Shocked to see more so soon!? I know I am.
This part was supposed to include more, but I decided to cut it short and write the rest of it as another chapter. Mainly because this dragged out a little. It also means that you might have the next part sooner rather than later (because the whole thing is written in my head- just need to type it all out).
Again, as always, thank you all so much for your reviews and continued interest in this story. I know it's not as action packed and plot-heavy as others, but I promise this is a story curve in this story (however subtle it may come across). I'm just glad that you all seem to be enjoying it.
-...-
Their time in the elevator on the way down to the car park, could have been more awkward, Mary told herself. The four of them were silent until Cora spoke up, informing them that she'd call ahead in the car to say they were on their way. "Any seating preferences?" She added.
Mary sighed "nowhere near the window".
"Oh, honestly Mary," Matthew caught Cora's accompanying eye roll as she spoke and if the atmosphere wasn't so awkward he might have laughed at how much she reminded him of Mary in that moment.
Mary raised a single eyebrow, "don't you 'oh Mary' me. I assume we're going to the Ivy?"
Violet make a loud tutting sound, "of course we are. Where else would we go?"
Mary shook her head "there are plenty of more low key places in London. And that's exactly my point. I don't want someone photographing me while I'm trying to eat."
This time it was Cora's turn to shake her head "you'll get by Mary, just as you always do." Mary was straight faced and Cora smiled sympathetically at her daughter; she knew why she was on edge. A younger Mary loved to be photographed wherever she went- any publicity was good publicity, but the more bad press she had, the more private she'd become. The fact that she was even allowing this- Matthew dining with them, when the likelihood they would be photographed being high, was a big deal for Mary and while Cora couldn't relate to her daughter's reasoning, she definitely understood why she was acting this way.
It didn't go unnoticed by either Cora or Violet when Matthew took hold of Mary's hand lightly. Surprisingly, Mary linked her fingers between his and when the elevator doors opened the pair of them walked out hand-in-hand into the the car park.
"The car is just over there" Cora pointed to her chauffeur driven black car just a few meters away. "Oh." She stopped quickly, looking up at Matthew and then to Violet and back to Mary, who's hand was still firmly linked with Matthew's. "There's too many of us. Shall we wait while you call for your car and we can arrive together?"
"Fine", she released Matthew's hand to take her phone from her handbag in order to call for one of her company's drivers. She didn't mean to act this way, but she hadn't been prepared for this. Matthew and her mother and grandmother all eating together was such a big deal to her. She knew how over enthusiastic her Mom could be and she knew how sharp her grandmother's tongue was. On top of that, they were going to a high end restaurant, which always had photographers waiting outside at lunch time. This was just all too much. Matthew was sweet, as always, and she hoped she wouldn't take it out on him. Hoped this whole lunch wouldn't put him off. He took her hand in the elevator and she held onto it quickly, hoping he understood why she felt uneasy; knowing he knew that she liked to keep as private as possible.
Matthew furrowed his brow, "wait", he placed his hand gently on Mary's arm. "We can fit in one car. I don't mind the front passenger."
Mary's eyes fell shut, preparing for the onslaught to begin. However, silence followed Matthew's proposal. Mary quickly disconnected the ringing phone that hadn't yet been answered and dropping her mobile back into her handbag, Mary's eyes searched for her grandmother's reaction.
Violet's eyes were wide, her mouth almost hanging open in a state of shock. Her mouth moved but no words came out for a few moments, until eventually she shuddered "I won't hear of it."
"Granny" Mary warned.
"The passenger seat!" She breathed. "Honestly."
Mary inhaled deeply, placing her palm on Matthew's forearm. "Thank you Matthew, it will be so much easier with us all in one car, don't you think Granny? Mom?" She looked at each of them in turn, her eyes wide in the direction of her mother, hoping she would support her in this. Her Granny's old fashioned views were worse than her father's at times.
"Well, of course" Cora tried to smile. Waving over to her driver and the car quickly moved towards them. "Thank you Matthew." Mary smiled and pulled Matthew to the car by his wrist. The driver got out and opened the back door and Mary slid in onto the seat.
"I hope you don't mind some company in the front" Violet heard Matthew speak out to the older man and she quickly grasped Cora's arm.
"This is preposterous" her voice was low now, directed towards Cora's ear; finally showing an ounce of subtlety.
Cora sighed, "I know it's not proper, but please be nice. For Mary's sake."
"Cora, the man just offered to sit with the help. What do you expect me to think? How do you expect me to react?"
Cora's amused smile was tight and then suddenly very serious, she placed her own hand on top of Violet's "how many boyfriends of Mary's have we met?"
Violet pursed her lips. "Fine, but don't expect me to keep tight lipped if he orders a burger and fries. Nor if he asks for a beer."
Cora grinned knowingly down at her mother in law, wondering how she ever got the seal of approval all those years ago. "After you Mother" she nodded towards the car and a sigh of relief escaped her when she lowered herself inside.
