AllFreeNovel
Share Us
With a stained-glass window of St. Peter shining down on her, Gia shared. And shifted in her flip flops while staring back at the Apostle so she didn’t have to look at the people in the circle. He had nothing on her if she owned up to her actions.
So, she did.
Gia’s narrative evolved when she moved, each new locale providing extra flavor to her story, just as each added spice adds layers of complexity to a pot of soup. In Austin, she’d told of being the child of an alcoholic mother and an enabling father. In Boulder, she shared stories of an early twenty-something working in a gay bar and nipping from the bottles in between customers to keep a pleasant buzz going all night, every night. Atlanta held secrets of promiscuity and her close call with a woman’s husband’s disapproval of their relationship. She hadn’t known the woman had a husband; she swore as much as he held a cocked gun to her temple.
“But that’s all in the past,” Gia said, standing straighter and fighting the urge to pick at the little strands of shredded denim that were tickling her thigh. Her voice cracked when she said the word “past.” Much as she tried to leave the past where it belonged, it had a way of following her, stalking her silently until it found the right time to pop back up. “I’m in Palm Springs to make a new start, and so far, it’s going well. Thank you.”
“Thanks, Gia,” Mikael said when she sat. Her shoulders relaxed instantly. She’d done it, again. Two weeks in a row, she’d shared parts of her life truthfully. No little white lies. No sugarcoating. She’d shown up, done the work, and could go home proud. Two weeks down. Only the rest of her life to go.
???
“I like the minimalist thing you’ve got going on.” Roxi reached over Gia’s outstretched hand to grab the last cinnamon sugar donut on the snack table, cutting off a man who’d been patiently waiting his turn.
“Hey! That was mine!” Gia batted the interloper’s arm.
“Not anymore.”
“And you totally cut the line!”
“He doesn’t mind. Right, Jacques? You don’t mind?”
“It’s fine, Roxi,” the man said, shoving his hands deeper in the pockets of his teal blue golf shorts.
“That’s how it’s gonna be, huh? Cutting lines and stealing donuts? You’d better watch your back next week, amiga.” Gia laughed as she made faux binoculars with her hands and brought them to her eyes.
“Come have coffee with me,” Roxi smiled sweetly into the fake binoculars, her slightly too-crowded teeth on full display, head tilted.
“I can’t. Gotta go home and change for a job interview. Grocery store gig. Union benefits. I can’t blow this one.”
“Okay, then have coffee with me after your interview. Come on, I know you don’t have anything better to do.” Roxi leaned toward the table again, and as she bent, the low-cut neckline of her dress revealed she wasn’t wearing a bra.
“Nice try, but I’m not a dude. Cleavage alone doesn’t get me to do things.” Gia had to give her credit—itwasa nice try. It would’ve worked on Old Gia. In fact, OG would’ve dropped everything for a chance to rip that cotton dress off in one fell swoop.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Yeah, you do.”
Roxi took a bite of the donut and shrugged, then turned toward the glass door that had led them to the meeting. “See you at Victoria’s at 7. Coffee’s on you.Adios.”
“Coffee’s on me?” Gia mouthed, turning to see who’d watched that transaction. Everyone from the meeting was having conversations of their own. There were no witnesses, except for poor Jacques, who stood alone drinking a Diet Coke, patiently waiting for his shot at the snacks.
???
“I knew you’d show up,” Roxi said from her side of “their” booth.
“Is that right?” Gia attempted to slide across the red vinyl, but the exposed backs of her thighs created a suction and resulting un-suctioning noise with each push toward the center of the table.
“Sí.” Roxi nodded, the ponytail she was still wearing bouncing in time with the affirmation and to the beat of the Jackson Five coursing through the speaker behind the soda fountain counter. “Easy as 1-2-3.”
“Okay, I’ll bite. Why?” Gia looked into those espresso-colored eyes, and she knew it, too. Of course she was going to show up.
“Because. You’re attracted to meandyou don’t know anyone else in town.”
“That’s not true! I know Jacques.”
“Jacques?”
“From the meeting.” Gia insisted, remembering Jacques’ sheepish smile and bright blue shorts.
