Under a Georgia Moon: Georgia Moon Romance Book 1

by Cindy Roland Anderson

  Since there weren’t any other new messages, Addie closed the app. She was suddenly feeling a little homesick and missed her family. The Facebook icon was still on her home screen, and Addie was tempted to reactivate her account just so she could stay connected with her nephews and sister.

  The choice to leave the social media site had been made one night after dozens of people had commented on a post someone had left about Brandon’s new girlfriend. People were trying to be kind, but Addie hadn’t needed any more sympathy or advice. Now that Brandon was married, maybe she could open a new profile. Chellie would be happy since she’d view it as Addie’s entrance back into the social scene.

  Addie wished she could call her sister, but Chase’s fan club had wrapped up and he was climbing into the truck.

  “Sorry,” he said, giving her a sheepish grin. “I shouldn’t have kept you waiting.”

  “No worries.” She lifted one shoulder up. “Besides, they’re right. You were pretty amazing. I had no idea you were that talented.”

  He looked genuinely pleased by her compliment. “Thanks.” He started the truck and shifted into gear. As he pulled out to head for Aunt Janie’s, Chase lowered his window and glanced over at her. “You okay with the window down?”

  “Sure.” She lowered her own window as they slowly passed by a row of cherry trees just starting to blossom. If the weather stayed this warm, the trees would be in full blossom before she left. “This weather is amazing. Back home, we’re still getting snow.”

  “Seriously? Last year we were hit by some freak snow storms that made me glad we don’t get snow that often.”

  “I don’t mind if it snows in the mountains this time of year, but in the valley I’m ready for spring to come.”

  Chase glanced at her as he came to a four-way stop sign. “Do you ski?”

  “No. I’m one of those annoying snowboarders.” That was another thing Brandon had found distasteful about her. His family often went skiing to different premier resorts in both Idaho and Utah. Addie had never been invited since she was a lowly snowboarder.

  “Annoying?” Chase lifted one eyebrow. “I’ve tried both and snowboarding was a lot more fun.”

  She smiled. “Where do you go skiing around here?” Addie had yet to see any mountains.

  “There isn’t anything in Georgia.” Chase looked back at the road and moved through the intersection, heading for Aunt Janie’s. “We go to a resort in North Carolina. It’s about a five hour drive from here. My friends and I usually go once a year and spend the entire weekend on the slopes.”

  “Does Jackson go with you?” Addie remembered the loving couple, and doubted his friend went on skiing trips now that he was married.

  “Yep.” Chase gave her a quick glance. “Jackson said he and Sydney met you.”

  “Yeah, Sydney is really sweet.”

  Chase laughed. “She’s amazing. I honestly don’t know how Jacks landed her.”

  “They seem like they’re in love.”

  “Disgustingly happy.”

  Addie was surprised how cynical Chase was. Maybe he resented his best friend being taken away from him. “What’s wrong with being in love?”

  “Nothing. It’s just not something I’m looking for right now.”

  There was no reason for Addie to feel disappointed by his comment. If anything, it should make her feel relieved. Still, there was a part of her that wondered if she wasn’t the type of girl men fell in love with.

  Fearful her emotions would be evident in her voice, Addie swallowed and looked out the window. After a few seconds of marked silence, she noticed a sign for the annual Macon Cherry Blossom Festival. Aunt Janie had mentioned they could drive into Macon one of the days to see some of the sights.

  “Did I say something wrong?” Chase asked.

  Addie quickly shook off her insecure feelings. “Of course not.” She turned back toward him. “I just saw the advertisement for the cherry blossom festival. Have you ever been?”

  “Yeah, my dad’s side of the family came from Macon so we go every year.” Chase made a right turn, bringing them onto the back road to her aunt’s house. “We could go, since you’re supposed to my girlfriend and all.”

  He was teasing her, probably trying to lighten the atmosphere. “Speaking of girlfriends. How did it go last night?”

  Chase pressed his lips together and stared straight ahead. “Hayden doesn’t seem to care if I have a girlfriend or not.” He chuckled dryly. “I shouldn’t be surprised. Fidelity has never been one of her strong points.”

