5. A Trip of a Lifetime

I quietly worked on some paperwork for the meeting that would take place later in the day. Ivan's mother was supposed to visit the office today, which put him on edge. They don't exactly have a close mother and son relationship. I don't understand why because she was a delightful person. She always treated me like I'm her daughter. Not to mention she was incredibly beautiful. Beauty must run in that family.

I went to his office when his mother arrived to let him know. I tried to leave after announcing her arrival, but he stopped me midway.

"No, stay here with me," he said, almost desperately.

"You want me to stay?" I was confused. "I am sure your mother would love to spend time with you alone," I said.

"I'd appreciate it if you stayed here," he insisted.

Alright, so be it. I sat back down on the chair. I was feeling slightly uncomfortable for intruding between the mother and a son. But Ivan was acting like a scared child, so I felt bad for him.

"Ivan! My beautiful sweet boy, how are you!?" Ivan's mom Marilyn barged into the office and gave him a big hug. She has always been very loud and lively, completely opposite of Ivan's personality.

"Hello, mother," Ivan said and kissed her in the cheek.

"Oh, please, dear, didn't I tell you not to call me mother? It sounds so...formal. Call me, mommy," she squealed.

"Eh...mother, I am a bit too old to call you that don't you think?" he said. I could sense his discomfort from across the room.

"Oh, nonsense! You are never too old. You are always going to be the little boy who ran around the house without his pants and made me kiss his boo-boo when he scratched his knee," she said and pinched his cheek.

I suddenly pictured him running around without pants with a stoic expression on his face and snickered out loud without thinking. I pressed my palm on my mouth to suppress the noise, but it was too late. Ivan was already glaring at me.

"Oh, Ariel, sweetheart, you look radiant! You are just turning more and more beautiful every time I see you," she gushed.

"You are too kind, Mrs. Adams. I am sure my beauty level has not changed. What you are seeing is a sickly glow of sleep deprivation on my face," I said casually.

Ivan smirked. I am glad he found that funny since he is the reason for it.

"I told you to call me Marilyn dear, and I told you Pookie bear, stop working this girl to death," she cooed and gazed at Ivan.

"Mother, please, for the hundredth times, stop calling me that," he said with a pained expression on his face. I couldn't help but giggle. Poor Ivan, so helpless in front of his own mother.

"Don't worry about him, dear. He thinks I am embarrassing. Anyway, I won't stay long. I just came to see if the business is going well. You seem to have everything in control as I expected," she smiled and said goodbye to us.

"Phew...that was excruciating," Ivan exhaled.

"She is a lovely lady," I said quietly.

"Do I really make you work too hard?" he asked me suddenly.

I didn't know how to answer it at first, then figured I should be honest.

"I believe I put in more hours than others, so yes. I don't mind, I was mostly joking. I hope you didn't take it the wrong way," I said.

"I see," he said. "I suppose I should express my gratitude more often," he said and stared at me intently. His icy grey eyes looked surprisingly warm. I was shocked at the sudden change of behavior. He barely ever thanks me for anything.

"It's alright really, um, we should get back to work," I said quickly.

"Right, prepare the documents for the meeting," he said, and we went back to work.

The meeting lasted for about an hour. He called me into his office and told me to have a seat. I wondered what it was about.

"I have to leave for Paris in two days," he said.

"Yes, sir, I know. I have booked your airline ticket and hotel room already," I informed him.

"I'd like you to book an extra ticket and a room," he said.

Is he taking someone with him? Interesting. He must've already met someone else after breaking up with Katie Mckinzee.

"Oh? Will you be having a company with you?" I asked.

"Yes, I need you to come with me on the trip," he said casually.

Say what now? I didn't know what to say for a minute. He expects me to travel all the way to Paris with him, for what?

"Excuse me, sir, but that wasn't part of the plan," I said.

He leaned closer towards me, his eyes boring into mine. He always had this intense look on his face when he was serious about something.

"I told you to call me Ivan Miss Young, and I am the one who makes all the decisions, so the new plan is for you to accompany me on the trip. This is an essential conference, so I need you to be with me and help me with anything I need," he said.

"But what about my plans? I can't just up and leave!" I wasn't going to back down that easily.

"I don't understand what the problem is. I thought women love Paris. Besides, this will help you progress toward the next step in your career," he said.

As much as I hate to admit, he made a good point. Paris does sound exciting. Two days didn't seem enough to pack everything for a week, but I had to make it happen. I nodded in agreement and left the office. I had to call Mark and let him know. He is not going to be happy about this.