Chapter 27
27
G eena opened the door where Cody was waiting to enter. She stepped back out of the way, and as he walked in, he put a hand around her waist and gave her a quick, gentle kiss before heading towards Gary.
She stood frozen for a moment, basking in the warmth and ease of the gesture. Kissing Cody felt so natural, as if they’d known each other for months instead of just a few weeks. It was astonishing how quickly they’d gotten to this point, especially considering their first kiss was only a week ago.
But going through a life-threatening situation together could escalate things, she supposed.
“Hey, buddy,” he said to Gary, who bobbed up and down with excitement over his visitor’s appearance. “Got any new sayings for us?”
“Same old stuff,” Geena said. “Oh, I heard the cops found the account. And they didn’t need Gary’s beeps and boops to get it.”
She really didn’t care about Anthony Montesano or his money. And what happened with all of that was out of her hands.
“Speaking of all that,” Cody said. “I let Anthony know that Gary’s safe again.”
“Oh.”
Geena felt her whole world deflate around her.
The world she’d let herself imagine was slipping through her grasp.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s just…” Geena didn’t want to say it. Didn’t want to voice her disappointment. “I guess he’ll be wanting Gary back when he gets out.”
“Not likely,” Cody said. “He’s in there for a few years. He just wants Gary safe and loved. Which we’ll make sure of.”
Hope surged in Geena, and she decided to spill it all. “The thing is…”
Cody eyed her with concern. “Are you okay? What’s going on?”
“The thing is…” she repeated, taking a big breath before completing the thought. “The thing is, I kind of want to adopt Gary.”
“Really?”
She’d become pretty good at reading Cody over the last few weeks, and especially the last few days, but she couldn’t read him on this.
“Yeah,” she said. “I already talked to Sierra and Liz about it, and since they don’t have anyone lined up yet, they said it wouldn’t be a problem. As long as it isn’t a problem with you? Or Anthony?”
A million emotions passed through Cody’s eyes, and he landed on the one she’d hoped to see.
Excitement.
“Yes, of course!” He shook his head and rolled back his excitement. “If you’re sure. You’re great with him, and he obviously is happy here with you, but I don’t want you to feel obligated or anything.”
“Nope,” she said. “Not feeling obligated. It’s something I’ve considered carefully and want to do.”
It had been so long since she’d let herself want something. She’d spent so much of her life doing the next right thing, getting or giving the right answers, making choices based on data alone.
But this decision wasn’t based on data or math or responsibility.
Geena was letting herself want something.
She wanted to keep Gary.
And there was one other thing she wanted, but that wasn’t solely in her control, so she’d just have to wait and see on that.
“Well then, I fully support this decision.”
He pulled her in for another kiss, this time less quickly and less gently. She held him close and let herself get lost in that kiss. In wanting him.
Then, he moved back suddenly and looked her in the eyes.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Since we’re laying out big decisions and all, I have one for you.”
She once again couldn’t read his expression. She thought it might be fear, but she’d never seen that emotion cross his face, except when he’d rushed into that room to find her and Gary at James’s house.
Geena’s stomach dropped while her chest felt like a million bees had taken up residence there.
“Okay,” she said. “What decision is that?”
He slid his hand from her waist and held her hand instead. His palm was sweaty as he squeezed hers.
“I got offered the job in St. Louis.”
The bees swarmed in her chest, and she struggled to breathe. She’d known this was a possibility. She’d known that he wanted to leave this place at some point.
And he’d been right. Better to move on before things got even more serious. Before anyone got hurt.
But this was already going to hurt.
“When do you start?”
A small, hesitant smile appeared. “I don’t.”
“What does that mean?”
Did he get one of the other positions? She knew he’d sent resumes to several places.
He squeezed her hand again, tighter this time. “I turned them down. And pulled my other applications. I’m not going anywhere.”
The bees were replaced by butterflies, fluttering with possibilities. “Seriously?”
“Seriously,” he said with a small laugh. “And I deleted the dating app from my phone. I’m not interested in any more messages or matches or anything. I’m all yours if you want to really take this leap with me.”
Geena felt a rush of excitement at the thought of a future with Cody. They hadn’t known each other for very long, but they’d come to understand and care about each other more than some couples did after months of dating.
Besides Gary, this was the only other thing she’d allowed herself to want. Even though she knew there’d been a chance he would leave.
And there was still a chance this might not work out.
“Are you sure? I mean, you’ve been so adamant about wanting to move around, to see new places and meet new people. How do you know you won’t change your mind again in a week or two or twenty?”
“There are never any guarantees,” he said. “But I know this is what I want. To be here. To be with you. We can travel together if we want. Someone helped me realize that I wasn’t running toward what I wanted so much as away from what I was afraid of.”
“You were afraid of me?”
He laughed again. “No, not afraid of you. I was afraid of hurting you. Afraid of doing to you what my dad did to my mom. But Lauren helped me see that because I was afraid of that was evidence that I would never do that. The way I feel about you… there’s no way I’m even capable of that.”
“Oh, yeah?” Geena gave him a sly smile while she put her hands around him and closed what little space was left between them. “So you’re really sticking around?”
“Yup, you’re stuck with me.” He put his forehead against hers. “I love you, Geena.”
“So we aren’t doing the last name thing anymore?” she teased.
“Nope. I like the way your first name feels in my mouth.”
Geena couldn’t help smiling even more. She slid her hands up his chest and around his neck. “I love you too, Cody.”
They kissed again, longer and more intensely. She held him tight, afraid to let go. Afraid this was all an illusion.
“Tasty, tasty, tasty!”
They both broke into laughter at Gary’s interruption.
Yeah. This was real.
“We should probably head out, anyway. My parents are dying to meet you.”
“This is weird, right?” Cody raised his brow. “Like… soon?”
Geena shrugged. “Is your mom meeting us there?”
Her parents had insisted Cody and his mom come over for dinner. Geena had thought it was a bit much a bit soon also, but in the end, it just felt right having everyone together to celebrate all the things they had to celebrate.
“What’s your dad cooking in that smoker of his?”
“A bunch of stuff. I just know ribs for sure.”
Cody fell into a fit of laughter that confused the heck out of Geena.
“What’s so funny about ribs?”
“Remind me to tell you later,” he said. “Let’s head out. I’ve got a bottle of Chardonnay chilling in the car.”
It took Geena an extra beat to process that. “You got white wine?”
“Yeah,” Cody said, confusion splashed across his face. “Didn’t you say red wine gives you headaches?”
The butterflies continued to flutter as she gave him another quick kiss.
“I sure did.” She kissed him again, then said, “Let’s go before we’re late, while I thank you for remembering.”