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Everyone laughed as they headed up the street. Leah felt Callum stop. “You okay?” he asked.
“Bit shaky, but yeah, I’m okay.” He pulled her into his arms, kissing the top of her head. She sighed, wrapping her arms around his waist and closing her eyes for a moment.
Mikayla’s voice floated back to them. “And then I said that line about shoving his dick up his ass so he has to piss out his mouth.”
“No way!”
“Yes way! I haven’t used that since the ninth grade.”
Leah chuckled as she pulled away from Callum, linking her fingers with his as they followed the others. “Your sister is incredible.”
“Yeah, she is.” They walked on for a little bit before Callum said in a low voice, “Thought you weren’t going to see him on your own.”
“I wasn’t. But he got here early and it didn’t freak me out, so I thought I may as well get it over with. I wasn’t expecting him to try to hit me, in the middle of the street, in broad daylight.” She thought about it for a long moment. “He’s a real mess. And I need to find my friend Georgie.”
“Who?”
She explained everything that Scott had told her as they walked slowly behind the others. She acknowledged a little pang that she didn’t tell him he’d actually met Georgie before, but now was not the time to open that Pandora’s box.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
When they returned from Melbourne, Leah tried to find Georgie, but it was useless. She didn’t seem to have any social media and wasn’t listed on any of the internet search engines. The news reports of the building collapse didn’t name the victims. Leah considered reaching out to Scott. She seriously thought about pretending she was prepared to help him, just to get Georgie’s details. If he was being sued by her, he’d know who her lawyer was and maybe the lawyer would pass on a message. But she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Couldn’t stand the idea of having any communication with him.
A few weeks went by and as Christmas was coming up, she put it to the back of her mind, promising herself she would look into it in the new year. In the meantime, she was making the most of her time with Callum, while ignoring a little frisson of concern. They’d settled into a routine where he stayed over a few nights during the week and for most of the weekend, which was lovely. But on weekdays, he always got up early enough to head home to shower and change and he never left anything at her house. Just a little holding back that confused Leah. He seemed just as keen on her as ever, was just as affectionate as ever. But still, she felt the distance like a niggling headache. She couldn’t quite work up the courage to ask him about it, too afraid that it would aggravate him. Maybe she would talk about it with him in the new year, she told herself. A new year seemed like the right time for action. With Callum and with Georgie. The right time to forge a new beginning. To claim what she was finally starting to believe she deserved. She didn’t question the dubious wisdom of putting off until next year what could easily be done right away, if only she had enough courage.
A few days before Christmas, with the temperature soaring above one hundred degrees, the best way to spend the day was with ice cream at the beach. Leah stood in the ice cream shop, surveying the varied options. “I can’t decide. Choc mint or boysenberry?”
“Why not both?” Callum asked.
“Because I don’t like it when the flavors mix together. I’m a single flavor kinda gal.”
“Hmm, there’s a line there.”
She flicked him a look, trying desperately not to blush in front of the sales assistant. “Boysenberry, please.”
“Sure thing. And you?”
“Choc mint, thanks.” With cones in hand, they strolled out of the shop, toward the beach. “How is it?” Callum asked as he slung an arm over Leah’s shoulders.
“Yummy.”
“Let me try.” Leah held up her cone, but Callum pushed it aside, grinning as he pulled her against him, kissing her deeply. “Mm, delicious.”
Leah grinned, a little breathless. “Let me try yours.” He held his cone out and when she went to taste it, bopped it on her nose. She cracked up laughing, wiping choc mint ice cream off her nose with a napkin. “Thanks for that.”
“You’re welcome,” he replied, laughing at her. “Here you go, for real.”
Leah wasn’t entirely confident he wasn’t going to do it again, so she wrapped her fingers around his wrist to hold his hand still. “Mm, it’s good.” She slipped her arm around his waist as they headed to the beach.
“Fuck,” Callum said softly, tightening his arm around Leah’s shoulder.
“What is it?”
“Nothing.”
Leah could feel the tension seeping from him. “Don’t be daft. You wouldn’t say fuck if it was nothing.”
He took a deep breath. “I think we’ve been papped.”
