Page 31 of You Wish
Joy chuckled, her eyes darting between the two of them and Georgia realized she didn’t need to say anything. The sexual chemistry between her and Jake was intense, sparks leapt with every glance.
“But you went out with him again?”
Georgia felt a painful pinch at the memory of that night. “My brother was taken to the hospital and Jake drove me. He showed up for me in a way that I hadn’t had in a long while. My only choice was to forgive him.”
Her gaze flickered to Jake’s, and she could tell he was experiencing the same complicated knot of emotions. Bereavement twisted with heartwarming memories that only came from experiencing a shared trauma.
“She called me Steve for months after.”
“Right out of a romance novel,” Joy said.
It was more like a tragedy, but she’d let Joy have her fantasy. Lord knows, Georgia had lived that fantasy for nearly a year. Too bad she was too jaded to go back.
11
Joy was teaching Georgia how to make pumpkin pie for dessert. She was pretty sure she’d never laughed this much while baking in her life. Jake had flour on his cheek, his smile was pure mischief, and the way he leaned in to whisper some smart remark about Grandma’s “secret pie spice” had her heart doing ridiculous gymnastics.
She laughed, and before she knew what she was doing, she wiped a smear of flour from Jake’s cheek with her fingertip.
“You know,” she teased, “if you keep doing that, I might start charging you for all this cleaning up.”
Jake leaned closer, the heat from his body brushing hers. “Oh, I like paying in smiles,” he murmured, “and maybe a kiss for good measure.”
Her stomach flipped. Every brush of his hand as they kneaded dough together sent sparks she couldn’t ignore. She tried to focus on the pie, but it was hopeless.
“Kissing isn’t on the table,” she said. “Ever.”
“Until it is,” he said with so much confidence she nearly believed it. Then she reminded herself that anything other than drive-by friends was dangerous.
“So what?” she asked with a bite to her words. “We go there, it doesn’t work out and then our relationship is even more strained, and we’ll have to divvy up who gets which friend?”
“Or it leads someplace else.”
“Someplace I’ve been and never want to go back to.”
“Different people now, remember?”
Oh, she remembered. That’s what was making it so hard not to give in.
He reached out to cup her cheek and she leaned into it. Their bodies were nearly touching when the front door opened with a bang that rattled the cabinets.
“I’m home,” a female voice called out.
Georgia froze, flour-dusted whisk in hand. Rachel stormed in like a one-woman hurricane, ponytail bouncing, tote bag swinging like a weapon. Her eyes darted between Jake and Georgia, and the air thickened instantly.
“Well, bust my feathers,” Joy said, completely oblivious to the heated undertone. “Look what the cat dragged in. My favorite grandchild.”
“Hey! I thought I was your favorite,” Jake said with faux hurt in his voice.
“You’re my favoritegrandson.” Joy snatched Rachel into a hug and rocked back and forth. “What are you doing here?”
“It’s Christmas. I can’t imagine spending it anywhere else.”
“What about Mom and Dad?” Jake asked.
Rachel flicked her sleek blond hair over her shoulder like a Kardashian. “They’ll get over it.”
“What about Tom? I thought he was set on a European Christmas.”
