Jericho (A Redemption Novel) (11 page)

“I hope I don’t disappoint you with my looks.”

“No. If you look anything like Captain Howard says you do I can’t be disappointed.”

“Captain Howard?” The mention of Christian’s name captured her attention.

“Oh, yeah, he got promoted for bravery. He probably didn’t tell you. He barely wanted to talk about it today.”

“You talk to Christian?”

“Yes, ma’am. Every day. We’ve become friends.”

“Oh.” She didn’t know that. But it made sense that he’d befriended Tobias. Tobias was a sweet boy. It would be hard for Christian not to like him. And in a way she was relieved that he didn’t sit alone in his room all day. “I’m glad you are his friend, Tobias. He doesn’t have many visitors.”

“That’s because people don’t get to know him. I can finally kind of see him now. He’s a big son of a bitch but he’s a good man.”

“He is.” She gripped the side of his bed, suddenly feeling a little lightheaded. “He’s going to be released soon, I—I hope....” She took a deep breath as her head started to spin.

“Miss Georgia, are you okay?”

“I’m—I’m...” Her legs gave out. She felt herself falling and she smashed her head against the nightstand just before her world went black.

* * *

“Miss Georgia!”

Christian sat up when he heard Tobias yell Georgia’s name. His heart began to race. His cry wasn’t one of excitement but of terror.

“Help me! Somebody help me.”

No more thoughts passed through Christian’s head after that. He had to get to Georgia. They had argued last night, and while he was angry with her for disagreeing with everything he stood for, he couldn’t help but notice how pale she was, how dull her eyes were or the pinched look of pain that never left her face.

“Captain Howard?” He found Tobias hovering over Georgia. “We were just talking and—and she went down. I think she hit her head.”

He gently pushed the boy out of the way so he could see her. “No.” His heart stopped. Georgia lay on the ground, her face colorless. She looked lifeless. “Baby, no.” He checked her pulse. It was weak but she was still breathing. “Georgia.” He lifted her head. “Wake up, honey. You’ve got to wake up.” It was when he felt the sticky warmth touch his hand that he noticed the blood seeping from her hairline.

“Shit.”

“Is she all right?” Tobias asked.

“I don’t know.” He lifted her limp body into his arms and ran into the hallway. It was empty. Not a doctor, not an orderly, not a person in sight.

He didn’t know what to do. Too much time was passing. She was getting paler by the second. So he did the only thing he could think to do. He started screaming for help. The patients who were mobile came out into hallway.

“Is that Nurse Williams?” he heard one of them say.

“You,” he snapped at the boy nearest to him. “Go find somebody. Now.”

“There’s an alarm, sir,” another soldier said. “It’s for codes but I can pull it for you.”

“Yes, do that.”

“There’s an empty room next to mine, sir. Put her in there,” another man said.

By the time he had put her in bed, a doctor, two orderlies and a few nurses from other parts of the hospital had arrived.

“What happened?” one of the nurses asked. “Did he throw a tray at her?”

“Get out,” he barked at the nurse. Georgia was hurt. If the nurse would rather make comments than help they didn’t need her.

“Captain Howard didn’t hurt her,” Tobias yelled. “She was in my room and she passed out. She’s sick. You need to help her.”

“Get these patients back into bed,” the doctor ordered. “Right now. Georgia—” he touched her face “—can you hear me?”

She didn’t respond. She didn’t stir and the panic that welled up inside Christian was breath stealing.

“Come on, Captain Howard.” The other nurse touched his arm. “Let’s get you back to your room. You were a big help tonight.”

“I’m not leaving until she wakes up.”

The nurse exchanged a worried look with the doctor.

“He can stay,” he said, glancing at Christian and undoubtedly realizing there was no way he could be moved. “Come on, Georgia girl, let’s find out what’s wrong with you.”

Six hours later Georgia had five stitches in her head and an IV in her hand and she still hadn’t woken up.

