Read Online Jericho (A Redemption Novel) by Ginger Jamison - Free Book Online Page B

about some juice, then? I brought some animal crackers, too.”
    “Oooo.”
    She placed Abby on her lap and cuddled her close while her daughter had her snack. She was so absorbed in watching her baby eat that she barely took note of the man sitting on the next bench.
    “Conner!” He looked up from his laptop. “Please don’t climb up the slide. I would like to make it through this week without a trip to the doctor.”
    Georgia spotted a little sandy-haired boy rushing up the slide as if he could outrun his father’s order.
    “I don’t know why I’m surprised,” he said to Georgia. “He’s just like me when I was his age.”
    Georgia smiled and nodded and handed Abby another cracker.
    “I think little boys are meant to get hurt sometimes, but my ex-wife will skin me alive if he comes back with even a scratch on him.”
    “You’d better go get him, then.” She motioned toward the playground. “He’s hanging upside down from the monkey bars by one leg.”
    “Connor!”
    The man was off, and Georgia kissed Abby’s shoulder. “Sometimes I’m really glad you’re a girl, baby cakes.”
    Abby loved pretty sundresses and patent leather shoes, but even if she didn’t, even if she wanted to play in the dirt, that would be okay. Whatever Abby wanted to do with herself would be okay.
    The man came back slightly out of breath and stood before her. “That kid is going to be the death of me. Even when he was your daughter’s age, he was running me ragged. How old is she anyway? About one?”
    She nodded. “Her first birthday is next week.”
    “First birthdays are the best.” He stepped closer and reached out to take Abby’s hand. A tiny bit of panic seized Georgia. She had seen this man before. At this very park with his son. He seemed like a nice man. And they were in public, but for some reason, his nearness, his interaction with her daughter, made her breath come short. “What’s your name, beautiful?”
    “Her—her name is Abby,” Georgia replied, forcing the words to come out.
    “Hi, Abby.” He looked up at Georgia. “I’m Rick. I’ve seen you here a few times, but we’ve never met.”
    “Georgia.”
    “Georgia.” He smiled, showing off perfectly white teeth. “What a beautiful name.”
    “Thanks.” She dug in her bag for baby wipes to clean Abby’s hands and face. She needed something to do to distract her from his gaze.
    “Are you named after somebody?” His face broke out into a mischievous grin. “Or is it something crazy, like you were conceived in the great state?”
    He was hitting on her. The tips of her ears started to burn.
    “My mother just liked the name, I guess.”
    She didn’t get hit on very often, being homeschooled and going to an all-girls college. So when it did happen on the rare occasion, she didn’t know how to handle it. Of course, the boys at the hospital flirted with her when she came to check on them, but that was nothing. Military men were the most respectful men she had encountered.
    Rick was different, and not physically injured. And wasn’t a bad-looking man. Most women would probably find him attractive, with his long, lean frame and dark hair, but Georgia could barely look past her anxious twitchy feeling to see that. Most men had that effect on her.
    And then there was Christian, who was overpoweringly big, looked like a beast and tended to grab her when she least expected it. He had a totally different effect on her. He made her exceedingly uncomfortable, too, but not in the way Rick did. She should be scared of Christian. She shouldn’t even be thinking about him now. Instead she should be flattered by Rick’s attentions. She should want to get to know the nice man who seemed to enjoy spending time with his son at the park. But she didn’t. She was royally screwed up.
    “As you can tell, I’m no good at picking up women at the park.” He grinned bashfully. “But there’s something about you, Georgia, that captures my attention every time