Private Emotions – Promises (The Private Emotions Trilogy) (8 page)

“Don’t listen to your mother son, you know she lives for this stuff and wouldn’t want it any other way.”

“I know, father, but sometimes I think that she would be just as happy in a tiny house on a cul-de-sac than in that big house.”

“Perish the thought, can you imagine all the neighbors coming over and borrowing things and never returning them?”

“Okay, I’ll see you both in a while and please try and be in good behavior.”

“You’ll be just in time for supper, so I hope your guest likes quail, because I caught me a beauty this morning and I can smell it cooking in the kitchen as we speak.”

We drove up to a house that dwarfed all of the others in the neighborhood and it was a fancy neighborhood. It was so big that I had to turn my head to see the rest of it. There was definitely some very old money behind those walls. I stared in disbelief at what I was seeing. When he mentioned on the phone that he lived in a big house, I never imagined for a moment that it was this gargantuan. I doubted that I could see everything that was part of the property in just the weekend.

“Now, that look is worth not telling you about this place beforehand.”

“Is this all of it, or is there another wing that I can’t see?” I was being sarcastic of course but his childhood home gave the word ‘impressive’ a whole new meaning.

“No, what you see is what you get, besides the pool, stables, tennis court and a skeet shooting range in the back, but there is plenty of time for a tour in the morning. If you are feeling up to it, there’s a special spot on the property that I would love to visit with you, but we’ll have to go by horseback.”

“I know how to ride, well a little. I am not the best of riders but I feel confident enough for a ride. My mom always wanted to learn how to ride but never got the opportunity so she thought that I should learn. I didn’t want to at first but then I warmed to the idea of saddling some young pony.” He snickered and I knew that I had said the wrong thing. “Get your mind out of the gutter, Mr. Sterling. I was taking about riding a horse not a cowboy.”

“Yeehaw.” Then he laughed and I couldn’t help but join him. I finally got myself under control as we exited the vehicle and headed up the driveway of his homestead. I was still in awe of the surroundings and I could tell that this place was built to make their guests feel not only at home but feel spoiled in the lap of luxury. It wasn’t like they were trying to flaunt their wealth but it was a very clear statement that they were trying to impart.

We stepped up to the door and a guy in black allowed us entry saying, “Sir, your parents are in the study and are expecting you.” We followed him down the hallway, while a young man snatched up our luggage and vanished before my eyes.

“Ah, there they are, and not a moment too soon.” His father was a dapper man, impeccably dressed, wearing a smoking jacket and had a cigar enclosed in his lips. His mother was dressed in a top designer label that I would have recognized anywhere. They were pleasant and quite warm, which gave me the impression that they had not allowed their wealth to be the only thing that was considered important.

“Mother and father, I would love to introduce you to the very beautiful, Emily Harris.” They stood and hugged me very lightly and welcomed me with open arms. These were the kind of people that kissed both of your cheeks and then stepped away from you, making you think that you were in the presence of royalty. Judging by what I had seen so far, that wasn’t too far from the truth. Like royalty, they had an air of breeding and sophistication that was undeniable. This explained so much about Ethan and the way he saw the world, but I still wanted to know more, and I got the feeling that his mother would be more than happy to fill in the blanks.

“Father, if you have the time, I would love to see the art that you got for me.”

“Yes, of course, son, but I have to tell you that you have some very odd taste in art, not that I’m judging or anything. As you know, I have more tame tastes when it comes to art, but I do have to admit that one of the paintings I got for you really did speak to me. It was the one with the naked lady on a horse.”

“Ah, that was Lady Godiva, and it is said that she wanted to make a statement to the people so she rode naked into the town center.”

“Hmm, not something you see every day, but maybe they should bring back the practice.”

“Honey, that’s no way to talk in front of a lady.” They went off together to look at the art leaving me in the graces of his mother.

She didn’t even try to grill me about my intentions, but instead took the time to show me pictures of his childhood. I was seeing another side to Ethan that I hadn’t known about before. I could now see where he got his manners and good graces.

“Dear, while they are gone, let me show you something about our Ethan that no one knows.” I followed her to the closet by the front door and after looking around to ensure no one was there, she reached in and took out a wooden box. It had a thin layer of dust on it that told me she had not opened it a quite some time. “You can’t tell him I showed you this but I just have to share a mother’s memories with you.”

She opened the box and passed me various photos of Ethan. I wasn’t expecting any of this but was curious about each and every one. There were photographs of young Ethan’s venture into dance with the tights and ballet shoes to complete the picture. It wasn’t a side of Ethan that I knew and it probably wasn’t a side of him that he wanted me to know.

“I had high hopes for him to be a classical ballet dancer, but then he turned fourteen and it was replaced with cricket of all things. Oh, don’t get me wrong, I was happy to see him enjoying himself with cricket but there was always a small part of me that wished he would have stayed with dance. Now that he is getting back to his art and soon to open his own gallery, his father and I couldn’t be more proud of him. His father was shocked to learn that he wanted to do it with just his own money and not use the family’s fortune. His trust fund is always there of course and if he wanted to use it, then he has full access, but he wanted to do this gallery on his own terms.”

