Page 672 of Hell Hath No Fury
Sorry, meeting ran late, just getting out of the office now. Please, can you provide Georgie with dinner? Foster.
I sighed. So goddamn formal.
I texted him back.
No problem.
I still wasn’t loquacious with Georgie’s dad, afraid that in being so, we’d end up in another argument. Jumping off my stool, I grabbed my purse and called to Georgie, “Hey, honey, your dad is running a little late, so we’re going to do dinner without him.”
She walked toward me. “Is he coming home?”
I frowned. “Of course. He just got out of the office, though, and the city is ninety minutes away. So we’re going to close up here and grab some dinner. How does Penny’ssound?”
It was her turn to frown at me.
“You’ve never been to Penny’s Diner?”
Georgie shook her head.
“You like chicken nuggets? And milkshakes?”
Her eyes lit up, making me smile.
“I’ll take that as a yes.” I held out my hand. “Penny’s is the best place in town for chicken nuggets and milkshakes.”
* * *
As I ate Penny’sfamous and delicious cheeseburger, Georgie dipped a nugget into ketchup and stared around the diner at the other occupants. We were lucky to get a table since tourists descended upon our town spring through summer. But I knew Geraldine, Penny’s head waitress, and she found us a small table in the back.
Noting Georgie’s attention was fixated on something, I looked and tensed. A mom and her daughter, around Georgie’s age, were settled in a booth, two older boys on the opposite side, and the mom and daughter had their heads together, giggling at something.
My chest ached at the wounded expression on Georgie’s face.
She was way too young to feel the horrible emotions she was experiencing right now.
God, I could kill her mom.
“You okay, honey?”
Her little mouth trembled as she replied, “Jenna Green said mommies don’t go away like Mommy did. Jenna said Mommy must have really not liked me, and that’s why she went to Parees.”
Ugh, that was a punch to the gut.
Jenna Green was a brat. I leaned across the table. “That’s not true, Georgie.”
“But Mommy went away.”
“For a job. A very important job.” I didn’t know if that was true, and truth be told, I didn’t think there was any job more important than being a mom. As far as I was concerned, that was the deal you made with the universe once you had a kid.
“Jenna Green said her mommy said being a mommy is an impotnant job and that my mommy didn’t love me because she thought Parees was more impotnant than me.” Tears shone in Georgie’s eyes, and she looked seconds from bawling.
Jenna Green’s mother was on my shit list.
I quickly waved down Geraldine. “We’re just going to the bathroom. We’re not leaving.”
“Sure thing, Em. I’ll watch your stuff.”
“Thanks.” I stood and scooped up Georgie before she could protest. She was heavier than she looked, and I had to shift her onto my hip. I was grateful she looped her arms around my neck and let me take her to the restroom.
