“I’m glad you had someone to help you out through the rough time.”
“I am too.”
Landon should have left it at that. He knew he should, but he simply couldn’t hold back his thoughts. “Pete should have helped you too, Georgie. Why didn’t he?”
She stood quickly, took a step toward the door. Landon saw her move and attempted to scoot out of her way, but he couldn’t get his long legs back quick enough, and she stumbled over his boot.
Reflexes taking over, he reached for her, his arms cradling her back as she started to fall.
She didn’t jerk away. In fact, in Landon’s opinion, she relaxed in his embrace, and he caught himself inhaling deeper to truly experience the apple scent, the warmth of her flesh against his arms. “Are you okay?” he asked, gently easing her upright. “You were falling, and I...reacted.”
“Yes,” she said, her surprise evident in the single syllable. “Yes, I am okay.” And then she smiled. “Very okay, I think.”
“That’s good.”
The sound of a car on the gravel driveway caused him to turn around. “It’s your mom and Abi.”
“I know. I recognized the sound of her car.”
Landon realized that even though she stood fine on her own now, his arms still circled her waist. And he didn’t make any effort to move them. Then, as the car grew closer, he reluctantly lowered his arms and put a small distance between them. “I guess I can let you go now.”
One corner of Georgiana’s mouth lifted. “Probably a good idea. We wouldn’t want to get Mom’s hopes up too much.”
Landon’s heartbeat kicked it up a notch. “Her hopes are up for something?”
“Of course,” she said. “You know she always liked you.”
“I like her too.” But not nearly as much as he liked her daughter. He cleared his throat. “I’m going to touch your cheek, if that’s okay.”
“It’s okay,” she said, her voice feather soft.
Landon reached out and ran a finger along her cheek, enjoyed the feel of her soft skin as he let it trail along the line of her jaw. “I’ll learn what to do, Georgie. I don’t want to scare you. And I want to help you.”
“You’re helping already.”
The driveway was long, and Landon was grateful. He took advantage of their last few seconds of privacy, and instead of taking his hand away, he eased his fingertips toward her ear and touched a long red tendril of hair. It was silky soft and did indeed curl around his finger. “Beautiful,” he said, his voice thick and husky.
Georgiana’s lashes lowered, her cheeks instantly flushed. “They’re almost here,” she whispered.
The car circled the magnolia tree centering the front of the house and then stopped, with Eden and Abi climbing out on opposite sides as Landon moved his hand back to his pocket. “Yeah, they’re here,” he said.
“Mom, I passed all my tests just fine!” Abi yelled, running toward the porch. “Hey, Mr. Landon,” she said. “Can I pet your horse?”
“Sure.”
“Can I give her a snack?”
“I bet she’d like that,” he said, mesmerized by Georgiana’s secret smile. She’d enjoyed his touch. Landon was certain of it.
Abi instantly changed gears and darted toward the barn. “I’ll get her an apple.”
Eden’s knowing smile told Landon that she’d seen at least part of his and Georgiana’s exchange. He nodded at the sweet lady, and she took a hand to her heart.
“Abi did great,” she said, climbing the stairs. “She has 20/20 vision and her hearing is excellent too.”
“That’s wonderful.” Georgiana moved her hand to the long curl Landon had touched. “Thanks for taking her, Mom.”
“My pleasure.” She stopped for a moment at the door. “I’m going on in and fixing me a glass of lemonade. I made it this morning, fresh-squeezed. Want me to bring you both a glass?”
“No, I don’t think so,” Georgiana said.
“No, thank you, Ms. Sanders.”
“All righty then.” She went in the house.
“I want to spend some one-on-one time with Abi now, while she’s still excited about her placement tests and all. Since I didn’t go with her, I at least want to visit with her and find out about everything she did.”
He nodded. “I should probably get back to the farm too.” Even though he would have stayed here as long as she wanted. No, they hadn’t really gotten into a deep conversation about what each of them had done while they’d been apart, but Georgie had made progress. He’d caught her when she was falling, and she hadn’t jerked away. Then she’d let him touch her, and today it wasn’t due to fear.
Thank You, God.
He’d only scratched the surface of building a new relationship with Georgiana, one that he suspected would be even stronger than before. “Can I come back tomorrow?” he asked. “Would that be okay with you?”
“Yes,” she said, and gave him another amazing smile that sent the pretty copper freckles on her cheeks toward those hazel eyes. “Definitely okay with me.”
Chapter Ten
“I’m going to touch your cheek, if that’s okay.”
Georgiana pressed a finger against her face and remembered the way Landon had gently traced her skin. She’d continued to hear his words, feel his touch, ever since he left yesterday. How long had it been since she’d felt so moved? How long had it been since a man had spoken to her with that kind of sweet reverence? From the time she lost her sight, Pete’s words had been harsh, degrading, even hateful.
