Candace couldn't say she wasn't impressed by Bryan's and Sonia's taste as Jade gave her a tour of the house showing her every inch of it, while the workers busied themselves with their assignment both around and inside the house.
"This place is going to be spectacular by the time they are done," Candace said, and Jade nodded.
"I have no doubt about it. Now all we have to do is hope that things go smoothly tonight," Jade said and Candace raised a brow.
"What could possibly go wrong? We both know Sonia is going to be over the moon with joy," Candace pointed out and Jade grinned.
"Sure. It's beautiful being a part of this, isn't it?" Jade asked and Candace nodded.
"It is. Weeks ago I never would have imagined my life would take such a turn and I would be here like this hanging out with people like you," Candace said with a small smile.
"Can you imagine all you would have thrown away had you gone ahead with your plan to get rid of Jero?" Jade asked, and Candace scowled.
"But I didn't," she pointed out.
"Agreed. I'm just trying to say, this teaches us that some things are better left to time. Some of our present worries and concerns become insignificant with time," Jade said with a shrug.
"I suppose you're right. I wonder how Sonia hasn't caught on yet when she always acts like she is all knowing," Candace said changing the subject.
"How is she supposed to know anything when we are being really discreet? Even Lucy doesn't have a clue," Jade said, and Candace glanced at her watch.
"Speaking of Lucy, I wonder how she is doing with Jamal. Do you think I should check on them?" Candace asked, and Jade shook her head.
"Lucy is someone I can trust with my kid. And considering how much Jamal adores her, you can bet they're having a smooth day," Jade said confidently.
"That's right. It's amusing to see him so taken by her. I wonder how she would react when she finds out he actually took one of Harry's cards to pay for their date," Candace said with a grin and Jade looked at her with amused disbelief.
"You're kidding, right?" Jade asked, amused by the thought of Jamal paying for lunch or whatever Lucy was getting him.
Candace giggled, "I wish I was. He quizzed Harry and his grandpa about dates and all, and then asked for money to pay for the date. Well, I didn't expect Harry or our dad to fight over whose card he could go with," Candace said with a grin, and Jade giggled.
"That boy of yours is something. You must be so proud," Jade said and Candace nodded.
"I am. Every day I am grateful for the gift that he is. Sometimes he can be a pain in the ass though," Candace said as Jeff and Mia joined them.
"Bryan said you were with the chef. How did it go?" Jade asked them, since they were in charge of the refreshments.
"We have it all under control," Mia assured her.
"We came over to see if you needed extra help here," Jeff told Jade.
"I'm not sure I do, but maybe you could help me supervise the decoration being done outside and see if something is missing," Jade said, and they both left.
As Jade and Candace stepper into the passage way, they heard a familiar voice talking with Mia and Jeff in the living room.
"Isn't that Matt?" Jade asked Candace who was wondering the same thing.
"Where are the gorgeous ladies?" Matt asked as he appeared by the passageway.
"What are you doing here? We weren't expecting you," Jade said, and Matt arched a brow.
"Bryan might be your brother, but I'm his best friend and I'm here to make sure everything is going smoothly and to see if there is any manly chores you need me to run," Matt said before shifting his gaze to Candace.
"Hello, Candace!"
"Hi, Matt! What's up?" She asked, and Jade rolled her eyes.
She thought it was ridiculous that they both thought she could be fooled by such casual hellos when she already knew they were screwing each other.
"You know what? I will just excuse you two and join Jeff and Mia outside," Jade said before walking away, leaving them alone.
They both stared at each other for a moment without saying anything, and Matt walked up to her and kissed her.
Candace's lips twitched with an amused smile as he broke the kiss, "This whole stuff is silly," she said with a shake of her head.
"I'm glad you think so too. Now that it seems they all know about our little affair, do you think it makes sense to pretend otherwise?" Matt asked as he took her hand and pulled her into one of the bedrooms closest to them and shut the door.
"Yes. Let's keep it the way it is. I won't let them dictate to me what I should do or how I should do it. You're not bringing any friend with you tonight, are you?" she asked, and Matt grinned.
"Do you want me to?" he asked, wanting to get a reaction.
"Why don't you try it?" Candace asked with a sweet smile, and kissed his jaw before walking away.
