“If you love her, you love her,” I replied with a shrug. “Not to mention, I doubt I’m the best person to ask about doing crazy things.”
“True,” he said. “And, I do love her.” He nodded and placed the ring back in his pocket.
“I say go for it.”
“I’m gonna do it.”
“I like it,” I said as I offered up my hand for a high five. “She’s going to flip out.” Nora and Georgia were enough alike that I knew she’d let her emotions get the best of her. Tears of joy were definitely in the forecast.
“Well then I need a favor,” he said. “Any chance I can get the cabin tonight? Hopefully we’ll be celebrating.” He waggled his eyebrows and grinned.
“Of course,” I agreed. “I’m sure I can stay at Georgia’s.” I had plans for Georgia and me that night anyway. Plans that were not going to get interrupted this time. “And, don’t worry... she’s going to say yes.”
Hopefully both Bennett women would be saying yes that night. I planned to hear Georgia say it over and over.
* * *
“Hey ladies,” Reid said when we finally finished up in the garage. It was safe to say furniture assembly was not in our future. If you wanted us to rebuild a carburetor or change out your bike tire, we were the right guys for the job, but if it involved an Allen wrench or the successful following of printed instructions, we were not. The shelves took us an hour and when we walked back into the living room, Georgia and Nora had managed to put together two end tables and a coffee table. I was starting to believe that women were the superior gender.
“I’m starving,” I told them. “Feel like ordering something?” I asked, walking over to sit on the sofa. I leaned down and kissed the top of Georgia’s head on my way. She was kneeling on the floor finishing up her latest building project—a small table that I think she said went by the front door.
“I could eat,” Nora said, standing up from her seated position next to Georgia to wrap her arms around Reid’s waist. Silly girl had no idea that she was only mere inches from her future engagement ring. I was so happy for the two of them. I looked back at Georgia and wondered if we had any chance of a future like them.
When she didn’t answer my question, I saw Reid and Nora exchange smiles.
“Sis,” Nora tried. “You hungry?”
Georgia was definitely devoted to her current job; she didn’t even flinch when her sister asked. Either she was thinking of becoming a professional furniture assembler, or she had something else on her mind. The way that her wrist was working a screwdriver had me concerned that whatever it was had pissed her off.
“Georgia,” I said louder to get her attention.
“Yeah?” She jerked her head up and I could tell that she hadn’t heard a word that had been said.
“Food?” I smiled. “Do you want go get something before Reid’s parents get in?”
“Um... you know, I’m not really hungry,” she said. “In fact, I’m not feeling that great. I think I might need to go home.”
She was sick? It was news to me. An hour ago we were rolling around the floor and before that we couldn’t have been having a better time together. Well, we could have been having a better time, but we’d already sort of christened the counter in the kitchen and I didn’t think Reid would really appreciate me having sex in his parents’ new living room.
“Okay,” I replied, holding my hand out to help her up. When she didn’t take it and climbed to her feet on her own, I was worried. “What’s the matter? Should we stop by the clinic?”
“It’s just a headache,” she said with a shake of her head. “I’ll be fine.”
“I’ll drive you,” I insisted when she walked over to the front door without so much as a second look in my direction. She had me worried. Either she was really not feeling well, or in the last hour she’d come to her senses about taking up with a guy like me. She turned to protest me taking her home, but I gave her a look that said there was no other option. If my girl was sick, I was going to take care of her, and if she was mad at me, I was going to find out why and rectify the situation before we even pulled in her driveway.
“Fine.” She held up a hand and waved goodbye to her sister and Reid. “Sorry,” she told them. “I think pretty much everything is done.”
“It’s all good,” Reid replied.
“Feel better, G,” Nora added as we walked out the door. The shrug her sister offered me as I walked out the door said she was just as confused by this sudden illness as I was.
By the time we were in the car, I’d decided that she wasn’t sick. She’d walked to the car with enough energy to tell me that she was more worried about getting away from me than a fake headache. There wasn’t pain in her eyes, it was frustration.
“You mind telling me what that was all about?” I said when I’d climbed into the driver’s side of her car.
“It’s nothing,” she insisted, crossing her arms over her chest. “Actually... no, we’re adults here. It is something. Or rather, someone. Who is Alicia?”
“Alicia?”
“Yeah. Who is she?”
“Nobody,” I answered honestly. “How did...” The pieces clicked together fairly quickly. She must have overheard my conversation with Reid. “Georgia Bennett, were you eavesdropping?”
“Not exactly. I was coming out to the garage to get a different wrench.” She let out a huff. “Don’t change the subject. Do you have a girlfriend, Brett?”
“Yeah,” I said. “I guess I probably should have told you, huh?”
“You think?” Her voice raised to a dangerous decibel level. “I can’t believe you lied to me. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to—”
“Whoa,” I said, pulling the car over to a stop at the end of the lane. “Don’t call my girlfriend stupid.”
She glared at me with a wary expression. I could see her wheels spinning and I couldn’t help but crack a smile. “What the hell are you talking about?”
“I do have a girlfriend,” I said, taking her petite hand in mine. “And she’s currently making a big deal out of nothing.”
“What are you talking about?” she yelled. “This is serious. I’m not some fling and I’m certainly not the kind of girl who would date someone already in a relationship.”
“Would you listen to the words that are coming out of my mouth,” I said, squeezing her hand in mine as she tried to pull it away. “The only girlfriend I have is you, Georgia.”
“I... you... really?”
“Really.” I leaned over and pressed my lips to hers. “Alicia is someone that I used to kind of see, causally. Because it was convenient. But there is nothing going on between us now and there never will be again.”
“Ugh. I’m sorry,” she said. “I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions without talking to you first. It’s just... when I heard you talking about her with Reid and mentioning that ‘things would have to change between you’, I assumed the worst.”
“I get it,” I said. “But, I promise you that when I said things were going to change, I meant I was going to tell her that I was with someone. That I couldn’t see her anymore.”
“I believe you.”
“Good.” I stole another kiss before pulling on to the road.
We argued, we made up, we made out. If this was what relationships were like, I was okay with it. I was really enjoying where this was headed, which appeared to be back to her place for a little more making up.