Her First Love Page 9

  When she reached the childcare room, she splashed cold water on her face to reduce the puffiness she knew was coming and then dried it off. There was no way she could pull off her cheerful self today, but perhaps she could make a trade.

  Crossing to her desk, she looked at the roster for who was supposed to work the bash tomorrow night. She’d declined the offer originally, thinking she and Israel would be there together, so two of her other girls - Allison and Harper had accepted. She knew Allison needed the money, but Harper was about to start her senior year of high school and would probably take the night off. Perhaps, she could convince Harper to cover her shift today and take the shift of the bash tomorrow night. She doubted she would be in a much better mood, but at least working the bash would keep her busy with the kids and not allow her to drown herself with thoughts of Israel and Sofia together.

  She picked up the phone and dialed Harper’s number. “Harper? It’s Tiffany. How would you like tomorrow night off after all?”

  17

  Israel

  “Come on, it won’t be that bad,” Chance said as he finished getting ready for the bash. The bash was going to be an upscale evening affair for the adults while the kids enjoyed movies and a nighttime scavenger hunt.

  “Says the man who’s going with the woman of his dreams,” Israel said with a sigh. He’d come over to borrow a jacket from Chance and also to commiserate with him. He never would have said yes to Sofia if he’d known Tiffany was going to change her mind.

  “And who’s fault is it that you’re not?” Chance shot him a pointed look.

  “I didn’t know she was going to change her mind. I wasn’t going to go at all, but Sofia asked and said going as friends would be better than sitting home alone. I figured she was right about that at least. Plus, I was hurt and confused that Tiffany broke it off. I still don’t know why she did.” Israel dropped his head into his hands.

  Chance clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Sometimes things just don’t work out for whatever reason. Have you tried talking to her?”

  “I’ve tried, but ever since I told her about accepting Sofia’s offer, she’s not answering my calls. The only text I got back said she was too busy to talk, but she left yesterday after I told her, so how busy could she be?” He stepped away from Chance and ran a hand over his short hair. “I don’t know. Maybe I should tell Sofia I can’t go. I don’t want to be rude, but maybe it would be better if I stayed home.”

  “No, you need to get out and meet new people. Besides, that ship has sailed. The bash starts in less than an hour which means Sofia is already dressed and waiting. Look, I’ll talk with Merribeth and see if she knows what’s going on. She and Holly and Tiffany are pretty tight, so there’s a chance she might. I’ll also see if she can talk to Tiffany for you, explain the situation and at least get the girl to sit down with you, but tonight, you are going to try to have fun. Besides, you’ve enjoyed talking with Sofia this last week, right? Maybe you’ll find you have even more in common.”

  Israel wasn’t so sure he would enjoy the night with Sofia - yes, he’d enjoyed the last few conversations with her more than his first interactions, but that wasn’t saying much. She still didn’t compare to Tiffany in his mind nor could he envision a future with her, but he’d said yes. He’d made his bed and now he needed to lie in it.

  “Okay, I better head out to get her.” Israel tried to sound excited, but his voice felt flat even in his ears. “Thanks for the jacket.”

  “You’re welcome, and Iz? It’s just one night.”

  Just one night. Chance was right. Israel could make it through one night with Sofia. It was one night he’d hoped and planned to spend with Tiffany, but he could make it through the night with Sofia.

  She lived in a nice house not far from the resort, and Israel wondered what she saw in him. It was clear that she, or her family at least, had money and he certainly didn’t check that box. He wasn’t poor by any means - he prided himself on living frugally, so he’d always put his hazard duty pay and enlistment bonuses in the bank rather than spending them like so many other younger men - but he certainly didn’t fit in with all the luxuriousness this house exuded.

  He pulled up to the front entrance and put the truck in park, but before he’d made it to the front door, it opened and Sofia came hurrying out. She looked beautiful in her soft pink dress and shoes. Her long dark hair had been pulled into an updo that allowed curly tendrils to escape and bounce next to her neck, but even though she wasn’t overly dressy, Israel couldn’t help feeling he was still a few levels below her. Nor could he help wondering what Tiffany would have worn. He had an idea she would have pulled off a casual elegance that would have suited him to a T.

  “Is this what you drive?” Sofia had stopped short in front of the truck and now glanced around as if she expected another vehicle.

  “Yeah, is that going to be a problem?” He didn’t like the slight derisive tone in her voice or the way her nose had wrinkled as she posed the question.

  “Um, no, of course not; I was just expecting something different, that’s all.” She shrugged and offered a smile like it was no big deal, but it was a big deal to Israel. He worked hard for what he had, and he didn’t need anyone looking down on him just because he wasn’t wealthy.

  He opened the truck door for her, already dreading the rest of the evening, and then climbed into the driver’s side. “You look nice,” he said as he started the engine. As much as he didn’t want to do this night, spending it in silence seemed even worse.

  “Thank you.” She pressed her hand down her skirt as if smoothing wrinkles. “You look good too.”

  “I had to borrow the jacket from Chance but thank you.”

  “Oh, well it’s nice.”

