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I sigh. “I can’t stand being away from Georgina. She’s my disease and there’s no cure. I’m lovesick.”
CeeCee pats my arm. “What a glorious reason to be miserable.”
“How the hell do you and Francois live on different continents? Are you not in love with him? I won’t tell, if you’re not. Just tell me the truth.”
She bats my shoulder. “Don’t insult me. Of course, I’m in love with my darling Francois! I hate being away from him, every bit as much as you hate being away from Georgina. But I’ve got no choice, at least for now. I’m not ready to retire yet. Not even close. So, we make it work.”
I shove my empty glass at her. “Another one, bartendress. Help me numb the pain of my acute lovesickness.”
Chuckling, CeeCee gets up to refill my glass. “I don’t blame you for falling head over feet for Georgie. So have I. I knew she was going to knock my socks off this summer, the minute I met her. But she’s blown away even my highest expectations with everything she’s submitted to me. Especially that piece she wrote on Gates! Have you read it, Reed? It’s incredible.”
My chest swells with pride. “Yeah, I read every draft along the way. It’s amazing, isn’t it? I’m so proud of her.”
She hands me a drink and resumes her seat. “I made it a double.”
“Bless you, Saint CeeCee.”
“Did Georgina tell you? If she’s able to incorporate my final edits and turn in her final draft by tomorrow, we’ll be able to sneak it into the next issue of Dig a Little Deeper, just under the wire.”
“She told me. She’s beyond elated about it. Georgie’s been dreaming of getting published in Dig a Little Deeper for a long time.”
“Well, cheers to dreams coming true.”
We clink and drink.
“Does this mean you’re going to hire Georgina full-time at Dig a Little Deeper?”
“Of course, I am. But don’t you dare steal my thunder and tell her. When her internship is officially over in two weeks, I’m going to throw her a little surprise party at the office to tell her. I already told Margot to order a cake.”
I feel euphoric, like this victory for Georgie is my own. “She’ll love a party. She doesn’t have a mom, CeeCee. Little things like a party with a cake... the way you’ve taken her under your wing. That stuff means the world to her. More than you could possibly realize.”
“Aw, Reed. You look so smitten right now. Like you’re bursting with pride.”
“I am. This Gates article... It’s been so inspiring to watch her journey. When Georgina told her dad about Gates six weeks ago, she was so nervous and timid. And look at her now. She’s unstoppable. That article doesn’t pull any punches. It’s incredible.”
“That, it is.” She raises her glass. “Everyone drink to Georginaaaa!”
“Heeeey!”
Again, we clink and drink.
“Can I ask you a kind of weird question?” I ask. “Why did you marry Francois?”
CeeCee looks highly offended. “Because I love him more than life itself. And he asked.”
“Yes, I know all that. Don’t get your designer panties in a twist.”
She giggles.
“What I mean is, you’ve both been married twice before. His main residence is in France. Yours is in LA. And you’re both at an age where you’re not going to have any babies.”
“Francois and I aren’t going to have babies? Oh, crap. Don’t tell Francois! He only married me for my fertile womb!”
We laugh and laugh.
“But, seriously,” I say. “I don’t get it. Okay, you both fell head over heels. Woohoo. Congratulations. But why not be ‘jet-setting lovers’? Wouldn’t that be far more romantic than trying to make a trans-continental marriage work?”
CeeCee looks at me like I’m trying to glue false eyelashes onto a pig. “You think being ‘jet-setting lovers’ is more romantic than exchanging vows of forever with the person you’re head over heels in love with? And doing it in front of family and friends, in a ceremony that dates back hundreds of years and is legally binding? And, in my case, getting to exchange those vows of forever, and thereafter partying with said family and friends, in a seven-hundred-year-old castle in the South of France? Pfuff. I mean, to each their own. But I, personally, think there’s nothing more romantic than any of that. Especially considering Francois’s wealth. He owns half the world, and yet, he told me his life wouldn’t be complete if he didn’t spend the rest of it with me.”
“But, see, that’s my point. Spend the rest of your lives together. Great. Wonderful. Why get married? You and Francois both know, for a fact, marriage isn’t necessarily forever, no matter what you say in your vows. CeeCee, Francois is your third husband.”
“He is? Oh, shit! Please, don’t tell him that! He thought I was a virgin when he married me.” She flashes me a snarky look. “Yes, I’m fully aware marriage might not last forever, but the thrill is that it could. Did you not hear a word I just said? Marriage isn’t about logic. It’s a leap of faith, you fool.”
