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Georgie gave herself a shake. “No,” she lied. “I don’t feel anything like that for him. Even a little.” She knew Leah was watching her as she took a bite of salad. She knew just the topic to distract her. “I’m thinking about something else, though.”
“Yeah, what’s that?”
Georgie took a deep breath. “Surgery.” She was aware that Leah went completely still and she swallowed convulsively. She pushed her plate away. She couldn’t eat anymore. The butterflies in her stomach were taking up way too much room.
“You serious?”
She nodded, turning to look out over the ocean, trying to absorb some of its calm.
“That’s so good, Georgie.”
Georgie shrugged. It didn’t feel good. It felt terrifying.
“You scared?”
She nodded again.
“You know what you should do?”
“What’s that?”
“Talk to Ryan.”
Georgie let out a breath. “Yeah. I think I will.” She knew she could ask him anything and he would tell it to her straight. The sound of a truck coming up the drive reverberated through the air. Georgie didn’t miss the way Leah’s face lit up and she smiled. The engine cut out, a car door opened and closed. Then a cacophony of barking split the air. Both women grinned when they heard Callum swearing, then the sound of paws scrabbling on the ground. A stocky, bluey gray dog raced around the corner of the house, ran some circles on the grass and sand, then bolted up onto the deck.
Leah put her hand out. “Bluebell! No! Sit!”
Georgie’s eyes widened. The little dog dropped straight onto her bottom and gazed up at Leah, her tongue lolling out.
“Good girl.” Leah gave her a pat, then looked up at Callum as he came through the sliding door.
“Sorry, sweetheart. She was just too excited to see you.”
“All good.” Leah raised her face for a kiss. Callum bent down, running his hand over her belly as he pressed a kiss to her smiling lips.
Georgie looked away, surprised at herself as a burning feeling hit her in the chest. She couldn’t be happier for Leah. Especially after everything she’d been through with her ex. But suddenly, it was hard for her to watch her friend. Blissfully in love with a wonderful man. Pregnant. Living in paradise. As she looked out over the ocean, Georgie felt the germ of an idea. Maybe she couldn’t be in love. Or pregnant. But she could certainly live in paradise. She felt a little thrill at the idea.
CHAPTER7
When Ryan returned to Blessed Inlet the next day and parked his car in his allocated spot, he pulled back his first impulse. He wanted to go straight to Georgie’s cabin to see how she was. He’d had a big chat with Brandon before he’d left and he felt pretty confident that he would have made some headway on what Ryan had termed the Georgie Problem. He was getting his luggage from the trunk when he heard the door to the Long House open.
“Ryan!”
He turned to see Georgie, very pale and stiff, smiling at him. “Hey.”
Then her smile faded and she looked a little apprehensive. “I’d like to talk to you, when you have a minute.”
Ryan’s heart skipped a beat. Now this sounded serious. “I have plenty of minutes right now. Where do you want to go?”
“To your cabin, if that’s okay. I need a coffee.”
“Sure.” He hefted his suitcase in one hand and went to her, holding his other arm out for her, smiling reassuringly. At his cabin, he settled her into the recliner on the deck and went to put his suitcase inside and make the coffee. He had an inkling that Brandon had done good work while he’d been away. He only hoped he knew the right words to say to cap it off. He brought the coffee out, pulled up a chair at the little table and waited.
“I want to ask some questions about surgery.”
“Okay. I’m not an orthopedic surgeon, but I’ll do the best I can.”
“Do you think it would be easier if you had my medical records?”
