VERY SECRET FRIENDS. Hot love adventures

Chapter 4. Good adviser

The day was approaching sunset and Andre, putting his brushes aside, walked away from the easel satisfied. Today he did a good job and it seems that one more his work will take its place in Soho gallery soon. Today's inspiration, no doubt, was caused by a good mood and merry sunbeams, dancing restlessly over the walls of the studio. A few clouds that came unexpectedly did not interfere with them.

By nightfall, the clouds, fluffy as snow, finally cleared, and now the contour of the pink-white moon was more clearly distinguished in the cloudless sky.

It is a blessed time of evening rest, when you can relax and indulge in pleasant thoughts, sitting on the balcony with a glass of red-ruby wine in your hands.

Andre preferred red wine to all alcoholic beverages. His grandfather Paul owned a family chateau and a large vineyard in the south of France. Since Andre's parents believed that the child needed fresh clean air, little Andre stayed with his grandfather all summer. He had a lot of fun there, splashing with friends from a nearby village in a large pool behind the house, or riding the bicycles over the surrounding fields. When he grew up a little, the grandfather Paul began to take him regularly to the vineyards, talking about the art of growing sunny berries and preparation of the most delicious wine. However, most of all, Andre enjoyed going to the wine cellars, where huge oak barrels were stored. Due to the perpetual coolness and semi-darkness, reigning there, they seemed to have a fabulous mystery.

When he entered the fine arts grand school (École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts), Andre rented a small cozy attic, where he set up his workshop, and where he often invited coursemates-painters. There was no lack of free wine brought from the grandfather's château, which made these parties very popular among his friends. Andre tried also the "Green Fairy", that was then forbidden. It's not said in vain that the forbidden fruit is much sweeter. But eventually, he decided that absinthe is not for him, and there is nothing better than red wine made with love by his grandfather. Since then, the question of choosing a drink that helps not only to relax but also to be on top of a creative wavelength never came up. Andre took a couple of sips, put the glass on the small glass table standing nearby and stretched in a comfy wicker chair, the same as his pet Bagheera. To spend all the day at the easel is a hard job, after all. Then he turned to the table and started the laptop lying on it.

- I wonder if Jackie is online now. Have I got any message from her? – he thought. But everything couldn't have turned better. Jackie was online and, apparently, was waiting for him.

- Hello, Andre! I'm so glad to see you here again! I wish you a nice evening!

- Hello, Jackie! Thanks for the good words! I also wish you a pleasant evening! I'm so happy to see here such a lovely and sociable person to talk to. I must confess that it's not easy to find a person with whom it would be very interesting and exciting to communicate on different topics. It seems that for me you are exactly that kind of person.

- Oh, really?! What makes you think so, Andre?

- It's very simple. Somehow, in some incomprehensible way, you can put in a good mood for a long time. For example, I was in high spirits all day after our conversation yesterday. And I have been waiting for the evening to talk to you again.

- To be honest, I've been eagerly waiting for the evening too!

- How was your day? What interesting things have you seen or heard today?

- I had a busy day.

- Did you have any problems at work?

- I wish I had, Andre! I have a sort of vacation now, and my son stays with my mother. That's why my husband's parents, my mother in law and my father in law decided to keep me occupied. They said I am young and active and I am on vacation anyway, so there are enough reasons for me to take charge of that thing. And the thing I had to take charge of is the finding of the new apartment. The old one, where they live now, they don't like anymore, there is too much noise. They want something quieter and bigger. They said it's not spacious enough, even though only two of them live there. They drove off to the Caribbean and I have to look with the realtor over apartment variants because they are not happy with photos or videos and think that it's always better to check in reality. They have me as their personal real estate expert. Sorry that I bother you with such the details.

- There's nothing to be sorry for. How's it going, Jackie? Have you found anything?

- I've chosen a couple of variants. They are too demanding to tell if they will like it or not. My mother in law owns the flower shop in Manhattan, so she wanted to find something not far from it.

- Your parents-in-law are so energetic, - Andre put a smile at the end of the message.

- Yes, very. They can't stay in one place. Not long ago, my mother in law had plastic surgery on her breasts. She didn't like her old breasts, - this time Jackie put some smileys in the end.

- Has your mother in law decided to please her husband by making new breasts? Like those the young have? Does she want to be more attractive to him? – asked Andre interested.

In response, a whole waterfall of laughing emoticons fell down. After a small pause, he received an answer:

- Oh, Andre, you made me laugh to tears. My mother in law decided to please her husband!!! It sounds comic! It's my father in law, who turns himself inside out to please her. She is his boss, and he listens to her inviolately. But they live in friendship and perfect harmony.

- Oh, it's great when people, even after many, many years of marriage together, retain interest for each other and know how to have a good time together.

- Yes, that's just their nature – to have a good time and burden others in order to have fun, - she put another smiley face at the end.

- As I see they don't let you get bored.

- Yes, they always find me something to do for me. They consider that a married woman shouldn't sit around. As if I have nothing better to do than to fulfill their whims. But what can I do, there's no choice. I am a non-conflict person. I don't like to argue at every given occasion.

- They seem to gladly use your peacefulness. But let's not talk about sad things. I suggest we talk over a cup of coffee or have a walk somewhere one day. I won't hide the fact that I am very curious to see you.

- I'm very pleased to hear that. I also would like to see you. Just that I am tight on time now. In a few days, I will go back to work, and it will be easier for me in this regard.

- Easier with time when you return to work? – asked Andre surprised.

- Yes, it will be easier in the sense that I could with a clear conscience refuse to do all that bunch of orders and tasks my family gives me all the time and which I can't keep up with. When I'm at work, I can tell them off with all their tasks and have my own time management.

- Now I understand. So, I will wait when you go back to work. Is that soon?

- Well, soon, I would say. Next week. Oh, one more thing, Andre, I want to ask your advice on something.

- Sure, ask me. I'd be glad to help if I can.

- Okay, here's the thing. Before we began to chat with you, I was texting here with one married man. He was so nice and he wrote such beautiful words for me, so when he offered to meet for a real acquaintance, I immediately agreed. But the date did not happen because of me. Now I feel very guilty about that. And I feel a weight on my chest because I deceived him.

- May I ask why you didn't come?

- I came, but I was a bit late and I did not go to him immediately. I was wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap, so he didn't recognize me. And I recognized him at once. But he looked different than in the photo and it really frightened me.

- How did you realize it was him if he looked different?

- In the photo, he looked kind, and in reality, I saw a nervous and twitchy man with the face twisted in anger. When I imagined that he would start screaming at me because I was late, I got scared and ran away. I didn't answer his calls and text messages. What should I do now? It's been weighing on me. Should I call or write him? Tell that I'm sorry? What do you think?

Andre started thinking. It was not an easy situation. How can he calm this lovely woman with the child's soul?

- Consider, Jackie, that your intuition and fate have saved you from a bad person. A man, waiting for a beloved woman, should have the eyes glowing with happiness, even if the woman is late. And, in any case, he should not be with an angry face. Therefore, thank your fate, calm down and try to forget everything.

-Thank you so much, my good adviser! I had no one to tell about it, and it wasso hard. Now I feel much better and relieved. I'll try to calm down. Now, Ihave to get going again. Bye-bye...