The Turnover [EDITING]

Chapter 2

It all started a month and a half ago.

We were at the Orient Hotel for the wedding reception of Eloisa’s friends Hazel and Vinny. Eloisa and I made the cake for them, while Sean was the videographer. Eloisa and Sean had officially become a couple on that day, leaving me standing on the sidelines with Paul.

The music swelled as we watched Sean and Eloisa glide their way through the dance floor. 

"Lovely couple, don't you think?" 

Paul handed me a glass of champagne. We'd had a taste of it earlier on, when we raised a toast to the bride and groom of this wedding. 

"I heard that my sister caught the bouquet," Paul continued to speak. "No wonder things seem to be moving fast between her and Sean." 

"Did Eloisa say anything about getting married?" I asked. 

"No, but Sean talked to me and Pappy earlier."

"Gee, that was fast." 

"He didn't really say, specifically, that he wanted to marry her - he just wanted to make sure that it was all right for the two of them to pursue a relationship." 

"Huh." I took another sip of champagne. "Sounds like he's serious about courting her."

Paul snorted. "She's already sleeping with him, you know."

I glared at Paul, resisting the urge to kick him with my stiletto heels. "Did she tell you?"

"I'm her brother, Monica. I just know these things."

In the years that I had worked for Paul at Reyna Bakery, I could barely remember any kind of closeness between him and Eloisa. He had always been the money man for her artistic sensibilities, and he never resisted an opportunity to rub that fact into our face. He always said that he did these things out of love for her, but I had rarely seen him act in a way that had suggested any affection for his sister. 

Then we watched Sean seize Eloisa in a passionate cinch, which ended in what seemed to be yet another fevered kiss. 

"Those two have no shame," Paul sniffed. "This is Hazel and Vinny's wedding, and they're already acting like they're headed for the honeymoon suite." 

"Did Sean tell you that he was in love with your sister?" 

He paused, taking another sip of bubbly. "I didn't say he wasn't." 

"Figures." 

I then noticed Sean whispering something into Eloisa's ear. They seemed to be in the middle of planning something... intimate. 

That was something I did not want Paul to notice while he was almost halfway through his glass of champagne. 

"Paul," I asked, trying to sound casual, "have you ever been in love?" 

He nearly choked. "What kind of a question is that, Monica?" 

"I'm just curious," I answered. "Eloisa never mentioned anything about you having a girlfriend."

"That's none of your business."

For the first time, I noticed that Paul looked nothing like Eloisa when he got angry. His cheeks puffed up and turned red, like he had eaten something that he was allergic to, and his nostrils flared up as if he needed more air. It was a shame, since he shared the same cheekbones as Eloisa, and the same mahogany tan coloring as their Pappy.

"I am still your direct supervisor, Monica," he said to me. "You have no business getting into my business."

"I just wanted to know why you're so worried about Eloisa and Sean, that's all."