26. Chapter 26

Women are confusing.

That's the only conclusion I can come to as I rehash my conversation with Cassie on my drive to the shop. I should have brought Britta with me, partly because my head still hurts and maybe I shouldn't be driving, and also to help me figure out what's happened. But I need to process everything before I talk about it.

I thought Cassie ran away the other night because we moved too fast. I thought telling her we should be friends would make her feel safer. Every woman I've gone out with isn't comfortable moving as fast as Cassie and I did, skipping past the basics—like tolerating each other—right to an intense make-out.

But tonight, she was sending all kinds of mixed signals. She intentionally let me see her in a towel again and looked at me as if she wanted to pick up where we left off on Monday. It took everything in me not to find out. If I felt less for her than I do, I would have kissed her. I'd be okay with giving into what I want in the moment instead of waiting for what I really want.

With Cassie, nothing short-term or casual will be enough. She's the kind of woman a guy would be stupid not to hold on to long term if he had the chance. And, for a few minutes tonight, I thought I might.

I wish she would have been more excited about the idea of being friends. Or even happy about it, especially since it doesn't sound like she has many. If anything, she seemed kind of annoyed that I offered.

I mean, yeah, friendship might be kind of hard since we're fighting for the same thing. And I guess I hadn't thought through the fact that Cassie might not stay in Paradise if she doesn't get the shop. But she's not a quitter, and she really wants a bookstore. I figured she'd find a different spot for it, not just leave.

When I pull into the alley behind the shop, I'm almost relieved when I see Georgia's car there. Maybe she can explain how women's brains work. Or at least, Cassie's.

Then I remember the state of the studio, and I know she'll have something to say about that. In fact, that's probably why she's here. Cassie probably texted her, and who knows if she blamed me for the pipe bursting like she did the squirrel disaster.

I go in through the shop, assuming Georgia will be on the apartment side. I need to steel myself before facing her. If she's got a big-sister-talking-to waiting for me, I want to be prepared for it. I take my time getting the shop vac and a big garbage can, then roll them slowly to the studio.

I'm barely inside the door before Georgia asks, "I've heard Cassie's version. You want to tell me yours?"

She puts her hand on her hip and raises an accusing eyebrow, but she's wearing rubber boots. Georgia always wears heels. The fact she's not now means she's here to help.

"Pipes are old. They burst." I walk back into the shop to get old towels.

Georgia follows. "And it was a coincidence that they burst on the studio side instead of in the shop? This wasn't something you planned?"

I stop and look down at Georgia. "Does Cassie believe that?"

"No, I'm just asking." She puts up her hands, as though she's the one who should feel defensive.

"Wow. Thanks for the confidence. Tell me what kind of guy you really think I am." I yank open the cabinet and take out a stack of towels.

"You can't blame me for asking, Bear. Not after the mice and the squirrels." Georgia's voice is gentler as she holds out her arms for the towels and as an apology.

I stare at her for a few seconds before setting all the towels in her outstretched arms. They rise past the top of her head.

"I didn't mean all of them," she says from behind the towels.

"The squirrels weren't my fault. Cassie's mangy cat is to blame for that. I was just trying to help Lynette." I step around Georgia, taking none of the towels from her. "Are you coming?"

She follows me back to the studio, only losing two towels along the way. "Speaking of the cat, you'll have to take him to Cassie tomorrow. We're shooting in Florence for a couple of days. Zach will be here, but he can't take care of the cat. He swears he's as allergic as you, and he's been sneezing up a storm, so it's hard to doubt it."

I sigh. I'm sure my brother's exaggerating, but I also don't want Cassie to leave. "Fine. He can stay in the garage. Cassie has to stay at my place until I can re-pipe here. If I can convince Grandpa to pay for it."

Georgia drops the towels on the table, then smiles softly at me. "Thank you…now, I'll follow behind with towels. You vacuum up the water and think about how to convince Cassie to fall for you as hard as you've fallen for her."

I roll my eyes, but there's no use pretending I don't know what Georgia is talking about. She's known me my entire life and can read me faster than my brother Adam can read one of the romance books he likes so much.

"I don't know if that's possible." I cross the room to plug in the vacuum where the floor is drier. "She thinks I kissed her to convince her not to buy the shop—which makes no sense—but when—"

"—Wait! Hold up!" Georgia puts up both hands and blinks fast. "You kissed her?"

"We kissed each other." I flip on the vacuum. The motor roars to life, drowning out whatever Georgia may want to say next.

Doesn't matter. Her mouth stretches into her famous smile and speaks volumes. I turn my back to her. That doesn't do any good either, because I can still hear that smile when she yells, "And?"

"And what?" I yell back.

Suddenly the vacuum quits. I turn around to find Georgia holding the unplugged cord in her hand.

"You know what! How was it?" Her question tumbles out at the same time my cousin, Seb, opens the door.

"How was what?" he asks, and now I know I'm in real trouble.

"What are you doing here?" I ask at the same time Georgia says, "Bear kissed Cassie."

"Georgia told me to come help." Seb scans the entire room, taking in the mess, until his eyes land on me and his lip tugs into a grin. "Bro, you kissed her?"

"He did." Georgia practically sings the words.

"Dude… how was it?" Seb's smile matches Georgia's, and I'm no match for either.

"Amazing." I can't hold back my own smile.

"When did this happen? So are you two a thing, or what? Are you still trying to get the shop torn down?"

Georgia and Seb bombard me with questions, but the only one I answer is the last one. "Of course, I still want the shop torn down. I still want a rink for the kids."

They both go silent, then look at each other. Georgia is the first to roll her eyes, but Seb isn't far behind.