Christian tried not to let his worry for her take over. Her color was coming back. The doctor said it was a mixture of exhaustion and dehydration that had caused her to pass out. The bump she’d taken to her head only made matters worse.

As he watched her unmoving body, he was torn between wanting to strangle her and wanting to hold her. He was furious with her for not taking care of herself. She said she had no choice, but there had to be another way. She wouldn’t be around to raise her daughter at this rate. Something needed to change.

“Captain Howard.” Nurse Chestnut came into the room, followed by Dr. Allen and what looked like two hospital administrators. “Congratulations on your promotion.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

“Yes, Captain, we all congratulate you,” one of the administrators said before glancing at Georgia. “We also hear that you were instrumental in coming to the aid of Nurse Williams. We hear practically the entire floor took part in her care.”

“Yes.” He looked back to Georgia, resisting the urge to touch her. “We had to. It took so long for your staff to get here to help her I wondered if we were going to have to treat her ourselves.”

They all exchanged uncomfortable looks.

“Yes, well, the night shift is always sparsely staffed. Nobody expected Nurse Williams to be the one who needed medical attention.”

“What exactly was she doing when she bumped her head?” Nurse Chestnut asked, as if Georgia had been up to no good.

“She was doing her job.” He looked the woman directly in the eyes. “She was in Lance Corporal Clark’s room when she passed out and hit her head.”

“I see,” Nurse Chestnut said. “And you were the first one to hear his call for help?”

“Yes.”

It must have been hearing her boss’s voice, but Georgia started to stir a little.

Christian turned toward her.

Georgia sprung up with a gasp. “I’m late for work.” She bolted from the bed, ripping the IV from her hand. Christian caught her by the waist just as her feet hit the ground. She was still too weak—her legs crumbled beneath her and he once again had to lift her into his arms.

“Georgia, relax.”

She blinked at him. It took a few moments for her eyes to focus. “Christian? What are you doing in my house?”

“I’m not. It’s 6:00 a.m.—you’re still at work.”

“Put her back in bed, Captain Howard,” Dr. Allen said. “Her hand is bleeding.”

“It hurts.” She looked into Christian’s eyes. “My head hurts, too. Why are you holding me? What happened?”

He put her back into bed. If there weren’t so many damn people in the room he would have tried to soothe her, but he knew that if he let his instincts take over, Georgia’s job would be in jeopardy.

“Maybe we should go and let Dr. Allen tend to his patient,” one of the other administrators said. “We’re glad to see you are awake.”

They scurried out of the room before anybody could say anything more to them.

“Let’s get you cleaned up again, Georgia,” Dr. Allen said.

“Georgia, the hospital insists that you take the next week off,” Nurse Chestnut told her. “You’ll have to stay here, of course, until the doctor clears you to go home, but we do not expect to see you until you are able to perform your job again.”

“I hate to agree with her,” Dr. Allen said. “But what you need is rest. You are suffering from dehydration and exhaustion. This is very serious, Georgia. Your body needs to recoup.”

She sighed but said nothing.

“We’re going to leave you alone to rest now,” Nurse Chestnut said when Dr. Allen was finished treating Georgia’s hand. “We’ll have someone come check on you in a few hours.”

She tried to sit up, but Christian prevented her from doing so with a firm hand on her shoulder.

“I don’t want to be left alone here.”

“You are not to get up, Nurse Williams.” Nurse Chestnut frowned at her. “Dr. Allen needs to get back to work and Captain Howard needs to get back to bed.”

“Could you sit here with me for a little while, ma’am?”

Nurse Chestnut blanched. “Of course not,” she snapped, but when Christian and Dr. Allen frowned at her she softened her voice. “I have work to do, dear. Maybe Captain Howard would agree to stay with you for a few more minutes.”

“I will.”

“It’s settled. I’ll see you when you return to work.” She left without another word.

“I’ll come check on you in a few hours, Georgia,” Dr. Allen told her. He gave Christian a long look before he left the room.

