Chapter 7 Georgia
Georgia
He smells so good.
I let out a groan as I roll over in Brody’s bed, surrounded by the masculine scent of him. I bury my face into the pillow, inhaling more of it, and then shift again, expecting to feel the warmth of his body.
But he’s not there.
My eyes flutter open, and I frown. He’s gone. My heart instantly sinks at the empty king-sized bed, and I force myself to a sitting position, searching for any signs of him. I mean, maybe he just had to go to the bathroom or something.
There’s no way he could think the sex wasn’t good, right?
Because I’m pretty sure that was the best sex I’ve ever had. I rake my fingers through my disheveled hair, wincing as I work out the tangles. My eyes find the clock hanging on the wall, but I still have nearly two hours before I have to worry about making breakfast.
I flip the covers back and slip out of the bed, thankful that the storm has passed, and the rocking of the boat is back to being soothing rather than terrifying. I search the floor and spot my T-shirt. I pad over to it and slip it over my head, unsure of where the rest of my clothes are.
Where’s Brody?
I start looking for him, starting with the control room. He’s not seated in there, the bedroom, the small kitchenette, or the lounge. Finally, I make it to the small office, the door slightly ajar.
“Brody?” I peek inside, and sure enough, he’s sitting in a T-shirt and sweatpants, staring at the computer screen. I furrow my brows as he looks up from the monitor.
And doesn’t even pretend to be happy to see me.
“You’re awake,” he grunts, his tone borderline cold. “I was wondering when that was going to happen.”
I swallow hard. “Um… yeah…” My voice trails off as I push the door in, just enough for me to step inside. I tug at the hem of my T-shirt, suddenly more than aware of how short it really is. “Is… is everything okay?”
“Yeah, well…” Brody’s hair is tousled, and he looks tired as his eyes fall back to the laptop screen. “What happened last night was a big mistake, Georgia. I should’ve never let you stay in my room up here.”
My chest tightens, and I cling to the material of my shirt. “I thought… I thought last night was good?” My face begins to heat up with embarrassment. “Was it not… was it not good for you? Did I do something wrong?” He sure as hell seemed to enjoy it.
He purses his lips and then leans back in his chair, letting out a heavy exhale.
“Look, Georgia…” He meets my gaze. “Things just got a little out of hand last night, and honestly, it should’ve never happened.
I’m your dad’s best friend—and a solid twenty-two years older than you.
What happened should’ve never happened. Not to mention, we’re in a working arrangement currently.
” The professionalism in his tone stings.
I swallow the knot in my throat. “Um, okay. But you didn’t mention any of those things being a problem last—”
“I obviously wasn’t thinking very clearly,” he cuts me off, his tone bitter and sharp. “Last night was a mistake, it shouldn’t have happened, and it won’t happen again.”
I nod, unsure of what else to do. “Yes, sir.” With that, I spin on my heels and jet out of the room, picking up my pace as I rush back to the bed. I flip through the covers until I find my underwear and pajama shorts. I slide them back on and then nearly sprint to the exit.
I hold back all of my emotions until I make it safely to the lowest floor, and only then do the tears slip from my eyes. I’m so stupid for letting something happen between us. What was I thinking?
I swing my door open and step inside, closing the door shut behind me. My back slides down the steel as I try to steady my racing heart.
It was a mistake. He thinks it was a mistake.
A sob racks my entire body, and the fact that I’m sobbing over someone who acts like I’m disgusting only makes me feel even more stupid for ever letting myself go to him in the first place. I should’ve just stayed in my room last night, and not gone running to him.
I’m so dumb. I let myself cry for a few more minutes before forcing myself to stand up and walk across the room to my nightstand. I sweep up my phone and call the only person I think will listen and not judge me—outwardly, anyway.
And thankfully, Daisy answers on the first ring.
“How’s it going?” She sounds as bright as ever, and I hear her husband’s laughter in the background.
How nice it must be to have someone who loves you.
“Hey…” I can’t bring myself to answer her question directly, and my voice shakes as I try to hold it together. “I think I made a huge mistake taking this job.”
She’s silent for a beat. “Why? What happened? I just talked to you yesterday, and you were on cloud nine.”
“I know…” My voice trails off as I plop down on my bed and run a hand over my face. “But last night… there was this storm that came through, and I got scared—and I don’t know what came over me. I went to Brody’s cabin.”
“Okaaay…”
“And then Brody and I slept together.”
“Oh my god,” she gasps. “This is juicy. How was the sex? Obviously, it must’ve been horrible since you’re saying it was a huge mistake.”
“No,” I shake my head, batting away fresh tears. “That’s the whole problem. I thought it was an amazing night. Like,” I pause, holding it together, “I thought it was the best sex of my life.”
“Okay, so I’m really not following,” Daisy lets out an awkward laugh. “You had the best sex of your life, but right now you sound like someone just died.”
I breathe out and then let myself fall backward so I can stare at the ceiling.
