After twelve days, five hours, and thirty-eight minutes wallowing in my total and utter misery, I decide it’s time to get the hell on with my life. Maybe it’s that I’ve had my fill of ice cream and donuts since Seth dumped me. Or maybe it’s the many pep talks from my friends. Or maybe it’s because I’ve cried my way through a whole bulk order of super-soft tissues and I don’t want to haul another box from the store.
Whatever. Point is, I have a shiny new outlook.
And that outlook realizes I need to clean my place. Badly.
So, I put my Dolly Parton mix on shuffle and get out the Dyson, and I get to work, cleaning every inch of the apartment until—
“APRIL!”
Uh-oh. I look up. Katie is in her bedroom doorway with a murderous-slash-sleepy look on her face. Her hair is very . . . medusa-like. I have to press my lips together to not laugh. But come on, she even has adorable pillow creases in her right cheek.
I shut the vacuum off.
“What the ever-loving fuck are you doing?” she demands, making her slightly less adorable. “And why are you laughing?! Do you know what time it is?”
“Um . . .” I glance over at the microwave. Whoops! “Five?”
“Five,” she says. “Five-fucking-a.m., April.”
I wince. “Sorry!”
She shakes her head. “Poppy warned me this might happen. She said you clean when you’re upset. To be honest, I expected it sooner.”
“Actually . . .” I straighten my shoulders and lift my chin. “This is me getting my life together.”
She gives me a sidelong look. “I think you’re in denial.”
“Denial?” I laugh. “No way!”
“. . . is what a person in denial would say,” she quips.
“Seriously,” I insist. “I’m fine. I’m . . .” I was about to say “over Seth,” but that would be denial. “ . . . feeling better about things. I’m ready to move on. And get the dirt out of this rug. Have you seen the dust bunnies in this thing?”
“Fine,” she yawns. “Carry on. I’m going back to bed. Let me know when you get to the tequila and chocolate phase.” She stops, looks over her shoulder. “As long as it’s after noon.”
I spend a busy morning at my shop, getting back on top of all the stuff I ignored during my wallowing phase of doom. I craft a help wanted ad for more support at the store, catch up with my billing, and even take several orders for upcoming wedding events, guiding the happy couples through their design plans with smiles and zero snark.
“Look at you, Miss Sunshine again,” Remy says, approving.
I snort. “More like Miss Faint Hints of Not Entirely Cloudy Weather,” I correct him.
“I’ll take it. Feeling up to the anniversary party? I can run the centerpieces over there, if you want.”
“No, I’m good,” I say. “Cute old couples aren’t nearly as annoying as young, gooey ones.”
“Truth,” Remy agrees.
I load up the van and leave him to hold down the fort while I head out. The anniversary brunch is on the Upper West Side, celebrating thirty-five years of blissful marriage, so I arrive early enough to set up all the centerpieces and throw in a few cute arrangements around the main dining room, too.
“I brought her yellow roses on our very first date,” the husband tells me happily. “She’ll just love this.”
“I’m happy to help.” And I am. Because sure, my heart still feels like a meat tenderizer had a field day on it, but it’s nice to see people like this have made love work. “Enjoy your party,” I tell him, and I head back outside. But I’m just approaching my van, hoping I haven’t got another parking ticket, when I hear my name being called.
The hairs at the back of my neck prickle. I know before I even turn who it is: James.
A string of swear words whirls through my head as I turn around—and stop.
The first surprising thing I notice is the woman on his arm. The second is his black eye and the butterfly bandage across his nose.
“What happened to you?” I ask bluntly, unable to keep the smile from my face.
He pauses. Then his expression smooths out, and he laughs. “Oh, you know, just sparring at the gym.”
I owe his sparring partner a drink, clearly.
“This is Trish,” he adds, thrusting his date forwards. “She’s a surgical resident.”
And I care about this why? I smile at the woman, wondering what the deal is. Does she know he’s a creeper? Then I wonder if they were one of Seth’s setups. I quickly dismiss the thought—Seth was done with James after that cabin-in-the-woods nightmare. I may be questioning a whole lot about Seth right now, but not that. I’m absolutely sure of it.
“Anyway,” I say, backing away. “I should get back to my shop.”
“I was sorry to hear about your breakup,” James says, stopping me in my tracks.
“What did you say?”
“Your breakup. With Seth.” He smirks. “Though I could have told you it wouldn’t last. Seth was never a one-woman kind of guy.”
I narrow my eyes. “Since when did you even know we were dating?”
He laughs, but it’s more like an evil chuckle. “It’s common knowledge, darling. His boss found out about the two of you, sneaking around. I heard he was going to fire Seth unless he broke things off with you. I guess he chose to keep his job, instead. Poor April. I guess you never saw it coming, did you?”
No, I didn’t. And him saying it feels like a gut punch. Except . . . something seems off. James seems way too happy about all of this, and he’s not exactly the most trustworthy source of information now, is he?
“Nice seeing you, April,” James says with a smirk, walking inside the building. His date is tapping something on her phone, distracted, and hangs back for a moment.
