“Thank you for not bludgeoning me to death in the bath with an axe,” she said a touch tartly. “We would have ended up on one of those true crime podcasts, and that is not how I want to go.”
“Happy to oblige,” he said with a relieved grin. For a moment, he stood there on the landing, allowing the reality of her sudden appearance and the sound of her laughter to seep through him, sweet as golden honey. She was not a continent away in Paris. She was here. He let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding since the moment she’d walked out his door. It had only been two weeks, but it had felt like an eternity. He had missed her more than he cared to admit.
He paused, struck by a thought. “Georgia, does Star know you’re here?” he asked carefully.
Another long pause. “Not yet.” Her tone was light, but he heard the uncertainty in it. “Actually, I was wondering if you knew when she’d be home.”
He let out a breath and leaned his forehead against the door. She didn’t know.
“Georgia?”
Silence, then a cautious, “Yes?”
He took a deep breath. Better not to tell her about Star yet, not until he understood her intentions in coming back. “Whyareyou here?”
A long pause. “I won the competition for La Lumière Dorée,” she said at last through the door. “I won. Everything I ever wanted.”
“Congratulations,” he said flatly. He was wrong, then. She was not back for good. He felt his stomach drop with disappointment.
He heard water sloshing in the tub, then a moment later, the door opened. Cole stepped back, staring at Georgia clutching a skimpy silky robe closed around her, hair dripping on the floor.
“I turned it down,” she confessed.
“You what?” He stared at her quizzically, caught off guard.
“I turned it down,” she repeated. “I realized I didn’t want to win. I don’t want to spend my life in the kitchen of a restaurant in Paris. Something changed while I was here on the island. This island changed me; it helped awaken something in me. Star helped me too,” she admitted. “And you.” She paused, uncertainty flickering in her eyes, then raised her chin. “Going back... I thought Paris would feel like home, but somehow it just felt... wrong. That isn’t the place where my heart is anymore.” She stopped, swallowing hard. “So I told Michel no, and I turned down the position as head chef at La Lumière Dorée.”
Cole was silent for a long moment, his eyes locked on her. “What are you going to do now?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” Georgia blurted out. “But I want to stay here on the island. I want to be with Star through her illness and help her stay here at home as long as she can. I know she loves the cottage so much, and now it feels like home to me too. I’m not sure how it will all work, but I know I don’t want to miss whatever time Star has left.”
She looked at him, dripping and pink and and hopeful. It broke his heart. He had to tell her.
“Georgia,” Cole said gently. “Star’s gone.”
Georgia’s eyes widened with alarm. “What?” she gasped. “What do you mean, ‘gone’?”
“Not dead,” Cole clarified quickly. “She’s fine. She’s just not here.”
“Oh, you scared me.” Georgia put a hand to her heart, looking relieved, then puzzled. “But where is she?”
Cole hesitated. “She was gutted when you left,” he explained. “I’ve never seen her like that, not even when Justine died. As soon as you were gone, she sped up her plans to move to Lopez Island. Then about a week ago, a couple here on vacation from California stopped to buy some honey from her stand. Star was outside. They started talking, and she mentioned she was planning on selling the cottage. The wife fell in love with the house at first sight. They had already decided to relocate to the island from California and were looking for a property to buy, so Star let her walk through the place. They made her a very generous offer right then and there, and Star accepted.”
The color drained from Georgia’s face. “Star sold this house?” she whispered in disbelief. “Can she change her mind?”
“I tried to get to her slow down, but her mind was made up,” Cole said, resigned. “After you left, I think she didn’t see any reason to delay. Two days ago she signed the sales agreement, then came home and packed up a few personal things. I helped her move over to her new place on Lopez. The new buyers are paying cash and want a quick sale, so Star decided to get herself settled on Lopez as soon as possible and then she’s planning to pack up the house in the next couple of weeks.”
“Oh no,” Georgia breathed. She looked stunned. Water was puddling on the tile floor at her feet.
“I’m sorry,” Cole said. He could see how shaken she was by the news. “Georgia.” He paused. “For what it’s worth, I’m sure Star would still welcome you back, even if things look different than you thought they would.”
“Okay.” Georgia’s voice was just a whisper. “I think...” Sheran her hands through her wet curls. “I think I just need a minute to process this. It’s... a lot.”
“Why don’t you stay here for the night and then I can drive you to the ferry to Lopez tomorrow?” Cole offered. “You can talk to Star and then figure out what you want to do.”
Georgia nodded. “Okay,” she said in a small, pained voice.
Cole waffled for a moment, fighting the urge to step forward and gather her in his arms, to reassure her that it would somehow be okay, but she had asked for space, and he wanted to respect her request. He stepped back and turned to go.