  Wow. Wrong thing to ask about. The atmosphere just went from slightly uncomfortable to extremely tense. “I’m sorry.”

  He turned down Aunt Janie’s driveway, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly. “I’m the one who should apologize.”

  Addie waited for him to finish, but he didn’t say anything else until he came to a stop. “Look, I can’t promise Hayden won’t try to cause some kind of scene, so if you want to back out of our deal I’ll understand.”

  The muscles in Addie’s tummy tightened. This was the second time he’d mentioned backing out of the deal. Maybe he wanted to call it off and just didn’t know how to say it nicely. Before she could offer him an out, he turned to look at her, a tentative smile playing at his lips.

  “But I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t…that is, if you’d still be willing to go out with me a few times. Please?”

  Um, yes, and can I be the mother of your children too? “Sure. And don’t forget you’ll be helping me out.” She grinned. “Pastor Dave really isn’t my type.”

  His gaze narrowed slightly. “He seemed to really like you.”

  “He was just being nice.”

  Chase laughed. “There’s nice and then there is nice.”

  Addie tried not to smile too brightly, but the way his southern accent drew out the word nice, Chase almost sounded jealous. Not sure what else to say, she was glad when her phone chimed an incoming text.

  “Ten bucks it’s my aunt making sure I got a ride home.” She glanced down at the screen. “Yep.” Another message popped up. “Ooh, even better. She invited you to stay for lunch.”

  “Sweet,” Chase said. “I love when she feeds me.”

  Although she was tempted to say she was still stranded at the church, Addie quickly typed in a reply that, yes, Chase had taken her home and that he would stay for lunch.

  A few seconds later her aunt sent another message. “Aunt Janie needs us to go turn off the oven. She’ll be home in about fifteen minutes.”

  “Let’s go.” Chase started to exit the truck, but paused when Addie went to open her door. “Hey, what’ve I told you about opening your own door?”

  Addie let go of the handle. “I forgot.”

  He smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “See that it doesn’t happen again.”

  “Yes, sir,” she said, giving him a two-finger salute.

  He laughed and climbed out of the truck. When he opened the door for her, Addie was self-conscious of her short skirt and quickly swung her feet over to step down on the running board. One of her apricot colored stilettos slipped off and fell to the ground. Chase picked it up then leaned over to place it on her foot.

  Boy was she glad she’d shaved her legs this morning. She pointed her foot slightly as Chase skillfully slipped the shoe on. Her breath caught as his fingertips lightly skimmed across her ankle before he stood up.

  His green eyes had taken on a different intensity as he held out his hand. Warmth snaked up her arm and settled inside her stomach when her palm met his. Addie stepped down, but Chase didn’t let go of her hand right away. Slowly, she lifted her face until their eyes met. The air around them popped with a tangible energy.

  No wonder Cinderella married the prince. Well, that and the fact he was handsome, rich and would get her out of indentured servitude. Addie never dreamed having a shoe put on your foot could be so…sensuous.

  Dropping his hand, she drew in a quick breath
and gave him a shy smile. “I guess we should probably go in.”

  His lazy grin set off a flock of butterflies in her stomach. “I guess we should.”

  They walked side by side, not touching, yet Addie could almost swear she felt the heat from his arm. Something had just happened between them but she wasn’t ready to examine what that was. They entered the heavenly scented kitchen and Addie placed her purse on the countertop.

  “What can I do?” Chase asked, placing his hands low on his hips.

  Just stand there and look gorgeous? There was something hot about a guy wearing a tie and a dress shirt—a shirt Chase filled out extremely well. She dragged her eyes away and retrieved three plates from the cupboard. Turning around, she held out the dishes. “If you could put these on the table that would be great.” Her voice sounded as flustered as she felt. Hopefully, Chase hadn’t noticed.

  His mouth quirked up in a half grin. “Sure.”

  He moved toward her and took a hold of the plates, but Addie didn’t let go of her end. She couldn’t. She was too caught up in staring into his amazing eyes. This close up, she noticed a thin blue circle around the edge.