Away from there, Lucy was having a swell time with Jamal. Her first moment of shock had come when she was about to pay for their movie tickets and Jamal brought out a card to make the payment.
Well, she had not exactly been the only one shocked. Even the cashier had been taken aback by the gesture as well.
"What are you doing?" Lucy had asked in amusement, while looking around slightly embarrassed.
"I want to pay. Uncle Harry said a gentleman handles the bills," Jamal explained, and the cashier chortled.
"Oh, you've got yourself a sweet young man, ma'am," the cashier said, looking really amused.
"Thanks for the sentiment, Jam, but that doesn't always apply, darling. I asked for this date, and I'm handling the bills. So don't embarrass us both any further, and put that card away. You can save it for when you take my daughter out on your first date," Lucy said, and Jamal hesitantly returned the card into his pocket.
"Oh? He's not your son?" the cashier asked, and Lucy smiled awkwardly.
"No, he's not. Can I have the tickets, please? I'm sure you have a long line of people to attend to," Lucy said politely, and the cashier quickly handed them the tickets and they left to pick up their snacks.
"I'm sorry," Jamal murmured, and Lucy turned to him, and crouched in front of him so they could be on the same eye level.
"You don't have to be sorry for doing something you believed was right, Jam. It was a sweet gesture, I assure you," Lucy said as she kissed his cheek.
"But you said I embarrassed us," Jamal pointed out.
"I didn't mean it in a totally bad way. I said that only because we were holding up the line and bringing attention to ourselves. What you did was sweet," Lucy assured him.
Jamal eyed her for a moment wanting to see if she was just saying that or she meant it, and when she held his gaze, he finally smiled, "Okay."
"Good," Lucy said as she straightened up and took his hand again.
"Excuse me," the man who had been standing behind them on the queue called as he approached, and both Lucy and Jamal turned to look at him.
"Yeah? Is there a problem?" Lucy asked politely.
"No. Not at all. I overheard your conversation on the line earlier. I thought it was cute. I'm Mike," he said with a polite smile as he extended his hand for a handshake, and Jamal scowled.
"Hello, Mike! Is there something you wanted?" Lucy asked politely, deliberately not giving her name.
"I was hoping I could tag along with you too..."
"No, you can't!" Jamal said, surprising both Lucy and the man.
"This is a date for just the two of us. And she already has someone she is getting married to," Jamal stated, making sure to defend both his and Tom's interest.
As far as Jamal was concerned, if he couldn't have Lucy, the only man allowed to have her was Tom because Tom loved her like he did.
Lucy laughed softly, "You heard my man. It was nice meeting you, Mike. We have to go now," Lucy said, and walked away with Jamal, while the man remained where he stood staring at them.
"Why did you do that? I would have said no," Lucy told Jamal as they picked up their snacks.
"I didn't like him talking to you," Jamal said and Lucy grinned.
"I see."
Thanks to Jamal's constant interesting commentary, Lucy was been able to stay awake through the movie at the cinema.
After that they had gone to a video arcade and played a couple of games before she decided to take him to a park so he could mix up with other kids of his age since she knew he had not been able to do that since he got to Ludus.
Although he had been reluctant to leave her side at first, Lucy assured him that she brought him out to have fun and would feel better if he did that.
She was amazed by Jamal's ability to socialize, and how he seemed to draw all the other kids around to himself.
She looked around the park at the different mothers and nannies around. Some were seated alone and some in groups. There were a handful of men around as well.
The whole place was colorful and filled with happy sounds and laughter apart from the occasional yell from mothers or nannies to their wards.
"Your kid?" a lady asked as she sat beside Lucy who was grinning as she watched Jamal teach a younger kid how to skip.
Lucy turned her smiling face to the lady, "No," she said, not seeing any reason to expand on it.
"But you do have the look of a proud mom though," she said, and Lucy raised a brow.
"Really? How do proud moms look?" Lucy asked curiously.
"Just like you do," she said with a grin, and Lucy chuckled.
Although she didn't like talking with strangers much, there was something relaxing about the lady, so she decided to just enjoy the company.