“I thought they were never going to go.” She rolled over to face him. “I knew she wasn’t going to stay. She’d rather get eaten by fire ants.”

“Georgia.” He grabbed her face. “Do you realize why you are here? You collapsed from exhaustion. You hit your head. You cannot go on like this anymore. What’s going to happen the next time you pass out?”

“Why do you care?” She searched his face for a moment. “You’re leaving soon.”

He was leaving soon. He was leaving her soon. He didn’t think about it at first when General Lee had given him the news, but it was happening. In two weeks he would have to go back to living life without her.

It was too much to think about, so he pressed his lips to hers and kissed her deeply. He needed to touch her, to be close to her, to know she was really okay.

She responded, even though she was still weak. Her hands came up to hold his head in place and she moved her lips beneath his, her tongue touching his. Her kisses were sweet and soft and more sensual than any sick woman should be able to give.

He pulled back before the kiss could go any further. He knew that was a mistake when he looked down at her and saw that her lips were pink and slightly kiss swollen. Plus she looked content and sleepy and it made that thing in his chest squeeze again.

“Will you take my hair down? It’s too tight.”

“You’ve got stitches.” He lifted his hands to unbind her hair but hesitated for a moment. He had dreamed about taking her hair down, about it lying across his naked chest. He’d never thought he would get to take it down now, especially after she got hurt.

“Go on,” she urged him.

He untied her hair band and watched the heavy mass fall past her shoulders and gather on the bed. “It’s so long,” he muttered. He couldn’t stop himself. He buried his fingers in it at the base of her neck and rubbed her scalp.

“That feels good.” Her eyes drifted shut again and she turned her face toward him. If he leaned down just a few inches his lips would touch hers.

“Go back to sleep, baby.”

“I want to. I’m so tired.”

“It’s your time to rest.”

“Wait.” She tried to sit up but Christian grabbed her by her shoulders and eased her back down.

“No getting up, Georgia. Do you understand me?”

“Don’t bark at me like I’m one of your soldiers. I have to get home to my baby.”

“You can’t go home yet. How are you going to take care of a baby when you can’t even stand on your feet?”

“It’s almost seven. I pick her up at seven.”

The panic was clear in her voice, and as much as Christian wanted to strangle her, he admired her, too. He’d never loved anything or anybody this much in his life. She sacrificed it all for her daughter. “I’m going to call your babysitter for you.” He picked up the phone. “What’s her number?”

“I should do it. She’ll be worried if you call.”

“Give me the number. And if you don’t calm down I’m going to have somebody sedate you.”

She glared at him, seeming to have more spirit now that she was sick than she’d had when she was well. “Fine.” She rattled off the number.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead as the phone rang.

“Her name is Mrs. Sheppard,” she told him, the anxiety never leaving her voice.

“I know.”

“Hello?”

“Hello, Mrs. Sheppard. I’m calling from Jericho Medical on behalf of Georgia Williams.”

“Oh, my lord. What happened? I told her not to go to work. I knew she was too sick.”

“You told her to stay home?” He raised his brows and looked down at Georgia. “She’s stubborn. The world is not going to collapse if she takes a damn sick day. Excuse my language, ma’am, but she is suffering from exhaustion and dehydration and has been ordered to rest for the next week. She will not be able to pick up Abby until this afternoon. I don’t think she should drive, either. Do you think it would be possible for you to pick her up today?”

“Of course. Of course. Are you her doctor?”

“No, ma’am.”

“You wouldn’t happen to be the young man she has become friends with?”

He looked down at Georgia’s worried face. Had she talked about him to this woman? Did he mean more to her than what he thought? “I might be that man.”

“Oh.” She lowered her voice. “She needs somebody to take care of her, Christian. She thinks she can do it all on her own but she needs somebody. We all do.”

Mrs. Sheppard knew his name. What had Georgia said about him and why did he feel as though this woman was trying to send him a message? Georgia did need somebody to take care of her, but it couldn’t be him. She deserved better.

