"Oh, mother, I've never met anyone like him before." Tatiana pulled another dress off the rack and examined it briefly before replacing it.
"He certainly sounds charming," her mother agreed. "I am so glad we're finally meeting him tonight."
"So am I," Tati agreed. "It would be nice if I could find something to wear for the play tonight, though." She sighed and sat on the couch by the dressing room. Her mother came and sat with her.
"You have some dresses that are plenty fit for the play, darling," she said, brushing her daughter's bangs out of her face.
"I know, I was just… thinking a new dress might impress Edward," Tatiana admitted quietly.
Her mother laughed lightly and said, "Oh, my dear, you don't need to do anything to impress him." She took Tati's chin to make her look at her. "If he truly likes you, you won't need to do anything special. He will adore you no matter what."
Tatiana's cheeks flushed and she stood, smoothing out her skirt. "You're right. You know, I think I'll wear the lavender dress I got for fathers business party last year."
"I think that's a great idea darling," her mother agreed with a smile.
It was early evening by the time there was a knock on the Mason household door.
"You must be Edward." Mr. Mason smiled warmly at the teenager in front of him and outstretched his hand.
"Yes sir," Edward said, shaking the father's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."
"Oh, the pleasure is mine. Come in, my boy." Mr. Mason stepped aside as Edward came in. "Eloise, Edward is here," he called up the stairs.
"Oh, I'm coming!" Edward looked at the staircase as a woman who looked nearly like an older version of Tatiana hurried down the stairs. She held up the skirt of her dress as she made her way down.
She stood I'm front of Edward and took his hands in both of hers. "Oh, it's so lovely to meet you, Edward," she exclaimed. "We are so excited you could come with us."
"Thank you very much for inviting me, ma'am," Edward said with a smile. "I've been looking forward to this all week."
"I'm so glad," Eloise said, dropping his hands. She turned to her husband. "Matthew, go make sure Oliver has on his nice shoes; I'd rather not repeat last time when he managed to get there in his sneakers."
"Of course darling," Mr. Mason said, beginning up the stairs.
Mrs. Mason turned to Edward. "Come, Tati will be along in a moment."
Edward nodded and followed her into the living room. "Your home is very lovely, Mrs. Mason," he said, admiring a painting on the wall.
"Oh, thank you, Edward," she said, glancing at him.
He looked around at the rest of the decorations and moved on to see portraits of the family on the wall. "You have so many beautiful decorations I've never seen before," he noted.
"Matthew and I traveled quite a bit before we had Tatiana," she explained. "We collect decorations from each place we visit. Soon Oliver will be old enough that we can travel as a family."
"That sounds amazing," Edward said, looking at her. "I know my mother has always wanted us to visit her family in northern part of the country."
Mrs. Mason smiled kindly at him. "Well perhaps once the time for travel arises, you and your family could join us."
Before Edward could respond, a boy, who looked about ten, ran into the room, his bow tie crooked, and a small comb stuck in his hair.
"Oliver, you'll trip and hurt yourself!" Tatiana came running in after him, holding her dress skirt up with one hand, and the other reached out towards her brother.
Edward stood as he watched her grab Oliver by the waistband of his dress pants, stopping him in his tracks. She knelt down and pulled the comb from his hair, fixing it gently. "Go get your coat, silly," she said. As he ran off, she turned and noticed Edward for the first time. "Oh, Edward! Hi," she said, blushing gently.
"Hi," he greeted, smiling as she adjusted her hair, letting a few curls frame her face. He walked over to her, and she hugged him gently.
"I'll go make sure the boys are nearly ready," Eloise said, leaving back to the foyer.
Tatiana stood back and looked at him. He wore a simple back coat over a white shirt and black tie. His black slacks fit very nicely, though she could tell the outfit had some wear to it.
"You look great," she said to him, running her hand across the front of his collar.
"Thank you," he said. "My father let me borrow most of this stuff. But you look beautiful." He held her hand and c stepped back to take a better look at her. "Truly breathtaking."
Tatiana blushed more. "Flattery with get you everywhere, Edward," she said with a grin. "As will that charming smile of yours."
Matthew Mason came into the room, now with Oliver in tow who was fully dressed. "Come along you two. The carriage is waiting."
