Page 39 of Too Hot to Sleep
She squeezed a handful of pillow into a fist. Rob didn't deserve this, this... distraction. Not when things were going so well between them. He'd never been so carefree, so vulnerable. For months she'd been hoping for a sign that he was open to exploring a deeper, more intimate relationship. Yet tonight when she'd thought he was going to tell her he loved her, she'd panicked.
"What does that mean?" she whispered aloud in the dark.
It means you 're like your father. Never appreciating what you have, always wanting what's out of reach, or things you know are bad. Or wrong. Or hurtful. Willing to sacrifice warm security for hot passion. Self-indulgent. Reckless. Wicked.
Georgia sighed and flung the sheet off her humid body.And hot.
Chapter 15
"WHAT DOESit mean?" Toni repeated over the phone. "It means you're falling for the cop."
"No, no, no," Georgia said, shaking her head. "Wrong answer." She sat down on her coffee table and put her feet up on her couch. "Just because I have a couple of harmless little fantasies about the guy doesn't mean I'm falling for him."
"If they were so harmless, then why are you making such a fuss?"
Good question.
"And what about the kiss?"
She was beginning to regret telling her friend everything. "The kiss happened in the heat of the moment—completely unplanned. It meant nothing."
"If it meant nothing, then why are you in such an uproar?"
"Because I feel guilty!"
"If you've done nothing to be ashamed of, you shouldn't feel guilty."
"You aren't Catholic. And I have this fear that Rob will run into Ken in the gym, and Ken will casually mention that we kissed in the park."
"So when you see Rob at the wedding today, tell him about it and let him know it didn't mean anything."
Georgia blinked back sudden tears and made choking sounds.
"It did mean something, though, didn't it?"
She dropped her forehead into her hand. "Maybe," she whispered, sniffing.
"Georgia," Toni said, her voice incredulous. "Meeting someone who makes you feel extraordinary is something tocelebrate,not cry over."
"But what about Rob? Things were just starting to go so well."
"I think your interest in the cop simply means you're not ready to settle down right now. It's not a crime, and Rob might be hurt, but he'll live."
Georgia lifted her chin. "You're absolutely right."
"So what are you going to do?"
"I have no idea."
* * *
"I DON'Tknow what's wrong with it," Georgia told the clerk, then scooted a box full of the phone, message recorder and wires across the counter. "But the only message I've gotten in a week was the mechanical one about adjusting the volume."
The kid scratched his head and gave her a sullen expression. "You're returning this phone system because no one ever calls you?"
She smiled sweetly—he was obviously the author of the manual."No.I'm returning this phone system because a friend of mine said she left at least two messages I never received."
"Got your receipt, lady?"
