“Nice to see you as well, sir. I’m glad you could make it out this weekend.” Mason bowed slightly.
Adrien gestured for Ion to join him. “Do you really think I would miss my mother’s party?”
Mason snorted, then glanced over his shoulder as if checking to make sure no one was behind him. “If you could, I’m sure you would, sir.”
“You know me too well.”
Ion was surprised when Adrien hugged the guy before grabbing Ion’s hand to drag him in front of Mason.
“This is my boyfriend, Ion Vasile. Ion, this is Mason. He’s been the butler here for as long as I can remember.”
That would explain why he seemed so friendly with the man. Adrien had probably spent more time with Mason than with his own father. Ion held out his hand.
“It’s nice to meet you, sir.”
“Please, just call me Mason. And likewise, sir. I’m glad Adrien is finally bringing someone home for us to meet.” Mason stepped back and motioned for them to come in. “Your parents are getting ready. You have enough time to change before cocktails.”
“Thanks, Mason.”
Ion let Adrien lead the way upstairs to the left wing of the house. Dylan nodded to them as they passed in the hallway. Adrien opened the double doors at the end of the corridor.
“This is my suite when I stay here. Dylan should’ve put our bags in the bedroom over there.” Adrien pointed to the door on the left. “The bathroom is on this side.” He gestured towards the door closest to them on the right. “I’m going to wash up, then change.”
He followed Adrien in, not surprised when he spotted two sinks and the large shower. “No expense was spared in building this place, was there?”
“Why would there be? It’s not like my father didn’t have the money, and my mother has very expensive taste.”
They cleaned up, then dashed across the sitting room area to the bedroom where their bags had been set on the king sized bed. Dylan had taken the time to hang up Ion’s garment bag, so Ion went to get his suit out, plus grab the hostess gift Patrick had helped him pick out.
He dressed quickly, then checked his reflection in the mirror. “Is this okay?”
Adrien trailed his gaze from the top of Ion’s head to the tips of his shoes. Ion relaxed when he smiled and walked over to kiss his cheek.
“You look perfect, and Mother is going to love you.” Adrien gave him a wink. “If she doesn’t, who cares? Because I do and I’m the only one that matters.”
Ion grabbed Adrien by the head, and brought their lips together in a crushing kiss. He needed the sting to remind him of that fact. They took the stairs together, then Adrien went right before heading towards the back of the building. Mason stood next to a pair of French doors done in beautiful stain glass.
“Cocktails are being served out on the veranda, sir.” Mason opened one of the doors for them.
“Thank you, Mason.” Adrien went through and Ion nodded at Mason before walking outside.
Taking a deep breath of the bracing salt-tinged sea air, Ion gripped the bottle of wine in his hand while approaching the rather distinguished looking couple Adrien greeted.
“Mother.” Adrien kissed the air close to his mother cheek before turning to shake his father’s hand. “Father.”
“Adrien dear, so wonderful of you to come join us this weekend.” She smiled at Ion, and said, “You must be Ion Vasile, my son’s companion.”
“He’s my boyfriend, Mother. Calling him my companion makes it sound like both of us are in our nineties on our way to the home.” Adrien held out his hand for Ion. “Ion, this is my father, Robert, and my mother, Alyssa.”
“Sir.” Ion shook Robert’s hand, then turned to hold out the bottle of wine to Alyssa. “I understand this is your favourite wine, ma’am.”
Alyssa took his gift, and read the label. Her blue eyes weren’t nearly as brilliant as her son’s, but Ion could see where he got them from. Her unlined face lit up with joy before she leant forward to kiss his cheek.
“Thank you so much, Ion. You’re right. This is one of my favourites.” She handed it off to Mason. “We’ll have some of that right now.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She slid her hand through Ion’s arm, drawing him close to her as they moved towards a cluster of chairs at the edge of the veranda. “Now where did you and Adrien meet? He’s told us nothing about you.”
Ion glanced back, but Adrien was talking to his father. Alyssa laughed as she motioned for Ion to sit.
“They’ll be talking business for a little while. Robert always has to check in on the company when Adrien comes for a visit.” She patted his hand. “It’s nice to have someone else to chat with while they’re doing this.”
