“Got you a little something today.” Digging in my pocket, I took out a large seashell that I’d found off the coast. “Thought you could paint me wearing it later.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah? You think it’s big enough?” She pulled me closer before adding, “You know, to cover up your massive ego.” Unable to contain my laughter, the rest of the group turned to watch the two of us.
“Only one way to find out,amore.” To my absolute delight, Georgia winked at me before pouring another glass of wine.
After a lovely last dinner, the five of us opened another bottle of wine as the sun dipped below the horizon, causing the temperature to drop, and I felt Georgia shiver next to me.
“Here.” I draped my Hermes jacket over her shoulders.
“Thanks.” Georgia smiled at me, cuddling deeper into my coat. With her rosy cheeks, she looked absolutely adorable wrapped up in the oversized jacket, and I tried to keep a straight face as Edward wagged his eyebrows at me.
“The color purple looks good on you, Georgia,” Edward teased.
She didn’t miss a beat. “Well, the color red doesn’t look quite as good on you, Edward, so maybe use some more sunscreen next time.”
Taking a seat across from Georgia, Henri’s gaze landed on his sister. And then me. His expression was unreadable to anyone else, but I knew he wasn’t pleased with her new outfit. I suppose the only thing worse than seeing your sister in another driver’s team jacket was seeing her in your teammate’s—especially the teammate with a reputation likemine.
“Hey, Edward, mind if I take your spot for a bit?” Henri asked.
Not noticing my desperate plea, Edward got up, swapping with Henri as he continued to loudly discuss his next prank with Georgia and Lily.
Henri’s jaw flexed, his voice tightening around the edges. “So, Luca,” Henri whispered, “thought any more about what I said after Monaco?”
My lips formed a small grin as I nodded slowly, tightening my grip around Georgia’s waist. She didn’t seem to mind, still engrossed in conversation with Edward and Lily. Henri’s frustrated eyes narrowed on me.
“Right, well, just remember what I said, hmm?”
“Sure thing, Henri, sure thing.”
Henri and I sat in a tense silence, and I knew he was studying me carefully. Georgia and I had spent the better part of this boat trip flirting, and I wasn’t about to apologize for that. Watching her relax on this trip made my heart burst with joy. All I wanted was for Georgia to feel that she had a safe space to escape the outside world, from this impending article and everything that went with it. I didn’t care if it pissed Henri off. Georgia was the only thing on my mind, and seeing the pure anguish on her face back in London made my heart crack. I’d meant what I said, I would stick with Georgia until the end, no matter what happened in that article.
I wasn’t leaving her until she told me she didn’t want me anymore.
Standing up, Georgia gave her legs a good stretch as she leaned from side to side. “It’s getting late! Think it might be time to head to bed.”
“You know, I’m going to crash too,” I agreed, giving Henri afriendlypat on the back. “Sun really takes it out of me.”
Lily and Edward waved us off, both heading toward the bar for one last round, and Henri gave me a long, unreadable look. A muted glare. For a split second, I thought he might follow us. Instead, he just nodded once, his expression unreadable but cool.
A smart move.
Georgia was already ahead of me, the sea breeze catching the ends of her hair as she padded barefoot across the deck. When she reached her door, I moved to hold it open, leaning against the frame with what I hoped was casual charm. She smiled, kissed me on the cheek, soft, quick, and waltzed into her room like she hadn’t just set every nerve in my body on fire.
Part of my heart—the part that thought maybe she’d invite me in—sank, but I knew she was exhausted.
I went to close the door, and she suddenly called out, “What are you doing? I’m just grabbing my paints.”
She held up her sketchpad, then nodded toward my room.
“Well, we aren’t going to getmyroom messy.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Georgia
I had absolutely no intention of painting Luca. And judging by the way his lips crashed against mine the moment we stepped into his room, he was very much on the same page. We’d spent this entire trip dancing around each other, tiptoeing on some sort of grey boundary that we were both perhaps scared to cross. But I didn’t want to just flirt with him anymore.
Tonight, I wanted more. Craved it.