CHAPTER 11

W
hen Georgia opened her eyes, there was a huge angry-looking man hovering over her, but his fingers were gently stroking her hair, which ruined the effect.

Christian had been there every time she’d opened her eyes today. He was angry with her. He was worried about her, and while she was glad not to be alone while they forced her to stay in this hospital room, she wished he would go away. Because every time she opened her eyes and saw him there it reminded her that he was leaving soon and that she would never have this again.

“Why are you still here?”

“You said you didn’t want to be alone.”

“I know, but I’m okay now and you should be back in bed. You’re not fully healed yet.”

He went silent for a moment. His expression was blank, and Georgia knew that was his way of being stubborn.

“Christian...”

“Damn it, Georgia. You scared the shit out of me. You wouldn’t wake up. I picked you up off the ground pale and limp and you expect me to go back to my room and forget that it happened? And the thing that gets me the most is that I know that you are going to go back to the same shit that got you here in the first place.”

“And now you know what I feel like hearing that you are going back to serve.”

“Georgia,” he barked at her. “That is different and I will not discuss it with you further.”

“I’ll be fine.” She turned away from him. “I’ll make sure I start using my sick days to catch up on some sleep.”

“You need to eat better, too, and drink more water.”

“Yes, sir.” She mock-saluted him.

“Don’t be a smart-ass.” He touched her shoulder, causing her to turn back over. His gaze was so damn intense on her face. If he felt this strongly about a nurse he met a little over a month ago, then she could only imagine how he would treat his wife or somebody he really loved.

That kind of emotion must be heavenly and suffocating at the same time, but she knew that any woman Christian chose for a wife would be a lucky one.

“Come closer. I need to tell you something.”

“What?”

She took his face in her hands and kissed him. He had kissed her mouth for the first time that day, and no matter how much sleep she got or how many fluids they were pumping into her, it had made her feel more alive than she had ever felt before. It took him a moment before he returned her kiss. She knew that every time she touched him he had to restrain himself. She knew how strong he was, how it would take no effort for him at all to overpower her, but he didn’t. Looking at him she knew he would never physically hurt her. He was the opposite of what she thought men were.

“Stop it,” he said into her mouth.

“Why?” She lifted her lips from his only to drag them to the burned side of his face. He shut his eyes as she kissed the corner of his downturned mouth, where the fire had caused his skin to pucker. It was odd, but she loved his burns. She wouldn’t want to see him any other way.

“You promised.”

“I lied.”

“Georgia.”

“What? I’ve got stitches in my head and an IV in my hand. I should be entitled to some comfort.”

“This isn’t at night. There are dozens of people walking around the hospital in the morning. Do you really want to get caught with me?”

“No, I’d rather get caught with Sergeant Johansen down the hall, but you’re the one that’s here.”

His lips unwillingly curled into a smile and she took advantage of it and kissed him again. He groaned, and this time gave in immediately. When he kissed her she felt it down to her toes. It made her not want to stop. It made her want to kiss him for hours.

“You’re leaving in less than two weeks. I should get to kiss you all I want.”

He pulled away slightly, speaking into her lips. “You have no idea how hard it is for me to hold back.”

“I do, Christian. I know all about men who lose control. My daughter is the product of one. I appreciate you.”

His expression turned pained, and he reached forward to cup her face in his hands. “Why did you pick me? I’m not a man who has made a lot of good decisions in my life.”

“You’re not as bad as you think, love.”

“Excuse me.”

They both jumped at the sound. General Lee stood in the door and Christian visibly relaxed.

“General, I didn’t expect to see you today.” He stood up, partially shielding Georgia from the general’s view. They hadn’t been doing anything when the man walked in, but just a moment before they had been, and Georgia was mortified. They hadn’t even heard the door open.

“No. I wasn’t planning to come.” He looked around Christian to Georgia. There was no judgment in his eyes, merely curiosity. “I came to talk to you about your plans for the future.”

“This is Georgia. She’s a nurse here.”

