Mother-Daughter Bonding (Part 1)

Olivia sat at an outdoor dining table that had an amazing view of the mountain and the lake below. She was in a restaurant that is located at the edge of the mountain. But though it was located in the mountains, it was very accessible and is still located in the city. It was on the borderline of the city and a mountainous province.

Her table is on the top of a wooden deck that is reserved only for friends and family of the owner of the restaurant.

And Olivia was one of those friends.

Olivia became close to the owner of the restaurant because she was one of the three women in Matthew's close circle of friends.

Her name is Sadie. Hence the name of the restaurant, Sadie's.

She is one of Megan's best friends and the younger sister of Timothy Hayes. Sadie also grew up with Matthew. She is a sweet girl and contrast to Megan's character. While Megan is cold and intimidating, Sadie is sweet and charming.

But Matthew warned her about Sadie. He says that her looks can be deceiving. Sadie may be sweet and charming but she is deadly. She could be more dangerous than Megan or even Matthew because of how she grew up.

Apparently, Sadie grew up with guns and knives as her toy. It was a real gun and knife by the way. Blame it on the woman who babysits her while her parents are at work. And that woman turned out to be Nic's grandaunt who was a very vicious yet strong woman.

But despite the warning, Olivia hasn't seen the dangerous side of Sadie. In fact, she was doubting if Matthew was just jesting him about it. Because she cannot see Sadie as a violent or aggressive woman. Not to mention Sadie was very beautiful. Her beauty was on the soft side…like she was an angel or a fairy.

Olivia was glad that Sadie treats her as one of her friends. And even though Matthew was the reason why they met, she is sure that if they met under other circumstances, she would still find herself, friends, with her still. Sadie is easy to get along with.

When Olivia arrived at the restaurant, it was Sadie who greeted her as if she was the VIP she was expecting.

There was already a reserved table for her and she was not surprised that the reserved table was the one on the deck. It was not the first time that she ate at Sadie's and she was always at that same table.

Olivia stared at the mountain where the highest peak was just at her eye level. The view was calming. It was as if the moment she sat there, which was fifteen minutes ago, her brain stopped working and just took in what was in front of her…what is surrounding her…the cold breeze…the tranquility…the nature. It was as if her stress in the past weeks was forcibly pushed to the back of her mind and was not allowed to surface until she had left the place.

Olivia must admit that she needed that. Although Matthew was always there to keep her off from work during nighttime, it was different when she was alone and in a place like Sadie's. She needed that time alone without anything to think about.

Olivia closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Suddenly, she jumped when someone spoke behind her. "Oh, God! I'm so sorry I am late! The streets are flocked with tourist buses and it was so hard to get out of it," said the familiar voice.

When Olivia looked up, she saw a woman whom she knew was already in her fifties but looks ten years younger. She has her hair in a high bun, the way ballerinas put their hair. She was wearing comfortable-looking wide-legged pants, a white shirt, and a cardigan with a long beaded necklace that matches her earrings.

She was undoubtedly a beautiful woman with a slim body. One would think that she was a supermodel when she was young but Olivia knew that she was not. She used to be the country's prima ballerina and she is still a ballerina now. It was just…she is more focused now on running a non-profit dance school than performing on the stage.

The dance school is owned by another non-profit organization that is owned by Nic's family. It was located in a street that was known as the city's cradle of arts. There were museums, theater, and arts and dance schools on that street. The street itself is like a gallery because its walls were decorated with murals. On its sidewalks were occasional sculptures. So it was no surprise that it was flocked by tourist buses because it was one of the best tourist spots in the city. It was like a one-stop for arts and culture lovers.

Olivia smiled and shook her head. "No worries, Mom. I just arrived and thought that I was late," She said, patting the space beside her, gesturing to the woman whom she called 'Mom' to sit beside her.

The woman was not her mother though. She is Isabella Brown or most commonly called Belle. A very fitting name for a beautiful ballerina. She is Matthew's mother.

Belle insisted that Olivia call her Mom the moment Matthew introduced her to his family. Olivia was hesitant and shy about it at first but over the years, she had gotten used to it.

Belle had treated her like a daughter since she doesn't have a daughter of her own. She only has Matthew and his younger brother. Internally, she was longing for a daughter and she found it in Olivia.

Olivia doesn't mind though. Ever since she lost her mother in a plane crash at the age of fifteen, she has always been alone and she missed her. It was hard being used to having her mother beside her and then suddenly, she was gone. Having Belle made it easier for her. At least now, she has someone to call mother after a few years of having no one but the tombstone in the cemetery who has her mother's name but not her body.

"Well, I was even later," Belle said as she sat beside Olivia fanning herself as if she had run a mile.

Olivia just chuckled and kissed Belle on her cheeks. Once Belle is seated, Olivia offers her a glass of water which Belle takes instantly.

Once Belle had settled down she turned her body to face Olivia and asked, "Have you ordered?"

Olivia shook her head. "No. Not yet. I was waiting for you," she said.

Once a month, Olivia and Belle would always meet up at random places to bond. Belle said they needed it because Matthew likes to hog Olivia. Belle wants a mother-daughter bonding with Olivia. It was a statement from Belle that warms Olivia's heart.

"You should have ordered at least something to keep you occupied. I am sure Sadie will have something for you," Belle has always been a sweet woman even though she sometimes scolded Olivia for not taking care of herself.

Olivia didn't mind the scolding and just smiled at Belle. "Should I call on the waiter?" She asked.

"Yeah, sure," Belle nodded her head.

But before Olivia could look around to search for a nearby waiter, the owner of the restaurant came to them.

"Hi, Aunt Belle," The woman was as tall as Olivia. She is wearing a chef's uniform and is smiling down at them.

Olivia knew that it was always chaotic in the kitchen of the restaurant but the owner of the restaurant was smiling down at them as if the kitchen was the most peaceful place she could ever be.

Maybe it was because, just like Olivia, the young restaurateur loved what she was doing that is why despite the danger or the exhaustion she could still manage to put a smile on her face.

"Hey, Sadie! You should have given Liv something to eat while waiting for me," Belle returned the woman's smile and stood up to kiss her on her cheeks.

"I offered but she refused. You should scold her and make her eat more especially since it seems that her current assignment is taking a lot of her time," Sadie said, glancing at Olivia who was watching their interaction.

Since Sadie grew up with Matthew, it is no surprise that she is close to Matthew's mother as well. In fact, Belle is friends with Sadie's mother. Their fathers were friends as well.

Belle turned her head to look in Olivia's direction and raised a brow at her. "Hmm…is it? We'll talk about that," She said with a pointed look.

Olivia knew that she was about to be scolded more later on but she just gave Belle a cheeky grin.

"By the way, Liv. Thanks for the review that you put on the steak that I sent you last time," Sadie said when Belle was already seated beside Olivia.

"You know I am happy to do that. And I was honest about that. It was the best steak I had ever tried. It was so juicy and tender. And the flavor burst into my mouth. It goes really well with the cheesy baked asparagus you paired it with. In fact, the asparagus was gone before the steak,"

It is not the first time that Sadie asked for a food review from Olivia. She always does that. Whenever Olivia and Matthew will come to her restaurant, Sadie will serve Olivia something new or she will urge Olivia to try something from the menu that she hasn't tried and ask for Olivia's review.

If Olivia hasn't gone to the restaurant for a while and Sadie needs her word, Sadie will deliver something to her apartment.

Sadie does that because Olivia was very knowledgeable when it comes to food even though she didn't attend culinary school. Not to mention Olivia doesn't hold back on her comments.

Sadie always gets an honest critique from Olivia.