Sadie followed John into the house. It had a large living room to the right with a huge brick fireplace. The walls were adorned with pictures of kids—some alone, some together, school pictures, degree certificates. The room was filled with what looked like comfortable family furniture. This was definitely a place where happy memories were made.
To the left was a large formal dining room with a huge table. It had already been set for dinner tomorrow. The setting was something out of a magazine. Two centerpieces of fall flowers decorated the table. It looked very elegant.
“Roxanne sets the table every year; she’s been doing it since she was six.” John smiled into the room.
“Come on up, let’s get your bags into your room and head out to greet everyone.” They ascended a large grand staircase in the middle of the house. Once they reached the top of the stairs he pointed to the right, down a wide hallway.
“That’s the main bathroom, Bogs is the next door over, T is across from him, and Stone is the door at the end. Up the small staircase is the attic, Ethan’s room.” Sadie peered down the hall as he walked to the left.
“And here you are. It’s the original master so you’ll have your own bathroom. I hope you like it.” He flicked on the lights.
The room lit up. It was gorgeous. The room was painted a light sage and cream-colored curtains draped the windows. The large bed had cream and silver bedding with a bunch of throw pillows. There was a gray fuzzy carpet that covered half of the hardwood and the furniture was a light oak. Her eyes zeroed in on a sage plush chair tucked into the corner of the room.
John came up next to her. “That was Darla’s favorite spot. She said it was the perfect…”
“…spot to read,” Sadie said along with him.
He smiled and quietly muttered, “She would have loved you.”
She peeked out the window to see the party below. There was a huge fire pit with chairs and wood stumps as seating. There were about twenty people that she could count, all friends she assumed. Her eyes immediately found Stone sitting in a chair. He seemed to be listening to the blonde next to him. The pretty girl was talking and laughing and using her hands a lot. She placed her hand on Stone’s arm and he looked over at her and smiled. The smile didn’t reach his eyes but he gave her his smile. Sadie’s heart dropped and panic set in. Maybe coming was a mistake. Maybe he meant it when he ended it. What if coming here was a huge mistake?
John stepped close behind her observing the group. Bogs got up and did what looked like a funny dance move and said something she couldn’t make out. The whole group laughed. You could hear them over the music from where she stood. She watched Stone and he laughed too. This time it was genuine. The pretty blonde reached out to rub his hand. And he let her. She’d made a mistake coming here. Stone had moved on.
“John, I think this is a mistake,” she quickly uttered as jealousy raced through her.
“Grab your phone,” he ordered.
“What?”
“Grab your phone,” he repeated. Sadie pulled it out from her pocket, unsure of what he wanted her to do.
“Now text him, hit send, and watch him.”
“Text what?” she asked, a bit confused.
“Text what you feel,” he answered, never looking away from the window.
Think. How do I feel at this exact moment? Sadie reached down and typed.
I miss you
She hit send and watched him. Seconds later he reached into his pocket and read his phone. Her message. The look on his face was that of a man destroyed. He stared at the text before starting to type. But he stopped and just continued to stare. Finally, he put it back in his pocket and glowered into the fire. The pretty blonde reached out to touch him again. This time he shook his head. She sat back in her seat and watched him while he watched the fire. He was inconsolable.
John left Sadie to freshen up. She was to meet him in the kitchen behind the staircase when she was ready. She washed her face and applied makeup before she changed into a black, flirty short dress and red cowboy boots. She peered in the full-length mirror for one last look before she went downstairs. She had curled her hair which left it full and wavy hanging past her shoulders. Her whole look screamed, “Back off, bitch, I’m here for my man.”
Sadie hurried downstairs, heading toward the back of the house. Strolling into a ginormous kitchen with a huge center island, she found John sporting a huge grin.
“You look beautiful, Sadie. You ready to go fight?” he asked with a wink. His hand gestured for hers.
“With my fists if I have to.” She grabbed his hand.
“Well, let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.” He chuckled.
He opened the door to the deck. The music was loud and small groups had gathered, eating and drinking. Some couples were swaying to the music. Sadie saw T with a girl on his lap relaxing around the fire. Ethan was talking with a small group of guys while Bogs was surrounded by a group of girls. They were all laughing.
Roxanne glanced over and smiled when she saw her dad and that smile turned into a massive grin when she realized who was behind him. Roxanne mouthed, “Oh my God!” Sadie smiled back at her.
“Hey everyone, sorry we’re late. This is Sadie; she’s with us for the holiday. Make her feel welcome,” John shouted to the group and sauntered to the food table.
It is now or never, Sadie!
Everyone looked over and waved. Sadie watched as Stone’s eyes widened in disbelief when his gaze met hers. She heard someone mutter, “Holy shit,” from one of the
