I know its been a while but with my daughter of for the holidays.. its hard to get at my comp *lol*.. anyway I manage to get down another chapter, wher Anneka turns into a real Bitch.. but hey don't want her to be too perfect.. and it leads to a great confrontation for the next chapter
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After taking refuge in her hotel room for the remainder of the day, Anneka decided the best way she could deal with what happened, was to pretend it had never occurred. It was the only way she was going to be able to get through the rest of this time in Africa with Bono and finish the book Avoiding him was impossible without Jan and the others getting into some sort of speculation that something was going on..
So that evening she made a reappearance, joining the others, including Bono, in the hotel bar. Putting on a bravado that all was well in her world.
She was just glad there was a small crowd sitting around the table so she was still able to put some space between her and Bono, though he did end up managing to make his way over to sit next to her at the table when the seat became vacant. Anneka braced herself to act natural in his presence.
“So everything is ok then?” he enquired casually, those blue eyes scrutinizing her face.
“Yes” Anneka replied, then her own eyes widening a little, with questioned surprise. “Why shouldn’t it be?”
Bono half smiled and shook his head, “I dunno, just earlier when we done the shoot, I got the feeling I said or done something I shouldn’t” he intimated, “I just want to say if I did I am sorry, and I-” he started to apologise, but she held her hand up to stop him not wanting him to go into it any further
“Oh that” Anneka laughed, “forget it, I have.. I just forgot what a flirt you can be, I know it was just all for the benefit for the photoshoot, and I should not have taken you seriously, I guess we just got caught up in the moment, but it’s passed now.. It was nothing, right?”
Bono didn’t reply immediately, instead those blue eyes continued to steadily scrutinize her, as if trying to read what was really going on in her mind, and she felt the colour flood into her cheeks, finding it more difficult to keep eye contact with him
“Yeah I guess so” he finally spoke up, “like you said, I just got carried away with the moment.. It was nothing”
Relief swept over her “Yeah” she smiled and nodded, and watched as he lit up a cigarette, letting herself relax just a little, feeling she had got through that pretty well..
Although any further shoots there was no physical contact between her and Bono and the in majority they were taken separetly Anneka was feeling almost glad that they were winding up by the end of the week. On the last day they had promised to pay a visit to a children’s school funded by their various charities to see how things were progressing.
Their arrival caused a bit of a stir amongst the children, who eyed them with a mixture of wide eyed awe and curiosity. But by later that afternoon Anneka was sitting amongst the some of the youngest girls looking at pictures they had drawn, which they were eager to show her.
Bono was in the play area, kicking a makeshift ball with some of the boys, messing about, Anneka glanced up hearing the exciting laughter to see him attempt to run with the ball in his hand just to be tackled by three or four young lads and in their efforts to get the ball from him they wrested him to the ground, with them tumbling down with him in squeals of delight.
Anneka found herself grinning as Bono emerged from the tangle of small bodies around him, he was laughing and covered in dust from the ground yet she had never seen him looked so relaxed, he like a big kid himself He finally admitted defeat handing them the ball and attempted to get up of the ground to brush himself down and happened to glance her way, noticing her watching him, as if realising her thoughts, he shot her a sheepish smile.
Somewhere from deep inside her she felt that betraying pull of attraction again, despite the fact it had been nothing more than an innocent gesture between them,
She found herself swearing into herself in annoyance, that she let it happen. This was not the way it was meant to be, “What was wrong with her?!”
She was beginning to realised, it was more than just a physical connection between them, it went much deeper, she wasn’t sure how to handle what was going on. She was glad to have the distraction of the children to take her mind of it, it was not something she wanted to dwell on at that moment
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It was their last evening in Africa before they flew back to America the following afternoon they decided to have a bit of a celebration for the future success of their venture, A lot of them noticing that Anneka seemed to get into the party spirit, drinking far more than she usually did.
As the night wore on towards the end Bono held up his glass to make a toast to what had been an eventful week, and thank everyone, much as they expected the toast turned into a slight rambling speech, but he did finally round it of thanking everyone around the table for their help and support in the project, turning to Jan sitting on the right of him “And I guess we ought to thank you, for coming up with these great idea in the first place, it has been an interesting week and I can’t wait to see the finished product, I know its going to be impressive as it is unusual”
“Here, here” everyone around the table agreed enthusiastically
Bono now turned his attention on Anneka sitting across the way from him, “And of course I have to say a special thanks to my partner in crime Annie, these last few months have shown me how dedicated, and how much she cares about her commitment to end this terrible poverty. In that way we are of one mind and hopefully it makes us a driving force to be reckoned with, and I am looking forward
to working with her further, She is as smart and caring as she is beautiful, and working as a team I know with her on my side people will sit up and take notice of what we have to say, and I am the luckiest guy in the world, and I want to thank her for coming on board with me”
Anneka sat through this little thank you speech staring at her half empty glass in front of her, and as much as part of her knew she ought to be grateful and warmed by Bono’s gratitude, yet instead she felt uncomfortable and wished she was a million miles away.
