Mending Hearts (22 page)

“
I was going to get my
daughter some foods that she liked, just in case she would come
over for a visit, and I have no idea what to get for her.” I wipe
away the tear and try to smile. “I have no idea what foods my
daughter eats.” 

He holds my hand and says, “I think we can
figure this out.” He clears his throat and asks, “What does she
like?” 

“
I just told you, I don’t
know.” Now, he’s getting on my nerves. 

“
Molly, I know that. I mean
toys, books, characters, cartoons, you know, stuff like
that.” 

I laugh, “Oh, I knew that. She likes
Rapunzel, and she used to love Doc McStuffins. I saw her eat graham
crackers the other day.” 

“
Come with me.” Adam takes
the cart and pushes it down the aisle. We come to the cereal aisle
and he grabs Pop Tarts with Rapunzel on it, and a box of sugary
cereal with Doc McStuffins on it. He also grabs a bag of Oreo’s
cookies and says, “These are for me
—
and for Rae, if she likes
them.” 

We walk up and down each aisle and things
start coming back to me. I shop, and I am surprised to see that
Adam is also putting things in the cart. We won’t be living
together, but it looks like he plans on spending time there with
me. I like the thought of him being there some evenings.

We run into mom and dad and they are also
grocery shopping for food for my apartment. “A house-warming gift,”
my mom says and she smiles as she nods at the already full cart. We
exit the door and my dad laughs at a sign in the window. The sign
reads: I WAS ADDICTED TO THE HOKEY-POKEY BUT I TURNED MYSELF
AROUND. Everyone laughs and Adams says, “I guess there are
addictions of all kinds.”

My mom says, “And you can turn yourself
around.” 

We all go back to my
apartment and Adam and Dad hook up the computer while mom and I put
the groceries away. I’ll need the computer to download the pictures
from my camera and upload them to the stock photograph online
stores. I am amazed at how well my stock photos are selling. Stock
photographs are items that can keep on selling. You can take a
photograph today and still make money from it twenty years from
now. Creative work has advantages over other kinds of work.
With something like washing dishes, you wash them
once and sure enough you have to wash them again the following
month. That’s a joke. Sometimes I make jokes when I’m thinking to
myself. I better not tell that joke to anyone. Since I am a former
addict, they might think it’s the truth. 

Mom and I order pizza for dinner for
everyone since the kitchen items are still in boxes.

Everyone leaves and I unpack
boxes. Dad and Adam made sure the bed was up and the box spring and
mattress are on it, and mom and I made sure it was made. If nothing
else, I have a bed to sleep in. I take a bubble bath and light some
cranberry-scented candles and scatter them around the house. It is
already feeling like home. I download some free books from the
internet. No romance, no smut, no murders… oh, here’s one for
free:
The Kindest People: Be Excellent to
Each Other (Volume 5)
by David Bruce, who
calls himself the world’s most famous person no one has ever heard
of. It is a collection of accounts of good deeds. This is something
that lights up the pleasure centers of my brain.
For example, I love these good deeds:

“
My father, Carl Eugene
Bruce, died on 24 October 2013. He used to work for Ohio Power, and
at one time, his job was to shut off the electricity of people who
had not paid their bills. He sometimes would find a home with an
impoverished mother and some children. Instead of shutting off
their electricity, he would tell the mother that she needed to pay
her bill or soon her electricity would be shut off. He would write
on a form that no one was home when he stopped by because if no one
was home he did not have to shut off their electricity. The best
good deed that anyone ever did for my father occurred after a storm
that knocked down many power lines. He and other linemen worked
long hours and got wet and cold. Their feet were freezing because
water got into their boots and soaked their socks. Fortunately, a
kind woman gave my father and the other linemen dry socks to wear.
My mother, Josephine Saturday Bruce, died on 14 June 2003. She used
to work at a store that sold clothing. One day, an impoverished
mother with a baby clothed in rags walked into the store and
started shoplifting in an interesting way: The mother took the rags
off her baby and dressed the infant in new clothing. My mother knew
that this mother could not afford to buy the clothing, but she
helped the mother dress her baby and then she watched as the mother
walked out of the store without paying. My mother and my father
both died at 7:40 p.m.”

The next morning Bobby called me to remind
me of the cookout at his house today. I am excited to see Bobby and
his wife, Leah. Adam and I made a few dishes of food to take over
to their house with us today. 

Adam follows the direction on the GPS to
Bobby and Leah’s house. Adam enters the code into the gated
community and looks over at me and smiles when the gate opens up.
I’m not sure what I expected, but I didn’t expect a house of this
size or a house in this neighborhood. 

We pull up at the large stone and brick
two-story house. A Hummer and a Tahoe are in the driveway.

“
Looks like we’re here,”
Adam says, smiling. 

Before Adam and I have time to unload the
car with the food we made, Bobby and Leah are walking out to help
us.