“I know. Nice to meet you, ma’am. The whole hospital has been buzzing about you. I’m sorry that you are unwell.”

“Thank you, sir. If Christian hadn’t come for me it could have been a lot worse.”

He nodded. “He’s a good man. Son? Would you mind if I spoke to you alone for a few minutes?”

“I’ll meet you back at my room.”

The general nodded and left the room.

“That was too close, Georgia.”

“I know.”

“If it had been anybody else...”

“I know. I think you’d better stay in your room for the rest of the day.”

He nodded. “Are you going to be okay alone?”

She was alone before he came into her life. She would be alone after he left. She wouldn’t be okay, but she would survive. She didn’t have any other choice. “Yes.” She nodded. “You can go.”

* * *

Four days into her week off Georgia was feeling more like her normal self. Mrs. Sheppard came after her like an angry mama bear and took care of her for the first two days. She made sure Georgia ate three meals a day plus snacks. She took Abby while Georgia napped and helped her more than anybody had since her father kicked her out. She wished she could find a way to repay the older woman, but no object seemed good enough or big enough to thank her.

Even though her body was recouping and she was enjoying the extra hours with Abby, Georgia felt a little guilty about not working. She’d never had a vacation, working well into her ninth month of pregnancy even after her doctor ordered her to stop. But she didn’t know how to be idle. Her father had had her and Carolina doing chores the moment they got up. They had to help with breakfast and do the laundry. He required them to scrub the bathrooms daily.

I’m teaching you to be proper wives.

But he never said a word to her brothers about being proper husbands. She’d silently balked at that when she was still living under his control. It felt wrong to her that her brothers had to do nothing while she and her sister were forced to be subservient to them.

She wondered how they were now. They weren’t bad men. They’d just believed everything their father said. She hoped they’d found their own paths. She hoped they’d learned how to treat a woman.

That made her think about Christian. There had been a slightly heavy ache in her chest since she’d sent him back to his room four days ago. She couldn’t be missing him already. She had come to terms with his leaving. She had convinced herself that he was a pleasant little interlude in her life. That he was somebody who took away from the monotony of her life for just a little while.

“Mama?” Abby looked up at Georgia with wide eyes. She was holding the new baby doll Georgia had gotten her for her birthday.

“Yes, love?”

Abby stood up and lifted her arms to picked up. It was almost as if she was checking to see that Georgia was still there. Abby was used to being shipped off to Mrs. Sheppard’s at this time of night. It was as though her little body had some kind of alarm clock that warned her when it was time for her mother to go away.

“I’m not going anywhere. You have me for three more whole days and nights.” She settled Abby in her lap as her daughter snuggled against her breasts. “You’re a good girl. You know that? You’re better than you should be. If you threw tantrums or acted like a brat sometimes, Mama wouldn’t feel so rotten about leaving you. But you don’t. You seem to know how hard things are for us. I appreciate you.” She kissed her forehead. “I want you to know that and I hope I don’t forget to tell you that from time to time.”

Abby looked up at her, her little face scrunched in confusion. “You have no idea what I’m rambling on about. Do you, baby?”

“No!”

“Ah, your favorite word.” She grinned at her daughter before she picked her up and smothered her face with kisses.

The ringing phone saved Abby from being kissed to death. Placing her daughter on her hip, she answered it.

“Hello?”

“Georgia?” a quiet voice asked. “Is that you?”

All at once Georgia started to tremble all over. Abby touched her face, reminding her that she couldn’t fall apart. That this was the voice she had been longing to hear for so long.

“Mama? I’m here.”

“My sweetheart,” she choked.

Georgia noticed the difference in her voice. Her mother sounded frail, almost broken. For a moment Georgia thought her mind was playing tricks on her and that this woman on the other end of the phone couldn’t be her mother. But it was. She knew her mother’s voice as well as she knew Abby’s face. Her dulcet-toned accent couldn’t be replicated.

“Tell me you’re happy, Georgia.” Her voice came out strangled. Panicked. “Please. I need to know.”