During the moderately short car ride to the restaurant, Mary mentally kicked herself for wishing that Matthew was just a little less friendly. His friendliness was one of the things that was so endearing to her, something she immediately took to and liked about him. He was charming and friendly and nice and kind. She hated that, in that moment, when he could clearly be heard from the back seat asking the driver about his day and making general small talk about the traffic, she wished he was different.
Mary frowned and narrowed her eyes towards the older two women sitting to her right in the car. They were silent, but it was clear by their expressions that they were taken back and uncomfortable with the conversation in the front of the car. As a child, Mary was taught not to converse with the family's staff. Cora wasn't particularly strict about it; in fact if she had her way, the staff would have been on-call so could summon them as she wished . But Robert, and particularly Violet (who was a regular fixture at the dinner table during her childhood) were extremely strict about class and the friends they made.
Mary inhaled deeply as she heard Matthew chuckle a little at what the driver had said to him. She heard her granny sigh and knew that her mother's driver would get a stern talking to later. Of course, she didn't want to change Matthew. After such a short amount of time knowing him, she knew that already. However, Mary knew that in the presence of her grandmother, she was going to have to take extra care and effort to remind herself of this fact. She didn't want to take her frustrations out on Matthew and she certainly didn't want to ruin what they'd built between them so far.
Mary was almost relieved when the car pulled up outside of the Ivy. The driver got out of the car, quickly followed by Matthew and both of the rear doors opened. Mary smiled up at Matthew, silently thanking him for the gesture as she slid gracefully out of the car. He placed his hand on the small of her back and the pair of them walked around the car to meet up with the Cora and Violet, who stood smiling for the lone photographer outside the restaurant. Mary kept her head down and breezed passed the duo (with Matthew by her side), ignoring the photographer completely.
...-...
Luckily, Matthew hadn't ordered the one and only hamburger on the menu, but opted for an egg salad instead. Cora had insisted on a bottle of wine on the table, even after both Mary and Matthew said they'd rather stick to water due to their afternoon work commitments. "Oh," she had waved her hand loosely in her daughter's direction, "one glass won't hurt."
Mary had sighed heavily, "one very small glass."
So far, the lunch had been as awkward and as tense as predicted. Matthew had attempted to lighten the mood many times, with small jokes and general chatter about his work and questions regarding Cora and Violet's plans for the afternoon, and even a few about Mary's childhood. Most were answered with a sarcastic tone, quick witted remark, or an eye roll from Violet. Mary needn't have worried about taking her frustrations out on Matthew. In fact, she found herself taking his hand under the table, brushing her palm against his knee in reassurance, smiling warmly a little when their eyes met. If she was a little braver and if they were in a less public place, Mary might have stuck up for Matthew in a more vocal way.
He handled it well, Mary thought. Never did he retaliate, nor did he let one of her remarks silence him. He welcomed Mary's touch under the table and made every effort not to check his wrist watch every 10 minutes.
Cora felt for her daughter. She saw how uncomfortable she was and made every effort to try and make the atmosphere a little better for the pair of them. She asked Matthew about his job; if he'd acquired many clients, how many employees he had and how busy his days were in general. She smiled warmly as she always did and changed the topic when Violet's comments appeared to make the young couple uncomfortable. She watched her daughter carefully and as their plates were cleared by a waiter and the group confirmed that they would be ordering from the dessert menu, Cora excused herself from the table, encouraging Violet to visit the ladies' room with her.
After watching her mother and grandmother move away from the table and round a corner towards the ladies' room, Mary turned to Matthew, "I'm so sorry." She placed her palm on his knee firmly and he smiled a small smile back her her, placing his hand on top of hers. "It'll be over soon, I promise."
"Your grandmother doesn't like me very much."
Mary shook her head, moving her hand from his knee and caressing the base of his neck. She moved a little closer, so much so that he could feel her breath. "I like you." She kissed his lips softly.
"I want your family to like me" he almost pouted and Mary leant forward to place another kiss on his lips; this time lingering, trying to reassure him; letting him know that it didn't matter.
"My granny doesn't really like anybody. Sometimes I wonder how much she likes me." She tried to joke, but Matthew was still serious.
"She loves you. And that's why she hates me."
Mary raised her eyebrow, "hate is a very strong word."
"Your mother seemed to like me more the first time she met me." He sighed, "maybe I shouldn't talk so much" he added, thinking about what he could have done wrong.
The tips of Mary's fingers found the hair at the nape of Matthew's neck "she likes you just fine."
Matthew rewarded her efforts with a small half smile. "Well this certainly wasn't what I had in mind when I came to see you."
"Hmm." She pushed her fingers further into his hair and pulled him closer to her. Luckily, they had been sat in a back corner of the restaurant and the nearby tables were empty. "Don't. I still want you so much." Her voice was low, her tone smooth.
"Maybe we should do something about that."
"My office does have a small en suite."
"It does?"
"Mmm hmm" she nodded. "I can send Anna a text; give her an errand."
"But what if we get caught?" He mirrored her earlier question.
"After what you've been put through this lunch time, I think I ought to take the risk."
This time it was Matthew's turn to lean forward and capture her lips between his own. He sucked a little on her bottom lip and her hand tightened at the back of his neck. "How are we going to get rid of your mother and grandmother?" He murmured.
