Page 47 of Season's Schemings
Season’s schemings are officially upon us.
I trail behind Alicia, heart throbbing in my throat, and as I step into the familiar living room, time slows. My eyes travel over the old, overstuffed plaid couches blindly, the myriad of colorful garlands (hung up successfully on the wall where they belong, unlike the attempts I made last night), the fireplace adorned with Christmas stockings. I notice my parents—my brother hasn’t arrived yet—and the rest of the Plumlee family.
Finally, my gaze lands on Adam, who’s hand in hand with Elizabeth in the corner loveseat.
The gut-punch I’m waiting for as my eyes meet his… doesn’t come. It’s more like an uncomfortable pinch. I mean, I’m still quivering at seeing him for the first time sinceThe Incident, but it’s more like getting in a fender bender than a plane crash.
Which isn’t a morbid analogy at all.
“Hello, everyone,” I say woodenly as everyone gets to their feet.
“Maddie.” Adam’s voice drips condescension. “Glad you could make it. Mom told us you were bringing a… SEBASTIAN SLATER?”
Adam’s voice turns into a choked, fangirl-like strangle, and I’m gloriously thrilled to see my ex turn the pasty-white of the ghost of Christmas past as my gloriously handsome husband comes to stand next to me.
Man. Seb looksgoodin that wool sweater.
Adam’s blinking his big, round eyes rapidly behind his glasses, looking not unlike a malfunctioning Furby. I have a momentary urge to smash him against the stairs, which is how I fixed (read: permanently silenced) my own broken, hyper-blinking, childhood Furby toy.
Instead, I smile. A big, wide smile. “Oh,” I say innocently, looking from Adam to Seb. “Do you two know each other?”
“What’s going on, Madelyn?” My mother’s face is pinched and her voice shrill.
“I told you. She said she was bringing a newfriend,” Alicia hisses to Mom.
“You didn’t tell me that friend was Thor!” Mom hisses back.
Seb, meanwhile, turns to Adam with a friendly, relaxed expression. He’s got about six inches and forty pounds of muscle on my ex. I’m not usually so shallow as to judge solely based on appearances, but boy oh boy, am I enjoying this particular observation.
“Sure we do,” Seb says confidently. “It’s Eugene, right?”
“Eugene?” Adam stutters, apparently still starstruck enough to be entirely dazed. “Who’s Eugene?”
Seb turns to me with his forehead wrinkled, but I don’t miss the evil twinkle in his eye. “Didn’t you say that your ex was named Eugene, love?”
“Love?” Mom and Adam say simultaneously, their faces identical masks of confusion.
“No, it’s Adam,” I correct Seb happily.
“My bad, my bad. Hi, Adam.” He puts a hand out, and Adam takes it. Seb’s big, tan, callused hand totally dwarves Adam’s pale and soft one, and if I’m not entirely mistaken, I could swear that Adam winces from Seb’s grip. “I am Sebastian Slater, yes, but you can call me Seb. And I hear congratulations are in order for you, too.”
Seb nods towards Elizabeth, who’s come to stand behind Adam. She looks chic as ever in a silk shirt and chinos that emphasize her tall, slim frame, but her pretty face is screwed up in concern as she watches her fiancé practically spontaneously combust.
I, meanwhile, can barely contain my glee.
How did I ever think this was a crazy plan? This is the most fun I’ve had in months.
“Too?” Adam looks from me to Seb and back again. “I don’t understand.”
Seb grins like he and Adam are the best of friends, and then steps next to me and puts his arm around me. Draws me close and looks down at me like I’m actually the love of his life and he couldn’t bear to ever lose me. “You know. You two getting engaged, and me and Maddie getting married.”
A shocked silence falls over the room. I expect it’s the calm before the storm.
And man, I’ve never been more excited for a storm.
I snuggle into Seb’s side. “Oops.” I spread my left hand over my husband’s chest, flashing my ring for the room to see. “Did I forget to mention that Sebastian’s my husband?”
17