* * *
Quinn's mom was a beautiful, slender woman around fifty-years-old, with short silver hair, and she wore her Chanel suit like she was born for it. Vanessa could see where Quinn and his brothers inherited their good genes. She was warm and friendly, totally defying Vanessa's expectation.
"So you're Vanessa." Quinn's mom hugged her. "My son has told me a lot about you. You're the genius in the company. I'm Savannah. I believe you've met John, right?"
"Ah, yes." Vanessa fidgeted. "Hello, again."
"And this is Trent. He just got home today from Kuwait. He's in the Air Force. He has two weeks off from his deployment." Savannah introduced her to a slightly younger version of Quinn. While John sported longish hair, Trent had his hair shorn close to his skull like Quinn. He also looked intense and serious, unlike John, who brimmed with an aura of debonair confidence.
Trent shook her hand. His grip was firm. "Hello. So you're the girl who made us ridiculously wealthy. Have you asked my brother for a raise, yet?"
"Should I?" Vanessa looked at Quinn innocently.
"Definitely. I'm surprised you haven't been poached by other studios. I bet you received plenty of offers," said John. "If you ever want to expand your horizons, I know some people in MGM and Paramount."
Quinn cleared his throat. "Vanessa," he cut in unhappily, "is happy with Animatrica. Aren't you?" He placed his hand on her shoulder possessively.
Vanessa was intrigued with what John said. "MGM, you said?"
"Vanessa," Quinn warned her.
"I'm happy with Animatrica, and Quinn is a great boss." Vanessa gave two thumbs up.
John and Trent cracked up.
"She's a riot," said John.
"I like her," said Trent.
"Why don't you show Vanessa your room upstairs and wash up, Quinn? Then we all can have dinner together," said Savannah.
"Good idea, mom." Quinn herded Vanessa toward the stairs. "Come with me, babe."
That was a cringe-worthy moment for Vanessa. Having Quinn call her "babe" was freaking weird. She'd never fantasized about him in a romantic way before that New Year's Eve party. To her, Quinn was associated with sarcastic remarks, plenty of glaring, and all-out overtime bonanzas. Did he even date?
She shut herself off from the incorrigible speculation of the girls in the office whenever they gossiped about Quinn's private life: what kind of girl he liked, who he was dating, what was his hobby? On and on … She had better things to do and there was not much time in a day to get stuff done.
Now that she got to see a different side of Quinn, she must admit she was intrigued. Really, what type of girl did he like? Was that man even capable of showing affection? This was Lord Demon she was talking about. He breathed fire and cried acid.
Babe.
All of a sudden, she wanted to laugh so badly. Babe. She felt her face slowly cracking from her attempt to squelch her giggle down too hard.
Quinn took one look at her and was instantly irritated. "What's wrong?"
"Humph … "
"What's so funny?"
"Sorry. Is this my room?"
"Our room."
The second floor of Quinn's family vacation house boasted a vast living space with a baby grand piano as a focal point. The cream-colored walls and pastel-toned décor brought cheeriness into the room despite it being the middle of a dreary January winter.
There were a few bedrooms available. Vanessa folded her arms across her chest. "Don't you think-" She looked around and then lowered her voice. "Don't you think you take this too far? Why on earth do I need to share a room with you?"
Quinn didn't answer. He only gave her a "duh" look.
Vanessa sobered instantly. "Tell your mom I practice abstinence. No sex before marriage."
"Quit joking. After that viral video, who would believe you?"
"Drat." She totally forgot about that.
He pushed the door open and pulled her in with him. The room was also bright and inviting. It was decorated in masculine tones with dark mahogany furniture and monochromatic color combinations. The tall windows boasted a spectacular view of the mountains. The only problem was, it had one bed.
"Seriously. Don't tell me we have to share a bed, too?"
"Don't worry, I won't try anything funny." He put his leather duffel bag next to the dresser. He then took off his jacket and hung it in the closet.
"This is so not going to happen." Vanessa padded to the sofa beside a bookshelf. It had plush cushions and comfy pillows. "I'll take the couch so you can have the bed all to yourself."
