Read Online Holiday Magic (Second Chance) by Susanne Matthews - Free Book Online Page B

wouldn’t hear a single word against him. They had parted on amicable terms, but the last thing Joe had said to her preyed on her mind.
    “ Relax, Georgia. I’ll take care of Eleni. Nothing will happen to her while she is with me.” Who was he protecting her from, and why?
    She had wanted to talk to Mark about the weekend, but he’d been called away on Anderson Security business. She’d done her best to answer the accountant’s questions, but her limited knowledge and understanding of the business meant that some of them would have to wait until he returned.
    Georgia’s world had come close to being flung out of its steady orbit Thursday afternoon when she had run into Lucy, the last person she ever wanted to come face-to-face with, at the cleaners. Since the showroom was quiet, Georgia had left Sam in charge for the last hour to go and pick up her black dress and drop off the silk suit she’d worn in Atlantic City. She opened the door to leave and held it open for a pregnant woman just coming in. When the woman turned to smile her thanks, the world tilted. Lucy was blooming with happiness and was obviously in the last trimester of her pregnancy.
    “ Georgia,” Lucy cried, surprised and obviously pleased to see her, exactly the opposite of what Georgia felt.
    “ Is it really you? You look so different! My God, you’ve lost a ton! Have you been sick?”
    “ I’m well. Thanks for asking. You look different yourself,” Georgia said, pasting a smile on her face, and since Lucy showed no sign of entering the shop, she closed the door.
    “ Wow! It’s been so long. Where have you been?”
    “ I was in New York,” she answered, praying for someone else she knew to come along and end this painful reunion.
    “ You’ve been busy, I see.”
    “ Yes. It’s our second. Our son will be two next week, and the baby’s due in February.”
    Regret and jealousy pierced her. Had it not been for this woman, she and Mark might be happy parents with a two-year old of their own. Lucy continued as if there could be no possible reason that Georgia would detest the sight of her, and the words barely registered.
    “I was sorry that you didn’t come to the wedding. I really wanted to talk to you, and I hoped we could put all this behind us, and be friends again,” she said.
    “ Lucy, you have got to be kidding. Even you must realize that there are some things that can’t be put behind you,” she answered bitterly. “That’s one of them. I’m glad your life turned out so well,” she said choking on the hostility that threatened to make her sick. “I’m sorry, but I have no desire to rekindle the friendship we had. I need to move on, now if you’ll excuse me, I’m late.”
    Lucy stamped her foot, drawing Georgia’s eye to the ridiculously high heels she wore. Surely such shoes could not be good for a pregnant woman’s posture? She looked down at her own sensible walking boots. According to Lucy, she had never known how to dress, why start now?
    Lucy put her hands on her hip, and Georgia waited for the unpleasant lecture she thought would follow. She scowled. If anyone should be giving a lecture, it should be her.
    “ You are such a prissy snob, Georgia Baxter. I’d have thought with your modern, new look, you might have unbent a little, but you’re still the holier-than-thou prig you always were. I don’t know why I bothered trying so hard to be your friend.”
    Georgia felt her temper rise, and her face reddened.
    “I may have been naïve where you were concerned, but I learned my lesson. Goodbye, Lucy. Have a nice life, but leave me the hell alone!” She turned to leave.
    “ But nothing happened,” blurted Lucy disgusted. “It was all a joke. You weren’t even supposed to be there—well, you weren’t the first one supposed to be there. You overreacted as you always did. If you would have listened, you would have known that. It’s your own fault for being so stuck-up and acting better than the rest of