“We’ve talked about that and I have been juggling with the notion of opening my own boutique with my original dress designs. It’s not something that I was thinking about before but now I can’t get it out of my mind.”

“You should do it. How often does anyone have the chance to live their dream? We only get one life to live so we might as well make the most of it. I myself will always regret not becoming a champion rider but with that said, I wouldn’t trade the birth of my lone son for that dream.”

“Dinner is served, madam.” The butler was very discreet. I didn’t even know he was behind us until he was announcing that dinner was ready. His mother hurriedly replaced the box in the closet and made me swear to never to reveal that hidden secret.

Finally, they returned and I could see that Ethan and his father were getting along. We walked into the dining room and I discovered that the table was almost as long as a football field. Maybe that was an exaggeration but it was very long and made me imagine all of the dinner parties that had to be hosted around this table. I was sure that the food would be exquisitely displayed for a bevy of elegant guests.

“Emily, we have quail, fresh squash and a foie gras that is just heavenly.” This explained Ethan’s penchant for the finer foods from restaurants like Au Chanté. He was brought up on this type of food daily, where my family was more of the meatloaf and spaghetti kind of household. I guess the old saying was true, opposites did attract. We couldn’t be more different, although we both had an artist’s eye and that alone was more than most people had in common.

His father said, “My son tells me that you are a designer and you are looking to open your own boutique. If that dress you are wearing is any indication of your talent, young lady, then I would say that it’s possible that you could break that glass ceiling and make your own mark in the field. I don’t suppose my wife has shown you those pictures in the closet.” He whispered under his breath, “She thinks I don’t know about them but I also hold that time close to my heart. You see my own mother was an accomplished ballerina and even though I had to show my displeasure to my friends, I was secretly hoping that he would become one of the great dancers of our time.”

This was certainly not what I was expecting his father to say to me but I guess all families have their skeleton in the closet. Mine was the fact that I was good at fencing but my school barely had the funds to cover soccer, let alone the art of the foil. My talent in that sport was laid to waste but I have good memories of those times.

“Emily, you have to hear about how he won the state championship and then mooned the entire crowd. You see, he was so happy that he got the winning goal in the soccer match that he thought he was going to show his heart boxers under his shorts. He forgot to wear them and instead gave everyone the full monty. It was the scandal of the year and he wasn’t invited to any of the parties that his friends were putting on. It finally blew over when someone in the faculty was, let’s say, caught with his pants down with one of the other teachers.”

Ethan finally joined in on the conversation, “Mother, did you really have to regale us with that story.”

“Would you rather I told her about the time you were getting amorous with a young lady in your car and you hit the gear that sent you both into the river? The maid was picking out fish from your laundry for a week.” We all laughed and poor Ethan had his head in his hands but he didn’t seem all that bothered by any of it.

We all went into the study for a night cap after dinner. It consisted of a cognac that made me want to stock my fridge with the stuff, had it not cost over 500 dollars a bottle. Money was no object for his folks and they didn’t mind spending it.

“Money can’t be brought with you when you die, so you might as well live while you have the chance.” His father was saying the same thing to me that his mother had said and both of them were convincing me that throwing my hat into the ring was the right idea for me. I was convinced now more than ever to go after my dream and own my own boutique. If I didn’t do it soon then I would probably chicken out and not do it at all. It was getting late but I truly enjoyed my time getting to know his parents. They showed me that their son was more than what met the eye. He had humility as well as a stature of breeding and class.

“Son, I have to admit, even though your taste in art surprises me, I have to say that your taste in women has improved drastically.” His father turned to look at his mother. “Do you remember that purple-haired girl and how she convinced our son that goth was the ‘in thing’ that year? I had to come home to see my son wearing dark makeup and all black. I could swear that I was living with a mortician.”

“Honey, be nice, you know us girls can make a man do whatever we want. I seem to remember you sneaking me out of the house late one night only to return looking down the barrel of my father’s rifle. I thought for sure that you were going to wet yourself, but thankfully daddy was just teasing and sent you on your way.”

“I forgot all about that and I thank you for bringing that memory back to life.”

I just had to ask, “Um, so you two were star-crossed lovers from the very beginning?”

“Oh dear, no. I didn’t even like him at the start but he wore me down and finally I relented to going on one date with him. I thought I was immune to his charms but apparently I was wrong and I fell in love with him.”

“As if you had any choice. We Sterlings have our ways, so you had better be careful, Emily, or Ethan will have you under his spell.” Little did his father know that Ethan already had me bewitched.

Ethan looked at his watch and announced that it was late. I didn’t even realize how fast time had moved. “We’ll be retiring for the evening and we’ll see you both in the morning for breakfast at seven.” He kissed his mother and nodded to his father who wasn’t having any of that. He grabbed his son and pulled him into a brief embrace.