Page 59 of Looking for Love in All the Haunted Places
“Oh, I’m Lucky.”
His eyebrow quirked, eyes alight with sudden interest. “Is that right?”
“Oh my god,” Georgia complained. “Randall, you are shameless, and she’s taken. Go away.”
He winked at Lucky. “She hates not being the center of attention. Anytime you want to get under her skin, just ignore her.”
“Don’t listen to him. He doesn’t know me.”
“She’s been like that her whole life. Since we were babies.” Helaughed, leaning over to plant a kiss on Georgia’s forehead. She surprisingly let him do it, playfully rolling her eyes.
“How’s your mama? Is she here?”
He shook his head. “Me and Jake are on our way to Outpost. He’s the one who spotted you through the window.”
“And he didn’t come in? He’s always such a bastard.”
Lucky couldn’t use Georgia’s life story to understand her choices. Every second of her interaction with Randall felt like a delightful surprise because despite Georgia’s insistence, they did know each other. Very well. The way he softly gazed at her was filled with loyalty and affection—years and years’ worth of it. And she smiled at him as if she’d watched him hang the moon and was determined to appear unimpressed but was slowly losing the battle for the millionth time.
“Are we ready to order?” Their cheery waitress returned holding a small notepad.
“I’ll let you two get on with your dinner,” Randall said. “Call me before you leave town again.”
“No,” Georgia said sweetly. “Bye, stranger.”
Dinner arrived in three courses accompanied by a slew of drinks for Georgia. People continued approaching their table in a steady stream. Strangers wanting to shoot their shot. Old friends and acquaintances wanting to make plans to catch up. And never once did Georgia forget Lucky or pretend like she wasn’t there.
20
True to her promise, their entire lovely dinner was free. Georgia announced her departure by blowing kisses at the staff and swearing to strong-arm her aunt into giving them raises. Her tanned face had taken on a flushed undertone from all the alcohol.
Lucky asked, “Can you do that for them?”
“Sure can.” Georgia giggled. Off the clock, her personality still had a blunt edge, but she was also louder and harsher. She talked faster, swore constantly, laughed with her entire body, and did the cutest little shimmy at the most random times. “I own twenty-five percent of Ditto Road. I’ll fight for them and win.”
“Wow.”
“I know, I’m privileged,” she said with a playful sneer. “I never said I wasn’t. My family worked hard so I don’t have to but choose to anyway. I want my own shit to pass down to my kids. That’s why we’re helping Rebel, you know? Collectively”—she held up her hands—“we all have resources to devote to that precious littlemiss and nothing will stop us. Our company is small but mighty and we take care of each other and our families.”
“Sounds like a slogan.”
“I’m drunk. I’ll do it better when I’m sober. Oh, shit!” Georgia grabbed Lucky at the waist, pulling her toward the street chanting, “Cross, cross, cross!”
Lucky caught on and took the lead, helping the increasingly wobbly Georgia, who then made them crouch down behind a parked car to spy on a small group as they walked down the opposite sidewalk.
“What was that for?” Lucky asked.
“I don’t want him to see me!”
“Who?”
“Elvin. That’s him in the gray hoodie.”
Lucky didn’t bother to look, instead checking the time on her phone. Late enough for Rebel to be sleeping, but Maverick might still be up. She also had two more missed calls from Unknown. Once Georgia was positive Elvin had no chance of turning around and spotting her, they continued walking to the parking garage.
“How can you see through those things at night?” Georgia asked.
“Lots of practice. The tint isn’t as dark on these glasses.” Lucky could still see everything clearly—the downtown city lights were bright enough for that—but her ability-blocking effectiveness dropped to forty-five percent. She kept her gaze on the ground or the sky to avoid accidentally making eye contact with anyone. “So, what’s wrong with Elvin?”
