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“Rudy.” She spreads her arms and gives me air kisses on each cheek. “You look very handsome today.”
I glance down at my jeans-and-sweater combo, and grin. “You can’t help yourself, can you?”
Her laugh is carefree, and for maybe the first time, I feel like she’s genuine. If I were a better man, I’d wonder what was behind the shadows in her eyes. I’m not, though, and all I can think about is the fact that I still don’t want her any more than I did before.
The only woman I can think of is Lily.
“I haven’t seen you since you so rudely left my home after half a glass of champagne.” She winks, and I know there are no hard feelings. “How are things with your girl?”
I shrug. “There is no ‘my girl.’”
“Oh, honey.” She squeezes my arm. “Well, I have good news for you.” She brightens. “My best girlfriend is moving here, and she needs a super sexy agent to show her all the nicest properties in the area. I gave her your number.”
I nod. “Much appreciated, Georgia.”
“Do you have time for a drink?” Georgia smiles at me, her red lipstick shaping her full lips into a lush pout. “Cantina has a special on margaritas this afternoon.”
“You never struck me as the type of woman who goes out searching for happy hour specials.”
A sensual smile turns wry. “That’s because you know nothing about me. Come on. Tequila fixes everything.”
I’m pretty sure that’s the exact opposite of the truth, but I let her hook her arm into mine and we walk down the tree-lined street toward the Mexican restaurant. It’s a beautiful late-September afternoon, where the air is warm yet crisp and the whole world feels like it’s holding its breath.
For what, I’m not sure. Maybe for me to get my head out of my ass.
“My new home was featured on an interior design blog, did you know that?” Georgia asks pleasantly, her head tilted to the sky. A curl of her hair falls onto my shoulder, an intimate caress of the silky strands.
“That’s great,” I say, eyes drifting to the side as we pass Lily’s street. I do that every time I walk or drive by, because I’m a desperate fool.
“My ex-husband saw it, and it made his head explode.” She laughs in a way that makes her sound just a little bit evil. “I think he’s convinced I do things just to piss him off.”
“Do you?” I tear my eyes away from the distant shape of Lily’s building to glance at Georgia.
Her arm squeezes over mine. “I plead the Fifth,” she says with a sly grin. “He tends to forget that we’re divorced, which I don’t exactly think is my problem. Ever since I glitter-bombed his bedroom he’s had such a stick up his ass.”
A surprised chuckle falls from me. “You did what?”
Georgia, the refined, elegant woman clinging to my arm, glitter-bombed her ex-husband’s bedroom?
“You know,” she starts conversationally, “if you sprinkle glitter on a ceiling fan it really gets everywhere when you turn the thing on. I laughed my ass off when I went to our arbitration at the lawyer’s office two whole weeks after he left a very nasty voicemail on my phone. He still had a couple pieces of glitter in his eyebrow.” She shifts her purse on her shoulder and glances at the distant horizon, sucking in a deep breath. “So did his hot young assistant, actually. Wonder what she was doing in his bedroom.” Georgia’s voice goes a bit tight at the end, but she turns a bright smile on me. “Oh well. Guess I’ll never know.”
“I’m sorry, Georgia.” Voice muted, I give her arm a squeeze. I feel an odd sort of affection for Georgia. I know we’ll never be close—she’d never let anyone, much less a man, get close to her—but I still feel like we could be friends.
She shrugs. “I’m here now, and I’m going to drink margaritas with a gorgeous younger man. You think we could get a picture for my Instagram? I got a suspicious new follower that I’m pretty sure is my ex-husband being a creeper.”
I chuckle, something tight loosening inside me. I prefer this relationship with Georgia, I realize. She’s not flirting shamelessly with me, she’s just…lonely. Maybe we all are. “Sure,” I tell her. “I’ll take a photo with you.”
“Marvelous,” she says, and we turn down the street toward Cantina. “Maybe I’ll unblock his phone number before we post it. We can take bets on how long it’ll take him to call and screech at me. I’m thinking thirty seconds.”
“Does he not realize the two of you are divorced?”
“Honey, he’s got a stick up his rear. He probably can’t think of anything beyond how much his asshole hurts.”
I burst out laughing, and it feels like the first time I’ve laughed in weeks—just as we pass the Four Cups Café, and Lily walks out.
Damn. She looks incredible. I don’t know if it’s the autumn afternoon sunshine or the pregnancy, but the woman is glowing. Her chocolate-colored hair is shiny and thick, falling in loose waves down her back. She’s smiling bright and wide, and it fades when she sees me.
I stop, Georgia’s arm still hooked in mine, and all I can do is stare. There’s a slight swell in Lily’s lower stomach, and all I want to do is drop to my knees and press my lips to it.