"We are both busy people Matthew. We have meetings to attend." Her grin was mischievous.
"I actually do have a meeting at 2.30."
Mary released him to take hold of his wrist and look at the time on his watch. "We'll just have to decide on our desserts quickly then won't we."
-...-
Stood in the ladies's room, while Violet washed her hands, Cora applied a fresh coat of lipstick. "Please don't tell me you approve of that man Cora."
Cora shrugged her shoulders, carefully placing her lipstick back into her clutch before looking back up at her reflection. "He seems nice. Mary likes him an awful lot. "
"That's what worries me! Did she honestly think we wouldn't be able to see them holding hands under the table? He's completely wrong for her, Cora. You know it as well as I do."
"I don't think I do. He's charming and handsome and-"
"And offers to sit in the passenger seat!" Violet interrupted. "And the way his shirt sleeves were rolled up."
Cora rolled her eyes "he's wearing a tie and seems well tailored."
Violet shook her head in disbelief. "Her standards have always been so high. Why does she decide that now is a good time to lower them?"
"Maybe we should just wait and see what happens. They've only known each other a few weeks."
"Exactly! Look how taken she is with him already." Violet's eyes were wide, "who do we know? Who is still single? What about -"
"No" Cora held up her palm. "Just try, just please try for Mary. After all, I always got the impression she was your favourite" she smiled knowingly.
"And that's exactly why I want what's best for her. He's got nothing to offer her."
"He owns his own law firm."
"Owning something doesn't make you successful, Cora."
"You didn't like me much when we first met either."
"That's different."
"How? Because I had money? Because I was able to help Robert when his business was failing?" Violet was clearly shocked at Cora's outburst and for the first time during interactions with her daughter-in-law, didn't know what to say. "Robert and I were lucky. He didn't love me when we married,"
"Robert loves you. Of course he does."
Cora nodded. "Yes, he does. But it took him 11 months to do so. I was naive when we married and thought we were in love. I loved him, I loved him dearly, but I didn't know his feelings until one day, almost a year into our marriage, something changed. I felt it. I knew he loved me and up until that point he hadn't. I don't want that for Mary. I want her to find love. I want her to be with whomever she chooses and not because they have money or status or because it's who her family have chosen for her."
"Leave it to the American to be romantic."
"But love is romantic. It should be."
"And you're happy with Robert."
Cora nodded. "I am. But please, just be nice to Matthew. For Mary's sake. Everything will turn out just the way it should."
"Fine" her sigh almost sounded like a groan. "I'll be civil, but I don't have to be happy about it."
When the pair of them approached the table, Cora stopped and pointed over to the young couple. "See, look how adorable they are." She smiled, watching as Mary's fingers moved over Matthew's jaw; their faces as close as they could be while sitting in their seats.
"Trust you to see something completely inappropriate as adorable." Violet stepped further towards the table and cleared her throat loudly, alerting Mary and Matthew to their return.
-...-...-...
They finished their desserts and as they were waiting for their bill, Mary's phone rang. She looked over at her mother and grandmother apologetically before searching for it in her bag. "Oh. It's Rose."
"Oh yes," Violet answered, "I forgot to mention she was visiting for a few days. She did tell me she was going to call."
Mary looked up at her mother, silently asking permission to answer while sat at the table. Cora nodded and Mary turned to Matthew quickly before placing the phone against her ear, "a cousin of sorts" she told him quickly before connecting the call. "Hello?"
"Mary! How are you?"
"I'm good. I've actually just finished lunch. Granny tells me you're in London for a few days."
"Yes, 2 more actually. I was just calling to see if you wanted to catch up this evening?"
"Oh. Umm" Mary looked up at Matthew. They hadn't made plans for tonight, but assumed they would be doing something, especially because he was visiting his mother all weekend.
"Please Mary. I can't get in to most of the good clubs without being a member."
Mary laughed a little, "oh so it's my membership you want and not my company."
"No. Well, both actually. Come on, just me and you. It'll be nice- we haven't been out in such a long time. Not since my 21st."
"The thing is Rose, I'm not sure what I'm doing tonight." She met Matthew's eyes and he quickly realised what she meant. He shook his head quickly.
"Go" he whispered to her. Her eyes questioned him and he nodded. "Please. It's fine. We've not planned anything. I'll be packing anyway." He didn't want to be the type to stop her from going out and having fun without him, no matter how unintentional.
Mary suddenly felt disappointed. "Oh. Ok. Fine, I'll text you later after work and we can sort out the details."
"Yay!"
"I'll see you later."
"Bye Mary, thank you"
"Bye." Mary placed her phone on the table, looking across at her mother who was paying the bill and then back at Matthew. She didn't want to question it now. She wasn't sure she wanted to question him at all. Not only had she assumed that they'd be spending the night together, but she also wanted to spend it with him. He was going away for the entire weekend. She wondered if he simply wasn't bothered, if he wanted an early night or if he was just saying it because he thought it was what she wanted. Mary sighed; maybe she'd ask him about it later.