She was unable to look Bono in the eye, his little speech made them seem like some cosy couple, and cosy was not how she was feeling right now around him. With her own conflicting emotions and what she was wrestling with. Wanting to continue her charity work along side Bono, but on the other hand not too sure she could because it was getting too personal.
But how could she explain that to him without giving away her true feelings, feelings she refused to really acknowledge herself because they scared her a little, So now instead of Bono’s speech making her happy, it was having the opposite effect, she didn’t want his gratitude or listen to him tell her how wonderful he thought she was, she didn’t want them to become any closer she didn’t want the attention bestowed on them as some sort of couple.
Spurred on by the fact she was more than a little tipsy she got to her feet holding her own glass up, managing to shoot a smile in Bono’s direction.
“I wanna say something too” she announced, everyone around the table including Bono cheered. She motioned with her hand for them to be quiet before she lost her nerve to continue
“I want to thank Bono also for inspiring me to continue in this work” she started
“As we all know he has been at this much longer than I have, and deserves the credit, Where would we be if it wasn’t for his determination to get people to sit up and notice? And Bono likes people to sit up and notice him” she grinned which was echoed by a few chuckles around the table
“But seriously” she now turned her blue eyes directly on Bono intently, “It isn’t enough for this guy to be remembered as being part of the biggest rock band in the world, Oh no, his ego dictates he needs to make a bigger mark on the world, and what better than having a hand in eliminating poverty, that will surely get him into the history books in great glory, to go down in the eons of time and never be forgotten, which is what he yearns for. And how happy I am I could play my little part in it”
An uncomfortable silence had fallen around the table, Anneka guessed they had caught the mocking tone in her voice, and they had not sure how to react to her little speech, Bono was staring at her wondering what he had said or done to deserve it, and looking uncertain of how to react for once she had left him lost for words, She discovered she felt no satisfaction, just sudden shame and embarrassment. She never thought she had it in her to be such a bitch
She had wanted to put a wedge between her and Bono, attack was the best form of defence. But still it had left an unpleasant aftertaste, she reckoned her uncomplimentary little speech had pulled it of fairly successfully even though deep down inside she knew she didn’t believe a word she had just said was true.
Suddenly she was overcome with the urge to apologise to Bono and beg for his forgiveness. But she decided it was easier to make her escape, the atmosphere around the table had turned rather sombre and she couldn’t face any of them.
“Well I think I have had enough for one night” she murmured knocking back the rest of her drink, then walked away from the table heading for the safety of her room.
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After taking refuge in her hotel room for the remainder of the day, Anneka decided the best way she could deal with what happened, was to pretend it had never occurred. It was the only way she was going to be able to get through the rest of this time in Africa with Bono and finish the book Avoiding him was impossible without Jan and the others getting into some sort of speculation that something was going on..
So that evening she made a reappearance, joining the others, including Bono, in the hotel bar. Putting on a bravado that all was well in her world.
She was just glad there was a small crowd sitting around the table so she was still able to put some space between her and Bono, though he did end up managing to make his way over to sit next to her at the table when the seat became vacant. Anneka braced herself to act natural in his presence.
“So everything is ok then?” he enquired casually, those blue eyes scrutinizing her face.
“Yes” Anneka replied, then her own eyes widening a little, with questioned surprise. “Why shouldn’t it be?”
Bono half smiled and shook his head, “I dunno, just earlier when we done the shoot, I got the feeling I said or done something I shouldn’t” he intimated, “I just want to say if I did I am sorry, and I-” he started to apologise, but she held her hand up to stop him not wanting him to go into it any further
“Oh that” Anneka laughed, “forget it, I have.. I just forgot what a flirt you can be, I know it was just all for the benefit for the photoshoot, and I should not have taken you seriously, I guess we just got caught up in the moment, but it’s passed now.. It was nothing, right?”
Bono didn’t reply immediately, instead those blue eyes continued to steadily scrutinize her, as if trying to read what was really going on in her mind, and she felt the colour flood into her cheeks, finding it more difficult to keep eye contact with him
“Yeah I guess so” he finally spoke up, “like you said, I just got carried away with the moment.. It was nothing”
Relief swept over her “Yeah” she smiled and nodded, and watched as he lit up a cigarette, letting herself relax just a little, feeling she had got through that pretty well..
Although any further shoots there was no physical contact between her and Bono and the in majority they were taken separetly Anneka was feeling almost glad that they were winding up by the end of the week. On the last day they had promised to pay a visit to a children’s school funded by their various charities to see how things were progressing.
Their arrival caused a bit of a stir amongst the children, who eyed them with a mixture of wide eyed awe and curiosity. But by later that afternoon Anneka was sitting amongst the some of the youngest girls looking at pictures they had drawn, which they were eager to show her.
