Page 40 of One Sweet Day is Never Enough

Eleven

The fire was burning bright and Seth noticed the seat next to Gia was empty again. Gia seemed to be involved in a conversation with Nick, Courtney, Jake, and Angela. He touched Marcy on the arm gently when their conversation hit a lull. “Hey, do you mind if I go see what Gia’s up to?”

Marcy glanced over at Gia and smiled. “Not at all. You’d better.” She gave Seth a knowing look. “Great talking to you.”

“Likewise. Keep me posted on that job search. It would be awesome if you could get into the local school district.” Marcy had told him she’d just completed her master’s degree in education and was looking for a full-time job. If nothing came along, she’d be subbing until she found something, and she’d been toying with the idea of staying on in Heritage Bay for the fall.

“Thanks. I will.” She smiled graciously and turned to talk to the couple on her other side.

Seth headed back toward Gia.

“Hey, stranger. How goes it?” Gia patted the seat next to her and he sat down.

“Great.”

They caught up for a few moments then both stared into the fire. Gia hunched her shoulders against the chill.

“Are you cold?”

“A little, yeah.”

“Here, take my jacket.” He was fine, especially in front of the fire. Good thing he’d brought it.

She took it gratefully and he wrapped it around her shoulders.

Seth looked up at the dark sky. A half moon was visible behind the trees and the fire burned brightly, lighting up the night.

He gazed over at Gia—would it be so bad if he were to blur the lines of their professional partnership and ask her out? Would it jeopardize their working relationship? There’d be a lot at risk if things didn’t work out. Still, he found himself wanting to be closer to her, anyway. He inched toward her and pressed his arm against hers to warm her up. “Better now?”

She smiled, rubbing her arm against his, and pulled the jacket tighter. “Yeah. I’m good.”

He finished off his beer and cleared his throat. “So what’s going on over here? Looks like something’s brewing.”

She chuckled. “Oh, it’s just a heated debate about the best places to take a mountain bike around Chicago. Nick’s from there, and Jake’s visited several times, so the controversy is real.” She grinned ironically.

Seth laughed. “I’d like to hear this, myself.” They both directed their attention to the group.

“You cannot be serious right now,” Angela sputtered. “That trail is narrow and full of roots.”

“Exactly,” Nick said.

“Who likes to ride on roots?”

“Who doesn’t?” Nick shot back, grinning.

Angela laughed and stood up. “Who needs a refill?”

The night went on and Gia asked Seth more about his family and he asked about hers. They talked about their favorite things to do outside of work. Seth told her he loved going fishing on the lake, and Gia said that she loved to cook.

“Oh my gosh, I have to cook something for you!”

Seth smiled. “That would be great.”

“Tell me what you like and I’ll make you something one night.”

“Will you, really? Because my mom’s a sweetheart and I love her cooking, but I’d love a change. I’m not proud of it, but I got a little bit spoiled in Sonoma. Dude, the food and the wine there—there’s nothing like it.”

Gia laughed. “With that five-star frame of reference, you’re not going to like my cooking. I promise you.”

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