It felt like hours later and Jared was kissing her awake. He was dressed now and had brought her breakfast in bed. His attire surprised her as she was used to seeing him in a suit and tie every day at work, and after work he was always dressed in sleek trousers, button down shirts and styled hair. Not this morning though. Today he was wearing camouflage cargo pants, a utility belt and a tight black t-shirt. His hair was still tussled from their earlier passion.
“Suzie sweetie. We are getting ready to gear up and go but I didn’t want to leave without kissing you goodbye,” Jared said, feeding her a grape and arranging pillows behind her so she was propped up. “Stay in bed for a while and relax. You have had a long week. Mom isn’t up yet and Melissa and Tracey are taking the kids to a play date at the playground. It should be quiet. Here,” he said, pressing the button on a remote and handing it to
her. A large screen dropped down at the foot of the bed and the television turned on. “Take some time for yourself today. Mom said to tell you she would be in her studio later this morning and you should come and check it out. It is in the backyard, down the deck steps; follow the path into the trees. You’ll be alright today?”
Laughing, Suzie told him she would be fine. Then she stretched up to hug him and the sheet fell down around her waist. Jared’s eyes and hands went to her pale full breasts. He moaned, holding her tight, grabbing and caressing her. She felt turned on by his new look and she grabbed him by the utility belt and pulled him down on top of her. Jared rubbed his hands up and down her body, stopping to grasp her breasts one at a time while he kissed them with his tongue. At that exact moment, there was a loud knock at the door, which caused it to fly open with Jeff standing in the doorway.
“Man, let’s roll it’s time to…oh.” He stopped suddenly staring at his brother hovering over Suzie. “Sorry bro. Didn’t mean for the door to open. You ready?” Unabashed, his eyes gleamed with laughter as Suzie turned red and rushed to pull the sheet over her chest.
“What the hell. What are you staring for you have your own girlfriend. I was on my way up.” Jared stood to confront his brother.
“I can see that,” Jeff snickered. “Can we go? We picked teams. Dad and the twins versus the rest of them.”
“Fine, I’ll be 30 seconds,” Jeff said, and he shut the door in his brother’s face. He turned back to Suzie. “Sorry, he is such a pig. I am starting to wish we stayed at your place all weekend.”
“No worries. I like it here. I get to see a different side of you. Plus, look at this bed it is so soft and comfy I may stay here all day.” Suzie snuggled down and looked at him. “Now go on and play your game. We can pick up where we left off tonight.”
“Oh yeah. You can count on it.” Jared kissed her again and opened the door to leave. Blowing her a kiss, he closed the door behind him.
Stretching out and wiggling her toes, Suzie smiled happily. Looking around the room she reveled in how simply elegant it was. Gleaming polished wood accented the mossy green walls, and the crisp white linen was soft and exquisite. Changing the channel on the massive screen in front of her, Suzie could not believe it. She was so lucky; with a boyfriend who brought her breakfast in bed and took her to stay in the fanciest place she had ever been. He was amazing. Sighing, Suzie fell asleep again.
When she awoke, she decided she better go be sociable. She hopped in the shower and got dressed. After leaving her room she saw Candy sitting on the couch, painting her toe nails.
“Hi Candy.”
“Oh hi. You’re Jared’s girlfriend. Sharon?” Candy said motioning her to sit down.
“Suzie. Yeah. I am actually going up to visit with Helen do you want to come?” Suzie asked.
“Nah. I’m good. This place is amazing though right? If I knew Jeff’s parents were loaded I would have hooked up with him a lot sooner,” Candy exclaimed.
“Oh? How long have you two been together?” Suzie asked.
“Since last weekend. A bunch of us were partying and my ex was being a douche. So Jeff punched him and took me home.” Candy laughed and continued. “Then he said he wanted me to come with him this weekend. It is not usually my scene but he’s hot right.”
“Yeah, all the Tiefson men are pretty damn good looking,” Suzie agreed. “Nice eye candy.”
“And your Jared, wow. I told Jeff he could look so good if he cleaned up a bit, like his brother,” Candy said. “You better keep an eye on him. I bet all the girls try for him.”
“Yeah. I guess,” Suzie replied. “Anyway I am going to head upstairs, see you up there later?” She acknowledged Candy’s reply and headed upstairs, laughing to herself about their interaction. Now she was going to Jared’s mom’s painting studio. This might be a really weird day.
On her way outside, Suzie stopped in the kitchen where delicious smelling coffee was ready in the pot. She helped herself to a cup and savored the hot bitter taste while she sat taking in the whole cabin. It had seemed impolite to stare last night with everyone around but this place was a palace. A huge stone fireplace climbed up through the vaulted ceiling. A crystal chandelier hung above her head and every section of the place was elegant yet inviting. Even with the grandkids’ toys lying about, it looked like a picture out of a magazine. Savoring the last few sips out of her cup, she cleaned up after herself and went outside. Suzie crossed the large yard, and followed the stone path to the edge of the forest.
What she saw there stopped her in her tracks. It was her dream studio, with the exact same floor to ceiling windows, on the edge of a pine forest on a hill overlooking a lush valley. For a moment, her eyes became wet with tears as she took in the pure beauty and coincidence of finding this place. From the moment she started painting she had envisioned such a studio, but then she stopped painting to get a job and pay bills and life got in the way. She stood there with her mouth agape, lost in reverie. Then Helen opened the door and waved her in.
“I am so glad you’ve come dear,” she said. “Come in, tell me what you think. It is not too often I have a fellow artist in my midst.”
“Oh I am no artist. I dabbled in University. It is barely a hobby,” Suzie stammered, her eyes drawn to the huge colorful canvases surrounding her.
“Regardless, I would love someone to paint with me. My boys stopped painting with me long ago and my silly husband thinks it is purposeless; the world is full of enough beauty he says. How I love them all. I knew one of my boys would bring an artist home, just didn’t think it would be Jared.” Helen rambled, drawing Suzie into the room and clearing a cluttered easel.
While she chatted she set up another easel and canvas, and directed Suzie to the choices of brushes. Suzie’s eyes sparkled and she had no intention of protesting further. The rich paints and picturesque landscape called to her to release the emotion on paper. Paint the feeling of it. This place made Suzie feel so passionate.
“You’re quieter than I expected,” Helen said, after a quiet period of painting had passed. “Jared led me to believe you were quite the chatterbox, always telling him and your co-workers what to do.”
“It takes me a while to get used to large groups,” Suzie responded. “Your boys put on quite a show.”
“Aren’t they amazing? So similar and yet so different.” Helen shared a small story for each of her children and described their childhood with a smile. The next few hours flew by as Suzie chatted with Helen and focused on her painting. By mid-afternoon they were hungry and ready for a break. They went back to the house and sat on the deck. Helen brought lunch and Suzie went to invite Candy to join them. She did, bringing with her a bottle of wine and three glasses. Sitting around the picnic table, Candy poured three glasses and handed them out.