Page 47 of One Sweet Day is Never Enough

This was probably going further than he’d like when it came to mother-son conversations. “Never mind, Mom. It’s over and done with now.” He took a bite of the bacon—salty and delicious. Perfect.

His mother had definitely given him something to think about, though. Maybe he could talk to Gia, but what would he say?

She sighed heavily and stared at him. “What did you tell her?”

Seth sighed, too. “Okay, okay. I told her I’d just broken up with a serious girlfriend, and that I hadn’t meant to give her the wrong idea about things.”

His mother blinked. “You said what, now?”

Seth was defensive. “Well, I guess I’ve been interested in her, too, and if she could tell, then I didn’t want her thinking I planned to try and cheat on Stacey with her. Women don’t generally like to bethe otherwoman.”

His mother continued to stare at him. “Honestly, Seth, sometimes I think you’re hopeless.” She turned back to the stove and took the scrambled egg saucepan to the sink.

He swallowed and sat back. “What? Why?”

She continued to tidy up. “Did you tell her how you feel? Did you tell her anything about how you’d like to take her out on a date?”

“I never got the chance to. That’s what I mean—she just kind of got weird and ran off to her friends, so I left.”

She turned back to look at him. “That’s because she probably has no idea that you even like her, if you never even said so!” His mother sighed again and sat down at the table. “Do I need to spell it out for you?”

He stared at her and grinned. “Apparently.” Maybe he reallyhadmissed something there.

His mother smiled facetiously and attempted a patient tone. “Seth, what’s a girl to think when a boy tells her he’s been giving her the wrong idea? She’s going to think he doesn’t like her back, and then she’s probably going to feel humiliated for displaying an interest in him. Honestly, son, didn’t your father teach you anything besides how to run a tractor?”

Seth’s mouth fell open. He knew his mother didn’t actually mean that about the tractor. She had a flair for the dramatic.

But was she right? Had Gia totally misunderstood what he’d been trying to tell her last night? It would certainly explain why she’d run off the way she had, if he’d made her think the attraction wasn’t mutual, with all the talk about Stacey.

He bit into another slice of bacon and recalled their conversation in the dark. The look on her face—her awkward questions. He took a long gulp of his second cup of coffee and set it back down.

Oh, for Pete’s sake—his mother was right.

* * *

Gia’s hairblew out of place as she walked along a quiet beach early on Sunday afternoon, contemplating Seth’s words at the bonfire. The air felt fresh and traces of wispy clouds filled the sky. She gazed out at the dark waters on the horizon, holding her sandals by the straps as the cool water washed across her ankles.

How did she always manage to get herself into these kinds of situations when it came to men? Ones in which she’d put her heart on the line and then had the rug pulled out from under her.

She bent at the knee and traced random lines in the sand with a twig. At least she knew where they stood now, and she wouldn’t continue to make a fool of herself when she had to see him at the events she’d be running on his property.

Look on the bright side.

She wrinkled up her nose. It had become clear why people always said not to mix business with pleasure. Abundantly.

Still, would she ever be able to think of him as nothing more than a friend? She sighed and stopped to dig her toes into the sand.

If so, she wasn’t sure how.

Kira and Marcy had talked her out of her lousy mood last night. They’d said she’d get over him, that she’d be able to handle beingjust friendswith him—just give it time. But she wasn’t sure how. She wasn’t even sureif.

Her phone trilled from the canvas bag on her shoulder and she pulled it out to take a look. She stared at it. That couldn’t be right.

But there it was. A text. From Seth.

Can we talk?

Gia gazed at the phone, her pulse quickening. Of course she wanted to talk. She already missed him. But—should she even respond? It was just going to mean more humiliation and heartbreak for her. No good could come from her becoming more attached to him now.

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