KENZIE
If heaven and hell were both as real as everyone believed them to be, then I did not think the wealthy would care less if they made it to hell or heaven because they would have already experienced paradise on earth.
The Meyer's estate was a world on its own. The big high gates rolled open as Connor hooted his horn and the magnificence of the mansion came into view, bold and tall under the daylight. We drove into the property, through the smoothness of the paved driveway and Connor took another smooth turn around the circular driveway that had a water fountain in the heart, leading to the entrance of the main building which towered over the rest of the two other storey- buildings.
Connor stopped the car right in front of the main building and stepped out, turning to my side of the door and holding it open for me to step through. As I alighted from the car, my eyes admired the flamboyance and grandeur of the buildings. Connor took my hands in a firm, yet gentle grip and walked me into the house, while the security guards standing at the double doors entry gave him a curt nod which he acknowledged. As my heels felt the expensive wooden floor of the living room, I stared in awe at the aesthetic furniture and artworks adorning the pale white walls and the majestic chandelier with gleaming crystals that towered overhead, casting yellow golden lights upon the large room.
We entered the dining area and I was instantly surprised that the large table of the banquet was already filled with many people whose faces I did not think I had seen before. My eyes caught sight of Jessica, smiling knowingly at me as she looked up from her meal. My breath hitched at the sight.
I thought Connor's mother said a private dinner for just the both of us.
I glanced at Connor's face and with the way his eyes took in the small crowd of diners, I figured he was clueless about this new plan too.
"Connor. Ariana. Come join us." Mrs Meyers stood up at once from her seat as she saw us, a large smile pasted on her face that looked so real that anyone who wasn't me would think it was genuine.
She walked up to us with an air of classical grace and pulled me in a gentle embrace that was unsurprisingly cold and hard instead of warm.
"Welcome to our home, Ari." She pulled me away from Connor by the arm and led me to the dining where she pulled out a chair next to hers and motioned for me to sit down. I felt sceptical, seeing that I would be separated from Connor but I held myself from refusing her and instead, smiled a polite smile and took my seat at the table. Luckily, Connor sat directly at the opposite side of the table and gave me a reassuring smile which I returned with a closed-mouthed one.
"Thank you for having me, Mrs Meyers." I turned my attention back to her and the woman smiled sweetly at me. A smile I wished could be anything but one of the deceits.
"You are welcome, anytime, Ari. Take this as your own home."
How ironic.
I nodded as a show of gratitude and the woman poured a bottle of cherry red wine into the empty glass cup before me. As she did, I took an overall inspection of the others at the table. Sitting beside Connor was a scruffy younger version of himself. The boy had jet black hair like Connor but brown eyes that I figured he inherited from their father. With the way he was quite chatty with Connor who hardly paid him full attention, I figured they are pretty close as brothers. There was another girl who had Connor's eyes and honey blonde dyed hair who looked Jojo's age, sitting beside them. Her attention was glued to her phone and she ate from her plate uninterestingly and looked up only once to glance in my direction. I offered her a small smile but she rolled her eyes and looked back at her phone again.
Take that back, you little brat!
On the other side of Mrs Meyers was Jessica, diving her knife and fork elegantly into the grilled turkey in front of her, while still managing to watch me from the corners of her eyes.
I prayed she lose her hold and stab her pretty hands with the cutleries.
The rest of the diners at the table were unfamiliar faces, some focused on the meal before them, some stealing weird glances at me and others sharing little bits of chat with their close mates at the table.
I thanked Mrs Meyers for her kind gestures and took a dainty sip of my drink.
"How is the country treating you so far, Ari" Mrs Meyers asked me as I began to try the Caesar salad on my dish.
I maintained my composure, not letting room for any slip of nervousness to show as I prepared to practice the exact speech Connor has instructed me to say.
"Fairly well. The weather is great."
"Much compared to Canada?"
"Yes." I did not like where this conversation was heading now. I had never been to Canada before, and neither did I know of the comparison between these two cities.
"Although it snows pretty often and the cold is top-notch, Canada isn't as bad too."
I hope I said it right.
"Of course." She nodded to my relief and resumed her meal. A minute later, she continued to speak again. "My older brother was a professor at the said university you finished from. He takes..."
"Mom." Connor cut in thankfully, saving my sorry ass just in time. "How is the preparation for you and dad's anniversary party going?"
I heaved lightly and offered a small smile of gratitude as he met my eyes for a brief moment.
Mrs Meyers smiled, a big proud smile I wasn't familiar with yet. I took it, she was one of those women who took pride in talking about themselves and their achievements.
Connor sure knew the right buttons to press.
"Well, your father will be returning to the country next week in preparation for our special day. It is going to be massive and the talk of the town." She was smiling to herself as she spoke, blushing to the peak of her ears.
The diners wowed and began to chip in suggestions for the party, with Jessica trying to tower over everybody else, as usual.
"My daughter is an event manager. Let me set her up to handle your event." One of the women on the table spoke, a wide silly grin on her face. I knew people like her. Quick to jump in to save the day. So eager to impress and please.
"Of course, Mrs Franklin. Of course." Mrs Meyers replied with a proud smile.
"I am sure your husband would fall in love with you over and over again. You never age, mom." Jessica commented smoothening Mrs Meyers's arm and Mrs Meyers patted her hand too in affection as they shared a kind of mutual smile that looked something like a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law affection.
Ew. Gross.
"What do you think about the event, Ari? Would we be seeing you at the party?" Mrs Meyers asked, turning her attention to me.
"I will be there, Mrs Meyers." I let an obvious loving gaze rest on Connor. "There is absolutely no way I would let my boyfriend be all alone in such a large gathering. I heard there are a few women who would like to have what isn't theirs for the taking." This time, my gaze travelled to Jessica and I did not fail to see the look of embarrassment and anger on her face.
The whole table felt tensed now and Mrs Meyers faked another smile, her eyes cold and hard on me behind those smiles.
"My son is every woman's dream, Ari. You have sheer luck."
I did not relent to hold on to my bitchy attitude and I picked a small chunk of salad and carefully brought the forkful to my mouth, savouring every last bite.
"Of course, Mom." I did not fail to catch on the slight flare of her nose at the title I had just addressed her with. Jessica looked red with jealousy too. "Just that things are going to be a bit different this time."
I rested my gaze on Connor again to see him fighting to hold back a satisfactory smile. It was a confirmation that I was doing my job well.
"He's already found the one," I added.
"Who found the one?" A deep oddly familiar masculine voice joined us as carefully measured footsteps walked into the dining area and towards the table.
My heart froze this time as my eyes met with my greatest fear. My deepest secret. My biggest regret.