Ion wished they’d thought to discuss their story of meeting. He wasn’t sure if Adrien wanted his parents to know how they met. “We met at the company. I used to work in the mail room, but I got a promotion.”
“The mail room? Really?” Her perfectly arched eyebrows rose a little. “What kind of promotion?”
“I just started working as a troubleshooter. Part time until I get my degree from Columbia Business School.” He bit his lip, not wanting to babble, simply because he was scared that she would discover he wasn’t good enough for her son.
“Columbia? That’s a nice school. Thank you, Mason.” Alyssa took a glass from the tray Mason held. “I’m not sure what a troubleshooter is. My interests lie in different directions than my husband and son.”
“Adrien said you are involved in a lot of charity work,” Ion brought up. Of course, it wasn’t Adrien who’d told him that. He’d gleaned all the information he could about Adrien’s parents from Patrick.
A genuine smile lit up Alyssa’s face as she began telling Ion about all of her charities. He found the variety of them interesting, and was amazed how she managed to keep them all separate in her mind.
Adrien and Robert joined them as Alyssa wound down, and Ion smiled at Adrien when his lover touched his shoulder before sitting next to him. Alyssa tapped Robert’s hand to draw his attention.
“Ion works at Bellamy with Adrien. He’s a new troubleshooter.”
Robert frowned. “Dating inside the company, Adrien? Not something I’d advise.”
“It works for us, Father. Have Amelia and Jonathon arrived yet?”
Alyssa went with Adrien’s change of subject. “They just got here a few minutes ago. They were going to change, then join us.” She took a sip of the wine before smiling at Ion. “This is marvellous, Ion.”
“Thank you, ma’am. I’m glad it was the right kind.” He would take all the credit for the wine if it helped her like him and maybe get Adrien to relax.
“Do you know anything about car racing, Ion?” Robert asked.
Ion pursed his lips then admitted, “Not one thing, sir. I tend to watch baseball or hockey.”
“Call me Robert. I bought a racing team when I retired from the company,” Robert informed him, and Ion could see the excitement shine in the man’s face.
“Tell me about it.”
Both Adrien and his mother rolled their eyes, but Ion didn’t care. He’d found that the best way to truly get to know someone was to ask them about things they loved. Listening to Robert about his team was a small price to pay if it made Robert happy. That was what he planned to do with all of Adrien’s family as he met them.
Chapter Eight
Ion nibbled on his nail, suddenly finding himself more nervous than he’d ever been.
Why did I think I could do this?
He paced the bedroom then paused in front of the mirror to check out his reflection. He tugged on the cuffs of his shirt, hoping he looked good enough to pass inspection for Alyssa’s party. He’d never gone to a formal event like this, and he didn’t want to embarrass Adrien or his family.
“Ion, can you come here for a moment,” Adrien called from the living room area of the suite.
“Sure.” He snatched up the small gift wrapped box he’d brought from the city.
As he entered the other room, Adrien turned around and Ion froze at the sight before him. The tuxedo Adrien wore had been tailored to fit him within an inch. His white shirt showed off his tan and his silk vest matched his eyes.
“What the hell am I doing here,” Ion whispered.
Adrien snorted. “Honey, you’re here to keep me from killing my family. I don’t know how you’ve done it, but they love you. I’ve never seen any of them warm up to a person like they have to you. My mother hasn’t made one comment about where your parents live or what they do. Amelia told me today that she wants to come visit us in the city, and they never come to Manhattan if they can help it.”
Ion set Alyssa’s present on the table by the door before he threw his arms around Adrien’s neck. He brought his lover’s lips down to his and devoured them. He poured all of his love and joy into their embrace. No matter how the party ended for him, he was so glad he’d got to know Adrien better.
After breaking their kiss, Adrien grinned. “Not that I’m complaining, Ion, but what was that for?”
“I love you,” he blurted out then bit his lip.
Adrien looked a little stunned and Ion wasn’t sure he wanted to know how Adrien felt about him.
“You don’t have to answer me. I just wanted to let you know before we go down for the party. I hope I don’t embarrass you,” he muttered.
“God, you had to tell me this when I can’t take you to bed to show you how much I love you,” Adrien complained. “That’s not fair.”
“The party won’t go on all night, love. Who says we can’t sneak up here later on and have some fun before the end?” Ion nuzzled along Adrien’s jaw.
