Chapter 58 Mixed Cocktails

Chapter 58 Mixed Cocktails
When we arrived back at the estate, Jack, as promised, was waiting out front along with six unfamiliar men that he had brought in for the operation. Alfred was a bit wary at first, but when they pulled out their guns, he offered no resistance.
He then walked off with them to one of the outbuildings, and that was the last I ever saw of him. I was a bit rattled by seeing all those weapons, but thanks to a nice lunch prepared by a brand-new chef that Jack had hired, I was feeling much calmer in no time.
The rest of the transition went very smoothly. I noticed a few staff members missing, but the rest seemed remarkably happy to have kept their jobs. Later, I heard rumors that Malcolm had sometimes turned his wrath on his employees, so a lot of them were glad once Jack took over.
Some workmen were called in to renovate Malcolm's office and to pack up his things, so within a week or so, it was almost as if he'd never been there.
Best of all, Jack brought in a new doctor for my mother who adjusted her medication. My mother slowly started to become more alert, and before long, she was joining me in the dining room for breakfast every morning.
She was still a little confused about everything that had occurred since her honeymoon, so I kept everything as vague as possible so as not to disturb her, but slowly she came to understand that Malcolm had gone away for a "treatment" and might not be back for a long time.
I was very proud of my mother for how well she was handling everything, especially her recovery. With a change in medication and lots of fresh, healthy food in her, she slowly returned to being herself.
Sometimes, she got a little disoriented because of how big the mansion was, forgetting for a moment that we were no longer in our family home, but other than that, she slowly started to acclimatize herself to her new life where everything that money can buy was at her disposal.
Once she was feeling better enough to comprehend things, I told her about my engagement to Jack, and she was very happy for me. Jack was quite busy handling all the necessary business affairs, so she only got to see him for a few brief periods, but she told me she thought he was quite handsome and a very nice young man.
All in all, as the summer drew to a close, everything was turning up roses for me. For the first time, I started getting that longed-for "baby bump," which always made women smile whenever I went to town.
I had a real blast browsing through maternity clothes online and having them delivered to the estate, and pretty soon I had an entire spare room full of outfits to wear for every stage of my pregnancy.
As my mother grew stronger, she started accompanying me to the pool, and we made the most of the remaining hot days to work on our tans and soak up as much Vitamin D as possible.
Sometimes, my mother would turn to me to ask a question about where Malcolm was, but I always made sure to have plenty of freshly mixed cocktails on hand, which left her in a very agreeable mood. In fact, I can honestly say that those summer weeks were amongst the best times I'd ever shared with her.
By the time the morning breezes started to turn crisp, everything was set in motion for my wedding, which was shaping up to be the event of the year. Jack, in his new role as CEO, had a long list of important people to invite, so everything had to be of the highest quality.
No expense was spared, including thousands of dollars just for flowers. Sometimes, my mother would get a little anxious about how much everything was costing, but then I'd gesture at the grand estate where we were living and she'd nod as she realized that the old days where it was just the two of us against the world were long gone.
Everything was going absolutely wonderfully until one morning when I set out for my daily post-breakfast walk and saw a familiar figure standing on the lawn.
It took me a moment to recognize him, and then my jaw dropped when I saw that it was Ricardo, the groundskeeper, whom I hadn't seen since our little tryst that we'd shared by the pool.