Georgia On My Mind-Book Four

Chapter 13 - Fate

John Luke's POV

A couple of weeks after my second tour of Afghanistan ended, I sat at home watching television while drinking a beer when my phone rang. I looked down to see who it was, and it was my commanding officer. I immediately picked it up. "Do you know a Brie Madden?" he asks.

"Yes, sir, that's my mother," I tell him.

"Funny thing is, I got a call from a recruiter in Mississippi. He said that she showed up claiming that she hasn't heard from you since you enlisted, but I can see she is on your emergency contact list. Is that true?" he asks curiously.

"Yes, sir, I had a falling out with my parents after I enlisted," I explained.

He continues, "Well, she wanted you to know that your Father had a heart attack. I'll leave that information with you so you can do whatever you want with it. I just figured I'd let you know."

My heart sank. I thanked him and hung up. s**t! I need to see them. I can't hold this grudge anymore with them. I'm going to have to visit or something. I pick up the phone and dial my Mom's number. She answers after a couple of rings. "Hello?"

"Mom, it's me, John Luke," I reply.

She begins sobbing on the other end. "I missed you so much!!! Are you okay?"

"Yes, Mom, I'm fine. Is Dad okay? I heard you were trying to reach me because he had a heart attack."

"Yes, honey, he did. He's home resting for a few days. What happened? We tried to contact you over the years. Your phone is disconnected." She questions.

"Well, it's a long story, but I went several months with no money coming in because there was a huge mix up in my pay. That's why my cell phone was disconnected." I explain.

"Oh, good lord! Why didn't you write to us and tell us? We would have helped you out." she asks.

I hesitate for a minute. "Mom, honestly, I just couldn't bring myself to contact you guys. I was very bitter for a long time."

She begins sobbing uncontrollably on the other end, "Ahhh... Don't cry, Mom. I'll take a plane home as soon as I can to visit." I assure her.

"Good, sweetheart. I can't wait to see you. I love you." She says, her voice cracking.

"Love you too, Mom."

As soon as I hang up, I begin planning to go back home for a bit. I'm going to have to bite the bullet and do this. I was able to get online and book a flight back home the next day from Charlotte. I packed my things up that night and went to bed.

The next day I got on the plane early in the morning and flew home. I rented a car at the airport and drove back to Laurel, arriving around 10:00 am.

Driving through town again brought back a lot of memories. Those memories of Georgia flooded my mind. What if she is married by now and has kids? I don't understand why she would never write me back. I mean, one letter would have made a huge difference.

I pull into the driveway to my parent's house. Mom runs out the front door and greets me at the car. "John Luke, you are so handsome! I missed you!"

"Hey, Mom!" I respond as I pull her in for an embrace.

She grabs my face, kisses my cheeks, and then takes my hand, leading me inside the house. "We are all happy you are here."

As I follow her inside, I find that nothing has changed. Harper is sitting on the sofa on her cell phone. She looks up and smiles warmly at me. "Hey, big brother!" she says as she jumps up and hugs me.

"Hey, sweet girl! You've been good?"

She shrugs, "Ahh..hit or miss."

Mom rolls her eyes. Rhett comes up and gives me a fist bump. "Hey, bro. I missed you."

"Hey, buddy, missed you too," I respond.

Dad enters the living room and smiles. "Hey, there's my boy!"

He holds out his arms, and I walk over and embrace him. "Wow, John Luke, you are all grown up! I'm so proud of the man you have become! Look at those guns." He says as he pats my arms.

"So, are you doing okay?" I ask.

"Yeah, I'm fine now. I took a little time off work. I started some blood pressure and cholesterol medicine. Mom has been on me about my food and making me exercise. You know how high strung she is about it; she's such a health nut. I figured I'd better listen to her." He says jokingly.

"Yeah, I'd say you had better listen to her. She's scary." I bark.

Mom snickers, "So how long are you here for?"

"Well, I haven't decided. I just got back from my second tour of Afghanistan two weeks ago. I finished my four years of active duty. I wasn't sure what I was going to do yet. Do you guys want me back around?" I ask.

"Are you kidding me, buddy? We miss the hell out of you. Please come back home. I can get you a job working with me." Dad pleads.

"With Dylan too?" I ask.

He looks at me curiously, "Yep, he still works with me."

I sigh audibly, "I don't know. Let me think about it."

"Alright. I know we sure could use you, and the pay is decent too. Maggie's husband, Oliver, quit to go off and remodel houses, so Hank is looking for a replacement. You'll be an apprentice at first, and you have to get your CDL's, but your military background will help get you through the door there or anywhere for that matter." He says.

Hmmm... sounds like a good setup if I can stand working with the c**k Block Master, "Okay, I will let you know soon."

