Page 70 of One Sweet Day is Never Enough

Seventeen

Gia gazed at herself in the mirror of the ladies room. Her makeup still held, apart from her lipstick. But the shock on her face was going to be difficult to cover up.

She shouldn’t stay there for long, but she needed a moment to collect herself. She reapplied her pink lipstick and took a deep breath. How could this be happening? Didn’t he just break up with that girl? What kind of a person would fly halfway across the country, unannounced, to arrive at an ex-boyfriend’s house in the middle of the countryside, with nowhere else to go if things didn’t go well?

What was Stacey expecting? For him to take her back into his arms and act like nothing happened? Like everything was fine—like they hadn’t just broken up? What was wrong with her?

Gia shook off the thoughts. She couldn’t let the situation bother her—not tonight. There were more important things at stake, and though she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t at all worried about Stacey showing up, she trusted Seth. Still, all of this was not going to be easy to ignore. She took another deep breath and marched outside.

The band had taken the stage, and the dinner plates were being swept away by an efficient catering staff. Gia sighed with relief. At least everything was going well with the party.

She would check on dessert. Abigail had chosen to go with a two-tiered vanilla cake in white frosting with gold-frosting accents. A large number 50 covered in edible glitter shimmered from the top of the second tier. It was beautiful and on display on the far side of the dance floor. Gia made her way around the back rather than cross the banquet lawn.

The photographer was already taking pictures of Abigail and Tim in front of the cake. Gia smiled. The caterers would begin cutting it and delivering slices to the tables soon. She smiled with relief at the size of it—there was plenty to go around. No counting errors had been made tonight. Thank goodness for small favors.

Gia looked away from the cake and glanced across the lawn, startled to see Seth from afar, walking back to his table—arm-in-arm with Stacey.

That was odd. A sinking sensation filled her stomach. What was going on?

She looked back at the happy couple celebrating their fifty years. How had they done it? Gia took a deep breath and glanced back at Seth. He and Stacey had reached his table, and it looked as though Stacey was going to sit in his seat. He stood behind her, talking to a member of the waitstaff, probably asking them to bring her a meal.

He’d invited her to the party? Gia huffed and then scolded herself. What else was he supposed to do with her? As long as he kept her under control, that was fine. She didn’t have time for an emotional response right now. She’d just have to trust him.

She turned on her heels and headed to the catering tent for a quick check on things.

* * *

Seth pulledup another chair at his parents’ table and sat down next to Stacey, who had thrown her overnight bag at her feet under the table. Seth’s mother appeared to be in as much shock as Gia had been. She tried making conversation across the table with Stacey to compensate for the awkwardness thrust upon the other guests at the table. Seth had introduced her as a friend that had just flown in for the party. His mother was doing her best to normalize the situation.

“So how are things at the Henderson Estates, Stacey?”

Stacey downed the last drops of the glass of champagne that had been intended for Seth for the toast earlier—which he’d missed—and looked over at his mom. “Thanks for asking,” she said flippantly, “but I don’t know. I quit.”

Seth’s jaw dropped, but he recovered before anyone besides his parents noticed. His mouth gaped open. Not only was Stacey being rude to his guests, but she’d quit her job? How permanent an arrangement did she really think she’d find here? She really believed she was staying here and that he’d still give her the job he’d promised her two months ago?

Or was she just yanking his chain? She knew how to get a rise out of him—this little story was certainly working. Maybe it wasn’t true. He’d play along.

“You quit?” his mother repeated, looking baffled. “Well, that’s a—surprise.”

“Seth already hired me, so it wasn’t as though I left a job without lining up another one first.”

It was his father’s turn to sit back with his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets. “I thought we…?” He directed his gaze at Seth.

Seth shot his dad a look and shook his head.Please don’t.His father went silent and stabbed his fork into a piece of asparagus.

“Excuse me, is there a bar here somewhere so I can get another drink?” Stacey asked the woman sitting to her left.

“Yes, it’s right over there,” the woman answered politely, pointing.

Seth took a quick look around. People had started leaving the dinner tables and streaming out onto the dance floor. The bar area was filling up again with people who stood around chatting and laughing. Stacey’s plate of food hadn’t arrived yet.

“Great. I’ll be right back then.”

Seth spoke under his breath. “Don’t you think you should slow down?”

Stacey pushed her chair back and stood up, grabbing her handbag. “Nope,” she said at full volume. “I don’t.” She tossed her hair and walked off. So much for his plan. His mother wasn’t going to be able to handle Stacey. She would have to be his problem tonight.

Seth stood and followed her, but he was quickly intercepted by the older couple who owned the apple orchard just down the road from the Pederson’s property. They’d been seated at the next table. “Oh, Seth, I’m glad I caught you!” Mr. Adams grabbed his arm. “We’ve been eager to see you. You’re so grown up!”

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