproving looks from everyone – including morena who said the joke. Or was it a joke?
“Morena, with all due respect, I will come back home every afternoon with all three of my kids EVERY SINGLE DAY. A mother’s love may be all I have as a weapon, but it’s a stronger weapon than a gun. Instinct will kick in when it needs to and I will be in the front line prepared to die, so my kids could live. That’s all the weapon I need.” Lulu says and we all just don’t feel like food again.
Khotso needs to get his wife. She can’t be giving us fucken indigestion every fucken morning.

…

I wore a red power suit today. White shirt. Black stiletto heel. My hair is in a bottom bun. My earrings are diamond studs and I have a diamond necklace that goes with them. Perfume is a Tom Ford scent and my watch is a Michael Kors time piece. I come with style and I mean business.

I walk down the corridors of my department and as I make my way to my office, I get looks, silence and nervous faces wondering what I’ll be bringing to the department.
I finally reach my office.
It’s a corner office. The sliding doors open for me and I have a secretary, a PA and a business manager with set up desks receiving me. I look at them. I’m not going to say good morning. I want them to spread the word that I’m a bitch and if anyone comes here for any other reason than to work, I will fire them in a heartbeat.
I head to my office. My door reads “Dr.R.Mohale. Director: Tholoana Kingdom Government Health Department.”
Ladies and gentlemen, I have arrived.
I step into my office and it is exactly the way I asked for it to be.
The wallpaper is white with pearl white patterns. This covers all my walls. My desk is black and large. There’s a place for my laptop, my three screen monitors, and I have writing space. My chair behind my desk is a red office couch.
I have two boardrooms in here. Both have white walls, black conference boardroom tables and red office coaches. They both have video calling equipment and they both accommodate twelve people. I have my own rest room, an insuite closet and a kitchen with my filter coffee and all the teas that I enjoy. I have a fridge in there as well as a microwave.
My office has a TV facing my desk. This is where I will keep up with the news.
I have black and red couches in here and only two chairs to accommodate guests across my desk. I don’t plan to entertain in here. I’m here to work.

I hang my handbag and laptop bag on my bag hanger. I pull out my cellphone and laptop then make my way to my desk and start setting up.
There’s a knock on my door and after a brief “come in”, my husband walks in with a huge bunch of red roses. Oh man.
I get up from behind my desk and walk up to him.
“This office is just your size. And people are scared of you already.” He says.
I just laugh, kiss him and accept the flowers from him.
“These are beautiful”, I say, referring to the roses.
“Not as beautiful as you are”, he says.
I laugh.
“Anyway, you good?” I ask him.
“I’m good. I thought I’d come and say hello before I get on the private plane. Tebza has Khotso and I going to South Africa for some round table talk”, he says.
“That’s good, baby. I’ll be watching.” I say.
He smiles at me.
“Yeah, we’ve been briefed on the topic. I’ll be in Pretoria and Khotso has to be in Cape Town.” He says.
“That’s good, baby. But you’ll be back today, right?”
He nods his head.
“Lulu also has an interview to do about the new film coming up based on another book of hers. She will be in Durban doing the interview.” He says.
“I’m just glad that she’s going to be doing something either than camping outside a school gate.” I say.
“Me too. This thing that Thandeka did really spooked her.” Ona says.
“Yeah. But she’ll be okay. She does need to have a life and something else going for her outside of being a mother.”
“You might not like or want kids, Thabi, but some people’s highest calling is being a mother and that’s also okay.” He says.
Why is he so touched about this?
“I was just saying –
“You were just saying what? You think you better than Lulu because your version of success is living in the workplace and being feared?”
Bathung!
“You better stop this shit. That is the mother of my kids that you are constantly looking down upon and its beginning to get on my fucken nerves.”
He’s getting upset now.
“I’m sorry.” I say.
“I’ll see you later”, he says then leaves my office. Yoh.

I call a staff meeting for my immediate reports. I’ll speak to them and they’ll pass on the message to their teams. The team is too big for me to address them all.
I have fifteen managing executives reporting into me, so we are meeting in one of my boardrooms. Four of them ask me to grab chairs from the other boardrooms and I let them. They bring them into the boardroom that we are meeting in and find a spot around the table.
My PA, secretary and business manager come in with their own chairs as well.
As soon as everyone is settled, I begin.
“I am Dr Rethabile Mohale. You can all call me Dr Mohale. Only my friends call me Thabi and I don’t consider any of you my friends.”

Their facial expressions tell me that I have their attention.

“I am a qualified specialized surgeon who has operated in over forty-two countries. So yes, I know my stuff. I know medicine and I know health. So none of you will ever have the capacity to bullshit me. I only expect one thing from each and every one of you and your teams – I expect you to deliver. Period. I have no room for dead weight and I have no problem firing you if you end up being dead weight. This team is way too big anyway. I don’t need this many managing executives.” I say.