  “Did you know your eyes are outlined with blue?”

  Had she really just said that out loud?

  “I wear contacts.”

  “Oh.” She held in a sigh as she visualized Chase wearing glasses, looking like some sexy-professor-scholarly type. Drawing in a mouthful of air, she let go of the plates and braced herself against the countertop. “I, uh, guess I’ll turn the oven off.”

  He held up the dishes. “I’ll go ahead and set the table.”

  “Thank you.” She picked up the oven mitt. “I’ll turn off the oven.” Shoot, she’d already said that. And why had she picked up the oven mitt? “Um, maybe I’ll take the chicken out.”

  A slow smile spread across his face. “Good idea.”

  That delicious southern drawl of his made her feel dizzy. Addie turned away from him before she said anything else stupid, like asking him about the tiny scar she noticed on his chin. Heat rushed out when she opened the oven door. She pulled out the roasted chicken and set it on the stove. Removing the oven mitt, she grabbed three glasses out of the cupboard and swiveled around to face him.

  Chase took two of the glasses. “Something sure smells good.”

  “Don’t look at me. I only know how to cook things with S-U-G-A-R in them.”

  “Ahh. I remember that.” He placed the glasses next to the plates. “But don’t you mean bake?”

  “I can’t believe you know the difference.”

  “Hey, I’m very good in the kitchen.” He lifted one eyebrow up. “And remember I grew up in a house full of girls. They taught me a lot of things most guys might not know.”

  “I’ll bet.” Addie handed him the last glass. “I hope you use your knowledge for good and never evil.”

  He grinned wickedly. “Of course.”

  “Uh, huh.” A tiny smile escaped before Addie whirled around to get the silverware. She was going to have to be so careful around this one. His likeable factor was a ten out of ten. “So,” she said when she turned back around. “Where do you work?” She laid the fork and knife next to the plate, pleased with how normal her voice sounded. “I think I remember you saying something about an office.”

  “I work for a large marketing firm as a graphic artist and web designer.” He took the remaining silverware out of her hands, placing it next to the last plate.

  “Do you like it?” she questioned, taking a seat at the small table. His job sounded much more creative and fun than accounting.

  “Well, you already know how I feel about my boss.” Chase scooted his chair next to Addie and sat down. “But I do like what I do. Plus, it’s a job I can do anywhere and allows me the freedom to put in my own hours, especially if we have a gig booked.”

  “Oh, yeah,” Addie said, sliding her finger along the edge of her plate. “I think I heard you tell your fan club you have one this weekend.” She desperately wanted to be invited to hear him. As his girlfriend, shouldn’t it be a given?

  Sitting back a little, he regarded her with an amused smile. “My fan club?”

  “Yes. You remember the swarm of girls hovering around you after church today?” Great, now she was the one that sounded jealous. She shrugged. “I’d just like to hear you guys perform before I go home.”

  “We’re playing at a local bar this weekend, and I’d love for you to come.”

  A bar? She gave him a hesitant glance. There were a few bars in Daisy Springs, and none of them were establishments Addie would ever go to. Like The Tin Can, a popular bar on the outskirts of town with a lighted billboard featuring the names of the girls that would be dancing that weekend. “Uh, I don’t know…I…”

  His smile faltered. “You don’t have to come if you don’t want to.”

  “I don’t drink.”

  “Neither do I.” He reached out and fingered the napkin that edged his plate. “Sydney doesn’t either and she’ll be there.”

  “Are there dancers?”

  He quirked a brow. “People usually like to dance, but you don’t have to. Syd usually just orders dinner and watches the show.”

  Addie couldn’t imagine someone as refined and beautiful as Sydney McCall in some sleazy bar.

  “Gracie’s Haven is an exclusive club, and has amazing food. But you really don’t have to go,” Chase said with a definite apology in his tone.

  Ohhh. So it was more like a nice restaurant.

