"Oh, I know. I'm just so happy to see you both!" She glanced at me before pulling away from her sons. "Oh how rude of me! Please introduce me to your guests!"
"Mother, you remember Vivienne." Jake looked slightly annoyed that his mother acted like she didn't recognize her.
Joshua's mother gave Vivienne a cool, dismissive glance.
Uh oh. That can't be good.
"Of course. How nice to see you again dear." The sarcasm literally dripped from her words. Joshua stepped in to smooth things over.
"Mother, I'd like for you to meet Sarah Vaughn, our newest associate."
Joshua's mother beamed at me and reached out to hug me.
"Sarah, it is so nice to finally meet you. I have heard many wonderful things about you dear."
So, Joshua has been talking about me!
"It is so nice to meet you Mrs. Hunter. Your estate is breathtaking."
"Thank you dear, how kind. Oh, and please, call me Bunny."
She seemed to genuinely like me which was an enormous relief. I could feel Vivienne glaring at me, but it wasn't my fault their mother didn't like her.
"Come, come, let’s all go inside."
She ushered us into her home and I could not have been prepared for what I was about to see. I had never seen such an opulent home in my life. Not even on television. The entryway had stunning marble floors and was so ornate and beautiful. The foyer’s gallery was at least 80 feet long and I felt as though I was in a museum.
"You must all be ravenous. Paul is preparing a wonderful breakfast for us, so why don't you freshen up and then join me in the breakfast nook in 45 minutes."
We all walked up the circular staircase to the second level and followed Joshua down the hall. My room was next to his, and Vivienne and Jake were around the corner in their rooms which were across the hall from one another. Joshua followed me into my room and I turned around to face him. I gave him a light, playful tap on his arm as I whispered to him.
"Why didn't you tell me we were coming to see your mother?!”
He let out a small chuckle. "I wanted to see your natural reaction to meeting her, not a prepared response."
"Well, your mother is lovely."
"She seems to like you." He didn't offer any more information. "We better freshen up and get downstairs. I will knock on your door when we should head down there."
"Okay."
Joshua left and I slowly looked around the room. It was beautiful. My bed was enormous and must have had 10 pillows on it. I went into the adjoining bath to take a shower and it was just gorgeous. There was marble everywhere, huge mirrors, small gourmet soaps and assorted tiny bottles of scented lotion. I felt as if I was in a spa.
After I showered, I put on a casual summer dress and a matching light sweater, and was putting the finishing touches on my makeup when I heard a light tapping on my door.
I hope he thinks I look nice for his mother.
When I opened the door, he did it to me again. He took my breath away. He stood there, tall, gorgeous and strong wearing a white polo and black slacks and I realized something. I had never seen him in casual clothes. You are simply gorgeous. He looked really comfortable and relaxed.
His eyes slowly roamed over my body, taking in my choice of clothes, and I could see the appreciation in his eyes for what I chose to wear. I didn't want to wear anything too casual as I didn't want to offend his mother.
"You look very pretty. Are you ready to go downstairs?"
I was speechless. It was such a nice compliment. Something must be in the water. He's being too nice. I realized I was standing there like an idiot, not saying a word. I cleared my throat and answered him.
"Thank you. Yes, I'm ready."
We were all sitting around the table chatting, when Bunny turned to me.
"Sarah dear, tell me more about yourself. I already know that you are extremely bright, but I'd like to know more about you as a person. What are your interests?"
I could feel my cheeks burning so I am sure they were bright red. The fact that everyone stopped talking to hear what I had to say didn't make it any better.
"Well, I actually am an enormous art lover. I was admiring your gorgeous pieces in the foyer hallway."
"Oh?" Bunny seemed to really perk up. "Do you have a favorite period or a favorite artist? Art is one of my first loves."
I began to relax because I just discovered that Bunny and I had something big in common. I could talk about art for days.
"The Italian Renaissance is my absolute favorite period. I am so fascinated by the artistic explosion that occurred in Italy at the beginning of the 14th century. I don't really have one favorite artist, but I do enjoy the works of several different artists. Of course there are the obvious artists such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. But I also enjoy Botticelli and Titian among many others."
Bunny seemed quite impressed with my answer. Jake chimed in from across the table.
"Sarah, I think you've just made mother's day. To meet another art enthusiast, well, there are no words."
"Sarah dear, later this week I will show you our art gallery. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. So how did you fall in love with art? Have you been to Italy to see the original works?"
"Well, I was always drawn to the art history section in the public library as a child. I used to spend hours reading about different periods of art and looking at pictures. The Italian Renaissance captivated me the most. And Italy? No, unfortunately that has not been in the budget. But, it is definitely on my list of things to do. I hope to be able to go in the next five years."
"I can tell that you are an extremely driven person. I have all faith that you will get to Italy. You simply must. There is no substitute for seeing a beautiful, original piece of art in person."
I glanced over at Joshua and for the first time since I'd met him he looked completely at ease. The conversation turned to the plan for the remainder of the week and I was, thankfully, no longer the center of attention. Joshua, Jake and Bunny talked about the family members that would be arriving later that day. Through their conversation I discovered that Bunny's birthday was this week and that was why we were here. A large celebration was planned for Thursday at the home.