Piper’s POV
“Let’s go out of the car,” Jay urged us.
“Dad, I’ve never met Grandma. Is she fierce?” Jessie asked innocently.
I was dumbfounded. Was it true that Jessie hadn’t met Jay’s mom in seven years? Why? Did Jay have his reasons for not bringing Jessie to see his mom?
Jay’s face looked surprised. He looked nervous.
“Grandma is not fierce. She’s gentle and kind. You met her when you were a baby. Of course, you can’t possibly remember her,” Jay replied.
It turned out that Jay’s mom had met Jessie. But why didn’t she see Jessie more often, or did Jay take Jessie to see his mom? Was Mrs. Adams so busy that she couldn’t get close to her granddaughter? From this simple thing, I questioned the relationship between Jay and his mom. Was their relationship as close as Jay said it was?
“But why did she never see me again when I got this big? I don’t even have a picture of Grandma’s face in my memory. Does she not like me?” Jessie asked.
Jansen, who was sitting next to her, took her sister’s hand and replied, “You can ask Grandma about that. Let’s go out now.”
“Why are you answering my question? I am asking Dad,” Jessie retorted with an annoyed look on her face.
“Jessie, you can ask Grandma your question directly. Dad can’t answer them. Let’s go inside now. It’s not good to keep Grandma waiting,” Jay said as he got out of the car.
Several maids were standing in front of the wide and tall entrance. They were all wearing the same uniform. As I walked towards the main entrance, I circled my eyes around the terrace.
The building of this house was quite modern. I know because I often see examples of house designs on social media. When we were about to reach the main door, the servants greeted us and offered to bring several bags of gifts for Jay’s mom.
“Welcome, young master. Madam is waiting inside,” the servants greeted.
“Thank you. Is she waiting in the dining room?” Jay asked for confirmation.
“Yes. All the food is ready. Let us take you to the dining room,” the servers said.
“No need. Take the gifts to the dining room, then you can get back to work,” Jay replied.
“Okay, Young Master,” they replied together.
Two maids walked in front of us, carrying several bags and boxes of gifts. The others walked behind us. It turned out that this house has two dining rooms. One dining room, which is private or I should say VIP, is in an enclosed space, while the other is close to the living room and kitchen, which is more casual.
The servants escorted us to the VIP dining room. A man wearing a chef’s uniform opened the dining-room door when he saw the four of us arrive. He bowed respectfully as he greeted, “Welcome, Young Master.”
“Thank you,” Jay replied.
When we entered, I saw that the gifts we had brought for Mom were at the end of the table. Almost half the table was full of food, some of which I had never seen before. And finally, I saw an old lady who would soon become my future mother-in-law.
She sat quietly as she looked at us. Her face was beautiful despite her age. No wonder Jay was so handsome. His mother was beautiful. She had beautiful blue eyes, just like Jay’s. Her lips were thin and covered in red lipstick. Her skin was pure white, like the color of milk. That night, she wore a light blue dress that looked beautiful on her body and she sweetened her look by wearing diamond earrings and necklace.
Although her hair turned white, her face and hands wrinkled, the aura she had was different. Her presence seemed to put a distinct pressure on the atmosphere in the dining room and it made my heart beat faster. I prayed and hoped that she would accept me into her family.
“Mom,” Jay greeted as he hugged and kissed his mother on the forehead. She hugged Jay back.
“Mom, this is Piper, my future wife, and they are my kids,” Jay said. I shook Vanessa’s hand, Jay’s mom’s. Jessie and Jansen also shook Vanessa’s hand. Vanessa smiled at us. Her face was like Jay’s and she had a beautiful smile.
“Please have a seat. We’ll talk while we enjoy dinner,” she said.
So, Jay sat next to Vanessa. I sat next to Jay while the kids sat in front of the two of us. Vanessa sat in the middle of us since the dining table was rectangular.
“Good evening everyone. I’m so happy to see you guys. Let’s eat. I’m already hungry. I hope you like all these foods,” Vanessa said.
Until that point, I was impressed with Vanessa. She was friendly and nice.
A few minutes after, we enjoyed our dinner. I was busy taking care of Jessie, who was fussy about the food, and Jansen, who was annoyed at his sister’s overly picky food. The two of them argued for quite a while and I tried to break it up. Luckily, they calmed down and could enjoy their meal after the chef in the house made another meal for Jessie.
“Mom, I have a few things to tell you,” Jay said as he put his spoon and fork on his plate.
“I know what you want to say. Please, say it,” Vanessa replied as she wiped the food off her lips.
“I’m going to marry Piper soon. I hope you approve it. For the sake of me and Piper’s futures and our kids,” Jay said.
Vanessa answered nothing. Instead, she just stared at the handkerchief in front of her.
“Without marriage, you can still take care of your two kids. Everything that happened to you was an accident and unfortunately, I had my mind set on a wife for Jay a long time ago. Sorry, Piper, it’s not that I don’t like you. You’re a good woman who gave me grandchildren. It’s just that I have my criteria,” Vanessa replied, looking at me.
Her words were like lightning in the night, even though it was sunny and not raining. It was like a knife slicing through my feelings, but the wound didn’t bleed.
“Mom! What the hell is this? A wife-to-be? I don’t want and will never want to marry the woman you chose for me,” Jay retorted in a lofty tone of voice.
“She’s a different woman than Piper. Sorry, Piper, that’s going to sound harsh to you,” Vanessa replied.
“Different? I don’t understand what you’re saying or thinking, Mom. Everything indeed happened by accident, but you had a hand in it that night,” Jay asked.
Before answering Jay’s question, Vanessa called the servants and asked them to take Jansen and Jessie to another room and close the VIP dining room again.
“Can’t you lower the tone of your voice? Your kids are still around,” Vanessa said.
“Mom, please. I came here tonight to ask for your blessing. Please accept Piper as your daughter-in-law,” Jay pleaded as he knelt in front of Vanessa.