Quinn shook his head, giving up on her stubbornness.
Vanessa refreshed herself in the bathroom and changed her shirt to a plain one before joining in with the rest of the family downstairs. John grilled steaks on the patio even though the temperature was thirty degrees outside. Vanessa helped Quinn's mom prepare the salad and dessert.
While cooking, Savanna asked Vanessa about her family. She seemed to be interested in hearing how Vanessa's mom raised three girls under one roof. Vanessa shared a bit about her experiences growing up with her two sisters. Vanessa was the youngest of three. Yolanda, the oldest, was married to a congressman. Zelda, the middle sister, was a swimsuit model and an aspiring actress. She wanted to break into Broadway like their mother. But getting a foot into the industry respectably was quite difficult in this day and age, even with a veteran actress like their mother as a coach.
They ate dinner in the dining room. The steaks John cooked were delicious. He got them from a local butcher who swore the heifer was still mooing three days prior. Vanessa was tempted to shove her food in and pig-out like a slob just to get back at Quinn for blackmailing her, but she couldn't do it. Quinn's mom and brothers seemed to genuinely like her. She didn't have the heart to embarrass Quinn in front of his family. Even though she really wanted to.
"So, Vanessa," Trent began. "Tell me more about the work you've done. What kind of projects are you currently working on?"
"We're making the sequel to the Northmen. We feature three characters from the original and added tons of new challenges. We believe it'll be better than the previous version. It is going to be epic. Are you a gamer?"
"John is. Not me, though. I don't have much patience in front of the TV. I'm an outdoorsy kind of guy."
"I'm a big fan of Northmen," said John. "Quinn made me a beta tester before it was released. But he had been mum about the sequel so I'm kind of excited about it. When is the game going to be released? Are you going to run a beta testing program again?" asked John.
"Our deadline is winter, next year. Of course, we'll run a beta. Northmen 2 is designed to have a faster universal render engine that will work on all platform devices. It's a groundbreaking technology we're trying to push through since the original saga."
"I heard a lot about this universal render engine tech at Comic Con last year. A friend of mine held a Northmen Saga workshop and he always gushed about it. Players are spoiled by ultra HD graphics usually reserved for cinematic trailers. Did you really design this tech?" asked John.
"No, no way. I can't take credit for it myself. We have a dedicated team in Animatrica who developed it. Everyone's worked really hard on this."
Quinn disagreed. "Vanessa is too modest. She worked about seventy percent from the concept to the completion. She rarely takes credit. Others have been taking advantage of her."
Vanessa turned sharply to him. "You noticed?"
"Naturally." Quinn put down his fork and knife. "I know what's going on in the company. Otherwise I wouldn't know how to run it profitably and efficiently. You didn't think I would notice?"
"Ah. You surprised me, that's all," she muttered.
He looked very smug, and she wanted to fling a piece of steak at him.
"I'm curious," Quinn's mom chimed in, "how long have you two been dating? Quinn never told me anything and I'm his mother. I wished many times he'd keep me in the loop. How did you two meet?"
Vanessa looked at Quinn, asking for his help.
"We just starting seeing each other recently," Quinn answered for her. "Are you going to turn this into an interview, Mom? Please don't. I don't want you to scare Vanessa away."
"Me? Scaring her? Why, I never." Savannah was scandalized. "Do I scare you, dear? I don't, do I?" Savannah patted Vanessa's hand. "Like I said, I'm just curious. A mother has a right to know what is going on in her son's life. I swear, your father, bless his heart, was just like this. He was so tight-assed; it would take more than a gallon of prune juice to make him open up."
Vanessa choked on her salad. For a socialite, her vocabulary was colorful. Quinn's mom was eccentric. Trent laughed heartily.
Savannah waved nonchalantly. "I just mean, I wished your father would've shared what was on his mind once in a while during our marriage. Now that Quinn is the head of this family, I'm hoping he won't be like his father. Are you two serious? It's great if you are. Quinn isn't getting any younger and he should have had an heir years ago. And I wouldn't mind a cub or two to spoil."