  Silence fell between them, and Israel wondered if the rest of the night would be like this. Sofia had never seemed to be at a loss for words, but as he thought back over the conversations they’d had, most of them had centered around his feelings for Tiffany, a topic he didn’t want to discuss tonight. She’d listened attentively, but now he wondered if her listening had simply been a way to convince him to say yes to going out with her. Now that he’d said yes, it appeared they had little more to discuss. Again, he thought of the contrast between her and Tiffany. Moments of uncomfortable silence rarely fell between Tiffany and himself. Just another clue that he should have just stayed home.

  The resort parking lot was nearly half full when they pulled in. “Looks like it will be a busy night,” Sofia said. “Should be fun.”

  Should be. Nice choice of words. Would be were the words he would have chosen if he were here with Tiffany. “Looks like it will raise a lot of money for the cause,” Israel responded, attempting to push thoughts of Tiffany from his mind as he pulled into an empty space.

  Though it was only his second year running the resort, Chance had decided to make ‘The End of Summer Bash’ a fundraising event. Last year, it had gone to veterans who needed help re-incorporating into civilian life. Though it was a common problem, not many people seemed to know about it or how to fix it. Chance had sent the money to a local organization that helped veterans re-write their resumes and also offered classes on needed skills and PTSD help. This year, the funds were going to organizations that helped family members who’d lost their loved one while in service. It would help pay for housing, school for the kids, etc. Israel loved that Chance gave back, and, as much as he would have preferred to be here with Tiffany, he was glad to be a part of the humanitarian efforts.

  “Oh, that’s right. I forgot it was for charity,” Sofia said with a chuckle and a slight shrug of her shoulders.

  Forgot? Israel lifted a brow but said nothing. How could one forget a huge event like this was going to a charity? He turned off the engine and opened his door, but before he made it to the other side of the truck, Sofia had opened the door and stepped down.

  “Sorry, I meant to open it for you,” Israel said.

  She lifted a brow at him. “Why? I c
an open my own doors.”

  Israel sighed and shook his head. Yep, it was going to be a long night for sure.

  18

  Tiffany

  As Tiffany looked around the room, she wondered if she’d made a huge mistake. Working tonight had seemed like the perfect solution yesterday when all she wanted to do was get far away from Israel and Sofia, but now that she was here, she couldn’t keep the thoughts of Israel from her mind. She was fairly confident she would not see Israel, but the distraction she’d hoped to find with the kids wasn’t working so far. She should have just stayed home because her heart certainly wasn’t in it tonight. Seeing all the smiles of the kids and the parents who dropped them off just reminded her of how dumb she’d been.

  “Do you want some tape to hold that smile in place?” Allison, her assistant, whispered as she leaned close. “It keeps slipping and your moody expression is going to scare the children.”

  “I’m sorry.” Tiffany sighed. “I should have just stayed home, but it’s lonely there. I thought this would help.”

  Allison placed a hand on her shoulder. “I know now is not the time, but if you want to talk about it after the kids leave, I’m around.”

  Tiffany managed a small smile. “Thanks. I may take you up on that.” She pulled her shoulders back and attempted to blow away the gloom she felt. “But for now, let’s get these kids working on some crafts.”

  Chance hadn’t given them any specific items to do with the kids during the bash, but he had suggested some sort of craft they could give to their parents when they left, and Tiffany had readily agreed. She knew the kids enjoyed making things and the parents enjoyed receiving the gifts. It was a win-win for everyone.

  “Okay, who wants to make a birdhouse?” Allison asked the growing group of kids. “Raise your hands.”

  An enormous shout went up from the kids, and Tiffany smiled at how excited they were. She could do this. She could feed off their excitement to help her get through the rest of the night and then tomorrow she could wallow in her pity again.

  Tiffany grabbed the box of birdhouses she’d picked up at the craft store the day before. They were already put together, allowing the kids to focus on decorating them and not have to worry about gluing them and making sure they stayed stuck together.

  “Okay, everyone, Ms. Allison is getting paint and markers. We also have feathers and glitter and all sorts of things to decorate your birdhouse with. All we ask is that you only take one so that we have enough for everyone.” She set the box down in the middle of the table and was immediately swarmed by little bodies and reaching hands. Within seconds, nearly all the birdhouses were gone.

  “I sure hope we don’t have many latecomers,” she smiled at Allison and shook her head, “or I may have to go make an emergency store run.”

  “I can send my brother if we do.” Allison set down the paint, markers, and other decor and stepped back as another grabbing frenzy began. “He’s sitting at home doing nothing anyway.”

  “Good to know.”

  The room grew quiet for a minute as the children concentrated on their birdhouses. Tiffany could see varying looks of intensity across their faces. The kids who didn’t enjoy art as much displayed goofy smiles as their hands whipped willy-nilly across their birdhouses. Feathers flew and glitter glistened as it soared through the air, but the more artistic kids had an intense focus on their faces. Each color was placed in deliberation and feathers were applied with flair, glitter with glamour. Though all the houses were beautiful, the skill and pride from some of the children shone through on the projects.

  “What do we do now?” Timmy asked as he pushed his bird house toward the middle of the table. “I’m done.” Of course he was.

