“You heading home soon?” Ryan put his coat on. “I can come back to help clean if you need me to. I just have to get Blaire home. I’m her ride.”
“Nah. I’m staying in the office upstairs tonight. Already told my folks.”
“I’ll help her clean up. You guys go ahead,” Lake said before Georgia could argue.
And she watched her best friends leave, unable to ask them to rescue her from the big, bad, oh-so-accommodating guy presently cleaning glitter from her parents’ coffee shop floors.
They worked in silence. Georgia put the decorations in a storage room her parents had let her borrow until they’d bring the supplies to the school later in the week. Lakeland dedicated his attention to every surface that glitter had fallen to and would, most likely, remain for all eternity. When the store looked tidy, and she couldn’t avoid it any longer, Georgia neared Lake, who’d begun packing up his things.
“Thanks for coming tonight. It turns out wedidneed your help.”
He slid his arms into a dark, camel-colored, Carhart coat that nearly matched his hair and took a fortifying breath without looking at her. “I know what you think you saw last week. And I… I know what people think of me, Georgia. It’s easy to believe, but I’d hoped you wouldn’t. I hoped you would…” He sighed, “I don’t know…”
Georgia felt tears of shame begin to pool but resisted.
“I didn’t buy drugs. And… I’m sorry that… Well, I guess I’m sorry that Ihavedone enough to have made you think I was capable of that. I thought that after everything you said the other night, that you really sawmeand not who everyone thinks I am.”
When Georgia didn’t respond, too stunned by his admission, Lake gathered his bag and slung it over his shoulder, ready to leave.
“Okay, good talk, as always. I’ll see ya, Peaches.”
“Wait!” she called out just as he reached the door. “I do… I did think those things. And, I’m sorry.” She looked up, biting her lip. “I really want to be your friend, Lake. I shouldn’t have thought the worst of you.”
Lake pushed his free arm through the other strap of his bag, letting it lay on his back, and walked towards her. “Start over?”
“Yes. Start over,” she said, nodding once and meaning it.
“Okay.” He walked past her and to the counter, looked over his shoulder and gestured for her to step in front of the register.
She smiled and rolled her eyes, tiptoeing in big, dramatic steps behind the counter.
“Hi, Lakeland Lovett,” she said.
“Hey, Peaches. How are ya doing?”
“Oh, fine. Fine.” She looked around the room.
“Aren’t you going to ask what I want?” He glanced at the board and back to the register.
“Oh, sure. What can I get you?”
Lake leaned across the counter, resting his elbows along the freshly cleaned surface, and let his eyes peruse the large menu chalkboard as if he hadn’t spent any time there at all.
“I’ll take a hot chocolate. Please.” He drummed his knuckles on the counter just as Georgia recalled he’d done weeks before when he’d come in with the group of friends. When he’d asked for help with community service. She’d replayed that conversation back in her head an embarrassing amount of times. “I actually came in to talk to you,” he said as she started making him a hot chocolate the way she knew he liked it.
Georgia’s heart beat faster, excitement growing at the little game they were playing. She put her hand to her chest. “Who, me?”
“You. Georgia Remillard. Peaches… myfriend.”
“What… um… What do you need to talk tomeabout?”
He ran a hand through his hair and tightened the straps on his bag. He looked around. Looked down. Fidgeting. Nervous, Georgia realized. Lakeland Lovett was nervous. Maybe he always had been.
“I need your help.”
“You needmy help?”she said, shaky again, uncertain of what he’d say.
He grinned, charm back on as if he hadn’t been affected at all, and Georgia knew all of her best laid plans and promises to avoid Lake’s distractions would be in vain.
