Backstage Romance: An Austen-Inspired Romantic Comedy Box Set by Gigi Blume (ebook reader with highlighter txt) 📕

couple of hours. There was nothing but snow for miles in every direction. I checked the indicators. Almost a full tank of gas. Thank goodness for tiny cars.

We were both flustered and bristled when they’d pulled the Chevy Spark around for us. Georgia’s snubby reaction to the tiny economy car was priceless. She stormed into the passenger seat and slammed the door. I was more than happy to ‘not so gently’ toss her carry-on in the trunk and I sped off without inputting a destination in the GPS. I followed the signs Southbound, just wanting to literally get out of Dodge. I figured we could find a more suitable place down the road to go over our travel plans from here on out. But there was nothing. Absolutely nothing but the occasional farmhouse. I was fairly certain we were on a major highway.

Hungry for some snacks, I reached behind my seat for my backpack, only swerving slightly. She flipped out.

“Oh my—sheesh! Are you trying to kill us?”

“Calm down, woman. It was your idea to make me drive.”

“Yeah, because I’ve never driven on icy roads. I thought you’d know how not to plow into a snow bank.”

Reeses raised his little head and perked up his ears. He volleyed his face toward me, then Georgia, then back to me again and barked once.

“See?” said Georgia. “Your dog agrees with me.”

“Nah. He has to do his business. That’s his ‘I need to pee’ bark.”

I eventually found a turnout—a spot just off the road where it would be safe to let Reeses out so he could roam around. It was a scenic spot overlooking a lake, now frozen over with ice and snow. A few lonely picnic benches caked in several inches of snow sat just beyond the parking lot. This lakeside rest area was a scenic place even covered in white. I could imagine how beautiful it would be in warmer weather.

“Just open your door and he’ll jump out,” I said. “I’m going to take some pictures.”

I scooped up my backpack and slipped outside into the frigid air. The parking lot was icy and a little slippery under my Converse All Stars.

I heard Georgia shriek in response to the cold before snapping the door shut after letting Reeses out. My little dog hopped along, bouncy as ever, bolting from one spot to another to leave his mark. Animal kingdom, Reeses the dog was here. He was in his element. Really, anywhere he could exert some of that pent-up energy was his element.

I reached in my bag for my most prized possession—the Nikon 8008s I scrimped and saved for and finally purchased when Costco had a sale. It was the only thing of value I owned. I snapped a few shots of the snowy scenery of the frozen lake, the frosty trees. Beautiful. I could sell these photos on Shutterstock. Put my associates degree in photography to good use.

Fifteen minutes passed by. I had some great images. Reeses was still merrily peeing on everything in sight. I heard Georgia call out.

“Can you believe this car has crank windows? Crank!”

“Well roll it back up before you freeze,” I cried back.

“I’m already frozen in here without the heater. Can you hurry it up?” She’d put her knit cap back on, strands of hair poking out from underneath. Half her upper body leaned outside the window like Reeses sometimes did on summer truck rides back home. With the fluffy lining of her hooded coat and her gloved hands, she looked just as snuggly and soft.

Wrong thoughts. Bad thoughts. Shove those down.

I replaced my camera’s lens cap and carefully nuzzled it in my bag. Just a little road trip, nothing more. Then I’ll never see her again. I repeated those words, keeping my head down as I crunched through the snow towards the car. Towards that girl. That maddeningly beautiful girl.

Then she screeched. I threw my head up to see that tiny car sliding on the ice, Georgia halfway out the window. I hurried to get closer but once I set foot on the pavement my shoes slid from under me. I scrambled to get up.

“Pull the emergency brake,” I screamed. The car was still on the move, gliding dangerously close to the lake’s edge.

“The brake is on.” She was opening her door.

“Wait!” I knew how this would go down. I wrote an article on it for an online magazine once. They paid me ten bucks. “The door will shut on you if you don’t open it wide.”

“What?”

“And jump at a forty-five degree angle.”

By this time she was perched to jump. “You seriously expect me to do math right now?”

The car was still sliding. I don’t know what powers suddenly came over me, but I figure skated on over to her. Scott Hamilton, eat your heart out. The car’s front wheels hit the icy lake. Would it hold the weight?

“Jump!”

I’d never seen someone catch so much air. That woman soared through the air like one of those flying squirrels. I got to her just in time to break her fall and we both plummeted to the cold pavement. For a long moment all we could do was breathe. Heavy, spent breaths. Happy to be alive breaths. Faces intoxicatingly close to one another breaths. Georgia’s hat was askew which let long whips of hair fall in a curtain around us. Her pillowy lips were right there, just an inch or two from touching mine. I may have lost my hearing for a few seconds. The only sound registering was the thumping of my heart. She smelled of strawberries. Probably her shampoo or body wash. Strawberries in the dead of winter. I’d gone to heaven.

I didn’t realize my arms were wound around her until she moved to lift her body off mine. A fierce shade of pink flushed over her cheeks and I had a strong suspicion it wasn’t due to the cold.

5

Georgia

I couldn’t decide if I was mortified, grateful, or all fluttery. Wyatt looked ridiculous slipping and