Page 50 of One-Star Romance

Gabby shrugged. “Maybe ‘passion’ is too strong. But people respect me, and I get paid well to be creative. Besides, it’s not like I was going to be a famous painter.”

“You don’t know that. Have you been painting at all?” Natalie asked, and Gabby pursed her lips again. “You should!”

“In what hours of the day? It takes a lot to keep a human alive. And believe it or not, it takes effort to do good work at the agency too. Which is why I don’t want you to come into it half-assing things, being like, ‘I guess I’ll deign to do this because my actual dream hasn’t worked out.’ ”

“Well, that’s harsh.”

Gabby sighed. “I just—” Her agitation dislodged Christina, who began to whimper. Gabby stroked her back. “Oh, shh, shh, it’s okay, sweetie.” Still, Christina mewled, twisting her face away from Gabby’s breast, and Gabby’s shoulders slumped in despair.

It felt like eons since Natalie and Gabby had been able to have an uninterrupted conversation, since they’d truly been able to pay attention to each other. Natalie reached out and took Christina into her own arms, then stood and began to dance with her, bouncing her gently. The novelty of it all distracted Christina from her cries. On the bed, Gabby rubbed her temples.

Quietly, Nat said, “I didn’t mean to make you feel like your workplace is my backup option. I thought it would be a nice way to hang out with you more while doing something at least somewhat creatively stimulating.” Christina nuzzled into her, reaching out to grab Natalie’s hair, and Nat let her. “I just think it’s time for me to get it together, like everybody else.”

Gabby gave a slow nod and cleared her throat. “Look, if you’re really committed to it, I can’t promise anything, but I’ll see what I can do.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

“But I have to warn you. If you come to work with me…I’m really earnest. You’re going to want to make fun of me.”

“Oh, believe me, I got that from the whole ‘we’re helping people grow their dreams’ bit you did.”

They both laughed, but half-heartedly, then lapsed into uncomfortable silence. “So,” Gabby said, “we should probably get back to the party.”

20

Rob and Angus carried the futon into Melinda’s old bedroom, trying not to trip on the clutter. “Let’s put it down here,” Angus wheezed. “And remember to use your legs, not your back.”

“I know,” Rob said, and they both grunted as they set the futon against the wall.

“Whew!” Angus mopped his brow. “A heavy sucker, isn’t it? But that’s good, it means it’s sturdy. Julio’s been having lumbar issues, but with this big guy?” Angus patted the futon proudly. “He’s going to get the support he needs.”

Angus’s father and Gabby’s dad wandered into the room now, Melinda following behind them with a scowl on her face. “What do you think, Julio?” Angus II asked, putting an arm around Mr.Alvarez, proud as if he’d carried the futon himself. “Looks good, right?”

“Looks great.”

“And now you can use this room as an office or an exercise room, but there’ll still be a place for Melinda to sleep.”

“Why aren’t you doing this in Gabby’s room?” Melinda asked, frowning.

“She comes home more than you do.”

“No,” Melinda said, her scowl intensifying. “It’s because she has a kid, so I’m the lesser daughter—”

“Mija,” Mr.Alvarez began, but Melinda turned on her heel and stormed out, her father following behind as they continued their argument.

Angus’s dad shook his head, then looked expectantly at Rob and Angus. “Well, we might as well load out the mattress while we’re here to resell it for them. We can put it in the same truck where the futon was.” By “we,” he obviously meant Rob and Angus. He turned to go, then shot one final, proud look at the futon. “Melinda will grow to love it. It’s a sterling model, isn’t it?” Angus nodded eagerly. “Trent has been selling them left and right!”

A storm cloud passed over Angus’s face as his father walked out of the room. He and Rob went to opposite ends of the mattress. Rob raised an eyebrow. When Angus caught him looking, Angus fixed a not completely convincing smile to his face. “Let’s lift this bad boy up!” He gave another grunt and hoisted his end into the air.

“Who is Trent?” Rob asked, forgetting to lift with his knees instead of his back, then cursing himself as he felt a twinge in his muscles.

“Oh, my father’s star employee. Trent is probably going to take over the business when he retires.”

“And…you don’t think he’s a good guy?”

“No. What? Oh, no, no, no. Trent is nice. Trent is perfectly nice! And he’s a fine salesman.”

“But…?”

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