But Landon was nothing like Pete. And she found herself wondering if she might actually be worthy of a man’s attention again. Landon had lifted her spirits and made her feel something she hadn’t felt in a long time...wanted.
She couldn’t hold back her smile as she tried on yet another outfit for the tiny audience in her bedroom. “What do you think of this?” she asked her mother and Abi. She’d always had an appreciation for pretty clothes, and being blind hadn’t really changed that. However, the fact that she rarely left the farm had caused her to forgo worrying about whether things matched or if her outfit was flattering. But even though she wasn’t leaving the farm today, she would have at least one person viewing her choice of clothing. And she wanted to look nice. She turned a full circle then asked, “Is it okay with these shoes?”
“I like those shoes,” Abi said.
She’d slipped on some sandals that Pete had given her way back when. Lately she spent most of her day in her barn boots when she was outside or her bare feet when in the house, but she wanted to be prepared in case Landon wanted to go for a walk. Actually, she rather hoped he did. She hadn’t had a desire to hike the trails by herself without the ability to see her surroundings, or more specifically when she couldn’t see things that might be slithering or crawling nearby, but she did miss the trails, missed that feeling of being completely in the midst of God’s creation.
“You sure they match? The shoes, I mean.” She remembered that the straps on the Chacos were multicolored but had no idea if the green in the fabric would match the shade of her sleeveless sweater, which Abi had described as “summer-grass green.”
Abi giggled. “Yes, Momma. Green is my favorite color on you. But I like your new red dress for my piano recital too. Red is a good color on you too.”
“Thanks, sweetie.”
“You always look beautiful, Georgiana,” her mother added.
“Thanks, Mom.” Georgiana had never been one to shop for designer clothing, a trait she’d learned from her mother. They were yard-sale and consignment-store shoppers, not because they were all that limited in funds but because neither of them felt they had
to wear something that cost a small fortune or had a particular emblem sewn on the chest to look nice.
Pete hated the fact that Georgiana wasn’t a name-brand shopper. When they first moved to Tampa, he’d been adamant that she should blend better with the other wives at his investment firm. But in spite of the fact that Georgiana’s clothes were off the discount racks, she thought she blended very well with the other ladies during those company gatherings. Of course, the only picnics and parties she’d attended were at the very beginning of their marriage, before the blindness set in and Pete stopped taking her along for the corporate outings.
She cringed, not wanting to ruin today by thinking back to that time. Too many bad memories. Instead she wanted to think about potential new memories, potential good memories, with Landon.
“Do you want the matching cardigan?” her mother asked. “The rain this morning left a little chill in the air, and the breeze off the mountain is cool too.”
“That’s a good idea.” Georgiana had been inside working most of the day, but she’d walked to the pond with Abi during lunch and had felt that chill. Skipping stones had quickly become part of their daily routine.
“Want me to get it for you?” her mother asked.
“No, I’ll get it.” Georgiana knew it was tough for her mom to let her do things herself, but she enjoyed accomplishing tasks, even those as trivial as finding her matching sweater.
She reached into the antique chifforobe that had graced her room since she was a little girl and ran her hands along the edges of the sleeves until she touched satin piping. When she’d first started learning to match clothes blind, she’d had tags sewn in the back of each garment with a Braille description of the color and item. But she never was that great at reading Braille, and she found that practically every item she owned had something about it that made it unique to the touch, like the satin piping on the green cardigan. Before long, she could select her clothes with no problem at all.
“What time is Landon coming over?” her mother asked.
“I’m not sure,” Georgiana said. “So I thought I’d go ahead and get ready, just in case. The denim capris look okay?”
“Yes, dear. What are you two planning today?”
“Just talking, finding that friendship again like you suggested. Then maybe, eventually, I’ll try riding Fallon again.”
“Today?” Abi asked. “You’re gonna ride Fallon today? I’m riding Sugar today, and we could ride together! That would be so fun, Mommy!”
Georgiana’s heart ached to do that with Abi, particularly because her daughter wanted so desperately to spend more active time with her, yet another reason to try and accomplish this goal. “No, honey, not today, but maybe soon. That’s what Mr. Landon wants to help me with.”
“Okay,” she said, disappointment evident in the single word. “But I really do want to ride with you.”
“I want that too.” She wanted it so much it hurt.
“Hey Mommy, I like this picture of you on Fallon.”
Georgiana heard the frame scoot across the dresser as Abi must have lifted it for a better view.
“Which one is it?”
“The one by the pond with the sun setting in the distance,” her mother said. “You were sixteen, I believe.”
“Landon took that picture.” Georgiana remembered the very day. “We’d raced back from the ridge, and Fallon and I won.” She smiled at the memory. “It was the first time I’d ever won, and he said he wanted to take a picture so I’d remember it, because it’d never happen again.”
Abi laughed. “You beat him?”