  “Don’t worry, buddy, we have more planned, but until everyone is done, we’re going to hang around in here.” Tiffany shook her head at the exuberant young boy who always seemed to do everything as quickly as possible and find trouble wherever it was.

  Timmy was the kid hardest to keep entertained during the week. His mother worked in housekeeping and his father cooked at a local restaurant, so he spent long hours in the daycare center and had already tired of most of the toys. It didn’t help that his attention span was about the size of a gnat to begin with. Just when she thought she’d found something to entertain him for more than five minutes, he would announce that either he was done or he was bored. It was a constant routine with him.

  He pouted for a moment before realizing that meant he could go back to playing with the workbench and pretending he was Israel again. With a skip in his step, he hurried to the workbench and grabbed the wrench before sitting down at the sink and pretending to fix the pipes. That had been his favorite pastime since Israel had fixed their sink. At first, Tiffany had found it sweet and endearing, but now it was just another reminder of how stupid she’d been.

  When the last birdhouse was finished, she and Allison moved them to a counter to dry and then gathered the kids up for the scavenger hunt. “Okay, now the sun is going to be setting, so you need to stay in teams. One of you will have the flashlight and the bag, the other will have the list. The first team to find all the items on the list and then find Ms. Allison or myself wins though we have prizes for everyone. Any questions?”

  Darla, a cute older girl in the back with a stylish bob, raised her hand. “Where will you and Ms. Allison be?”

  Tiffany smiled and winked at Allison. “We’ll be outside watching and helping, but we can’t guarantee we’ll stay in one place, so you’ll have to keep an eye out for us.”

  Bobby, one of the youngest boys, raised his hand. “What if we get lost?”

  This time Allison fielded the question. “I’ve set up a perimeter marked with yellow caution tape. As long as you stay inside the perimeter, you can’t get lost. It’s just a big square, so if you think you’re lost, find the tape and then follow it until it leads you back here. No matter which direction you choose, you’ll return to the resort. So be sure you stay inside the tape, okay?” She looked at each individual child, waiting for a nod of understanding before continuing. “Here are the team assignments. We put older kids with younger kids, so don’t be mad if you’re not with your friend. We needed to make sure we stayed as safe as possible.”

  As Allison handed out the team assignments, Tiffany handed out the materials. The kids appeared excited though also a little apprehensive, and she couldn’t help but feel nervous herself. They’d wanted something to get the kids engaged and playing outside, but maybe a scavenger hunt in the late evening wasn’t the best idea. Of course, the sun was still out and would be for another few hours, but it would be darker in the forested area where they had set this up.

  “One last thing,” she said, hoping it would never have to be used, “if for any reason you get separated from your teammate, come back here and we’ll help reunite you. Do not go off searching for them alone, got it?”

  “Yes, Ms. Tiffany,” they echoed.

  “Okay, let’s go.”

  She led them out of the room and down the hall toward the exit, and though they could have taken a faster path, she made sure they passed the large conference room where the dancing for the grownups was being held. Unsure exactly why she’d felt the need to peek in, she was unable to keep her eyes from scanning what little of the room she could see, and while everyone inside appeared happy, she could not be certain she’d seen Israel. Had he come? Or had he decided to stay home after all? No, more than likely he was enjoying his night with Sofia and not thinking about her at all. She should do the same.

  “I see we took the long way around,” Allison said as they reached the back exit and the kids were set free. “Any particular reason why?”

  Tiffany shook her head. “It’s stupid. I was trying to see if Israel was there, but of course, I couldn’t.”

  “And why do you care if he’s there?” Allison glanced at her briefly before returning her attention to the kids running back and forth in search of their treasures.


  A soft sigh slipped from Tiffany’s lips. “He asked me to the bash, but I was dealing with something so I said no. When I told him I’d changed my mind, Sofia had already asked him and he’d accepted. We haven’t really spoken since.”

  “So, are you upset that he didn’t wait for you to maybe change your mind or that he didn’t dump her when you finally came around?”

  “What?” Tiffany’s mouth fell open. “No, nothing like that. I’m upset because--” But she stopped. Why was she upset, really? Yes, she was mad at herself for saying no in the first place, and she was frustrated that he accepted another invitation so quickly, but if she were truly honest, she supposed she was irritated that he hadn’t canceled on Sofia to take her. “I’m awful, aren’t I?” she asked as the truth set in.

  “No, not awful, just human. However, you should be proud that he didn’t dump Sofia just because you came around. That means he’s got integrity and that he’ll stay by you if the time comes.”

  “You’re right. I know you’re right, but it’s hard knowing he’s in there with another woman. What if he decides he likes her more than me?” Tiffany hated the insecurities flowing from her lips but perhaps voicing them would allow her to move past them.

  Allison grabbed her hand and smiled softly. “What if he doesn’t? What if this date is just that? A date he accepted because you said no originally. What if he’s just as miserable as you are and hoping that you’ll talk to him tomorrow?”

  Tiffany thought over those words. Could there be truth in them? “Thank you, Allison. I needed to hear that.”