—-
After the play, the Masons attended a small party held by Mr. Mason's employers. There was food and fancy people, and as Mr. and Mrs. Mason socialized with Oliver alongside, Tatiana and Edward had moved aside to a quieter part of the house.
"The part where he dropped the basket everywhere was pretty great add well," Tatiana said with a laugh. She looked down briefly, then back up to meet Edward's green eyes. "I'm so glad you came with us," she said quietly.
"As am I." He looked around the room as people mingled and laughed with each other. "You know, I've never been to such a... Fancy party like this before," he said, giving her a crooked smile. "It's pretty…"
"Fancy?" Tati finished with a grin. "Yes, there are lots of upper class people who attend these things, seeing as they're the majority of who my father works with. To be honest, they get so boring."
"A party like this is boring to you?" Edward asked, as they walked out to a balcony.
"Very much so. I don't really enjoy being around lots of people I don't know anyway, but here, so many of them are just boring adults who only know how to speak flattery and money," she explained. "Especially since I'm seventeen and nearly an adult, they try to treat me as such while they fawn over Oliver."
"Which is boring," Edward assumed with a chuckle. He leaned against the rail of the balcony. "I've never met anyone like you Tatiana," he admitted quietly after a comfortable pause. He looked over at her, admiring the way the moonlight illuminated her already perfect skin and the way her bangs and loose curls danced gently with the breeze.
Tatiana blushed and kept her eyes down. She casually put her hands on the railing to keep herself steady. "I should say likewise," she mused, glancing at him. "I have lived in few cities before this one, and never have I met a person with qualities such as yours."
"I do hope that's a good thing," he teased, earning a laugh from her.
"It's a wonderful thing." She looked out at the street below them, buildings and lamps illuminated gently as people continued milling around the streets.
"Tatiana, if I may," Edward began. He put his hand gently on hers, getting her to look at him. "I just feel… A deep connection with you. I feel more at ease and myself with you than I ever have with anyone before."
"And I, you," Tatiana responded quietly, feeling her heart begin to beat faster.
"I adore you, Tatiana," he admitted softly. "And I would just like to-"
"There they are!" A man's powerful voice boomed from within the house. Edward and Tatiana quickly straightened up, he putting his hands smoothly in his pockets, and she holding her own in front of her.
A tall, wide man dressed finer than anyone else at the party stepped onto the balcony, followed by Tatiana's father. "This is your daughter, Matthew?" The man asked with a grin. "Why, you severely understated how charming she is!" He reached forward and took Tatiana's hand, bowing forward slightly. "It is a pleasure to meet you."
"Darling this is my boss, Mr. McCullough," Matthew said.
"Oh, the pleasure is mine, sir," Tatiana said politely. "My father talks often of how gracious you are."
Mr. McCullough chuckled, then said, "Oh, Mason, always talking me up, are you?"
"Well you more than deserve it, sir," Matthew said with a smile.
"You flatter me," McCullough said. He then turned back to Tatiana. "And who is this young man?"
"Edward Masen," Edward said, meeting McCullough's outstretched hand to shake it.
"He is a friend of Tatiana's and came to the play with us," Matthew explained.
"Must be a good man to get the attention of this family," McCullough said with a nod. "And quite a handsome man, too. You look intelligent as well; that's always a good card to have in your pocket. If you ever have an interest in mathematics or travel for an occupation, I have a feeling you could fit those bills."
"Thank you, sir, but I'm more of a man for the arts," Edward said respectively.
McCullough spread his hands in front of him. "Still, the potential blooms inside of you, I can tell," he said, winking at the end and clapping his hands together. "Now, I should get back to my wife, I'm afraid. It was truly a pleasure meeting you both." And on that note, he made his exit back into the main room.
"We will be leaving soon," Mr. Mason said. "How about you two meet us downstairs in ten minutes?"
"Yes sir," Edward said with a nod, and Mr. Mason left back to the party.
"You were saying?" Tatiana prodded, leaning in towards Edward.
He chuckled and carefully ran a hand through his hair. "I'm afraid it'll have to wait for another time."
He gave her an apologetic look, but she just took his hand quietly. "A raincheck then," she declared. "I'm holding you to that." And she kissed his cheek before towing him back inside.