Mom chimes in, "Are you hungry?"

"Are you kidding? I'm always hungry," I answer.

She giggles, "Well, how about we go get some food so we can catch up?"

"Sounds good to me," I answer.

We climb in Mom's SUV and drive out to the pizza place and grab some lunch. I let them know I've been staying in Jacksonville, NC, with my buddy Chris. I told them all about my Afghanistan tours and how I lost a good friend during an explosion recently. "Oh, I saw that on television. Georgia just happened to see it and called her Mom, and her Mom called me." Mom mentions.

She sparks my interest in her comment. "How is Georgia?" I ask casually.

"Oh, she's great; she runs her own business now." She says.

"Oh? Where?" I ask.

"She owns a staffing company on the main strip called Laurel Staffing Solutions. You should go see her." She insists.

"I think I will," I respond.

She winks at me, and we all finish up our food and head back home. I decide I'm going to swing by Georgia's work to see her. I need to let her know that there are no hard feelings between us. I'd rather have her as a friend than nothing at all. Maybe this will give me some closure. I take off in my car and drive out to her work. I'm a nervous wreck, and my stomach is doing flip-flops. Well, here goes nothing! I get out of the car and head through the front doors.

Georgia's POV

I get up and go to work like any other day. The morning was busy, and the afternoon started to slow down around lunchtime. I look out the window to people watch. It's a beautiful day, and the sun is shining. I'd love to have a day off to take Scarlett to the park. Momma is keeping her for me today. She always takes her to the park when she has her to burn off some of that energy. She is a little over three now and growing like a weed. I daydream out the window for a bit when suddenly, a black Camaro catches my eye. I get up to stand at the window and peek out the blinds. The man that gets out of the car looks familiar. As he gets closer to the building, my heart beats out of my chest. He's tall, gorgeous, and muscular with short curly brown hair. He comes in through the front door, and the wind is nearly knocked from me as I realize who it is...John Luke! "Well, I'll be damned," I whisper to myself.

I back away from the blinds and straighten my skirt. I scurry over to the mirror to check my appearance. Then I rush over to my desk and throw a mint in my mouth. I take a deep breath, attempting to calm myself, but I'm shaking like a leaf. s**t! My pits are sweating.

I pull my shirt away from my armpits to get some air circulating while pacing the floor in my office. My phone buzzes; I reach down to answer it. "Yes?" I manage to choke out.

"Georgia, there's a John Luke Madden here to see you," Olive says.

I pause for a second and take a deep breath. I clear my throat. "I'll be out in just a moment. Thank you."

I take a file from my desk and fan myself. I'm such a nervous wreck; I don't know what to do with myself. Breathe Georgia...Breathe...

Finally, I muster up every bit of courage I have left, and I walk over and open the door. I turn and walk down the hallway to the lobby. My heart is pounding.

When I make it to the lobby, Olive is at her desk, smiling at me. John Luke has his back to me, looking out the window. "Well, look who it is," I say with a snarky undertone.

He spins around, his grin turns into a look of shock, and he swallows hard. I smirk at him.

"Olive, hold my calls, please." I request.

She nods at me. "Right this way," I instruct as I motion for him to follow me. I turn and walk back to my office. I make sure I sway my hips a little more as I walk in front of him. Hopefully, I can convey that he didn't break me with his rejection.

We get to my office; I motion for him to sit down at the chair in front of my desk. I shut the door as he walks in. He smells f*****g incredible; my whole body reacts to him as he passes. He's the most gorgeous man I've ever laid eyes on. After all this time, he still gets me flustered. He sits down and watches as I walk to my desk. I'm too nervous to sit, so I lean up against the desk facing him. He eyes me up and down. Oh, so now we want to look? Thank God I wore my best outfit today. I have a black pencil skirt and a silky red top with heels. I look pretty hot, I must say. Thank God I made the effort today. "What brings you in today?" I ask as I cross my arms in front of my chest.

He clears his throat. "I wanted to see you since I was in town. You... Ummm... God Georgia! You look amazing." He says as he scratches the back of his neck.

I begin to blush, and I look down to avoid his gaze. "Thank you, so do you," I say shyly.

He clears his throat once more and leans forward. "Listen, I came to see my Dad since he had the heart attack and all, but I wanted to know if you wanted to go have coffee or something and catch up." He says.

I chuckle aloud. Oh, this is how it's going to be after four years; you want to "catch up" while you are in town? Typical man! I can't hold back this time. "Oh, so now you want to catch up?"

He looks at me, confused, "Yes? I mean no hard feelings or anything. I want to keep you as a friend, if anything. I didn't know if you wanted to since you never wrote me back." He mentions.