"Those two flanking your boy in yellow and green shirts are my boys," she said, and Lucy turned to look at the young guys standing beside Jamal.
"They are cute. Are they twins?" Lucy asked when she noticed the resemblance between them despite the height difference.
"I always get that question. They are two years apart. They took after their dad totally, those two. Not a single thing from me. I wonder if I contributed anything genetically apart from being their warehouse for forty weeks," she said with an envious sigh that made Lucy look at her again.
"You don't sound so pleased about it," Lucy said and she giggled.
"Don't mind my outburst. I've always wanted a girl. A girl who looked like me and maybe a bit like him. But what did I get? Two boys who are the spitting image of their dad. It's so unfair considering I'm the one who housed them in my body," she said, and Lucy smiled.
"Well, you could always try again," Lucy suggested and she shook her head.
"Hell, no! I've given up. I could die of heartbreak if I tried again and got another boy that looks just like him," she said with a shake of her head and Lucy laughed.
"What if you had a little girl who looked like him?" Lucy asked, thinking of Dawn who looked a lot like Tom but in a feminine way.
"At least it would be a girl," the lady said and then called out to one of her sons to behave himself.
"I don't think there is anything wrong in having little boys who remind you of your husband. Besides, if you think about it, it's sweet in a way, don't you think? You never have to really miss him because you're always looking into his face," Lucy said and her heart skipped a beat when she realized her words had actually evoked images of little boys that looked exactly like Tom in her mind.
Her little boys with Tom.
"Oh, wait until you have yours and then you can tell me about it," she said, but Lucy was no longer listening to her.
She was now beginning to wonder what was really going on with her. Did she actually just imagine having kids with Tom? With Tom?
"Are you married?" the lady asked, and Lucy shook her head as she turned to her, trying not to dwell on her thoughts at the moment.
"No, I'm not. But I do have a very handsome and sweet boyfriend," Lucy said with a happy smile.
"Judging by the smile on your face, you must be happy in love," she said, and Lucy's smile widened.
"I am," Lucy said with a nod.
"That's nice. He must be a great guy," she said as both their gaze wandered to the kids.
They were both silent for a while until Lucy spoke, "What about you? Were you happy in love with your husband before you got married?" Lucy asked curiously.
Although she wasn't usually one to pry on other people's private lives, but she was curious and she didn't think the lady would mind.
She giggled, "Of course. He's the love of my life. Always has been, and always will be. Don't mind the fact that I'm irked about the boys looking like him. I just feel cheated," she assured Lucy.
"That's nice," Lucy said and then turned to her, "What's motherhood like? My best friend is pregnant and I'm really happy about it and looking forward to sharing the experience with her," Lucy said with a small smile even if the question was more about her than Sonia.
"That's great. Congrats to you both," she said, and then pursed her lips for a moment to consider the question, "I don't think I have the right words to describe it. That sort of unconditional love and bond is best experienced. One thing I can tell you though, is that it can be stressful and draining. But with the right partner by your side and with all the good help you can get, it's probably one of life's most profound experiences," she said confidently.
"I'm sure you must have had to give up on some pleasures and stuff you love..."
"There was nothing I gave up on that isn't worth the joy I got from feeling the first flutter of those two in my stomach, or the joy of holding them in my arms after birth, or that of seeing them look into my eyes with trusting eyes as I nursed them, or watching them take their first step or call me mama for the first time," she said passionately and then laughed softly when she realized tears had gathered in her eyes and she brushed them away.
"Sorry I was rambling. What I'm just trying to say is that motherhood is worth it. And with someone like you by your best friend's side, I'm sure she would do great! You'd make a good mom yourself," she said, and Lucy raised a brow.
"Why do you say that?" Lucy asked and she smiled.
"You've got the mom instinct. Your eyes haven't strayed from the kid for longer than a couple of seconds, and each time he almost trips your body reacts naturally," she said, and Lucy sighed as she glanced at her wristwatch.
"Ah! We need to start heading back now. I have a date to get ready for," Lucy said when she noticed it was almost 6 P.M.
"We need to leave too anyway. I'm Mary by the way," the lady said as they both rose.
"I'm Lucy. It was really nice meeting you and conversing with you," Lucy said as she signaled Jamal over so they could leave.
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