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“Well, Genevieve did a great job with everything,” Skylar said.
“Not because of Genevieve, Sky. Because of you.”
She gave him a coy smile. “Who, me?”
His cute chuckle was quickly becoming her favorite sound.
The music soon ended, and the guests returned to their tables. Skylar and Franky moved to the side of the dance floor as Genevieve took to the stage.
“I’m up after her speech to give out the regatta trophies,” Skylar told him.
He leaned close and whispered, “I’ll save you a seat.”
His breath tickled her neck and sent chills up her spine. “Okay.”
She watched him walk over and take a seat at the table with his parents. She was so preoccupied by Franky, she hadn’t been paying much attention to Genevieve’s speech, until Skylar heard her say, “And now I’d like to introduce you to the man who has made the biggest impact on me since I arrived.”
Wait, that’s not right. Genevieve was supposed to introduce her next so she could give out the trophies.
“A man who believed in me when I wasn’t sure I could pull off this event in six weeks’ time. A man who helped me with every last detail of this gala and took absolutely no credit for it.”
Were those tears in her eyes?
“He’s a man of many talents … and many faces.”
Skylar followed Genevieve’s gaze, which was fixed on Sebastian, and she suddenly had a very bad feeling. Oh no! Does she know?
“The president of Schultz Chocolate. Sebastian Schultz, everybody.”
Skylar stared at Genevieve with mouth hung open and watched as she quickly exited the stage and rushed out of the building with Sebastian on her tail. Skylar scrambled to the mic, dumbfounded.
“Uh … sorry for the confusion everyone. My brother, Sebastian, played a large role in putting together the events today, working with Ms. Willis to make this the most successful fundraiser to date.” She proceeded to give a recap of the regatta and award the winners, but all the while, her mind was on her brother and what was happening between him and the woman he loved.
As soon as she exited the stage, Franky was waiting for her.
“That was crazy,” he said.
“I need to find Bash.”
“I’ll come with you.” He took hold of her hand, which sent tingles up her arm, but she couldn’t think about that now.
They walked quickly out of the room and along the hallway toward the exit. Through the glass doors, Skylar spotted Sebastian, dressed very Gatsbyesque, standing alone, staring upward at the night sky.
She shoved the door open. “Bash! Are you okay? What happened?”
“She’s gone. It’s over.” His voice cracked.
“How did she find out?” Franky asked.
“I don’t know.” He looked devastated. “It doesn’t matter. I never should’ve done this in the first place. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
“There you are!” Gus’s voice echoed across the parking lot as he quickly approached, followed closely by their friend, Adelia.
“Is the gala over already?” Adelia asked.
“It is for me,” Sebastian mumbled as his gaze fell to the sidewalk, his shoulders slumped.
“Adelia? You didn’t tell me you were coming.” Skylar walked over and hugged her. They’d been best friends since childhood summers in Malibu, where their families had neighboring homes.