“Impressive qualities, indeed,” Julia drawled. If she’d realized she was such a crack businesswoman she could have made a better case to her new boss and not been canned.
She was amazed, and flattered, despite knowing she was on the receiving end of a world-class snow job.
“Don’t you need someone who actually likes weddings?” Julia tried again. “I’m allergic to them.”
“No one is allergic to weddings.”
“I am. I broke out in a rash once at a wedding. Well, it might have been the flowers they were using, but it’s the principle of the thing. I made a vow after my dad’s last wedding to bride #4. No more weddings. Ever.”
“Your dad has been married four times?”
“Five. I missed the last one, and again, we’re off the subject. Are you sure there’s no one you know who can do this? What about Grace?”
“Mom has her hands full already. Her husband still hasn’t fully recovered from his stroke.”
“Don’t you have assistants or something?” Julia asked, knowing she sounded desperate.
“I have an assistant, but she’s young. The women who help out during the weddings all have families.”
Julia slumped back in the chair. “Unlike me who has no one. I suppose Grace informed you I got fired, too?”
“Yes, she did.” Sarah tried to look sympathetic without much success. “I’m sorry, and I’m sure it must have been awful, but maybe this is—”
“If you say this is God’s will, I swear I’ll start throwing things,” Julia warned.
Sarah sat up straighter. “Maybe it is His will.”
“Right. He had my boss develop a heart condition so he had to sell the business, which resulted in me getting canned. All so I could be free to come back here and run your wedding planning business?”
“God works in mysterious ways,” Sarah said, with a shrug.
“God must have been up to a lot of chess playing.”
“We don’t know God’s plans. Maybe all this is happening so Mary can be born healthy and strong because she’s going to cure cancer someday, thereby saving millions of people. Maybe even you.”
Julia blinked and stared at her former stepsister, wondering how she’d never noticed Sarah had evil tendencies, too. Grace had passed on the stealth, manipulator gene to her daughter.
“Low blow,” Julia said in defeat, visions of white, frothy dresses and weepy brides filling her days.
So, this is what comes of caring for someone, she thought. You get roped into doing crazy things like planning weddings, when you’d rather have a root canal than attend one.
“Have you girls finished your little talk?”
Both women looked up as Grace walked back in the room. “Oh, yeah. We talked, and I caved,” Julia said.
“I told Sarah not to guilt you into it.”
Julia pointed to Sarah’s extended stomach. “Don’t you know God had me fired, leaving me free to run Marry Me, so that baby in there could one day cure me of cancer?”
Grace gasped. “Oh, my goodness… Sarah! You should be ashamed of yourself.”
Laughter tinged with both exasperation and admiration at Sarah’s rather astounding manipulative abilities escaped Julia’s lips. “She’s not ashamed. She’s evil. You’re both evil. You knew what she wanted.”
“I told you earlier you could always say no,” Grace pointed out, trying to look innocent.
Oh no, Julia was on to them now. Their act wouldn’t wash.
“Say no to what?” a deep male voice asked.
Julia turned again as a tall, athletic man entered the room. His sandy-brown hair flopped into his eyes as he went to the bed and kissed Sarah.
“Eric, this is Julia,” Sarah said.
He held out a hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Julia. You got here pretty quick.”
“It seemed urgent,” Julia said. “I didn’t know I’d be drafted into service.”
Eric looked at Sarah. “You asked her already?”
“She said yes.”
His eyes closed for a moment, and he released a deep sigh. “Thank you. You don’t know what this means to us.”
“Hey, I’m only doing this so I don’t die of cancer.”
“Excuse me?”
She waved her hand. “Inside joke.”
“Eric, maybe Julia would like to see who else she’s going to be helping by running Marry Me,” Sarah said.
It was Julia’s turn to be confused. “Hmm?”
“The softball game this afternoon.”
“A softball game?”
“I organized a game for the kids at the center,” Eric answered. “We put together teams, and they’re playing this afternoon. We’ll barbecue afterward. It’s going to be a real party, and there should be a big turnout.”
“Plus, Julia will have a chance to meet people,” Grace said. “Seth will be there, too.”
Sarah clapped her hands together, looking like a ten-year-old again. “Oh, you have to see Seth. You remember him, right? I can’t wait to hear about his reaction when he sees you.”
“I doubt he’ll even remember me. It’s not like we hung out much.”
“Well, you’re going to now. You’re going to be living with him for the next several months, after all.”
A flash warning went off inside Julia’s head. Excuse me?
“Sarah,” Grace admonished. “You’re going to start some unpleasant rumors if you’re not careful.”
Julia waved her hands. “Hold on. Hold on. Can we back up a minute? I didn’t realize I’d have to negotiate living arrangements in this deal. I thought I’d be living with you, Sarah. I’m going to need all the help I can get, and it would be so much easier if we’re in close proximity.”
“Everything’s in close proximity in Covington Falls.”
Sarah wasn’t getting around this one. Julia gently tapped her on the head. “The living arrangements?”
Sarah actually pouted. “Eric and I live in a one-bedroom apartment right now. You’d have to sleep on the couch if you stayed with us, which doesn’t seem right. At Mom’s you’ll have a nice bedroom, a garden, and a big kitchen where you can cook to your heart’s content.”