I sigh. “Look, we don’t know each other, but a word of friendly warning? If you get a mysterious invitation to go upstate, don’t.”
She frowns. “What do you mean?”
“Just be careful,” I tell her, and then hurry to get out of there.
Because I have some serious thinking to do.
I’m still thinking later that night at home. Is what James said true? Did Seth really dump me just to keep his job? Or would I be crazy to believe anything out of that lying, creepy stalker’s mouth?
I’m no math whiz, but something about his story doesn’t add up. I know that Seth really cares about his job, but trading me away like some kind of baseball card just to keep it?
That’s not the man I knew.
I’m halfway through my pint of Chunky Monkey, still no closer to figuring out what to do, when my mom calls.
“How are you doing, honey?” she asks. “Feeling any better yet?”
“A little, but . . .” I sigh and fill her in on what happened with James. I end with, “So now I don’t know what to do. Why can’t my relationships just be easy, like you and Mike?”
“You think my relationship with Mike is easy?” She laughs, and I can picture her shaking her head. “Oh, honey, we have our moments, believe me. Sure, we’ve been together a long time and are in a groove. But don’t forget, we came together after a couple of real doozies. We had both been in relationships before. Unsuccessful relationships, so we’d learned a lot of relationship don’ts the hard way. We’ve paid our dues.”
“I guess.” I’m not quite convinced.
“Of course,” she adds, “we still get into it now and then. Or have you forgotten Thanksgiving?”
“Oh yeah,” I say, trying not to laugh. Last Thanksgiving, they got into a fight over him nearly burning the house down with his new turkey deep-fryer. It was pretty scary at the time. They lost their shed, but even she can laugh about it now.
“I still love him, even after that,” she says, and I can hear the smile in her voice. “But we choose to be together. That’s what a relationship takes. It’s not all flowers and romantic dinner cruises, you know. But we take the bumps in the road, and we keep on going. Because we know it’s worth it in the end.”
As cheesy as it sounds, it warms my heart to hear her say it. “I’m glad you found him.”
“So am I. Even though he nearly killed us all in that godforsaken turkey inferno!”
We both laugh.
“Honey?” she says in her Mom tone.
“Yes?”
“Would you choose Seth if you could work things out? Is he worth the work?”
I gulp. “I think so. I mean, I hope so. Yes,” I answer finally. “He is.”
And then I know exactly what I need to do.
I head over to Seth’s apartment—
OK, first, I put on makeup and a cute outfit and style my hair. Then I head over to Seth’s apartment, rehearsing the whole journey what I’m going to say. I get to his building and bang on the door, my heart pounding so hard, I think I’m going to pass out.
Am I about to make a total fool of myself here?
Bex answers. “Oh, hey, April!” She smiles then looks over her shoulder at the group of people behind her. “Look everyone, it’s April!”
I glance inside and see a guy at the table, and Seth, sitting next to a woman.
A gorgeous blonde woman.
His date?
I nearly lose my nerve, but even if he’s moved on, I deserve to know what happened. Also, Bex has just closed the door behind me.
Clearing my throat, I straighten my shoulders. “Seth? Can I talk to you for a second? Please?”
My voice wavers on the last word, but luckily, everyone pretends like it’s totally normal for me to be showing up and barging into the middle of their cozy double-date dinner like this.
“Uh, sure.” Seth stands and looks around. “We could . . .”
“Why don’t you two go into Seth’s room?” Bex says brightly. “I’ll dish out another plate for April.”
“Oh, no, thanks. I’m not staying.”
At least, I don’t think so, judging by the gorgeous red lipstick on Seth’s date.
I follow Seth to his room, and he closes the door behind us, looking seriously awkward.
God, I’ve missed him. It takes everything in me not to reach out and throw myself all over him.
Which would not be smart. I cross my arms, instead.
“So . . .” Seth pauses. “What did you want to talk to me about?”
He seems jumpy. Avoiding looking me in the eyes. Exactly the way any guy would seem if his ex-girlfriend just walked into the middle of his romantic dinner.
My heart falls.
“I won’t interrupt your date,” I say quickly. “I just needed to clear something up.”
Seth blinks. “My date? Oh, no, that’s Bex’s new . . . girlfriend, maybe? I don’t know what the label is,” he says. “She and Billy are . . . inviting her into their relationship. They cooked ragu, and I’m starving, so . . .”
He’s not seeing the gorgeous blonde?
Oh my God! I nearly sag in relief. “I’m here to find out what happened,” I tell him, needing to get this over with. “Why you broke up with me.”
When he opens his mouth, I clarify, “Why you really broke up with me, Seth. Because you know what? I don’t believe your bullshit story that it was just a hookup and I got caught up in the situation you created. I fell for you because you’re a great guy, and I had the best time with you, even when we were doing nothing at all. And I’m pretty sure you fell for me too, so I don’t understand what happened to make you push me away!”
