QUIET PROMISE- Ep 17

I Am Here For You

Read The Previous Episode Here

The silence Chloe left behind was thick and heavy, smelling of her overpowering perfume. Setto stood frozen behind his desk, his chest heaving under his shirt. His knuckles were white from gripping the edge of the wood, his mind a chaotic battlefield.

He looked at Tammy standing in the doorway. She was wearing a stunning jumpsuit that hugged her petite frame perfectly, her hair slicked into a neat style. But her face was pale.

Panic, sharp and cold, pierced through his initial anger.

She heard everything, his mind screamed. He felt a sudden, sickening weight in his stomach.

Setto was a man deeply, helplessly in love, the kind of love that made a powerful man look soft whenever she entered the room.

His mom teased him about it, saying Tamilore had given him a potion because the moment she breathed, Setto was ready to move mountains.

And right now, he was terrified. He was scared because she saw Chloe. What if she thought he still had business with his ex?

“Baby...” his voice came out a rough, strained whisper.

He moved from behind the desk, his legs eating up the distance between them, his hands reaching out to hold her, to explain, to swear that Chloe was nothing but his past.

But before he could even grab her, Tammy moved.

She didn’t back away or start shouting like he feared. Instead, she tossed her keys onto the side table, took three quick steps across the floor, and threw her entire body into his chest.

Her arms locked tightly around his waist, her face burying deep into his shirt, right where his heart was hammering away.

“Setto, I’m sorry,” she gasped, her voice breaking, muffled against his chest.

“I am deeply sorry about how I acted yesterday. I shouldn’t have shut you out.”

Setto’s brain completely short-circuited. His arms hung awkwardly in the air for a fraction of a second, paralyzed by the sheer shock of it.

He had braced himself for a misunderstanding, but here she was, holding onto him like he was her only cover in a heavy downpour.

Slowly, a ragged breath escaped his lips. The tension melted off his shoulders as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her so close that even air couldn’t pass between them.

He buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling her familiar scent— vanilla mixed with a hint of cocoa butter, and just let himself drown in her.

After a long, quiet moment of just breathing each other in, Setto gently shifted.

Keeping one arm firmly around her waist, he guided her over to his leather chair. He carefully tucked her into the seat and sat right on the edge of the desk, trapping her comfortably between his thighs.

He leaned down, pulling her into his torso, his arms wrapping over her shoulders.

He kissed the top of her head, his heart overflowing.

“My love,” he murmured.

“About what you just saw... about Chloe. I promise you…..”

Tammy reached up, her soft fingers gently pressing against his lips to stop him from talking.

She tilted her head back to look at him, a weary but beautiful smile on her lips.

“Let’s talk about that later, Setto,” she whispered, her eyes softening.

“For now... let me tell you what happened yesterday.”

Setto stared down at her.

He nodded slowly, kissing her forehead.

“Okay. I’m listening, baby.” He slid his hands down, capturing both of her hands in his palms, intertwining their fingers tightly on his thigh.

He didn’t move an inch, completely captivated as she began to pour out her heart.

Tammy took a deep breath, her fingers tightening around his.

“When I got to the family house... it was a complete ambush. The moment I mentioned your surname, they all went cold.”

She swallowed hard, a flash of remembered pain crossing her face.

“One of my aunts literally jumped off her chair. She started shouting ‘God forbid!’, saying over her dead body that a daughter of their household would bring a Fulani man home. They didn’t care that you are a Christian. All they saw was tribe. It broke me. I won’t lie. I got super exhausted and just wanted to disappear in that moment.”

Setto remained completely still, his face calm, though his grip on her hands tightened just a fraction.

He didn’t interrupt; he just let her empty the heavy load she had been carrying.

“Aunty Abike even told me your culture would swallow me alive,” Tammy continued, her voice dropping into a small, vulnerable whisper.

“She said you would lock me up, treat me like property, and oppress me. They made me feel so ashamed. Like at my age, I should just be grateful to find any ‘proper Yoruba boy’ instead of following a mallam. They made me feel like I was destroying the family. I felt so small and rejected, I just couldn’t take it. I drove off to a place where I could cry in peace. I didn’t want you to see me crying. I didn’t want you to see how broken I was.”

She looked up at him, her eyes searching his.

“I’m so sorry I didn’t call you nor take your calls. I was just tired of always being the strong one. I just needed to let it out.”

Setto’s heart practically broke into pieces. He lifted her hands to his lips, peppering her knuckles with soft, lingering kisses.

“No, no, I am the one who should be sorry. I am so sorry, my baby,” Setto said, his voice thick with raw remorse.

“I am so sorry I wasn’t there. I should have come with you. I shouldn’t have let you face that alone. I am sorry I wasn’t there to stand up for you when they were bullying you.”

Tammy shook her head quickly.

“No, Setto, don’t say that. It’s not your fault in any way. You didn’t know. I also didn’t allow you to go with me even when you offered to.”

“No, it is not fine,” Setto insisted, his tone dropping into that firm, unyielding note he used when he was dead serious.

He leaned lower, bringing his face inches from hers, his eyes locking onto hers.

“You don’t deserve that. You don’t deserve to be shamed by anyone, blood or no blood. You are a queen, Tamilore. You are my entire world, and anyone who makes you feel small is completely wrong.”

He softened, his thumb gently tracing her jawline, his eyes pleading.