“I don’t cook, and the last time I went digging in the ground, I was searching for my hide-a-key rock after a storm.”
Sarah made a little tsk sound, which meant this was a minor detail. “Whatever. You’ll be so much more comfortable at Mom’s. Trust me.”
Julia was incredulous. “A one-bedroom apartment?”
“We chose it because we were trying to save money,” Sarah said, color rising in her cheeks. “It was all we needed at the time.”
“Where are you planning to put the baby? In the sock drawer?”
Sarah turned indignant. “No, we have a perfectly nice cradle, and the baby can sleep in our room for the first few months. Then we’re going to look for a small house.”
“You all missed out on the family planning classes, didn’t you? Financial planning as well.”
“I told you, we never thought—”
Julia smiled. She couldn’t help it. Sarah was so cute when she got embarrassed. “I know. You weren’t expecting your little miracle. I understand. Maybe you should take up this issue with God. At least he gave Abraham advanced warning he was about to become a father at age one hundred.”
Sarah paused. “Again, I’m impressed.”
Julia rolled her eyes. “Please. Adam and Eve. Cain and Abel. Abraham. Virgin Birth. Those are staples. I’d have been deaf and blind not to absorb them. We’re getting off point here. Again. Can we get back to me and Seth living in the same house?”
Grace stepped in to explain. “Seth doesn’t actually live in the house. We converted the storage area above the garage into an apartment and office.”
“Why?”
“He moved in after his wife died. Some people weren’t comfortable going to a single minister’s house. This way, I can act as hostess if I’m needed.”
> “Oh,” Julia said, though she still didn’t get it.
“In any case, it’s not like you’re going to be stumbling over each other,” Grace continued. “Seth’s rarely home. He’s usually off on church business.”
“Fine. When is this game? Do I have to time to take a nap and maybe grab a shower?”
****
The nap and the shower should have done wonders. Unfortunately, sleeping in the same bedroom she’d lived in as a teenager was a bit disconcerting. She felt as edgy and unsure as she had at thirteen. Everywhere she looked brought back unsettling memories. By the time Eric arrived to drive her to the game, Julia was practically frothing at the mouth to get out of the house.
She was waiting in the foyer when Eric pulled up in an SUV, which had seen better days. Much better. Julia raced out before he could honk the horn, and if he was surprised by the speed at which she leaped into the car, he was polite enough not to comment on it. She watched the passing scenery as he started down the street. Summer had taken over this part of the world and the trees had an intense green color she’d never seen anywhere else.
As they turned the corner she spotted an ice cream truck. A real one, that played a tune. She hadn’t known those existed anymore. Grace used to give Julia and Sarah fifty cents to buy a treat. Sarah had always taken forever to make up her mind, which had driven Julia crazy. A skill her former stepsister still possessed in abundance. The knowledge made her chuckle.
At the sound, Eric turned his head. “You look tired. Beautiful, but anxious,” he was quick to add.
“You’re so diplomatic,” Julia said, a grin pulling up the corner of her mouth. “I feel like I spent a week in the car with two bratty kids.”
Eric’s voice remained gentle, as if he didn’t want to spook her. “Why so anxious?”
“Being here. It’s hard.”
“Why?” Again, he was extremely gentle.
“I don’t know. Lots of ghosts.”
“What kind of ghosts?”
“The ghost of stepmothers past,” she said, scowling at him. “I can see why you set out to help troubled kids. You’re pretty good at getting people to spill their guts without them realizing it.”
He chuckled. “Guilty. I only got the briefest of sketches about your history from Sarah. I can imagine it is unsettling being back in a place where you spent some pretty turbulent years.”
“The years here were fairly calm. All the other years surrounding them were turbulent.”
“Yes, but your emotions weren’t as engaged as they were here, with this family. With Grace and Sarah.”
Julia folded her arms over her chest. “Nice trick, reading people’s minds. Do you see dead people, too?”
He laughed again. “No, I’m just observant.”
Eric’s eyes crinkled up when he laughed. Julia liked him. She was coming to realize Sarah had done well for herself in the husband department, even if he was a terrible financial planner. In fact, she thought Eric was much too good for Sarah, the evil little manipulator.
“I can tell you care about Grace and Sarah,” he said. “Maybe more than you want to, or think you should, but it’s there.”
Julia looked out the window at the passing trees again. “The first time I met Grace, I remember thinking she was what a mother was supposed to be like. She even smelled like a mother. I spent the whole time here loving her, and hating her.”
“What did you love?”
“I loved that she gave me chocolate chip cookies right out of the oven,” Julia said, with a smile. “I loved that she sang while she cooked. I loved that she asked me about my day and actually listened when I told her, and she never let a day go by without giving me a hug, even though I never responded.”
“And the hate part?”
“I hated her because she wasn’t my mother, and because by then, I already knew how the story would end. I knew my father would end up leaving her, and then I would lose her, too.”
“Is he why you never came back?”
She nodded. “Because they’re not mine.”