"So you like this girl—"

"—Woman," I correct Seb.

"Woman…but you don't want her to stay in Paradise?" Seb finishes.

"Of course, I want her to stay, but kissing Cassie doesn't mean I want to marry her, and she definitely doesn't want to marry me. She doesn't even want to be friends." I point to the outlet, gesturing for Georgia to plug in the vacuum again.

She shakes her head. "We need more deets."

I stare her down, but when she only smiles bigger, I grab a towel and drop it to the floor.

"I'm not giving up on keeping the pond on the off-chance something may work out between Cassie and me." While I talk, I shuffle the towel across the floor to soak up the water. It would be so much faster to suck up with the vacuum. I keep my eyes on the floor, not my cousin or sister-in-law.

"I guarantee she wants to kiss you again." Georgia blocks my path and reaches up to squeeze my cheeks with one hand. "You're so handsome," she says in a mom voice. I pull back from her grip, and with a laugh, she drops her hand.

"Are you going to help or just stand there?" I ask her, then toss Seb a towel. "You too?"

Seb bats the towel away. It lands on the wet floor and water seeps into it. "Take it from me, if you like Cassie—if you think she's someone you could fall in love with—do whatever you can to keep her here. You won't regret it."

My cousin doesn't take anything too seriously, but he's not joking right now. His fiancée, Hope, was only supposed to be here for a month. He almost let her get away because he was afraid he wouldn't make a good father to her little girl, Charly.

"Exactly," Georgia says. "Even if it means giving up the pond."

I shake my head. "That would mean giving up on my team. I can't choose someone I might fall in love with over the girls I've committed to coaching."

"Or raise the money to build a rink somewhere else and get the best of both worlds?" Seb sweeps the towel back and forth with his foot, moving water but not drying anything.

"The best of every world is keeping the pond where we all learned to skate." I toss another towel on the floor and move away from Seb and Georgia. I don't like the direction of this conversation.

"I get you love that pond, but if you're really committed to your team, you've got to consider other options," Georgia says. "And getting donors to build a rink may be your best choice, especially since…"

Her pause makes me turn around. "What?"

She pulls back her shoulders, and in one long breath says, "Lynette's got two offers on her property—including the pond. She'll counter-offer, but you should really consider other options for your team's rink."

I'm too shocked to do anything but stare at her.

"But I know someone who can help you get the money for an indoor rink," she rushes to add.

"I don't want to talk about it." I turn my back to her and go back to mopping.

Georgia splashes over to me in her red rain boots. "That's fine, then just listen. I have a friend, Dexter, in California. He lived next door to Cassie and me. He's a professional surfer, but he's always looking for causes to donate to."

I shake my head. "Not interested."

"Just listen, Bear." Georgia grabs my shoulder to make me face her. "I told him about my idea of turning the old community center in Little Copenhagen into something for everyone in Paradise. A community center that would include an indoor ice rink and a lot of other activities that would benefit all the kids around here."

"Why would he do that? He has no connections here."

I know Georgia is trying to help, but I don't want her help. I don't want an indoor rink. I've already told her that.

But Georgia's just getting started. She talks with her hands when she gets excited, and she's waving them all over the place. "Tax-write off? He's a charitable guy? Maybe the center would be named after him. I don't know. Dexter's traveling to tournaments for the next few weeks, so we'll hammer out the details when he gets back."

"No," I bark.

Seb sends me a worried look. He knows Georgia's said the exact wrong thing.

"No?" she says.

"No. Still not interested." I walk past her to plug in the wet vac again and turn it on.

The whirring almost blocks out her yelling my name. With my back to her, I can pretend I don't hear her at all.

Then the vac goes off. I expect Georgia to be the source of the problem, but when I glance back, Seb is holding the unplugged cord.

"Dude," I protest, but Seb turns to Georgia.

"Bear wants the park and pond named after Aunt Heidi," Seb tells her. "That's the whole point of what he's doing. It's not just about hockey. It's about his mom."

With that, Georgia's anger slips away. "Is that true, Bear?"

"It's about hockey too." I glare at Seb. "And I told you that in confidence."

He and I have always been close, but I've seen little of him for the past few months since he got engaged. While I appreciate he's trying to help, I've needed a friend the past couple of months with Mom getting worse, and he's been too busy.

"I'm sorry, man," he whispers, and I know he means it.

"It's fine." I look from him to Georgia. "Yeah, I want the pond and park named after her. Heidi's Park, or something."

She walks to me with her lips pursed in thought. "Have you told Grandpa? I'd think he'd want the same thing."

Seb answers for me. "Grandpa said parks are named after people who have already died and Heidi isn't gone. It feels macabre to him to name it after her when everyone is working so hard to keep her alive."

"Hmmm." Georgia nods with her whole body. Not in agreement, but in thought. She won't stop until she solves this problem. "What if we named the community center after her?"

Her words are slow and gentle, but that doesn't make me like the idea.

I shake my head. "The pond is a part of Mom. She'll never step foot in the community center."

Georgia's eyebrows crease for half a second, but she asks no more questions. And I'm grateful I don't have to answer any. The only thing I can think of now is all the other things Mom will never do.

Somehow, Georgia understands where my thoughts have gone. Instinctively, she knows I need a hug. She wraps her arms around me, and I bend uncomfortably low to rest my cheek on top of her head.

"You've got a hard decision to make, Baby Bear," she whispers, using the name Mom called me until I was a teenager and told her to stop.

I wish I hadn't.

"You either give up the pond…" she continues. "Or else you give up your feelings for Cassie."

As good as Georgia's hug feels, it's not enough to cushion the truth of her words.