Page 17 of One Sweet Day is Never Enough

“You are most welcome. But isn’t she always happy with you?” He winked at her and she couldn’t hide her smile.

But he didn’t need to know how much she had riding on the anniversary party—he had enough to worry about.

Half an hour later, Seth and Gia still sat on a bench at the marina, watching the sun as it teased the horizon over the shimmering blue of the lake. Fishing boats and speedboats bobbed on their moorings. The gentle sound of water lapping against the dock’s footings had lulled her into a quiet, peaceful state.

They’d discussed Seth’s ideas to advertise locally and Gia offered to help him with some ad copy. She also suggested he list the orchard and winery on some wedding guide websites that the agency regularly used to find interesting locations for their brides.

“That’s a great idea. Come to think of it, the Henderson Estates was listed in go-to guides like that for Sonoma and Napa. Maybe we should set our listings to serve the whole state? We might be able to expand our reach quite a bit.”

“That’s a great idea. We frequently have brides coming from Michigan and other neighboring states, at least in the summer.”

He nodded enthusiastically.

Gia glanced at the lake and back. “Have you got an estimate for your advertising budget? The listings aren’t too expensive, but starting out you’ll have a bit of a commitment to make before you’ll see any return on your investment.”

“I don’t yet. I’ve got to take a closer look at the books and talk to my dad about it, but I realize it’ll be a long-term project.”

“Okay, good, but it should start to pay off fairly quickly.”

“Right. I was also thinking that since the winery’s heated, it could be a really nice setting further into the fall, maybe even the winter.”

He definitely had the right idea. She was excited to help make it happen. “Christmastime weddings are very popular, but they can become tricky because the weather doesn’t always cooperate up here, or so I’ve been told.”

“Oh, that’s true. Maybe I should just target the local regions in the winter then? For those tough enough to travel—and shorter distances.” He grinned.

“I think that’s smart, at least for the first year to see how it goes.”

Seth shook his head. “I don’t know why I wasn’t thinking about how harsh the winters are here. We did weddings all year long in Sonoma. Such great weather there. Guess I forgot.”

Gia nodded. “So everything continued the same as usual throughout the year there?”

“Yeah. Summertime definitely was busier, but we were still booked throughout the winter with weddings on many weekends.” Seth stared out at the water and she studied his face for a second.

“What do you miss the most about California?”

He turned back to look at her. “Hmm. Funny you ask because I was just thinking about that today. Remember how I told you I miss the people? Well, I do, but actually, I think what I might miss more is the stability of the situation. Things just ran smoothly, and we weren’t faced with the question of whether or not we’d be able to stay open every time we looked at the books.”

“Oh, I bet,” Gia’s eyes went wide. “Your orchard—it’s all on your shoulders. That must be a heavy weight to carry around everyday.”

He nodded. “Yeah. The winery business at Henderson was booming. It almost ran itself. I just had to implement a few changes when I started managing the place—none of which were rocket science, by the way—and then things did even better. I miss how easy it was. I didn’t appreciate it enough.”

Gia nodded.

“Sometimes I almost wish I could go back. Not literally—just to running a business that isn’t half underwater.” He laughed ironically. “As much as I love the farm, I had no idea how good I had it there.”

“I get that. It’s hard to live in the moment.” She shook her head.

“It is.” Seth leaned back against the bench and scrubbed a hand across his chin. “Especially when your life is half-stuck in the past.” He seemed lost in thought.

Gia returned her attention to the bay where a crew on a sailboat was laying anchor for the night.

He watched the boat with her. “So what about you? Do you like living here? I know you said you’ve only been here since April, too.”

“That’s right, and yes, actually I love it. I’ve still got some good friends in Minneapolis, but I’ve made some great friends here. There’s a lot going on every weekend—at least right now. I guess we’ll see how things go this fall.”

“Oh yeah? That’s good to hear because I haven’t met many locals yet since I’ve been back, apart from you.” He turned to look at her and grinned. “This has been a nice change of scenery. Thanks for coming out here to talk.”

Gia tilted her head. How lucky that she ran into him. “Oh, it’s my pleasure. I don’t spend enough time enjoying the views here, either.”

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