4. Seth
Four
Seth
“ R emember to hand your RSVP for this year Valentine’s Dinner by tomorrow. If I don’t have your card, I’m gonna assume you are not coming. It is very important to have them with the correct amount of people coming so we can order to food and the drinks for everyone.” Rachel, our Head of Human Resources, says at the end of our weekly staff meeting, that happens every Monday.
I wait until everyone is out of the conference room before I collect my things, closing my laptop.
“Just because you are the co-founder and co-CEO doesn’t exempt you from handing your RSVP card.” Rachel leans on the conference table and says.
“I know. I’ll bring it tomorrow for sure. I forgot I left it at home.”
She knocks on the table twice and leaves the conference room. The rest of the day goes by with no major hiccups. Like any other Monday, I think I will leave at 5:00 pm, but there is always a last-minute call or a complicated email that has to be resolved now.
I come back to my place close to 9:00 pm, too tired to do anything besides eat a quick sandwich and take a quick shower before I pass out on my bed.
“Where the heck did I put that damn card?” I yell after turning my living room upside down. My dining table and kitchen counters looking like a tornado passed over them. I think over where was the last time I saw the card. I keep retracing my steps in my head until I remember.
I left it with Grace when I ask her if she wants to come with me.
I take the spare key to her apartment I’ve rarely used and head down to her floor. I think she is still with Soraya, so I just need to quickly find the card and head to work. I unlock her apartment door and search for the RSVP card. I don’t have that much time left. Today I need to arrive on time for a video call meeting with one of our biggest client and a possible new project with them.
I finally see the card on one of her living room side tables when her doorbell rings. I didn’t think about looking at the door camera panel to see who was in front of her door when I open it. An older lady stands in shock. She looks back and forth from her phone to the door.
“Is this Grace Stewart’s apartment?” She asks.
“Yes, but she is not here. I think she is staying with her best friend.”
“Then if this is her apartment, who are you and why are you inside of my daughter’s place?” She yells at me before charging towards me.
Before I could think of a way to explain why I have access to Grace’s apartment without revealing her daughter is sexually active, she is calling Grace and pointing out the card in my hands and Grace’s name written on it.
I focused on finding the card that I didn’t see that Grace added her name as my plus one.
I’m on the phone trying to explain to my business partner, without saying too much, that I might not make it to the video call. I’ve tried to leave twice, explaining that I have an important meeting, and that I was just stopping by to grab the RSVP card Grace forgot to give back. Her mom insisted I couldn’t just leave without explaining why and how I have access to her daughter’s apartment.
I’m about to attempt the same explanation one more time when Grace comes through her door.
“Mom, didn’t I tell you to call me before you come? What if I was out of state on a business trip?”
“I wanted to surprise you, but it was me who got surprised. Who is this young man and why does he have a key to your apartment? He doesn’t look like he works for the building and what is that Valentine’s card he has in his hands that has your name on it? I will like answers.”
“Hello Mrs. Stewart, I’m Seth Holt; Gracie’s boyfriend.” I look at Grace and she remembers we are pretending for her little sister.
“Right Mom, remember the contact number I keep avoiding explaining to you. Well…” Grace points at me, smiling sheepishly.
We look at each other and she nods. At some point, it looks like she and I could read each other’s eyes. I can’t say when exactly it happened. All I know is it did way before we started sleeping with each other. It was like all the time we spend together connected us in a way we never connected with other people in our lives. I don’t think either of us thought too much about it. I would always dismiss it as something not important whenever my friends pointed it out.
I hold her hand, our finger intertwined as if this was only natural. Her body leans closer to me and her mother glares at us.
“Since when do you have a boyfriend?”
“Little bit over a year,” Grace says. I nod and smile.
“Then why you didn’t tell me?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I wanted to wait until it feels more secure. This is why I asked you to stop trying to set me up with single men in Clear Springs.”
“Wait, you went on blind dates when you were visiting your family?” I ask.
“I did not. You know I didn’t.” Grace turns around and reassures me.
Of course, I know she never went. One of her text ranted about the sneaky ways her mom tries to set her up with someone in town. Grace would complain about her mom’s plan to have her move back to Clear Springs.
“Mom, let Seth go to his job. He does really need to go.” Grace grabs me by the shoulders and turns me towards her front door. “Sorry, I didn’t give you the RSVP card before. It would have saved us this mess.” She whispers as she pushes me forward.
I reach for her hand and squeeze it. “It’s okay. I’ll see you later.” I turn to her mom. “I wish we could have met differently, but I’ll comeback and answer questions you might have for me. Have a great day Mrs. Stewart.” I leave the apartment and speed walk to my car.
I arrive at my business partner’s office just as he is greeting our client.
I can feel Everett’s stare the moment the call ends with the client.
“What?” I ask.
“First question; why you barely made it to the meeting?” He taps the card, right on top of her name. Grace Stewart is written in blue ink in the section of plus one. “And are you really taking her to our company’s Valentine dinner?”
“Grace’s mom caught me inside her apartment with the RSVP card. I don’t think there is anything wrong with inviting her to the company dinner?”
“Did Grace tell you her mom was coming?”
“No, it was a surprise for her, too. She’s been staying with Soraya for a day or two.”
“Why did that make you come late, though?”
“Well, we had to explain who I’m and why I have access to Grace’s apartment.”
“What is the explanation?”
“Same one we give to Maggie.”
Everett shakes his head and sighs. “You, my friend, are digging a hole you might not get out unscathed. If it was any other friend that you were inviting, I would say no, but we are talking about Grace. You’ve been crushing on her since you meet her. She is literally the woman of your dreams and now you are lying to her family about being her boyfriend. Sleeping with her almost every night is a big hole enough. You didn’t need to add a fake relationship to it. Let me ask you something, Seth. Can you really go back to just being her friend? No special anything. Just another of her male friends.”
“I don’t want to ruin our friendship. I can deal with my heart. I can’t lose her completely.”
“Being friends with benefits and pretending to be her boyfriend in front of her family will eventually ruin the friendship.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Did you forget my last situationship?”
I shudder at the memories of Everett’s last relationship. He and Gabriella were friends longer than he and I been buddies. I’m not clear how they ended up turning their friendship into a friend with benefits agreement. I remember the horrible weeks after Everett broke the agreement because she confessed to being in love with him.
“This is different. She already had feelings for you and tried to make you fall for her through sex. Grace and I are compatible in bed and after a long conversation, we agreed to sleep together, no strings and no feelings.”
“But you already have feelings for her before you even knew you had such a great chemistry in bed with her.”
“True, but I’m not Gabriella. I would never use my feelings to influence or guilt-trip Grace into anything. If she finds someone or wants to find someone, I will gladly go back to being her friend.”
“Do you think her future boyfriend will be okay with you being her friend after knowing her that intimate?”
“Grace’s future boyfriend’s feelings are not my business. That’s between her and her man. I’m not gonna get involved if she doesn’t want me to.”
“You say that now, but you might react different when you witness another man kissing and touching her.”
“You could be right or wrong. I guess time will tell. These are my feelings and I’m the one responsible for them. I’m content with what I have. Now if you excuse me, I need to give this to Rachel before she marks me as not attending my company dinner.”
I pat Everett’s shoulder, grabbing my stuff and heading towards Human Resources.