But, then, I started falling in love with Georgia a long time ago, apparently. I just needed to open my eyes to see that.
I look over at Georgia. There’s a small smile at her lips and I reach out to brush some of her sweaty curls away. She turns her head to look at me. I recognize the smile she’s giving me because it’s the same smile she’s always given me. She’s always looked at me with that love in her eyes, and I really am such a fool for never recognizing it.
I’ve had the perfect woman by my side for years, and I almost lost her because I was so blind.
“Do you have work?” I ask her.
“No,” she says contentedly. “Not today.”
I smile. It means that I have her to myself all day.
“Movie night tonight?” I ask. “Lily missed you yesterday.”
She gives me a side glance. “Did you?”
I laugh softly and lean over to press a soft kiss to her lips.
“It didn’t feel right to have a movie day without you,” I admit.
She smiles again, pleased.
“We might need to run out for popcorn, though,” I add. “Lily and I ate the rest of it yesterday.”
“We can go down to the store later,” Georgia says, stretching. She laughs. “I think you still have your weekly shopping to do, anyway. Do you want me to help with that?”
“Sounds great,” I say.
We’ve always been this domestic. We really have been in a relationship for years. No wonder all my friends tease me.
“Well, I’m going to have a shower,” Georgia says, pulling herself to her feet. “Then we can go down to the store after you’ve had one.”
“Do we need to stop by your place for fresh clothes?” I ask.
“No,” she says with a laugh. “I’ve always got some clean clothes here.”
I laugh too. Georgia pretty much lives here most of the time. I watch as she walks away, her hips swaying as she winks at me over her shoulder. I listen as she grabs some clothes out of the spare room and, when the bathroom door closes behind her, I sigh and slump back against the couch.
I’m still worried about what will happen next. I don’t think I’ll stop worrying about that for a long time. Too much happened with Polly for me to not wonder about the worst-case scenarios, where Georgia and I could break up and fall apart for good, or where this can’t work out because of how much has already happened between us.
But, that’s okay. I can do this. I’ve decided that I can. I don’t know if everything will work out the way we want it to…but, if I do this with Georgia, everything is definitely going to be okay.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Ethan
When Georgia is gone, I get up and stretch. My muscles are still aching pleasantly, and I quickly slip back into my sleep pants. I search around for my shirt before remembering that it’s still in the kitchen. I wander in there, laughing softly at the sight of both my shirt and the robe Georgia was wearing in heaps on the ground, our full cups of coffee still on the table, untouched. I nudge one of the mugs, feeling how it’s already lukewarm.
I don’t feel like coffee anymore, so I head to the fridge and fish out a can of cola, needing to feel the burn of the fizzy drink in my dry throat. I take a few gulps of it before putting it down on the table and scooping up my shirt so I can shrug it back on. Then I pick up the robe.
As I do, something chimes from the pocket. Curious, I stick my hand into the pocket and pull out Georgia’s phone. She must have slipped it into the robe when she left my room this morning. The screen is lit up and I can see it’s a message from her boss.
“I need an answer about that job soon.”
I raise an eyebrow. It’s not like Georgia to put off answering an assignment. What sort of story could she have been asked to do that she’s hesitating in accepting it? I’m about to put her phone down, deciding to ask her about it when she gets out of the shower, when the phone chimes again with another message.
“I know moving is a big thing, but…”
The message cuts off there, only giving me a preview. I freeze, staring at those words for a long moment, until the screen goes dark, not sure what they mean. Moving? As in, leaving her house?