Out of all the people who had betrayed her, she wanted to be mad at her mother the most, but she couldn’t muster up any anger. Georgia and Carolina may have been indentured servants to the family, but their mother’s fate was far worse than theirs. She had lost a child, too. Her firstborn son. She had taken the brunt of her husband’s harsh change in behavior. He treated her as if her loss was less than his.

Fiona had always been so delicate, so beautiful. Her soul didn’t seem like the kind that could survive living with such an unyielding man. And yet for years, she’d seemed to soldier on.

Little by little, though, she’d stopped laughing. She would put on a show for the parishioners, curling her lips when it seemed appropriate, but the family stopped seeing any real joy come from their mother.

At first their father pretended he didn’t notice, but even he couldn’t miss that his beautiful wife was slipping away into herself. He said it was her nerves. He blamed it on his daughters for not doing enough of the housework to take the burden off their mother. But that simply wasn’t true. And even though Fiona never said a word against her husband, all of her children knew they were loved. She showed them in secret ways. They seemed to be what kept her going, and now they were all gone, grown up with lives of their own. She was left in a house with a bitter man who had never gotten over the death of his son.

Georgia couldn’t stomach that. Especially after she had read her sister’s letter.

“Come stay with me, Mama. You don’t have to be there anymore. Live with me, Mama. I’ll take care of you.”

“I—I can’t.”

In the end she always chose her husband. Georgia swore she would never be like that. Abby would always come first. “Please, Mama.” She tried one more time, the tears streaming down her cheeks. “Just come see me, then. I miss you.”

“He’s coming. I have to go. I love you.”

She disconnected, and with her daughter in her arms Georgia broke down and sobbed.

* * *

Christian was restless. He was tired of being confined to his room, to this hospital. He was tired of spending his days doing nothing. Eating shitty food and waiting for something to happen. He knew he had to go back.

His superiors had finally come down from Washington to officially offer him his promotion to captain and to thank him for his service. They told him he had options now. They said he could be an instructor, like General Lee had suggested, or he could lead his own company in Afghanistan.

He had done a tour there already. It was much different from Iraq. The terrain alone was a major obstacle to overcome. He knew the statistics. This would be his fourth time overseas. He had already been hurt. He might not come back alive. But what was his other option? He didn’t see himself in the classroom. He needed to be where the action was. This long stay in the hospital had made that incredibly clear.

He left his bed, tired of seeing the damn thing, and paced around his room. The doctors told him he had another full week there. He wasn’t sure why. Parts of his skin were still tender and healing, but his body was ready. His brutally bruised ribs had healed. He didn’t have full use of his arm, but he could move it well enough. He was sure it would be fine when he was able to really use it. His physical therapist was surprised at the ferocity with which Christian had approached his workouts for the past week. If he wasn’t exhausted and sweaty by the end of them, then he hadn’t worked hard enough.

He couldn’t wait to go running, to lift weights, to be physical. The day he walked out of this hospital couldn’t come soon enough.

“Hello, Christian.”

He turned around to face the only person who made him doubt his plans, who made him want to rethink throwing himself back into action.

“Georgia.” Something physical happened to him when he saw her. It was similar to the rush he felt when he was returning enemy fire or the first time he parachuted out of a plane. His blood surged, his heart pounded in his chest. His reaction to her was so strong that he knew it wasn’t normal. It was maddening. He missed her. Seven days without seeing her, without hearing her sweet Southern accent, without feeling her touch on his ruined skin. He’d thought about her as much as he’d thought about his future this past week, and it confused the hell out of him. “Welcome back.”

“Thank you.” Her eyes touched his face before they traveled to his nightstand—to the big pink gift bag that sat on top of it. “What’s that?”

“Happy birthday.” His face burned with embarrassment. He had debated for three days about whether he should acknowledge it. She had only mentioned it to him once. He didn’t want her to think he remembered every word that passed her lips, but he did, and in the end he wanted to thank her for making his time at Jericho Medical less miserable.