Worlds Apart

3. Fighting Under The Sheets

I had been at the Inn for almost two hours. The couple I was showing the venue to were adorable, so much that it made me smile none stop. They looked at each other with so much love like it was a secret, but a sparkle in their eyes gave it away. I wonder if Mads and I were obvious as this couple. Had people seen the smiles and the love that I desperately had for him?

I walked them through the grand hall through the large doors that led to the east wing. Their eyes lit up at the sight of the grand ball room. I remember when Mads gave me an official tour of the east wing for the first time. It was probably in late February when we spent the day walking and talking all around the estate. When he showed me the grand ball room, it had been the last room he'd shown me. I had never seen it due to Kristi focusing on the outside for the wedding. Once my eyes saw the beautiful cream and white colors blend together, the gorgeous walls, the amazing high ceiling and French windows.

I smile as I walk in. The couple was speechless. The bride-to-be, Riley, had dropped her jaw with the sight of the place. Her fiancé, Cassius, had simply smiled.

"The ceilings are hand painted," I comment.

"I bet this place has amazing acoustics," Cassius says.

"It does. My boyfriend, when he first showed me this room, he had linked his phone to a small stereo, he played this beautiful piano piece. The stereo was on the lowest volume setting yet echoed like a concert hall," I explain, smiling at the memory.

"Aw! How romantic! Does your boyfriend work here too?" Riley asked.

I blush at the first part, then let out a chuckle at the last.

"He owns the Inn," I say nonchalantly.

Cassius roars in laughter. I'm confused at first. Did he not believe me?

"So you are that Allison...honestly I thought it was a coincidence but...Mads is a lucky son of bitch. Always getting the best of the best," Cassius says laughing.

Riley shakes her head. Her eyes roll and she wonders away. Did I say something wrong?

"How do you know Mads?" I ask awkwardly.

"My father knows him. They met while studying over in Sicily for a summer back in... well a long time ago."

"I remember him telling me that he went to Italy for a summer when he was in his twenties. I had no idea he was studying there."

"Well you know him, he never talks about himself. Modest and humble. Which is why it's hard to hate him," Cassius says laughing.

"He is stubborn though," I say with a chuckle to ease my current anxiety.

After showing them the dining hall, they sounded even more pleased, however Riley continued to be somewhat odd after the ballroom. Any questions I asked, she would give short answers to. Anytime I tried to lighten the mood she seemed to just nod and look away shyly. It was an odd transformation but either way Cassius wrote a check at the end to reserve the Inn for next spring.

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Penelope was willing to make the meal for Mads. I grabbed two bottles of Merlot, the only red wine that we agreed on, and put them in the library.
Mads texted me saying that he would pick me up around 5:30. Two hours from now.

The bottles of wine and the choice of food reminded me of when Mads and I had transformed from two separate entities to one. My lips curved into a smile, as I sat at the desk in the library. Remembering the things, he said and the things he did to relax me. There was no real word to describe it.