Excerpt from His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

"You as well."

"Are you well?" he asked. He looked at my mother, then at me, as he said this.

"We are well," she replied. I remained quiet like a child in the presence of two adults having a conversation. "Well, I brought your wife and decided to stay with her as she waited for you," my mother continued.

"Thank you," he said.

"Are you well?" he asked again, this time looking directly at me. I nodded and managed a weak smile. He nodded as though satisfied.

"Your wife cooked something small for you," my mother said.

"Oh, thank you," he said, his eyes on me.

"Please, you are welcome," I said.

A moment later I felt a sharp pinch on my back. It was my mother. She swiveled her eyes in the direction of the kitchen when I turned to look at her. I shot to my feet.

"Please, I'm going for the food," I mumbled and hurried to the kitchen. He chatted with my mother as I heated the stews, but twice when I looked over at them he was staring at me. I lowered my head and only looked at him again when I went to announce that the food was ready. I noticed how tall he was when he stood up. I had been too flustered when he first walked in to note this. He was taller than six feet, which when compared to my five-feet two-inches was a lot. He seemed bigger than when I last saw him, his chest and shoulders broader, but unlike Richard he did not have a paunch. He moved easily, like a much smaller man, but when he sat at the table, he was imposing. Maybe it was because he was sitting at the head of the table.

"Aren't you going to eat?" he asked me when I remained standing.

"Please, I've already eaten," I lied.

"But I can't eat alone so come and sit with me," he said, pointing to the chair nearest him.

"Yes, sit with your husband; I'm going to my room," my mother called from the sitting room. When I turned to look at her she was standing out of Eli's view and was blinking rapidly. I knew that she was warning me not to do anything that would displease him, or her, or Aunty, or everyone in Ho who had chosen me as the solution to the problem. The sweat from my armpits began to drip down my sides.

I sat on the edge of the dining chair and began to take slices of yam out of the Pyrex bowl and place them onto his plate as I had seen my mother do for my father when he would come back from work.

"That's okay," he said after I had placed the fourth slice on his plate.

"Please, do you want garden egg or kontomire?" I asked in a small voice, suddenly worried that he would not like either.

"I will start with the kontomire," he said.

I quickly began to scoop the greens onto his plate, careful to drain the excess palm oil out of the spoon before serving him. I hoped that my fast movements would prevent him from noticing my shaking hand. He began to eat as soon as I finished. He smiled after swallowing the first mouthful.

"Very good," he said and dug in again.

I beamed, pleased with myself. I wished my mother had been there to hear him, and Aunty as well.

"So how are you liking it here?" he said to me in English.

"Please, it's fine."

"It's quiet, ehn, not like Ho?"

I nodded and then smiled, but my smile faded as I began to believe that he would take offense at what I had said. I didn't want him to think that I was complaining about Accra.

"But I like it very much," I said quickly.

He looked up, his eyebrows arched. I think he was surprised by the force with which I spoke because I had been whispering and mumbling since he came in.

"What have you been doing?"

"Please, walking around the area, going to the market, housework."

He was quiet for a while and then asked me, "Isn't there anything else that you want to do?"

"Anything else?" I asked cautiously.

"Yes, to keep busy."

I paused as I remembered my mother's rapidly blinking eyes and her suggestion that I wait a year before starting my training. But I really wanted to start, and Richard hadn't discouraged me when I told this to him. In fact he had said that it was a "great idea." Why would his brother react any differently?

Excerpted from His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie. Copyright © 2020 by Peace Adzo Medie. Excerpted by permission of Algonquin Books. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.