“But please... promise me you will never shut me out like that again. I don’t like it at all, baby. When you went completely silent, it tore me apart. I was frantic, checking my phone every single second, worrying if you were safe. Don’t build a wall against me when the world gets loud. Let me carry the weight with you. Please, baby.”

Tammy pouted, her eyes flooded with fresh tears, but this time, they were tears of pure relief.

The heavy armor she always wore cracked.

“I promise,” she whispered. “I won’t do it again.”

“Good,” Setto murmured, leaning down to press a warm, reassuring kiss against her eyelids as they fluttered close, then he proceeded to press another one to her nose, her ears and finally her cheek.

Her breath hitched and she looked at him with so much love and emotion.

“I really cannot wait to be your wife.” She murmured as he pulled her against his chest.

“I also cannot wait for you to be my wife.” he whispered, holding her.

They stayed like that for a few beautiful minutes. As the quiet settled, Tammy remembered something.

She shifted slightly, a sharp, curious glint returning to her eyes.

“Okay... now it’s your turn. What about Chloe? What did she come here to do?”

Setto immediately stiffened, a heavy sigh escaping his chest as his gaze drifted toward the glass windows.

“Baby... let’s talk about that later. The day has already been too stressful for you. Let’s just focus on us.”

Tammy let out a sharp, amused breath, a knowing smile touching her lips as she pinched his hand lightly.

“Ah-ah! Look at this man! Egbon Setto Bello, you just finished preaching a whole sermon about opening up and not building walls, and now you are closing up? Daddy Pastor, Is that fair?”

Setto paused, his eyes snapping back to hers. He looked completely caught out, and then a low, deep, helpless laugh rumbled in his chest. He shook his head, totally defeated by this woman.

“Okay,” he smiled, “you got me. Fair point.”

“Chloe is back because she wants Eliana. She came to demand custody.”

Tammy’s brows furrowed instantly, her features flaring up.

“Wait... what? On what grounds? Didn’t you legally fight for baby Eliana back then? Didn’t the courts settle everything?”

“I did,” Setto said, his jaw clenching at the bitter memory.

“I fought for that little girl with everything I had in me. Legally, financially, emotionally. I went through fire to ensure her birth certificate carries my name, and the court granted me sole custody because Chloe literally abandoned a three-month-old baby.”

“Then why is she back now?” Tammy asked, her voice rising, a fierce edge cutting through her tone.

Setto sighed again, the weight of it heavy on his chest.

“She claims the biological father of the baby is back in the picture. She says he has the financial backing now, and they want Eliana back so they can live as a happy family abroad. She gave me exactly three days to pack her things before she comes back with her legal team.”

Tammy sat perfectly still for a second, absorbing the absolute audacity of the woman, a dangerous, fiery light sparked in her eyes.

“Can you imagine? Heheheheheh!” Tammy exclaimed.

“She cannot do anything, Setto. She is joking. Who she be sef? Abi she no dey fear?”

Setto looked down at her, watching the way her shoulders squared.

A low chuckle escaped his throat, his eyes dancing with amusement at how fierce she looked.

“My small pepper. See how you are vibrating as though you are ready to jump into the elevator right now and beat her up.”

“Yes oo!” Tammy snapped, a grin breaking through as she lifted her chin proudly.

“If worse comes to worse, I go show her say na Yoruba babe I be! She thinks she can just walk into Lagos with her rubbish accent and under aged clothes to come and scatter what you’ve built? She doesn’t know who she is playing with! I will personally show her her level!”

Setto’s laughter broke out. The sheer joy of seeing his woman turn into a fiery street fighter on his behalf made him feel lighter.

He pulled her into a hug, his chest shaking against hers.

“It won’t come to that, my love,” he laughed heartily, burying his face in her shoulder.

“But God, I can’t help but imagine you actually beating Chloe up. It’s the funniest thing I’ve pictured all week. You have no idea how much I needed this laugh.”

She pulled back slightly, her eyes deeply grounded and full of reassurance as he cupped her face.

“But there will be no need for that, baby. I have things completely under control. My legal team is ironclad. Chloe has absolutely no legal leg to stand on. She cannot take Eliana away from me. I won’t let it happen.”

Tammy looked deep into his eyes, seeing the absolute certainty of a man who would tear down the whole of Lagos before letting his daughter be taken away from him.

She smiled, her heart swelling with an emotion so profound.

She leaned forward, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, burying her face against his collarbone, entirely smitten by his beautiful heart.

“I’m here for you, Temi,” she whispered softly.

Setto froze.

The entire office seemed to ground to a sudden, dead halt.

The words, the pet name, spoken with such raw, unprompted tenderness from a woman who never used pet names hit him like a physical jolt of electricity.

His heart skipped a beat, a wave of shock and pure, unadulterated joy rushing through his veins.

He grabbed gently her by the shoulders, pulling her back quickly so he could look directly into her face, his chest heaving, his eyes wide with a beautiful, frantic disbelief.

“What did you just say, baby???” Setto breathed, his voice cracking, completely vulnerable.

Tammy looked at his shocked, ecstatic face, a beautiful, easygoing smile completely lighting up her eyes. She didn’t shrink back. She didn’t get rigid.

“I said, I’m here for you, Temi,” she repeated clearly, her eyes locked onto his.

Hi babiesssss…. Look who is back??

This is just a brief episode to make up for my absence on here.

A new episode drops tomorrow😍😍

Ps; Who else was expecting them to have a fight?