“This morning, I woke up, and he wasn’t there, so I went to look for him, expecting…
” I have no idea what I was expecting. “Anyway, he was a huge dick to me. He said the whole thing was a mistake and that he’s too old for me, and that, you know, he’s Dad’s best friend. ”
“Ouch…” Daisy lets out a sigh. “So basically, he was all into it last night, and now he’s cold?”
“Yep,” I pop the ‘p’ in the word. “And I feel like the biggest idiot ever. I still have weeks left on this trip, and I’ve already created a problem. I’m so unprofessional.”
“No, he totally could’ve stopped you.”
“Well, I went to him, though.”
“Because you were scared. That’s not that crazy.
It was your first time ever encountering something like that.
I don’t see what you did as being anything other than completely human—including sleeping with him.
” She pauses and then makes an incoherent grunt.
“Honestly, I think the responsibility really falls on him. The two of you clearly have some sort of chemistry. He could’ve totally said no if he wasn’t into it. ”
“Yeah, but…”
“Georgia,” Daisy’s voice grows stern. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”
I nod. “Okay, okay.” I stare at the canned lights on the ceiling, burning little patterns into my eyelids every time I blink. “I just don’t know how I’m going to make it the rest of the trip. Maybe I should quit.”
“I think you’re overreacting.”
I gasp, though I feel a hint of a smile tugging at my lips. “You’re minimizing my feelings right now.”
I can pretty much hear the eye roll in her voice. “Look, Brody Wilder is a divorced, very eligible bachelor. I’m sure he sleeps with a lot of women. I mean, why wouldn’t he? I doubt he hasn’t done something like this before.”
“Okay, now you’re just making me feel gross.”
“The point is to play the game right back at him,” Daisy huffs. “You just act like it meant nothing to you. It’ll maybe get under his skin. Or you’ll know immediately what kind of guy he is.”
“A hot, older one.”
“Yeah, take a shower, wash the thoughts of him away, and go cook a phenomenal breakfast for the other two hotties. Fuck Brody.”
“Fuck Brody,” I say, my tone gaining some confidence. I push myself up to a sitting position. “I can totally handle his bullshit.”
“Yeah, you can! You’re Georgia Blake, and you have handled a lot of bullshit in your life.” She bursts into a giggle, and I can’t help but join her.
Even if it doesn’t exactly feel natural.
“I’ll let you go,” I say, as the laughter dies down. “I don’t have long before I really do need to get in the kitchen.”
“Got it. Dress like the knockout you are. Love you, Georgie.”
“Love you.” I chuckle to myself as I hang up and then toss the phone onto my bed. I stare at the bathroom door for a few beats, and then force myself to stand up. Honestly, Daisy is right.
I need to just act like what he did doesn’t bother me.
I can totally have casual sex and it not get to me.
It doesn’t matter if I haven’t ever done it before, or if Brody is the epitome of everything I’ve ever thought is attractive. My mind flashes back to last night, my thighs clenching at the memory of coming undone around his face.
Fuck Brody. I push the thought away and strip out of my pajamas, tossing them straight into the hamper. I can still feel him lingering on my skin.
I have to scrub him off me.
I take a deep breath and head straight for the shower.
I spend the next twenty minutes exfoliating until my entire body feels raw.
I wash my hair twice, and then when I get out of the shower, I head for my dresser, digging out a pair of high-cut, faded denim shorts, and a crop top that shows off the effort of all those one-minute-long planks.
I dry my hair, adding nice beach waves, and then put on enough makeup to accentuate my cheekbones and lips, without appearing that I’m trying too hard. But still, even as I’m happy with the way I look…
The memory of Brody between my legs still lingers.
Shit. My heart sinks in my chest. It’s so much easier said than done when it comes to outrunning the way I feel. Brody Wilder was my teenage crush. I obsessed over him, even though he was married.
Now, I’ve had him, and I guess I can just mark that off the bucket list. I shake my head at my ridiculous mental pep talk, slip on my Converse, and then head out of my room, shutting the door behind me.
I make my way down the hallway, up the stairs, and to the main floor of the yacht. Emmett is sitting in one of the loungers already, sipping on his coffee and watching the sunrise. He glances over at me and gives me a soft smile.
“You look nice today, Georgia.” His soft voice is strikingly comforting, given everything I’ve gone through this morning. “You should make sure to get some good pictures.”
“Oh?” I tilt my head at him. “Why?”
“That way, you have proof of your grandiose chef job,” he lets out a chuckle, and I find myself smiling.
“I guess I could.”
“I can take them for you, if you want.”
“That’s really sweet of you,” I say, reaching for the handle on the door. “But I really need to get started on breakfast. I don’t want to run late… you know, it might upset Brody or something.”
His brows raise, and I note the way his black and white striped shirt fits his toned chest and shoulders. “I highly doubt you could do anything to piss Brody off. I’m pretty sure he thinks you’re a walking goddess.”
“Ha,” I force myself to be nonchalant. “I definitely don’t think he considers me anything close to that.”
In fact, Emmett, he actually thinks I’m the biggest mistake ever.
And that is a far cry from goddess status.