Page 42 of Fool Me Twice
There stood Georgia, dressed up for the camera in a red skirt and blazer, leaning on her crutches, and looking like she had a bone to pick.
“Georgia,” I breathed. “It’s good to see you.”
In fact, it was more than good. I hadn’t expected to be so overwhelmed by her presence. The last week without her had felt unexpectedly empty, but I couldn’t have imagined what a difference seeing her again would make.
She glanced around, making sure no one was listening to our conversation. “You bought the station I work at? Why?”
“I am hoping you will have lunch with me today, during which I will explain everything.”
She worked her jaw around, looking lost for words.
“Hi!” A petite brunette who looked familiar appeared out of nowhere. “Maddie Davis. Associate producer.”
She extended her hand, and as I shook it the memories fell into place.
“Maddie Davis,” I said. “I remember you from photos.”
“Georgia showed you photos of me?” She gave Georgia an impressed look.
Georgia shook her head. “He means in college. Not during this last trip.”
“Still, I’ll take it. It’s good to meet you, Mr. Alarçón.”
“Rodrigo, please.”
“Rodrigo.” Maddie rolled her tongue. “It’s been a long time coming, but it’s an honor. Do you have plans for lunch? I can arrange—”
“Actually, I’m having lunch with Georgia.”
Pink spread across Georgia’s cheeks, but she quickly composed herself. “Yes. That’s right. We are.”
“Oh. Excellent.” It might have been my imagination, but it appeared that Maddie was doing her best to not smile.
“Well,” Georgia said through tight teeth once Maddie was gone. “Where would you like to go?”
“Your favorite place in the city.”
“My favorite place…” She looked away. “Is a South American restaurant.”
The amount of joy that spread through me was probably ridiculous. “That’s convenient. I happen to be South American.”
Now it was her turn to try and hide a smile—something she failed at.
“How convenient,” she said. “Just like you buying the company I happen to work at is also convenient.”
“Let’s discuss this at lunch more, shall we?” I gestured at the door.
“Sure.” She used her crutches to lead the way.
Thirty minutes later, settled in a sunny, cozy restaurant with photographs of various South American locations on the wall, I laced my hands on the table and caught Georgia’s gaze.
“Of course it is no coincidence that I bought your company,” I said. “After looking you up following running into each other, I took it upon myself to dig deeper. This will be the fourth station I have bought this quarter, so it’s not as if I did it on a whim.”
Her demeanor softened. “This is usually a scary thing, you know. For the staff.”
I nodded. “I know. I will do my best to work with everyone. I meant what I said. I will not be coming in and mass-firing. Although there might be a certain amount of reshuffling of duties.”
She fiddled with her napkin. “How is Sebastián?”