"Oh, my God! Is this a house or a palace," I gasp incredulously, gazing at the enormous mansion in front of us, surrounded by a vast, vibrantly green, golf course, situated on a hill with amazing sea view. "Are these palm trees? How they even grow here?"
Ave only rolls his eyes, deepening his prominent frown. I am quite tempted to pout myself but decide that at least one of us should keep positive about this.
To be honest, I was already downright startled at the huge, wrought iron gates with two uniformed guards who searched thoroughly through our car, despite the obvious fact that they knew very well who Avery was. One of them stated that 'the dog must stay here', squinting at the peacefully sleeping Mozart on the back seat.
"Over my dead body," Avery growled at him. "We can fight, if you want." I sneered internally at the way the man visibly paled and stepped back.
A long, shaded alley, winding between high, leafy, linden trees, leads us to the white gravel covered parking area, around a pompous, marble fountain, spraying high water jets from the mouths of jumping dolphins statues.
I get out of the car and anxiously try to smooth what I consider my best suit out. I thought that I was too dressed up half an hour ago. Nothing can help me get rid of the feeling that I'm scruffy and out of place here now. I finally give up my attempts and just stand, staring at the massive white, two-storey, Greek revival-style house with large columns, rising up to the second floor on both sides of the grand entrance.
"Get out already," Ave grumbles, pulling Mozart's leash. The smart dog seems to be even more hesitant than I am.
We start walking towards the house but haven't crossed half of the distance when the ornamented, wooden door opens widely and a woman in an elegant, white, double-breasted, jacket dress waves at us. I am confused. She looks exactly like Ebony, but still there's something different. I see that her facial features and hairstyle are the same as Ave's sister's when we approach, but she is older.
"I don't know what needs to happen to make you think of your parents and visit us more often," she purses her lips, glancing disapprovingly at Mozart. "You don't intend to let the dog in the house, do you? I had to reupholster the sofa last time and the new fabric has nothing to do with the expensive Turkish silk that this beast tore to pieces. The interior design in my small games room is totally ruined."
"Hello mother," Ave smiles after taking a deep breath. "I've been a little busy lately."
"Oh yes," she huffs. "Ebony told me about your new project. It seems things are not going very well, do they? I was amazed at how much money have been invested at the last Board of Directors meeting. Is it really necessary to take such risks when everything is going great without them?"
"A company can't stay on the top in this technological world, if they do not develop their product all the time," he starts explaining. "We need to be up to date with..."
"Oh, fine, fine! You know how bored I get with that business talk," she interrupts him. "Either way, nothing will change until the majority of the Board members vote as your grandfather tells them. I'm there only because of you and, believe me, it's not an easy job."
Avery purses his lips in a thin line and remains silent. I'm starting to feel more and more uncomfortable by the second. It seems no one acknowledges my presence here. I'm about to pull on his sleeve when he snaps out of his daze and wraps an arm around my waist.
"Mother, this is Casey, my boyfriend," he says, pushing me lightly towards her.
"Oh, how nice to meet one of my son's colleagues," she smiles politely, holding out her hand. "I'm Marguerite. You can call me Mae. So, how long have you been working together?"
"Nice to meet you," I mutter, utterly confused. "Umm, about a month."
"He's not only my colleague, mom," Ave grumbles. "Casey is my boyfriend."
"Ahh, this is great," she beams. "It's wonderful when the people you work with are also you friends, isn't it? I remember now that Ebony mentioned something about you two also studying together. I suppose you became friends at the University. Ave is so communicative. He has so many friends."
I feel Avery getting more agitated next to me. The tension is in the air. I sense the emerging conflict and squeeze lightly his hand, "We should better walk Mozart a little..., you know,... to relieve himself, if we want to take him inside."
"He can manage on his own," Ave states, unleashing the dog and pushes him towards the nearby lawn. Mozart walks away reluctantly, dragging his feet.
"Mom, let me explain this better," Ave pins his gaze on her face stubbornly. "Casey is my colleague, and my friend, and we study together, but the most important thing is that he is also my boyfriend. This means that we are dating. We also sleep in the same..."
"Dearest God!" Mae shrieks, putting her hand on her chest as if having a heart attack. "This is outrageous! That was why I told the security to keep the dog with them. But you never listen, do you Avery! Stelaaa, come here this instant." A startled woman flies out of the house. "Look at this! Take care of it immediately. I don't believe it!"
We follow her pointing finger to Mozart who is sitting proudly next to an impressive pile of poop, right on the entrance walkway, not more than six feet away.
"My God! I think I need a drink," Mae fans herself with her hand. "I'm sorry, dear. What were you saying? Oh, wait! Let's go to your father. He's expecting us in the garden. We're going to have a nice barbeque by the pool. You'll tell us everything about your common work there."
She turns on her heels and disappears in the house, leaving us speechless.
______________________________________
Photo by Kindel Media from Pexels
A/N
Hello everyone at the end of Chapter 61!
Thank you so much for reading and supporting! ❤❤❤
Casey's wish to meet Ave's parents has finally come true.
Do you think Mae is pretending deliberately that she doesn't get the meaning of the word 'boyfriend'? 🤔
What do you think the father will be like?
Share your thoughts, be free to express yourself and criticize, if you feel it's necessary.
And don't forget to vote if you enjoyed the story.
See you in next chapter.
Love: Anny
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RomanceThis story is complete ✅ Casey is a nerd, but the charming, cute type. He evades college parties like the plague. Who knew he would accidentally jump right into the bed of his long-time, secret crush at one of them. Avery is gorgeous. He has a litt...
