Page 84 of One Sweet Day is Never Enough

Monday morning arrivedand Gia hurried into work. She hadn’t been able to find a parking spot in the lot this morning, despite the fact that she’d arrived twenty minutes earlier than usual, just for good measure, so she’d parked on a street two blocks away. With a deep breath, she inhaled the sweet and calming scent of the flowering shrubs lining the quiet sidewalk and turned up the walkway.

Her nerves were not doing her any favors this morning—that was for sure. She exhaled slowly.

Noreen would’ve talked to Abigail by now, most likely. Gia tossed back her hair, straightened her shoulders, and went inside.

Noreen stood in the lobby, pouring herself a cup of coffee. Gia had hoped to get here first. Too late. “Good morning, Gia.”

“Good morning.” Gia greeted her. “How are you today?”

“Doing fine. Yourself?” Noreen took a sip of her coffee.

Gia nodded. “I’m good.”

“Why don’t you get yourself situated and come into my office? We’ll talk.”

Gia nodded and walked to her desk. This was it. She was getting fired after all, wasn’t she? No one sayswe’ll talkwhen they have something good to say. She set her purse down and put her lunch in the community refrigerator then strode over to Noreen’s office.

“Please, have a seat.” Noreen gestured rigidly to the chair facing her desk, and Gia sat down.

Noreen revealed little emotion. “Abigail and I spoke yesterday afternoon.” She paused for effect. “And while we weren’t happy with the incident at the party, Abigail sang your praises. She said you were forced to deal with an awful personal scenario in a rather public manner, and that you handled it with grace and dignity. In fact, she said she even enjoyed the drama—the gossip kept everyone talking all night.”

Gia winced but let out the breath she’d been holding, then cleared her throat. “Wow. Well, that’s, uh, great to hear?” She let a smile cross her face. “Thank you?”

Noreen grinned. “Regarding the party, itself, I understand everything went extremely well. Abigail said she would be hiring us again for certain, and she would specifically request thatyouplan and run the next event. She also said they’d like to use the orchard again in the future. I told her about the winery space and she loved that idea, too. She said they’ll rent out both.”

Seriously? “That’s wonderful.”

“It really is, isn’t it? So, great work, despite the tricky situation. I’m proud of you.”

“Thank you, Noreen.” That meant a lot.

“On that note, I have a new client whose wedding will be late next spring, and I’d like you to take the account. On your own.”

“Really?” Gia’s eyes lit up.

“Really. I’ll let you get started with your day now, and we’ll meet about it later this afternoon so I can go over the details with you. She’s coming in this week to meet with us.”

Gia stood up to leave. “That sounds great! Oh, thank you so much, Noreen. I really appreciate it.” It was finally happening! That carrot was hers.

“You’ve earned it, Gia. But one more thing—I understand you’re dating Seth Pederson now, and I don’t have a problem with that, but don’t let your personal life get in the way of your work again. You might not get so lucky next time.” She shot her a wry look.

Gia nodded and shut Noreen’s door behind her.

Whew.

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