21
E lion booked tickets for the last event he wanted them to take part in on their week-long trip.
He was proud of himself for having it all planned out and set a week and a half before they were supposed to leave.
She wouldn’t know where they were going until they made it to the airport, and he was okay with that, but she would have a clue of the destination type when he went over to help her pack.
With that being finished, he turned his attention to his next exhibit.
He’d chosen the artist he wanted to have featured with him and contacted them a few days ago.
They’d been excited about the opportunity, stating they hadn’t been in an exhibit before, which he thought was tragic because their work was terrific.
He gave the young lady the theme of the sculptures he planned on showing when she asked, but he told her she in no way had to create her paintings around it. He also told her that his team would take care of all the planning and help her get her pieces to the venue and set up the evening before.
Now, he needed to create at least two more pieces. He had six but wanted to add a few more. It wouldn’t be hard for him to sketch and develop them. The pieces for this show were coming along much easier than they had for his last few, and he was grateful for that.
He placed his tablet aside and headed to his workroom.
Elion decided that he’d use his tablet to plan their trip, His niece was nosey, and if he used the computer in his office, which she had access to for orders, he was sure she’d try to find out where he was taking Olani.
It wouldn’t be a big deal if she did, but he preferred to keep it to himself.
Clara told him he should be the one to plan the trip, and he wanted to do it without input from anyone else.
He grabbed his sketchbook and sat down at the table.
He flipped to a clean page and let his imagination lead the drawing.
The other exhibit pieces were covered and off to one side of the room.
The exhibit was in five weeks, and like he always did with any upcoming event, he turned off commissions on his website.
He liked to give himself the six weeks leading up to finish the last one or two sculptures he planned or to cast any that were done.
As he drew, he made a mental note to buy his and Clara’s tickets.
They were going to visit their family the week before his exhibit.
He hadn’t seen them since the beginning of the year when he’d had an exhibit there.
Elion supposed he should get ready for them to question him about his dating life.
He hadn’t told them he had met anyone, but he didn’t put it past Clara to have told his mother.
She was close to her grandmother, and instead of bringing up something right when she heard it.
His mother was notorious for holding onto the information until she saw him face to face.
he had never been a fan of that because it felt like being blindsided.
However, he would be prepared for her this time were it to happen.
He spent the next hour and a half sketching the design to his liking.
As with the others, this one came out easily, and he knew that sculpting it would be the same way.
It would flow from him with little effort.
Instead of starting the sculpture right away when the sketch was finished, Elion drew out the final one.
It would allow him to make them one after another without stopping to think about the next design.
He checked his watch. Olani was meeting with a potential client, and he wanted to see how it went. She wasn’t off work yet, and he figured it could wait until they spoke that night. Until then, he turned his focus back to the design before him.
E lion walked out of his en suite, running a towel over his hair later that night.
He tossed it to the side as he picked up his phone and lotion from the dresser and went to sit on the bed.
He pulled up Olani’s contact, pressed dial, and put it on speaker before laying it on the bedside table. She answered it after the third ring.
“Hello.”
“Hey, Sweetheart. How was your day?”
“Hey, baby. It was pretty good. Were you able to work on your sculpture?”
Elion rubbed lotion into his arms. “I sketched them out. How was your meeting?”
“It went well. They want to sign a contract tomorrow, and they’ll need fifteen roles filled.”
“Congrats, baby. I told you that you had it in the bag.”
“Yes, you did,” Olani responded. “Speaking of tomorrow. My mom called. She’s coming to visit tomorrow for the weekend. Are you okay with pushing our date from Saturday to Sunday?”
“We can do whatever you need us to, Sweetheart.”
“There you go, spoiling me again,” she stated with a laugh.
Elion chuckled. “You make it sound like a bad thing.”
“Far from it.”
He returned the lotion to where he got it and grabbed a pair of boxers—removing the towel around his waist and slipping them on.
“I finished planning our trip today,” he told her, taking the phone off speaker and settling against his headboard.
“I can’t wait. Where are we going again?”
Elion smirked. “Nice try, gorgeous.”
“Fine, but I need my passport, correct?”
“Yes, you do.”
When he began planning the trip, he first asked her if she had a passport; that way, he’d know his options.
He knew exactly where he wanted to take her when she informed him she did.
He’d only been once himself and only stayed for a few days.
Doing research more than enjoying the sites and what they offered.
He’d get to take it in with her this time, so it would feel like the first time for him.
They spoke on the phone for an hour until she yawned, and Elion told her to get some sleep. They hung up, and he got up to turn out his overhead light before sliding into bed. He now had the next two days free. He would work on one of his sculptures before giving Olani his full attention on Sunday.
O lani walked through her front door, and the delicious aroma of spices greeted her. Her mother’s car was in the driveway, so she knew she was there and shouldn’t have been surprised that she was cooking. Her mother always made it a point to do so when she visited.
