Page 22 of Georgia On My Mind (Southern Promises)

She laughed. He adored her laugh.

“I’m just busy, Hart. No boyfriend. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. It’s admirable. You’re a hard-working twenty-first century woman. I get it. I just wish we had more quality time together. I’m enjoying getting to know you.”

“Me too.”

***

The rest of the week was uneventful, Gia working at all hours of the day trying to scrape together the money to pay Ethan and her other instructor, Donna. The checks from her students helped. So did the extra gigs at night. But it was still never enough. When her car was dead on Saturday morning, she freaked out, adding more angst to her work week. One of the cooks at the diner worked part-time as a mechanic at a repair shop, and Angel sent him across the lot to take a look at her car. He determined the battery needed replacing, which in the grand scheme of things was only a minor situation. Still, she didn’t need to be spending over a hundred dollars on it, not now.

Sitting at the counter of the diner, aimlessly stirring her cup of lukewarm coffee with a spoon, she stared off into space with her chin propped on her hand. Franko’s proposition was tucked away in the back of her mind, but she had come up with a solution without having to stoop to his level. It was something she had promised she would never do.

“Why are you so melancholy?” Angel interrupted.

Gia sighed. “I’m not. It’s nothing.”

“Nothing, my foot! What’s going on?” Angel crossed her arms and stared her down.

Rolling her eyes, she sat erect on the swivel seat and held her head high. “I had to pawn Aunt Caroline’s ring…”

“No!” Angel looked like she was about to cry.

“Just hear me out, okay? It’s temporary. Like a loan. I met with the pawn shop owner, and he’s going to keep it in the back safe so no one will buy it. He’s giving me a month to pay it off so I can get it back. It was the only way I could get ahead of these bills, Angel. That, or stripping at Franko’s club.”

“Girl….” The expression on Angel’s face conveyed alarm. “Please don’t ever do that.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t.” She mustered a tiny smile. “A minor setback. That’s all this is. I’ll get through it.”

Angel grabbed her hand on the counter and squeezed. “We’ll get through it together.”

Walking back to the studio, Gia thought about the ring her aunt had left her. It was ancient and extremely valuable; an heirloom from her ancestors. She didn’t fill the pawn shop owner in on the details of the exquisite stones of the piece, feeling he might take advantage of the situation if he honestly knew how valuable the jewelry was. Because they were both business owners in the area and his daughter had taken a few classes back in the day when her aunt ran the studio, he agreed to their little arrangement, promising he would hold on to the ring for thirty days.

Thirty days.

Shaking her head, she unlocked the door and sighed. At least she was caught up on her rent and had paid Ethan and Donna what she owed them in full, which bought her more time to figure out her next steps. And she had a couple of students bring friends to class, which resulted in a few extra dollars. Exhausted, she still had two gigs to go to that night. Saturdays were always the hardest, the endless hours of teaching and performing zapping her energy. She was eager to get the day over with, anticipating spending an entire Sunday with Hart.

Looking through a box of CD’s that sat on the floor next to the stereo, she found what she was looking for and grinned. She turned the system on and loaded the disc, upping the volume so she could hear the music while she got ready. The sumptuous voice of Sade filled the space as she sang about love being stronger than pride. Gia’s mood lightened immediately. There was something about the power of music that had a natural calming effect on her. That and art, good food, a beautiful sky, and dancing, of course. She didn’t want to dwell on handing over her priceless ring to a stranger or allow the feeling of hopelessness to consume her. No. She tried to concentrate on the good that was happening in her life. The close relationships she was lucky to have, and the new ones she was creating.

Hart called her every day to check in. If she couldn’t answer her phone, he always left a message. He was sweet and charming and she was smitten. The plans he was making for their day together were secretive, and he wouldn’t indulge her with the details. She told him she usually rested on Sundays and might be a bit tired, to which he said not to worry; he’d make sure she was relaxed and pampered after the long, hard week.

Staring at her reflection in the small bathroom mirror, Gia carefully used her sharpened black eyeliner pencil to make a perfect beauty mark on her left cheek, her transformation into Marilyn complete. She dabbed her crimson lips with a tissue one last time before gathering the stage makeup and putting it into a small bag she loaded into her purse. The sensual beat of No Ordinary Love echoed throughout the space as she made her way back to the stereo to turn it off before heading out. Pausing in the middle of the floor, she couldn’t help but start an impromptu dance, running her hands down her hips, the music taking over her body. Moving and bending to the rhythm of the song, the skirt of her costume twirled beautifully, her long legs and arms kicking and reaching out with precision. The freedom of dance was liberating, the song pulsating through her entire being. When it ended, she looked at herself in the wall of mirrors, her chest rising and falling. Tucking a blonde lock of wig hair back into place, she sighed happily, thankful for the impromptu release before she forged ahead into the night.

---