“But I have to pack and get to the airport,” she said. “I can’t miss the plane. I have…um, an appointment I cannot miss tomorrow.”
Though she wanted to say screw it and just stay here, wrapped in Geo’s arms, her doctor’s appointment was too important to miss. She only wished she could figure out how to come back, so they could do this again in the not too distant future. But her future, her life, depended on tomorrow’s meeting.
Though he moved slowly, they were dressed and back on the road to town in short order. And as he had assured her, they were back in plenty of time for them both to pack, and check out well before the noon deadline.
Gigi was at the valet when they returned to load their things into the truck. Ignoring Geo’s looming presence, she pulled Sunny close for a long hug. “I hope you had a good time,” she said. “And I want you to text me when you get home. And let me know how things go tomorrow, okay?”
“I will. And thank you for everything,” Sunny said. “I had a great time. It was so good to meet you face-to-face instead of just online.”
“You’ll have to come visit again, soon,” Gigi said.
Sunny nodded and smiled, fighting a need to check out whether Geo agreed with his sister or not. “Maybe in the fall, after things settle down,” she said, hoping she sounded optimistic though vague.
“And tell Shey she’d better be here next year, or I’m coming for her,” Gigi said before releasing Sunny to several other women who were waiting patiently for their good-bye hugs.
Finally, Sunny climbed into the truck. “Thanks for waiting,” she said.
Geo looked at her. “Anytime,” he said as he started the truck. “And I hope you come back long before fall. Like, as soon as you’re done with your appointment.”
Though touched by the sentiment, all at once Sunny did not know what to say. “We’ll see,” she said as she felt a wall go up between them, though she wasn’t sure who was constructing it.
By the time they reached the airport ten minutes later, the conversation had died completely, and a strained silence had taken its place. At the airport, cars were jockeying for position at the drop-off point for her airline. It was impossible for Geo to park and walk her inside. Not that there was much he could do except watch her check her bag and get in line for security.
“Um, thanks for the rides. And everything,” she said, her face burning with a blush she could not hide. “You’re a nice person, Geo, and I hope you meet a woman who can be everything you need her to be.”
Before he could respond, she opened her door and slipped out, dragging her briefcase behind her. In less than a minute, she had her bags out of the back of the truck, and was headed into the airport. Thankfully, Geo could not see the tears well up and overflow her eyes as she whispered, “Love you, sweet George Hartland the third.”
There was so much she wanted to tell him, so much she wished she knew how to say, but their time together had come to an end. Her weekend with a sexy, outgoing, gorgeous man was over. He would return to his life on the stage in front of hundreds of panting women, and she would go back to life as an uber-shy introvert with an overactive imagination, and some potentially life-threatening health problems.
Geo watched his woman walk away without a backward glance. He could tell from her posture she was not looking forward to her trip home, but there was nothing he could do about it. Until he got a chance to sit down with Gigi and find out exactly what was going on with Sunny, and figure out how he could get them together in the same place forever, he was stuck.
And he had a ranch that needed his attention after being away for the better part of a week. Tucker James, his foreman, was probably ready to quit, though from the way the man had been staring at Gigi on her last visit, there might be a way to entice the man to stay.
When a car behind him began to honk its frustration, Geo put the truck into gear and drove away, sending a prayer with his shy Sunflower for a safe trip home and speedy return to his arms. Once he was away from the craziness of the airport and on the highway home again, he pulled out his phone and called Gigi.
“Did she get off okay?”
“I left her at the drop-off for her airline, if that’s what you mean,” he answered. “Now tell me why she’s going back to a doctor’s appointment. She said something about possibly needing surgery, but we didn’t get into it too deep. I wanted to keep her happy in the here and now.”
“She’s had some female problems. The doctor ran some tests over the last weeks before the conference to figure out what the trouble might be. Her appointment is to get the results of the tests,” Gigi said. “She’s afraid it’s cancer but doesn’t want anyone to know. Doesn’t want to burden anyone with her problems.”
Geo swore silently. “You coming home tonight?”
“Yeah,” Gigi said. “And I’ll be sure to bring everything I know about Sunny with me.”