Utopia

Owned the place? Vivienne looked shocked as her mouth drew open for a moment. A smile crept over her face as she thought about the situation she was in. She hadn't known Piers for very long but every time they met she felt more surprised than the last. There were so many layers, so many unknowns with him. It was almost like every time they met it was for the first time. She couldn't explain but something about his mystery and intrigue drew her in more.

"Of course you do." Vivienne teased and Piers smirked back at her before tipping his wine glass back, finishing what was left. He stood, his height towering over her and smiled. "Shall we?" He gestured towards the exit. The two walked to the restaurant next door. Inside it was dimly lit with lots of exposed dark wood beams, black iron features and lush, green plants everywhere. It looked more like a small utopia than a restaurant. Soft jazz music whispered through the restaurant over the clinking of silverware and conversations.

When Piers walked in, it was like the world seemed to stop for a moment. The bartender immediately raised his head from behind the busy counter and gave a small bow in his direction. The hostess smiled and gave a small bow of her own head when they approached. She opened her mouth to greet him but before she could, a man in a crisp suit interrupted her and raced towards Piers.

"Piers!" He stuck out his hand for Piers to take and placed the other on his shoulder. Piers grinned and shook the man's hand firmly. "Jackson." "So good to see you again, it's been a while since you were last here." It was then that Jackson realized the woman standing next to Piers. His eyes widened and the grin on his face grew even wider. "Oh my, I must apologize! My name is Jackson. I'm the manager here of Apothecary." Jackson took Vivienne's hand gently and pressed his lips to the back of it with a small bow of his head. Piers glared at the man and as if feeling the seething stare Jackson let go and took a step back.

"This is Vivienne Westing. She'll be joining me for dinner tonight." Jackson's eyes widened a little in surprise. "What a treat! His highness never dines with anyone." His eyes moved back to the human woman in front of him, curious as to what was so intriguing about her that Piers had decided to invite her here. Piers shot daggers with his eyes at Jackson again and he quickly shut his mouth. "Have Peter surprise us. And bring a bottle of Cabarnet." "Yes, of course." With that Piers began to move through the restaurant. The majority of the patrons didn't flinch or even notice when Piers walked through the room but a few did. The ones that did bowed their heads or gave a nod in his direction. Vivienne watched this exchange with curiosity. Was he well known? Obviously he owned this restaurant but the amount of respect people were showing him was definitely interesting.

Piers brought Vivienne to a private room off of the main dining hall. Inside was a single table with four chairs and a white table cloth. Piers pulled out the plush chair for Vivienne to sit and almost as if on que when Piers sat, a waiter came in to bring the bottle of wine. He opened the bottle silently and poured a small portion out for Piers to taste. Piers swirled the wine in the glass before taking a sip and nodding in approval. The waiter then poured a glass for each of them before placing the bottle on the table and quietly exiting the room.

"I don't think I ever would've taken you for a restaurant owner." Vivienne broke the silence before lifting her glass for a sip of the wine. Piers leaned back in his seat, holding his glass lazily as he eyed Vivienne. "Consider it an investment opportunity." There was something about Piers that had Vivienne so confused. It seemed others were oddly fearful of him in some ways but to her, he was so charming and charismatic. She felt like there was even more to uncover and find out about him. This little outing had only given her more questions as to who Piers truly was.

"Well they seem to like you very much. The people that work here I mean.." Piers contemplated for a moment before responding. "It's always a smart idea to be nice to the man who writes the checks, is it not?" A grin played on his face but Vivienne wasn't buying it. "That's true but even people that pay the bills can be disliked or disrespected." "Respect is earned, as they say." Piers responded before taking another long sip of his wine, his eyes trained on Vivienne the entire time. The waiter came back in to bring a small plate of food for each of them. It looked more like art than food and Vivienne couldn't help but be mesmerized by the beauty of it.

"Your friend must not like you very much." Piers commented as took a bite of the delicate food in front of him. Vivienne scoffed and looked at Piers questioning. "What do you mean?" "Well anyone that would make you suffer through the company of such an incompetent fool as Nathan either doesn't know you well or wanted you to have a bad evening." Vivienne thought for a moment before letting out a small laugh. "You're not entirely incorrect, I guess." She leaned back in her seat in thought as she held her wine glass. "I needed a distraction." "I'm sure there are many other things that could appropriately occupy your time and thoughts." Piers said this in a way that was both teasing and threatening in the same way and the tone confused Vivienne. She stared at him in response trying to figure out what exactly he meant or why he meant it.

"What is it that you need distracting from?" Vivienne thought for a moment at this question. "Well my job for one. My personal life is a bit of a mess at the moment." She said this with a laugh and Piers asked, "Why is that?" Vivienne stopped laughing lightly and looked at him. It was a very personal question and it was one that was uncomfortable to answer. Truthfully, she hadn't had any conversations with many people recently that went beneath the surface. To have someone genuinely interested in what was actually happening in her life was surprising to her.

"Oh I don't know that you want to suffer through that depressing tale." Vivienne smiled gently. "I would enjoy nothing more." Piers responded deadly serious. Vivienne was trying to squirrel her way out of the impending conversation but clearly Piers wasn't going to let her. She took a large sip of her wine before continuing and Piers refilled her glass for her. "Well lately it's just been a little dark.. After my uncle passed I feel like I'm just floating... Does that make sense?" She asked and her eyes moved to Piers' who was watching her carefully. "I feel detached. My whole world was literally turned upside down. Between taking over the company, dealing with the grief, having to take care of all of his affairs, dealing with that stupid Circle society.. People that used to be my friends seem to have distanced themselves from me. Not because I've done anything wrong but just because they don't quite know what to say or do so instead they do nothing. My only real friend lately is Oliver and that's saying something. He's the only one I feel I can even talk to lately."

Piers listened carefully. "What happened to your parents?" Vivienne sighed. "My father died when I was very young. A car accident. And when I was twelve my mother committed suicide. That was when my uncle took me in. He had always been like a father to me. Him and my mother had been very close." Vivienne looked down as she recounted her past. "I'm sorry for your losses." Piers said gently as he watched her. She shrugged her shoulders with a small smile. "The past is the past." She took another sip of her wine. "But hence why Charisse thought it a good idea to set me up on a date. She said I needed something to do even if it ended up being a giant waste of time."