His words send a chill down my spine. "What do you mean? Write you back?"

He sits up and adjusts himself in the chair. "I wrote you a letter every week for a year. Did you not get them?"

I don't know if you have ever seen a boxer take a blow to the jaw, and it knocks him out cold. That's how I felt at that very moment, only in slow motion. I place my hand over my mouth and close my eyes. "No, John Luke. I did not get them." I respond softly. My heart just shattered into a million pieces.

He sits up and looks at me with a blank stare. "What the hell happened to them?"

I shake my head and take a deep breath. I think I have a good idea of who may have kept them from me. I'm doing everything I can at this moment to keep my emotions in check.

"Do you think your Dad had something to do with you not getting them?" He asks quietly.

"I hope not, but I can't think of any other explanation," I respond with tears streaming down my cheeks.

He leans forward and places his head in his hands, and I begin to sob quietly. "All this time, I thought you wanted nothing to do with me," I confess.

He shakes his head. "That is not the case. I thought the same thing about you."

He looks up at me with those beautiful hazel eyes and reaches out his hand for mine. Once I reach down and hold his hand, I can feel a pulse of electricity shooting through me. My body has an instant reaction to his touch even after all this time. I wonder if he feels the same: He takes his other hand and sandwiches my hand between his. "Your hands are like ice."

I chuckle. "Yeah, I know. They always are."

He begins to stand up, but his eyes catch a glimpse of something on my desk. I turn and notice he's looking at a picture of Scarlett. "Georgia, who is that? Is that your daughter?"

I reach back with my hand and turn the picture away from him while avoiding his stare. Oh boy, this is going to be interesting. I need a minute to think.

"Is she yours? How old is she, Georgia?" he asks sternly.

I close my eyes and shake my head before walking away and gazing out the window with my back facing him. I am speechless. I don't think I could tell you my name at that moment; my brain is so scattered. He approaches me from behind, "Georgia, how old is she?"

Say it, Georgia! Tell him! "She's three." I manage to choke out.

"Who's the Father?" he asks.

I turn around, biting my bottom lip nervously before slowly looking up to meet his gaze. "You are John Luke," I confess quietly.

He looks down and holds his chest as if the wind was knocked from him. He spins around and sits down in the chair. "What is her name?" he asks.

"Scarlett Presley Hudson," I say tearfully.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asks, his voice husky.

I place my hands on my hips. Get your big girl panties on, Georgia. "I tried to call you, but your number was disconnected. I didn't know how to reach you."

"Mom didn't say a word to me. Why?" He asks.

I shake my head. "She doesn't know. Nobody does."

He gets up immediately and closes the gap between us. "Why don't they know? What did you tell them?"

Here we go; the truth shall set you free! "I told them a lie. I said I didn't know who the Father was." I blurt out.

He throws hands up in the air in disbelief. "Why on God's green earth would you do that?"

I walk towards him and lean on the desk facing him. "I did it to protect you. My Father would have gone ballistic. You know how he is." I plead.

He belts out a high-pitched maniacal laugh. Oh s**t! He's pissed! "Oh, so he didn't go ballistic thinking you had a baby with someone you didn't know. What the f**k is that all about!?" he yells.

I walk around the desk and place my hands on his arm. "Shh, please. I don't want anyone to hear. I realize this is not good news for you. Please understand, I didn't know what to do. I thought I was doing the right thing to protect everyone."

"Georgia, you raised our child by yourself. I would have never let you do that alone." He says softly.

I squeeze his arms. "I'm so sorry, John Luke. I never wanted anyone to get hurt."

He pulls me in for an embrace, "Anyone can look at her and know she's mine. I can't even deny her. I don't need a paternity test to see that. How could our families not see this?"

I snicker, "Yes, I know I was just the incubator. Either they are blind, or I'm an excellent liar."

He snorts and kisses the top of my head. "She is so beautiful."

"I know she is," I respond.

I stay in his arms and breathe him in for a good five minutes; he doesn't let go. It's nice to be in this moment with him. Finally, I don't have to keep this a secret anymore. "Do you want to meet her?" I ask him.

He breaks the embrace and looks down at me. "Yes, I would love that."

"You can come to my apartment this evening if you want to meet her."

"What time?" he asks.

I turn to look at the clock and back at him. "How about 6:30 pm?"

"Write down your address, and I'll be there."

I walk over to my desk and write my address down on a sticky note and hand it to him. As he starts to walk out, he turns around and looks back at me. "You still take my breath away."

I'm speechless as my eyes fill up with tears at that moment. My entire body trembles, and my legs feel like they could give out at any moment. He flashes me a sexy grin and turns around to walk out the door. Then I rush back towards the window and watch him get in his car and drive away.