The initial visit was moved back because of their concert and then again because her aunt had gotten sick. Her mother stayed with her sister, and Xola had gone to ensure her mother was okay. That was the weekend before Olani had gotten sick herself.
She walked into her kitchen, and her mother looked up from the vegetables she was cutting.
“Hey, Mama,” she greeted, kissing her cheek.
“Hey, sweet girl. How was work?”
She set her satchel on the floor at the end of the bar. “It was good. I got a new client today. We signed the contract.”
“That’s wonderful. Your father was upset he couldn’t visit. He’s working on a project, and the deadline is approaching.”
“It’s fine. I’m going to drive down in a few weeks. I’ll get to see him then. I thought we could go to the farmer’s market in the morning and get some fruits and vegetables while you were here. Maybe make some jams and preserves.”
“That sounds like fun. We haven’t done that in a while.”
Olani reached over and picked up one of the carrot slices, popping it into her mouth. She received a side-eye from her mom, but she said nothing.
“Go get changed. When you return, I have some…coffee to spill to you?”
She laughed. “Tea, Mama. You have tea to spill.”
She went into her bedroom, removing the business suit she’d worn to work and slipping into a pair of yoga pants and a T-shirt. She pinned her thick hair before padding back down the hall to the kitchen. Olani grabbed a can of soda from the refrigerator before leaning against the end of the bar.
“Okay. So, what’s this tea?”
Her mother placed the vegetables in the wok on the stove, the light sizzling filtering into the air momentarily.
“Your aunt is dating, but child, that’s not the half of it.” Her mother turned to look at her. “She’s dating a few men. They’ve been coming by the house to pick her up.”
Olani took a drink from the can. “Maybe they’re just friends, Mama.”
“Friends don’t kiss like that. I saw them through the camera thing you got us for the doorbell. She was tonguing those men down like it was an Olympic sport. But that’s not even all of it.”
She wanted to know why her mother was watching her aunt through the camera but refrained from asking. Her mom would give her some excuse about making sure her aunt was safe. However, Olani knew it was primarily because she was nosey.
“These men,” her mother continued. “Are at least ten years younger than she is. Gone mess around and slip a disk.”
Olani pressed her lips together to keep from laughing. “Well, what did she say when you asked about the men?” She knew her mother asked because it just wasn’t in her nature not to.
“Do you know she told me she was in her prime and living her best life?” Her mom turned back to the wok, shaking it on the stove as she flipped the vegetables around.
“Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy for her. She needs some fun and male company after all these years.
But I’m not trying to pick her up off some man’s floor when she breaks a hip. ”
“Mama!” she exclaimed as she laughed. “You’re talking like the two of you are just so old.”
“We’re going to knock sixty over soon. She better slow down before she’s man down.”
Olani shook her head, taking another drink from the can. “I wonder if Xola knows.”
“Mm. I’m sure she knows about one of them. He popped over while she was there when Zin was sick. The other two came after she’d left.”
“So, she’s dating three men?”
“Yep. That I know of.”
“It took me forever to find one man worth dating, and Aunt Zinnia is around here bagging multiple men,” she responded, placing her can down. Her mother whipped around and looked at her.
“You’re dating someone?”
Olani opened her mouth, only to close it again and fill her cheeks with air.
She hadn’t meant to say that out loud. She wasn’t trying to hide her relationship with Elion from anyone, but they hadn’t been dating long.
They were coming up on three months, and she always tried to not mention or introduce anyone she was dating until six months in.
She felt that the relationship was changing and becoming more serious at that stage, even if that wasn’t always the case.
With Elion, the circumstances were different because they’d have to decide soon.
Olani didn’t think their twelve weeks would end with them going their separate ways.
They could continue to date if that’s where they were led, but she couldn’t be too sure of that, and the thought caused a sinking in her stomach.
“Olani Michele. You are, aren’t you?”
“I am, but we’ve only been seeing each other for a couple of months. It’s still new.”
Her mother hummed. “But you like him so far? He treats you well?”
She couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face. “I do, and he does. He’s extremely good to me.”
“I suppose you’ll introduce us when it’s time.” Olani nodded, and her mother turned back toward the stove. “Until then, what does he do?”
“He’s an artist.”
“What kind of art?”
“A sculptor by profession, but he draws. Oh, and we made this on one of our dates,” she stated, going to the cabinet and pulling out the owl mug they’d made.
Her mother turned to her, taking it out of her hand and smiling at it. “It’s cute. This little owl is adorable.”
“Isn’t it?” Olani took the cup back and put it back in the cabinet.
While her mother finished cooking, she answered questions she asked about Elion and left out that she’d met him on a dating site she’d created to find a husband. She knew her mom would support her either way. She just wasn’t ready to tell her yet.
They made their plates and sat down at the table when the food was ready. The conversation shifted to her parents’ upcoming anniversary and the surprise her mother wanted her to help with.