  Addie felt stupid, and reached over and placed her hand on top of his. The intent was to reassure him, not make her heart try to pound its way out of her chest. “I’m sorry. I really do want to come. I’m just from a little town in Idaho and the bars there are the kind you see in the seedy side of town with dark windows and lighted signs with enticing messages about the scantily clad entertainment they provide.”

  One corner of his mouth lifted. “I promise I would never take a lady to a place like that.” He turned his hand over so their palms were pressed together. “So you’ll come with me?”

  “Yes, I’d like that.” Her words were soft and airy due to her shallow breathing. Chase’s touch was seriously impeding her respiratory efforts.

  “You can sit with Sydney.” Chase had slid his hand around hers and was now making circular motions with his thumb in the center of her palm. Addie could hardly think straight.

  “Who?”

  “Sydney.” Chase grinned. “You sat with her in church. She’s married to my friend Jackson.”

  “Right. I did meet them. And I still can’t decide who’s prettier—Sydney or her husband.”

  Laughing, Chase laced his fingers with hers. It didn’t look like he was going to relinquish her hand anytime soon. “That’s a good one. I can’t wait to tease Jackson about being prettier than his wife.”

  Addie gasped. “Please don’t tell him I said that.” She tried to tug her hand free, but he kept hold of it.

  “Don’t worry.” His green eyes softened. “I promise I won’t say anything.”

  “Promise?”

  He nodded his head slowly. “Cross my heart.”

  Only he didn’t cross his heart. His eyes were locked with Addie’s and he still held her hand. Neither of them moved, until she heard her aunt’s car door slam. Addie pulled her hand free just as her aunt came in the kitchen.

  “Sorry I took so long. Did y’all have fun?”

  Chase stood up and chuckled softly. “I know I did.” He looked at Addie, tilting his chin down. “You?”

  “Um, yes. We were just discussing the difference between the bars here and the bars in Daisy Springs.”

  Her aunt raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been to a bar in Daisy Springs?”

  Addie’s face went hot. “Well, no. I…” She could hear Chase laughing at her. The least he could do is help her explain. “I’m going to hear Chase play next weekend in a bar, only he explained to me that it’s more like a nice restaurant. That�
��s what I meant. I don’t go to bars. I’ve never stepped foot in one. And I—”

  Aunt Janie held her hand up. “Okay, sugar. I get it. You’re not a barroom maid.” She patted Chase on the arm. “Didn’t I tell you she was a nice girl?”

  “Yes you did,” he drawled, grinning at Addie with an impish glint in his eyes.

  With her aunt’s back turned to her, Addie stuck her tongue out at Chase, making him laugh even harder.

  Chapter Ten

  Chase held his guitar as he sat perched on the end of his bed. His fingers plucked at the guitar strings, creating the melody he’d had in his head since seeing Addie this morning at church. It was easy to picture her in the lacy dress she’d worn, including the high heeled shoes that had left an impression on him. Up until today, he’d never found feet to be so sexy.

  Strumming a few more chords, he heard a loud rap on his door. “Chase,” his sister Ashlee yelled. “Mama wants you upstairs to wait for your guests.”

  He glanced at the clock, surprised to see it was time for Addie and her aunt to arrive for supper. It was easy to lose track of time when he was in the zone.

  “Coming,” he hollered back as he carefully laid his guitar on the bed. He crossed his bedroom floor and opened his door. Ashlee had already disappeared.

  She was pretty mad at him right now since he’d nixed any hope of her coming to their gig this weekend. All it had taken was a few well-placed concerns voiced to his mother to silence Ashlee. Once their mother made up her mind there was no changing it. Ashlee was smart enough to know this but she was furious with Chase. She’d even gotten Taylin on board the I-hate-Chase train. While his sisters would be polite to Addie, he was afraid they might purposely sabotage the evening by bringing up some of the stupid things he’d done in the past.

  Chase found his mother in the kitchen. She had her back to him, drizzling melted butter over the top of rolls fresh out of the oven. She glanced up at him when he walked in. “Hey, sweetie.”

  “Mmm, supper sure smells good,” Chase said, peeking over his mom’s shoulder.