Adrien moaned then eased Ion away from him. “You keep that up and we will be late, which is unforgivable to my mother. I called you in here to give you something.”
He looked at the box Adrien held out to him. After opening it, he found a pair of sapphire cuff links. Ion lifted them out then held them up to the light.
“They’re the same colour as your eyes,” he pointed out.
“I know. I thought you might like them. I figured Salvatore would include some with your tux, but I wanted to get you something.” Adrien helped him switch the jewellery out.
Ion cradled Adrien’s face in his hands. “Thank you.”
He wasn’t going to argue about Adrien buying him anything else. At least not the cuff links. They were a gift given not because Adrien thought Ion might not have the
right
kind, but because he simply wanted to give him something.
“You’re welcome.” Adrien kissed him quickly then motioned towards the door. “We should be getting down there.”
“All right.” Ion picked up Alyssa’s present before following Adrien out of their suite.
The rest of the family had gathered in Robert’s study for a quiet drink before the chaos of the party started. Ion hung back as Adrien went to greet his parents and Amelia. When he saw all of them standing there together in their finest clothes, he couldn’t believe how beautiful the entire family was.
“It’s stunning, isn’t it?”
He turned to see Jonathon standing next to him, staring at the same sight he was. “Yes. I don’t think it should be legal for them all to look so good.”
Jonathon chuckled. “And you haven’t even met the most beautiful of them all. Alain is almost angelic in looks. Too bad he’s pure devil in his soul.”
“He’s not coming?” Ion hadn’t asked Adrien about what members of his family were going to be there.
“Oh no. I’m sure there’s a woman to be seduced, a horse to bet on, or a card game to be played somewhere in the world. His mother’s birthday won’t even be a thought in his head tonight.” Jonathon sipped his whisky then continued, “But Alyssa will forgive him when he chooses to appear because he knows how to wrap her around his finger.”
Ion sort of understood what that was like, considering how his parents felt about Bogdan, but he had a feeling Alain was a whole lot worse than his older brother ever thought of being.
“Ion, you look quite handsome tonight.” Alyssa gave him an air kiss before she spotted the box in his hand. “Oh, is that for me?”
He held it out. “Of course, you’re the only birthday girl in the room.”
“You didn’t have to get me anything. It’s enough that you chose to come with Adrien. I’m sure you heard horror stories about us.” She winked while taking the gift.
He chuckled. “We’ve exchanged family horror stories, Alyssa. I’m happy to say you’re all not nearly as bad as Adrien said you would be.”
“We all know what he says about us,” Amelia said as she joined their little group. “It’s not flattering, but we say bad things about him all the time. It’s the family tradition.”
“I always thought he never brought a boyfriend home to meet us because he was embarrassed by us, but now I think he didn’t bring one because he was ashamed of them.” Robert clapped his hand to Ion’s shoulder. “You should be proud. Adrien brought you here, so that must mean he thinks you’re a good man.”
“He’s right here,” Adrien spoke up from where he stood near the door of the study.
Ion started to say something, but Alyssa actually squealed when she opened Ion’s present. Everyone stared at her in surprise, making Ion think it had been a while since she’d made that kind of sound.
“Oh my God, how did you know?” She lifted a long gold chain from the box, and the butterfly pendant dangled from it.
“Just a lucky guess.” He owed Patrick big time for helping him out with what to buy.
“It’s gorgeous.” She gestured for Robert to put it on her. “I’ve been wanting one of these for months. But the designer was always so busy.”
“As luck would have it, I know the designer and she was more than happy to make one for you.” Once he’d spilled his guts to Patrice and explained why the necklace was so important to him.
Amelia and Jonathon admired the jewellery along with Robert while Adrien strolled over to Ion.
“You know someone who makes designer jewellery that costs thousands of dollars?” Adrien shot him a questioning glance.
Ion smirked. “Patrick’s twin sister.”
“Ah. That’s not really fair you know. You’re making the rest of us look bad.” He encircled Ion’s waist. “It’s a good thing I like you, or I’d be jealous of how much my mother seems to love you. The only other person she’s like this with is Alain.”
“Jonathon was telling me about him. I’m not sure I want to meet your brother.” Ion shifted to rest more of his weight on Adrien, trusting his lover to keep him standing.