I know I’m babbling now, but I can’t stop. All the questions that have been whirling in my mind . . . all the feelings that have been building, they all come rushing out, and I barely pause for breath before continuing, “I know it may not be cool to want to make plans and be exclusive, but I’m falling in love with you, Seth,” I blurt. “I want to be exclusive with you, and committed—not like that, but you know what I mean! That’s who I am and what I want. And if you don’t want that, fine, but I need to know the truth. And if there’s even a chance that you love me too—”
I don’t finish, because Seth is already kissing me.
Wait, what?
I pull back. “Is that a yes?” I ask, because as much as I’m all about the kissing, I need answers, dammit, and now.
Seth grins. “Yes.”
“Yes to what, exactly?” I press, my heart racing.
“To you. To plans and exclusivity and commitment.” His smile gets wider. “April, I’ve fallen in love with you, too.”
He did? He does?
I gape at him in disbelief—and then give his chest a shove.
“Then why the hell did you break up with me?”
Seth groans. “I know, I’m so sorry. James found out about us. He swore he would destroy your business if I didn’t let you go. I just couldn’t let that happen; I know how hard you’ve worked to make Bloom a success.”
I shake my head, trying to process everything he’s saying. “So, you didn’t do it to keep your job as a Romeo?”
Seth blinks. “What? No! I quit the Agency.”
“You did?”
He nods. “It wasn’t the right place for me, not anymore. But God, April, I’m so sorry I let James get inside my head. And I’m so, so sorry that I hurt you.” He takes my hands, staring deeply into my eyes. “I should have told you, but I didn’t want you to lose what you’ve worked so hard for all because of me.”
I pause. “You broke up with me to protect my business? Because you love me?”
He nods. “Yes.”
My heart melts.
“Thank you.” I kiss him. “Even though it was stupid and dumb-headed, and you should have told me from the start. Thank you.”
He kisses me back, and I lose myself in his arms again. It feels so right, so perfect to be here with him again. Soon, I’m breathless, and he’s panting, our hands sliding over each other’s bodies and our mouths demanding more. I slide my hands under his shirt, wanting to feel him against me, when suddenly, there’s a burst of laughter from the living room. Whoops. We’re not alone here.
Seth pulls away, red-faced. “Why don’t we go to your place?” he suggests, tugging his clothes back into place.
I grin. “You read my mind.”
“Besides, there’s something I want to show you,” he adds, taking my hand.
I smirk. “I’ve seen it before, but it’s been a while, so yes, please.”
Seth laughs. “That’s not what I meant.”
It takes us twice the time to get back to my place, because we have to stop to make out in the street every five minutes. And by the time we finally make it up the stairs of my building, I’m more than ready to drag him straight to bed and make up for lost time.
But instead of following me to my door, Seth takes my hand, and pulls me in the other direction instead, up another flight of stairs, towards the roof.
“Where are we going?” I ask. “It’s kind of cold for open-air sex,” I add, teasing. “Not to mention that it’s still daylight. But OK, you’ve twisted my arm.”
Seth laughs and tugs me up the final flight of stairs. “Come on.”
“Alright,” I agree, pretending to sigh. “But if we get busted by a police drone and end up on YouTube, that’s on you.”
But let’s face it, the sex would still be more than worth it.
We get to the roof, and I look around, wondering what the big surprise is. The place is empty, with old trash sacks strewn around and the remnants of my greenhouse.
Oh, my greenhouse.
“So, not that I need candlelight and roses or anything,” I venture, since Seth is still looking at me with a secretive smile on his face. “But this isn’t exactly getting me in the mood.”
He laughs and pulls out his phone. “How about this?” he asks, showing me the screen.
It’s architectural plans of some kind. I squint closer. “What is this?” I ask.
“Your greenhouse.”
I blink. “No, they tore it down. Permit violations or something. It wasn’t allowed.”
“Because it was old and falling down and made the roof leak,” Seth says.
“Just the one time,” I protest.
“So, the new one won’t leak.” Seth smirks.
I stop. “. . . New one?”
Seth’s smile gets wider. “That’s what the blueprints are for. A brand new, totally permitted, completely legal greenhouse for you.”
I gasp. “Are you serious?” I squeal, snatching the phone from him. I zoom in on the pictures in disbelief.
“A friend of mine is an architect,” Seth explains. “He drew up the drawings, and I went to city hall and got the permits all approved. And I had a chat with your landlady and that bitchy neighbor of yours. I promised them no more leaks. And that you probably wouldn’t mind sharing some of your herbs and flowers with them.”
“I can’t believe it,” I say, stunned. “You thought of everything.”
All that’s left after that is to kiss him. A lot.
“But why?” I ask, coming up for air. “You did all this before you even knew I wanted to get back together with you.”
“Because I wanted to show you how sorry I am,” Seth says, holding me close. “Even if you’d never come over, I wanted you to have this. Because you deserve it, and I knew it would make you happy.”
My heart swells. “I love you,” I whisper.
“I love you too,” Seth says. “And . . . I’m also freezing my buns off here.”
I laugh. “Well, let’s go warm your buns up,” I tell him.
And so we do.
Twice.