“Just go away,” she cries into her hands, resting against the railing.
“No… I’m not going to do that.” I soften my voice and take a seat next to her. “How could I with a view like this?” I gently nudge her and then gesture out to the moonlight, glimmering on the calm waves. “It’s almost as beautiful as you.”
Georgia lifts her eyes to look at me. “You’re just being nice because I’m upset.”
“I mean, maybe a little,” I admit, chuckling and setting my book down beside me. “But also, Brody was a total dick to you, and you’re way too good at what you do to let him get to you.”
She shakes her head. “It’s more complicated than that.”
“I’m sure it is,” I say, keeping my tone careful. “But you know, noteverythinghas to be complicated. You can choose to just chalk Brody up to being an asshole, and not give it anymore thought than that. Some guys are just jerks.”
She lets out a light laugh, wiping the tears from her cheeks and finally meeting my eyes. “I thinkmostguys are probably jerks.”
“From my experience, I have to admit that I agree with you.”
Georgia shakes her head at me, her ponytail bouncing against her shoulders. “I’m not sure that’s making me feel that much better.”
“Fair,” I say, reaching into my pocket to pull out my phone. “But do you wanna see something that might make you feel better?”
She narrows her eyes at me. “As long as it’s not a dick pic, then yes.”
I burst into laughter. “No worries, I will definitelynotbe showing you dick pics. That would be entirely unproductive when you’re right here in person to see it.” I shoot her a wink, and that gets a real giggle out of her.
I scroll to my photo gallery on my phone and then pass it to her. “Recently, I went to Paris, and I found this tiny corner café. It reminds me of the kind of food you make. I loved it so much, I went every day.”
Georgia takes the phone from me and starts flipping through the pictures. “It’s so quaint, but also lovely.” She lets out a sigh. “That’s the kind of place I’ve always wanted to have, you know? I always wanted to grow up and have my own restaurant—likethis.” She takes in the small sitting area and the baguette in the picture. “It just feels so homey.”
“Well, not a lot about Paris is homey for me,” I chuckle. “But I have to agree with you. This place was something straight out of the movies. I loved it.”
“Maybe I’ll go there someday.” Her voice brightens, and her pretty blue eyes follow suit. “That would be a really fun trip. I’ve never been to Paris. My dad has gone quite a few times, but never took me with him.”
“Yeah, that seems to be a recurring theme for Robert. He likes to do things his way andonlyhis way.”
“Exactly,” she blows out a breath, and tucks a strand of blonde hair behind her ear, turning her attention to me. “Thank you for following me out here. I had no idea how much I needed a good laugh.”
“That’s what I’m here for.” I pat her hand where it rests on the railing. “I don’t ever want to see you cry.” A soft smile tugs at my lips, despite the words feeling pretty foreign. I’m not exactly the kind of guy who chases down a teary-eyed woman and tries to make her feel better.
But Georgia isn’t exactly just any woman either—even if I’m still trying to figure out thewhybehind that.
“What time is it?” Her question breaks into my thoughts, and I click the screen of my phone to light it back up.
“Almost ten. I bet Miles and Brody are already passed out,” I say, my shoulders falling. “You wanna split a bottle of wine?”
“I don’t know…” Her voice trails off. “I don’t want to do anything that might piss Brody off. He already forced me to take tomorrow off.”
“Well,” I nudge her, “First of all, it’smybottle of wine, and if I want to share it with you, I will. And secondly, you have a day off tomorrow, which is absolutely a reason to stay up late, enjoy the wine, and have a few laughs with me.”
She presses those plump lips together, causing my dick to twitch to life. “Well… I guess you have a point.”
“Perfect,” I grin. “I’ll be right back.”
Twenty minutes later, I’m sipping my wine and watching Georgia in total awe. There’s just something about her, and I can’t exactly put my finger on it. Maybe it’s the way she looks out on the dark water with a respectful admiration.
Or maybe it’s the three glasses of wine I’ve had over dinner and now this.
“You know…” Georgia lets out a sigh, swallowing the wine in her mouth. “I really appreciate this opportunity, even if it’s not going exactly the way that I want it to.”
“That’s looking on the bright side,” I chuckle, downing the rest of my glass and setting it off to the side.