Bono was in the play area, kicking a makeshift ball with some of the boys, messing about, Anneka glanced up hearing the exciting laughter to see him attempt to run with the ball in his hand just to be tackled by three or four young lads and in their efforts to get the ball from him they wrested him to the ground, with them tumbling down with him in squeals of delight.
Anneka found herself grinning as Bono emerged from the tangle of small bodies around him, he was laughing and covered in dust from the ground yet she had never seen him looked so relaxed, he like a big kid himself He finally admitted defeat handing them the ball and attempted to get up of the ground to brush himself down and happened to glance her way, noticing her watching him, as if realising her thoughts, he shot her a sheepish smile.
Somewhere from deep inside her she felt that betraying pull of attraction again, despite the fact it had been nothing more than an innocent gesture between them,
She found herself swearing into herself in annoyance, that she let it happen. This was not the way it was meant to be, “What was wrong with her?!”
She was beginning to realised, it was more than just a physical connection between them, it went much deeper, she wasn’t sure how to handle what was going on. She was glad to have the distraction of the children to take her mind of it, it was not something she wanted to dwell on at that moment
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It was their last evening in Africa before they flew back to America the following afternoon they decided to have a bit of a celebration for the future success of their venture, A lot of them noticing that Anneka seemed to get into the party spirit, drinking far more than she usually did.
As the night wore on towards the end Bono held up his glass to make a toast to what had been an eventful week, and thank everyone, much as they expected the toast turned into a slight rambling speech, but he did finally round it of thanking everyone around the table for their help and support in the project, turning to Jan sitting on the right of him “And I guess we ought to thank you, for coming up with these great idea in the first place, it has been an interesting week and I can’t wait to see the finished product, I know its going to be impressive as it is unusual”
“Here, here” everyone around the table agreed enthusiastically
Bono now turned his attention on Anneka sitting across the way from him, “And of course I have to say a special thanks to my partner in crime Annie, these last few months have shown me how dedicated, and how much she cares about her commitment to end this terrible poverty. In that way we are of one mind and hopefully it makes us a driving force to be reckoned with, and I am looking forward
to working with her further, She is as smart and caring as she is beautiful, and working as a team I know with her on my side people will sit up and take notice of what we have to say, and I am the luckiest guy in the world, and I want to thank her for coming on board with me”
Anneka sat through this little thank you speech staring at her half empty glass in front of her, and as much as part of her knew she ought to be grateful and warmed by Bono’s gratitude, yet instead she felt uncomfortable and wished she was a million miles away.
She was unable to look Bono in the eye, his little speech made them seem like some cosy couple, and cosy was not how she was feeling right now around him. With her own conflicting emotions and what she was wrestling with. Wanting to continue her charity work along side Bono, but on the other hand not too sure she could because it was getting too personal.
But how could she explain that to him without giving away her true feelings, feelings she refused to really acknowledge herself because they scared her a little, So now instead of Bono’s speech making her happy, it was having the opposite effect, she didn’t want his gratitude or listen to him tell her how wonderful he thought she was, she didn’t want them to become any closer she didn’t want the attention bestowed on them as some sort of couple.
Spurred on by the fact she was more than a little tipsy she got to her feet holding her own glass up, managing to shoot a smile in Bono’s direction.
“I wanna say something too” she announced, everyone around the table including Bono cheered. She motioned with her hand for them to be quiet before she lost her nerve to continue
“I want to thank Bono also for inspiring me to continue in this work” she started
“As we all know he has been at this much longer than I have, and deserves the credit, Where would we be if it wasn’t for his determination to get people to sit up and notice? And Bono likes people to sit up and notice him” she grinned which was echoed by a few chuckles around the table
“But seriously” she now turned her blue eyes directly on Bono intently, “It isn’t enough for this guy to be remembered as being part of the biggest rock band in the world, Oh no, his ego dictates he needs to make a bigger mark on the world, and what better than having a hand in eliminating poverty, that will surely get him into the history books in great glory, to go down in the eons of time and never be forgotten, which is what he yearns for. And how happy I am I could play my little part in it”
An uncomfortable silence had fallen around the table, Anneka guessed they had caught the mocking tone in her voice, and they had not sure how to react to her little speech, Bono was staring at her wondering what he had said or done to deserve it, and looking uncertain of how to react for once she had left him lost for words, She discovered she felt no satisfaction, just sudden shame and embarrassment. She never thought she had it in her to be such a bitch
She had wanted to put a wedge between her and Bono, attack was the best form of defence. But still it had left an unpleasant aftertaste, she reckoned her uncomplimentary little speech had pulled it of fairly successfully even though deep down inside she knew she didn’t believe a word she had just said was true.
Suddenly she was overcome with the urge to apologise to Bono and beg for his forgiveness. But she decided it was easier to make her escape, the atmosphere around the table had turned rather sombre and she couldn’t face any of them.
“Well I think I have had enough for one night” she murmured knocking back the rest of her drink, then walked away from the table heading for the safety of her room.
that has to hurt!
Happy new year Annj!