Yes, she was whining, but she couldn’t help it.
Eric’s tone got sharper. “I’ve got news for you, Julia. They most certainly are yours. You may not be related by blood or have been in the same room with them in fifteen years, but you share a connection with them. The sooner you accept it, and embrace it, the happier you’ll be.”
There was nothing she could say, so they drove the rest of the way in silence. Once at the park, Julia quickly put distance between Eric and herself. Sure, she might have decided she liked him, but he’d come unbearably close to hitting the truth, and she had no desire to deal with more self-awareness on no sleep.
The park was indeed crowded. There were kids all over the place, as well as adult volunteers, and from the looks of it, a good number of observers. The kids spotted Eric right away, and they swarmed around him like ants to a drop of honey, until they saw Julia. The younger ones looked at her with suspicion, while the older ones took on all the finer characteristics of your average construction workers. The whistles, ‘yeah baby’s’, and outright leers were nothing Julia hadn’t seen or heard since she’d started wearing a bra in the fourth grade.
“Young men do not make catcalls at a lady,” Eric said.
“Sorry, ma’am!” erupted all around.
“The only thing worse than whistling at a woman is calling her ‘ma’am’,” she said, matching Eric’s stern tone. “It’s Julia.”
“Come on, Seth is around here somewhere,” Eric said. “Let me introduce you. Oh, wait… I forgot. You two know each other, don’t you?”
“Yeah, but we weren’t exactly friends.”
Julia followed Eric, and in the distance she spotted a group of men helping to set up the field. She searched for a geeky-looking beanpole, but her eyes stopped on a beautifully built, dark-haired man. All she could see was the back of him. He was tall, with shoulders a mile wide, and long, powerful legs.
Who knew they grew such delicious specimens down here in Covington Falls?
“Hey, Seth!” Eric called out. “Look who I found.”
All the men turned, including the delicious one. Oh, yeah. Mr. Tall Guy was wonderful from the front, too. Nicely crafted masculine features. Julia couldn’t quite make out the eye color, but she had a feeling they were spectacular as well. Their eyes met, and she felt a little jolt. “This one,” a voice reflected in her head. His eyes widened, and Julia knew he felt it, too. If they were in a movie this would be the moment when violins swept into a chorus and drums started pounding.
Then he frowned, and his expression became shuttered. He broke away from the group and started over in her direction. That’s when it dawned on her exactly who she’d been drooling over.
The drums turned to clanging bells.
Oh… my…
The breath lodged in her throat. There was no way the geeky boy she’d known had grown into… him! But somehow he had. She stiffened even more when she recalled this gorgeous man was also a minister.
Can you get struck by lightning for thinking impure thoughts about a minister? Isn’t lust one of the seven deadly sins?
Oh, this was not good. Not good at all.
****
It’s not good for a woman to look so amazing in a pair of denim shorts, Seth Graham thought. Not good at all.
How was it possible? Fifteen years and she still made him feel like… well… like he was fifteen. He’d grown up, answered the call to the ministry, and married and buried a wife. Yet somehow prickly, bitter, keep-your-distance Julia Richardson still scared the life out of him. Because prickly, bitter, keep-your-distance Julia Richardson was also still the sexiest female he’d ever met. A sexy woman who was now his stepmother’s ex-stepdaughter, making her his… well… he didn’t quite know what it made her. He only knew it was bizarre and twisted.
His mouth went dry like he’d swallowed a box of chalk sticks, and he could swear drums were pounding somewhere. As he walk
ed toward her, he concentrated on not tripping over his feet or otherwise reminding her he used to be a huge putz. Their eyes locked. The drumbeat intensified. He knew the moment she figured out who he was because her eyes suddenly widened, and she drew in a shocked breath.
Yeah, Julia, the putz you remember did grow into this.
He stopped in front of her.
Eric did the honors. “Julia, this is Seth Graham. John’s son. Seth, you remember Julia, right?”
“Hey, Julia,” he said, with almost no inflection. If he was careful and kept his tone even maybe she wouldn’t notice his voice was shaking.
Her eyes made a visual track up and down again. “Hey yourself. You’ve changed a bit.”
He had to admit, it was nice she seemed so rattled by his changed appearance. It made his mouth twitch as he fought back a smile. “A bit. How’ve you been?”
“Fine.”
“Good.”
“And you?”
“Fine.“
“Wow, you two, don’t go overboard on the effusive greetings,” Eric teased.
At this, Seth and Julia both laughed, and it seemed to lighten the moment.
“Are we almost set up here?” Eric asked, gesturing to the field.
Seth swiveled his head around, grateful for any excuse to look away from Julia and try to regain his sanity. “Almost. We’ll be ready to go in a few minutes.”
“I’ll go check with the guys.”
Seth started to go after him, to escape, but Eric waved him off. “No, no, I can go. You two catch up. I’ll be right back.”
Seth fought back a surge of panic. Now what? Was he supposed to talk to Julia? Like they were long-lost friends? He barely knew her anymore. Plus, he couldn’t look at her without swallowing his tongue, which made conversation pretty difficult.
Julia was the one who tried to break the ice. “I saw Sarah.”
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