“Welcome,” Mom stood, “come on in.”
I regained my composure, happy to have a bunny head on to cover the jaw drop at the sight of Chloe. I slowly passed by my mother and whispered, “you owe me for this, Mother.”
I could hear her soft laughter as I moved closer to Mia and her niece Sophie.
Chapter 2
Chloe
“Crickey, Mia. Seriously with this house?”
I knew the Hawthorne family was beyond rich and definitely powerful, but Mia had insisted they were all down to earth and great. I hadn’t believed her, but then she’d brought Parker to Australia to meet Sophie. Parker didn’t hesitate to step in on her treatment after her heart surgery. He was so kind and patient, explaining it all. I liked him right away.
“Is this foyer an indication of what the rest of it looks like? Because if so, I’m seriously underdressed.” I straightened my jacket and tried smoothing out wrinkles from being in the car too long. “You could have told me to dress better.”
“Oh, don’t believe the John Dory in those magazines,” Mia scoffed. “Where is everyone?”
“I’ve read things about them. I should have known better.” Chloe fussed with her shirt.
“Knock it off. That suit looks amazing on you and very schmick,” Mia scolded. “Let’s go inside and meet everyone.”
“Mummy, are we going to sleep in this hotel tonight?” Sophie squeezed my hand tight. “Is Aunt Mia staying here too?”
“Baby girl, this is not a hotel. It’s the home of Uncle Parker’s family.” I squatted down to look her in the eyes. “I need you to be a good girl and be very polite, okay?”
“Chloe, she’s always polite. Stop worrying so much and trust me.” Mia put her purse on a side table. “Let’s go meet the Hawthornes. They’ve been waiting to meet my family.”
Before walking into Hawthorne Manor, I’d expected to feel overwhelmed and nervous to meet the famous Hawthorne Family, but all of my nervousness washed away within minutes of meeting them. Their smiles were so warm and welcoming.
“This is my wonderful baby sister, Chloe, and my very special, favorite niece Sophie.” Mia introduced us to the room. “They’re here visiting for a few weeks.”
My eyes went immediately to a giant bunny standing in the center of the room. I hadn’t expected them to do anything special for us, but a giant bunny was probably not the norm in this house.
“Chloe, this is the Hawthorne Family.” Mia gestured around the room. “I’ll let you all exchange names on your own.”
“Good arvo,” I said, so low it was almost a whisper.
As I scanned the room yet again, I found myself unable to take my eyes off of the giant bunny. I mean, really, finding a giant Easter Bunny standing in the middle of an extravagant room almost made me laugh out loud.
“Mummy, what is that big furry guy?” Sophie asked, hiding behind me. “Is it real?”
“I think it’s just Easter Bilby, baby.” I tried to pull her to the front of me. “Be polite like we talked about.”
Mia had walked further into the room, leaving me in full view of too many pairs of eyes, and one set of enormous glass eyes.
“Chloe, get over here and meet the Easter Bilby with us,” Mia called out to me. “Easter Bilby is here today just for you and Sophie.”
They hired a bunny to be here?
I walked further into the room to stand next to Mia with one little hand squeezing my leg and another pulling on the back of my shirt. I’m sure to them it just looked like I had extra limbs, as there was no Sophie head to be seen.
“Hello, Easter Bilby.” Mia put her arm through my bent arm. “We were wondering where you were today. You must be very tired from hiding eggs.”
The Easter Bunny hopped over to Mia and tackled her into a big hug. Sophie practically climbed into my shirt. She wasn’t usually this nervous. All I could figure was the long flight, and then the car ride, had taken it out of her.
“Sophie, honey, isn’t it great Easter Bilby is here?” I asked, trying to pull her out from under me.
“Mummy, why is Easter Bilby attacking Aunt Mia?” Sophie asked, peeking around my legs.
“Silly girl, he’s just giving her a big, big hug.” I rubbed her back to reassure her. “See, she’s smiling.”
“Sophie, honey, come over here next to me and meet Easter Bilby.” Mia put her arms out to Sophie, pushing Trey away with a light slap. “Bilby is very nice. Why don’t we get a picture with him?”
Sophie stepped out from behind me and took Mia’s hand. I could tell she wanted to get closer but was afraid.
“Good on ya’, Sophie,” Mia hugged her to her side. “See, Easter Bilby is ace.”
Mia always had a way with Sophie, and I seemed to be acting a little crazy like my daughter. Thank God Mia is here to take control.
I could see the others standing around the room watching. I wished desperately that Mia had introduced us first. I gave a light wave to the group, then turned to urge Sophie forward, all the while knowing the giant Easter Bunny was staring at me.
“Chloe, come on. Let’s get a picture, then we can have lunch or whatever is next,” Mia whispered, taking me by the arm and moving me forward. “Since when are you this shy? They’re just people, so relax.”
“This family is ridiculously pretty, and this house…are you kidding me?” I whispered back. “You should have told me. I’m not sure I look good enough.”
Did I even brush my hair before I got out of the limo? Yeah, of course I did. Right? Don’t fix your hair.
“Why would that matter, Chloe? They’re normal, just like you,” Mia scolded. “Go sit by Bilby, smile, and stop being a drongo.”
“Have you noticed that Easter Bilby has been staring at me?” I asked suspiciously. “Crickey, do I need to worry? Where did this person come from?”
“Good question. And whereas I didn’t notice before, I definitely am noticing now.” Mia let out a light laugh. “It is kinda creepy, isn’t it? The eyes on that costume are like the size of softballs.”
“Yeah, and they don’t move, so it’s creeping me out.” I laughed at the absurdity of a costume creeping me out. “I totally get why Sophie is afraid.”
Mia pulled me along until she forced me to take a spot on the sofa next to Easter Bilby. He was without a doubt the tallest Easter Bilby I’d ever come across. Sitting this close to him left me feeling weird., mostly because I couldn’t help but get whiffs of how good he smelled.
I wonder if he’s one of the brothers? How many did Mia say there were? Ugh, what does it matter? You’re going home in a few weeks. Oh, Crickey, he’s getting up. Now what?
The Easter Bunny bounced off the couch, then turned and reached for Mia’s hand. Of course, Sophie didn’t respond well to that and cried out for me. The Easter Bunny took it in stride and turned to me with his hand extended. I accepted the big furry paw and laughed when he spun me around then pointed me toward a giant basket of decorated eggs. Then, without warning, he took me into a dance pose and we glided across the room to the giant basket.