whole week, expense-free, remember? And you’ve also said you’ll give me a hotel room after this week, too. Which means I’ll be able to give almost all my salary to my father this whole summer, to help him try to catch up on his mortgage payments. And on top of all that, you’re also throwing a party to end all parties on Saturday night and letting Alessandra come with me. I’d say all of that is a whole lot more than nothing. I was just saying I’m grateful.”
Reed runs his finger down the handle of his fork. “Your father is behind on his mortgage payments?”
I blush. Why did I admit that? “I shouldn’t have mentioned that to you. It makes me sound ungrateful for everything you and CeeCee have—”
“It’s fine, Georgie. Tell me what’s going on. He’s behind on his payments?”
I press my lips together. I can’t believe I let that slip.
He grabs my hand. “Did your father get behind when he got sick?”
I exhale and nod. “He hasn’t returned to work since he was sick. He’s a carpenter by trade, and chemo left him with some problems with his hands. But it’ll be okay. I’m going to give him as much of the grant money as I can. It won’t solve the problem completely, but it should buy him some time until we figure out what else we can do.”
Reed rubs his forehead. But before he says a word, an older woman walks into the kitchen—a woman I immediately recognize from the photo on Reed’s desk as Amalia. His housekeeper and second mother. Reed gets up and hugs Amalia in greeting, and then turns to me.
“Georgie, this is Amalia Vaccaro, my housekeeper. Amalia, this is Georgina Ricci. She’ll be staying here for the summer.”
My heart stops. Did Reed just say I’ll be staying here... for the summer? When did I agree to that?
Reed continues, “I’ve put Georgie in the blue room upstairs. Make sure she’s got everything she needs to feel at home, please.”
“Of course. Hello, Georgina. Nice to meet you.”
“And you.” I stand and shake Amalia’s hand, my mind racing about Reed’s shocking comment.
“Please let me know if there’s anything I can do to make your stay more comfortable this summer,” Amalia says.
“Oh. Uh. Thank you. But I’m good. Just getting to stay here at all is a dream come true. It’s a beautiful house.”
“Yes, it is.”
I look at Reed. “I’m so excited to stay for the summer. It’s so much nicer here than any hotel.”
Reed’s handsome face breaks into a wide smile at my implicit acceptance of his invitation. Beaming a huge smile at me, he says, “Georgie, I just realized your bag isn’t nearly big enough to hold everything you’ll need this summer. I know you need a bathing suit. Probably some more workout gear. What else do you need?”
I’m buzzing. Tingling. Breathless. “No, no. I’m fine. If I need anything, there’s a Target—”
“No, no, I insist. Amalia, do me a favor and give Georgie the house credit card for a shopping spree. Also, let’s make her feel at home. Stock up on her favorite snacks and toiletries.”
“Of course.”
“Reed, I truly don’t need anything.”
“Georgina. You’re staying for the summer. Not a week or a month. You need to feel completely at home. Which means we’re going to make sure you have whatever your little heart desires.” He winks. “Whether you like it or not.”
Chapter 10
Georgina
Reed heads to his home office to make a few calls before it’s time to leave for his attorney’s office, so I hang back in the kitchen to help Amalia clean up from breakfast. In part, because I genuinely want to be helpful. Reed and I made the mess, after all, and I’d be embarrassed to leave it for someone else to deal with. But, also, because I’m dying to talk to Amalia about Reed. What was Reed like as a little boy? What is he like as an adult boss? And, also, what can Amalia tell me about Reed’s relationship with his mother? I can’t yet envision all the themes of my eventual article, but Reed’s lovely relationship with his mother brings a whole new depth to him that people never see, and I’m thinking maybe I’ll use it as a touchstone in my article... if, indeed, it’s everything Reed said it was. I was probably imagining it, but I thought I noticed a strange tightness in Reed’s demeanor, just for a moment, when he was telling me about his mother’s