“One time I did,” Georgiana said. “But he was right. It never happened again.”
“He was your good friend, huh?” Abi asked, and Georgiana sensed that her daughter still gazed at the photo.
“Yes.” A very good friend.
“And now he’s your friend again,” Abi said.
“Yes.” Georgiana smiled. “I think he is.”
“It’s fun making friends. I made some new friends at my new school yesterday when we did our eye and ear tests. I saw Autumn there. She was in my class at church, and now she’s gonna be in my class at school.”
“Hannah Taylor’s little girl?” Georgiana asked.
“Hannah Graham now,” Eden said, “but yes, that’s her little girl.”
“Her mama was my friend in school too.”
“Yeah, Autumn’s mommy told me. And she told me that she misses you there, at church. I was supposed to tell you that.”
“That’s nice.” It’d been years since she graced the door of a church, and even though she still worshipped God in her heart, she missed being with others sharing her faith. But she didn’t miss the feeling that everyone stared at her, or hearing people struggle for the right words when they didn’t know what to say in conversation.
Would she ever get over that fear? Would she ever be able to attend church with her little girl? If Landon had his way, she would.
I honestly believe you can live again, go out and have fun, be a part of Abi’s life, involved in all of her activities. She’ll want her momma there for the important things, and I know you want to be there.
His words had touched her heart, but the fact that he believed in her stirred her soul.
God, please, You know how much I want to be a part of Abi’s world. And I’d love to really live again, the way Landon described. Help me to find the courage, Lord.
“Autumn said she likes my hair, ’cause it’s red. And I told her I liked her hair too, ’cause it’s brown.”
Georgiana grinned, happy her daughter hadn’t had a problem at all with the move to Alabama. Abi adjusted so well to change, even developing a little bit of that Alabama drawl. Then again, that may have been because her life started out with so many changes, beginning with Georgiana and Pete trying to make things work. Then learning to cope with her blindness. And next, she and Abi moving in with Linda while Georgiana and Pete were separated. Thankfully, Abi had loved Linda and seemed to enjoy the three of them living together. She’d even been the flower girl in Linda and Gary’s wedding.
That memory reminded Georgiana of the phone conversation she’d had late last night. Pete called and asked that Abi perform the same function in his wedding. And that was the way he’d told Georgiana that he was getting married again.
“It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be married,” Georgiana said softly. “He just didn’t want to be married to me.”
“What, Mommy?”
The color drained from her face. Occasionally, the fact that she couldn’t see caused her to forget that she wasn’t the only person in a room and should never utter her thoughts aloud. “Nothing, sweetie. I was just thinking.”
Georgiana heard her mother’s soft sigh and knew that she hadn’t missed the comment. As usual, Abi barely paused in her chatting, which kept Georgiana from having to offer any additional explanation.
“Autumn colors real good too,” she continued. “At Sunday school, she colored Joseph’s coat and stayed in the lines the whole time. I got out of the lines a little, but not too bad. There were a lot of stripes on his coat, so it was kinda hard.”
“You did fine,” Eden said.
“Yes, I’m sure you did,” Georgiana added. Like most kids her age, Abi loved any kind of craft or art. She always brought her projects to Georgiana so she could “see” what she’d made, and Georgiana wished that she had that option. It didn’t seem to bother Abi that her momma couldn’
t do more than touch the artwork, probably because she didn’t know any different. In Abi’s world, she’d always been blind.
“Your makeup looks pretty,” Abi said, interrupting Georgiana’s thoughts.
“Does it?” Georgiana asked. “Really?” Makeup was more difficult than matching clothes, and she typically limited it to a little lip gloss, more to keep her lips moist than to actually serve as a beauty accessory. But today she’d found her eye-shadow case and had attempted to put a light brown shadow on her crease and a shimmery taupe on her lid. Or that’s what she thought she’d put on, if she picked up the compact that she thought she’d picked up and if the colors were where she believed they were inside the case. She’d never taken time to label her makeup, because she rarely used it. “I didn’t put too much?”
“It’s very pretty,” her mother said, her words holding a good deal of an emotion Georgiana couldn’t pinpoint.
“Grandma, can I go on out and see if the other kids are here yet?”
“Sure, honey.” Eden had several riding lessons scheduled for this afternoon, and since Abi’s age group came on Wednesdays, she’d naturally take a lesson too.
Georgiana listened to her daughter’s quick steps exiting the house and the front door slamming. Then she turned toward her mother. “Mom, is something wrong?”
“No, dear,” she said. “Nothing’s wrong. It’s just that I’m glad to see you trying again.”
“Trying?”
“To live.”
Georgiana again thought of Landon’s words and nodded. “Me too.”
“I know it’s been hard, but it hurts me to see you shut yourself off from life. And this, with Landon, well, I think it’s exactly what you need. You look happier today than I’ve seen you in a very long time.”
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