Silence.

“You will not be rewarded for doing what you are supposed to do – your salary rewards you enough for that. But I will never forget the people who go the extra mile. Those who do less than the bare minimum – the countdown to your last day in this department has officially begun. It is a new day in this department and if you are not going to be part of what that comes with, there are some HR packages and processes that will help you and force you out of this department and out of this building all together.”

Now, they are all looking at each other. I see fear in some eyes.

“All of you are accountable to me. If something is wrong in your teams, I come for you. I don’t deal with your juniors. You do. If you have deadweight in your teams, get rid them or I will get rid of you for failing to be the people leader that is not fit for this department. If I don’t see you at your desks, I expect you to be in meetings or attending to the hospitals of Tholoana Kingdom. Unless it is your lunch hour or after hours, you don’t do shit I don’t pay you for on my time. When I want you, I need to be able to reach you. When I want work from you, I expect you to meet deadlines. I wish I could say that I have an open-door policy, but I don’t. Schedule time with my PA and put yourself in my day if you need my attention. Otherwise, just text me. I have a more “text me any time” policy. If I can resolve your query over text, I will. If I need you on a call, I’ll call you. But unless this department is on fire, you don’t interrupt my day or my schedule.”

No hands being raised. Just Silence. I just hear a few cellphones vibrating, but no one is even reaching for their cellphones.

“I’m not sure if all of you have been doctors before and if you’ve seen a surgery room before, but I will be running this department as I would a surgery room – I’m the leader and chain of command will be observed at all times. If you do anything without my knowledge and it comes back to bite you, I will help whoever I need to help to push you out of here. Don’t ever be forward on my time. If I see anything on the news or in the media that I don’t know about, the person responsible for that shit will leave this department. If the king, the queen, the princes or myself have to answer to any shit unprepared, heads will cut around here. I want to be in the loop on EVERYTHING! Don’t ever make me look bad out there. There will be consequences and if you really want to try me, I’ll blackball your ass all over this kingdom and you’d need to leave the kingdom to get employment as a fucken administrator.”

One of them takes off his jacket. It’s clearly getting hot in here for some people.

“Any questions?” Me.
Now I look at them.
Nothing.
Oh, one hand.
I nod my head at that gentleman.
“Dr Mohale, I’m Zweli. I’d just like to ask when it is that you’ll actually have our backs? We all know how to get fired now. I’m wondering, when do you step in and protect us from internal politics and getting fired for doing our jobs?”
“Thank you for your question, Zweli. Every time you don’t see me in my office, I’m protecting you. When I know what’s happening in your areas and I need to go answer for it, I’m protecting you. When I’m sitting in budget meetings and I’m fighting for budget, I’m protecting you. When I’m sitting in legal meetings and fighting for or against policy, I’m protecting you. When I lie in bed next to my husband every night and I need him to bulldoze people so we get our way, I’m protecting you. When I’m having meals at the same table with my father-in-law, who happens to be the king of this kingdom, and I need him to pull rank for this department, I’m protecting you. I’m the boss that you want when you need to get shit done and the shit standing in front of you and your objectives are senseless policies and people who get a kick out of being difficult. That’s exactly why you don’t want me out of the loop. Because I can use that same power to get you the fuck out of here.” I say.
I see heads nodding in relief. Clearly, there have been some issues around here.
Another hand goes up.
I nod my head at the individual.
“My name is Loreal. Shouldn’t HR be present in this meeting?”
I can already tell that she’s the first person I’m getting rid of. Anyone who’s that dependent on HR is an automatic problem who uses HR to protect their shit.
“HR is not going to tell me how to run my department. I’ll contact them if and when needed around here. But I’d rather they stay out of my business all together.” I say.
This is a blow for some people, but it’s music to other people’s ears.
My PA puts her hand up.
“Yes”, I say as I face her.
“Dr Mohale, I’m your PA. My name is Kim. HR has a desk at the front of your office with myself, your secretary – Mulalo – and your business manager – Prince.”
I was wondering why there was an extra desk there.
“Well, that’s going to change. Unless there’s something pressing they do around here, they can go sit at the HR department. We have a PR business partner, but they sit at the PR department. They don’t annoy us up here. In fact, I’d rather have PR and Finance sit up here than HR.” I say.
People giggle, except for the HR advocate that I’ll be getting rid of very soon.
Kim puts her hand up again then says, “How would you like us to celebrate birthdays?”
“Excuse me?” I mean really, what in the actual fuck?
“We normally send out happy birthday emails and we buy lunch around here. We normally all club in money to buy the lunch, cake and a nice gift.” She says.
What?!
They all look at me as if anticipating if I’m going to change that too.
“It’s some of the ways that we keep morale high around here. It can get very hectic and we just find nice ways to appreciate each other.” Kim says.
“I’ll sponsor the birthday things. Just give me adequate notice.” I say. I guess I need something to win them over.
They all smile as if impressed.
“You lose your shit over this birthday nonsense, then I take it away. You wives and husbands can fuck you for your birthdays and you’ll be fine.”
They laugh.
I’m actually serious. And I have a feeling that they know it too.
“Last question from me, when is your birthday?” Kim has a big mouth about everything but her work.
“28 January.” I say.
She notes it.
“Now, I want reports about your hospitals by close of business today. Work with Prince, the business manager, to format these reports. I want to know what policies are working, what policies are standing in the way of thorough delivery. I want to know what’s happening in the surgery rooms, the operations of each hospital and the death rates in each of them. I want a service delivery report in those hospitals as well, private and government hospitals alike. I also want a budget analysis and policy analysis of each hospital. Then prince, please use these reports and compile it into one report for me. Can I have the compiled report by close of business tomorrow?”
They all look at each other.
“Well?” Me.
Silence.
“Fine. I expect issues to be communicated ahead of time. For now, meeting adjourned.” I say.
I get up and leave. They all leave after me chatting to each other.

