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“Is it Mel, Brad?” I heard my mom’s voice, but before answering her she turned the corner with an apron.
“Hey, baby girl! I thought you would come early,” she said, pulling me for a hug.
“Yeah, I had something to take care of,” I murmured, didn’t want to bring up the interview. But her eyes showed concern no matter how much I tried to act normal, “Is everything alright?”
“Yes, Mom. It smells delicious. Do you need any help?” I changed the topic as she guided me toward the kitchen.
“No, dear. Everything is ready. Hope you’re hungry.”
“Yeah, famished.”
“Brad?” she called out.
I was feeling slightly awkward, standing in their kitchen like an alien as they happily chatted and worked together. Watching my mom with a man after all those years felt strange… not bad, but just… strange.
“Melody, let’s go to the dining room. Do you have any preference in wine?” Brad asked kindly. He looked so comfortable with me being here and didn’t make me feel like I was a stranger in his house. That felt good.
“No, I’m not picky.”
“Is Kellan coming, love?” Mom asked, coming into the dining room behind us. I felt Brad’s face turned upset, “He said he needed to attend a meeting.”
“We can wait if he’ll make it,” Mom insisted.
“No. We don’t need to wait. He won’t come, Georgia, you know that,” he told her, giving me a kind smile like he was trying to reassure me that everything was alright yet there was still the awkward silence during the dinner. We all focused on our food, giving each other polite smiles.
Brad cleared his throat, “So, Melody. Tell me about yourself. Your mom said you graduated this summer.”
“Yeah. I had double majors in Business Administration and Architecture. I want to be a CEO in an architecture holding one day.”
“Wow, double major. That’s great. You seem ambitious. I’m sure you’re getting lots of propositions from companies,” he said, smiling.
“Actually, no. I mean as a new graduate, people don’t want to give me big responsibilities… and I get it. I’m trying to find a job where I can be an assistant or even an intern, to be honest. I’m trying to keep my hopes as realistic as possible,” I told him, trying not to look pathetic about all this.
“Oh, baby. You will find the perfect job. Have you applied to any positions yet?” my mom asked, caressing my hand on the table.
Yeah… five different companies.
I didn’t tell her this, though… didn’t want to upset her, so I went with a white lie, “Only one, Mom… it was a job I wanted and I think it just made me a little sad. But you’re right. I will find another one.”
“Yes, I’m sure you will find a job that will suit you, Melody,” Brad said and excused himself from the table, leaving me alone with my mom.
“He seems like a good guy,” I muttered.
“Yeah, he really is… and he is excited to have you in the house. Especially since his relationship with his son isn’t in a good place,” she whispered.
“What’s wrong with him and his son? Is it because he married you?”
“I don’t know the whole story, but I think Kellan blames his father for the divorce. I’m not so sure… but they were like this before our marriage.”
Before I could say anything, Brad came into room, “Melody, would you like to work as an assistant to an architect?”
“What?” I blurted, but quickly recovered from it, “I mean, of course. Yeah! I mean… yes, I would love to.”
Brad chuckled, “You have an appointment tomorrow. I cannot guarantee the result, but you need to go and let a very stubborn guy interview you. Don’t let him intimidate you, though, he’s already been impressed with the fact that you graduated with double major degrees.”
“Who will interview me? Which company?”
“Hawke Architecture Holding. Kellan Hawke… my son.”