I settle at my desk and I go through the things that are on my desk. I push quite a bit of work and before I know it, it is 6pm. Wow. I haven’t even stepped out of this office for five seconds. No coffee or water breaks. Just zoned in and trying to make health a million times better in this kingdom.
I walk out to my PA because I need to see what my day looks like tomorrow.
I might need to change this girl. How are you my PA and the only conversation you’ve had with me today is a conversation about birthdays? I don’t even know what’s happening in my life tomorrow.
Only Prince is here and seven Managing Executives are seated around his desk.
I like this.
“Where’s Kim?” I ask.
“She knocks off at 4pm.” Mulalo tells me. She’s my secretary and she’s helping with whatever is happening at Prince’s desk.
They can just see it on my face that I’m over Kim and the countdown to her last day around here has begun.
“I’m ordering dinner. Let me know what you’d like to eat at Reahile. It’s on me. And you can go work in the boardroom we were in this morning. Let whoever is still here know as well.” I say.
They happily say yes and move to the boardroom.

I dial Kim.
Her phone is off.
Nonsense!
Ona phones me.
“Hey baby”, me.
“Love, when are you coming home?” He asks me.
“Are you guys back already?”
“Yeah, we just landed. But we have some work that we need to do with morena, Shak, Maboko and Zithulele.”
“Church work?”
“Something like that”, he says.
“Okay. Well, I’m still at the office. I’ll maybe be done in the next two to three hours.”
“Love, please don’t work too hard.”
“I’ll make sure I still have enough work for you for tonight.”
He laughs.
“Please be home when I get home”, he says.
He sounds like a husband from back in the day.
“I’ll be there, love.” Me.
“Good.”
We hang up.
I check my whatsapp as soon as I hang up. Mulalo has sent me everyone’s orders and it’s nice to see that all my managing executives – except the HR’s advocate – are here. I forward the text message to the Reahile manager plus my order.
She sends me the bill.
I make a payment and send her the proof of payment.
She texts me and lets me know that our food will arrive in thirty minutes.
Cool.

Mofomahadi walks into my office an hour into everyone being deep in work. She notices my full boardroom as well.
“I’ve never seen such out of this department. Ona told me you are still here, so I thought I’d come and see how you are settling in. I can already feel your aura all over this department.” She says.
This woman SCARES me!
“We have a lot to do, mofomahadi.” I say.
“I guess you are the change we’ve needed all these years. The wheels of the health department have started turning.” She says.
I just smile and nod at her.
“Anyway, I’m headed home. Don’t be too long out here.” She says.
I nod my head.
She leaves.
I let out a deep breath. My entire being just tenses around her. Yoh.

At 9pm, I get up and start packing my things. As I leave, I peep into the boardroom and say, “You guys can come in at 11am tomorrow. Thanks for the hardwork.”
They all cheer.
I leave before they think we are friends.

It takes me about twenty minutes to get home and when I arrive, I go straight to mine and Ona’s space. I take off my heels, undress myself then head into the bathtub. I’ve put oils and bath foam in here. I have lit calm scented candles around the bathtub.
I soak my body in here and feel my body and brain unwind. Overall, it was a good day.
When I’m done soaking myself and actually bathing myself, I step out the tub, drain the water and lotion myself. I wear a lingerie piece and get to bed. I grab one of Lulu’s books that she’s written and I start reading. I have to wait for Ona and I need a way to unwind from my day. So, I’ve started reading and what better content to read than that written by an author you live with? I’ll fight her if I need to about the events in the book. But before I start…
I book my flight tickets for tomorrow. I need to deal with Thandeka once and for all.