“
We told you not to bring
anything, Doll.”

I stand on my tiptoes and give Bobby a
hug.

“
I know, but we couldn’t
come empty handed.” 

Bobby takes the food from me and I give Leah
a hug next. Leah says, “I’m so glad we finally found a date that
worked out for everyone.” 

“
Me, too,” I
say. 

“
Molly, really we have
plenty of food,” Leah says. 

We walk into the house with Bobby and Adam
following us. Leah gives me a tour of the house as Bobby and Adam
tend the grill. The house is substantial in size for just the two
of them. I admire the family portrait on the wall and Leah tells me
that is their beloved Jamie. I get choked up as I remember the
story of the car accident that killed Jamie. “Let’s go outside,
shall we?” Leah asks as she tries to change the subject.

We join Bobby and Adam outside on the deck.
The house has a two-tier wooden deck instead of the lanai that is
prevalent in most Floridian homes.

“
Robert likes to cookout, so
when we bought this house Robert had the lanai removed and built
the deck,” Leah says. 

“
It’s hard to grill in an
enclosed room,” Bobby says, laughing.

The deck also overlooks the in-ground
pool. 

We talk about work, Raelynn,
church, and Bobby boxing again. I see a look on Leah’s face of
concern and I know it must be hard on her to watch her husband box.
When the guys walk in the house, Leah explains the she is fearful
for Robert to box. She tells me that she fears for Robert and for
his opponent.
Fighters sometimes die in the
ring. When the guys rejoin us, we change the subject to the kids
being homeschooled. We have lunch and a relaxing day by the pool
before we head home.

Emma

Time is flying by, and I
feel like I don’t have enough time to get everything done for the
wedding. I have plenty of help, but I still feel rushed. I’m
getting married in two weeks.
In two short
weeks, I’ll be Mrs. Alec Ray Collins.
I
smile and suddenly feel calmer. It could pour down rain in the
middle of my outside wedding, but it wouldn’t ruin my wedding day.
I am lucky enough to be marrying the man of my
dreams. 

We are having an outside wedding at sunset
at our new house. Alec and I both decided it was the perfect place
and the perfect time of day. We try to involve the kids as much as
we can about the wedding plans. Sometimes we use their ideas, and
sometimes we don’t. Alec and I have decided to have the kids, not
only as the flower girl and ring bearer, but also as our best man
and maid of honor. My eyes well up with tears just thinking about
Raelynn as my maid of honor. I did ask Molly first to make sure she
was okay with it. To my surprise, Molly was almost as excited as I
was. I like Molly and I can see what Alec saw in her. She’s a nice
girl who has made a bad decision. She fights her own demons from
her poor choices, and I feel bad for her.

Today, Brooke and I are shopping for
last-minute things for the wedding. I don’t see her nearly as often
as I used to. I love her and miss her terribly. We visit a lingerie
shop, and I suddenly feel embarrassed.

“
Girl, you act like you have
never gotten your freak on with Mr. Kung Fu before,” Brooke says,
laughing. 

“
Brooke, shut up.” I also
laugh. “People will hear you.” 

“
Why are you blushing?
You’re shopping for your wedding night.”

We walk around the room, and I admire
everything the store has to offer. I realize I don’t shop here very
often.

“
Oh. My. God. I found it,”
Brooke says from across the room. I walk over to her — she is
holding up a very thin and very sexy silk bra, panties, and garter
set. “This is perfect,” she squeals. She turns it over and we see a
bow on the back of it. “It comes in white, black, blue, or
red.”

I smile and take it from
her. I already know that Alec will love it. I lightly touch the
silky bow and she laughs and says, “It’s a gift that keeps on
giving
,
especially
if you become pregnant.” 

I decide to get the blue
one.
This will be perfect for my something
blue
. I also grab some other sexy bras and
panties before checking out. Brooke shops for herself. “Brice and I
have decided to try to have a baby at the beginning of the new
year; this should get the lead in his pencil.” She laughs as she
holds up a black lacy bra and matching thong. 

“
Well, if that doesn’t do
it, maybe Viagra will help,” I joke. 

“
A four-hour hard-on. No,
thank you. I don’t have time for that.”

I say, “I heard when it’s not in use it can
be used as a coat rack.” 

“
A
wooden
coat rack, now that’s an idea,”
Brooke says and then adds, “That may just be book worthy. Maybe I
can write a scene in my book where this will fit. And maybe a
character can be a politician named Mr. Wood, and at a rally in
support of him, someone can hold a sign that says, ‘Wood is
good.’” 

I’m laughing so hard when a woman walks by
mumbling about inappropriate behavior and conversations. We decide
we should check out before we get thrown out. We have lunch and
then shop for tulle ribbon, silk flowers, disposable cameras, and
bubbles. 

“
Bubbles?” Brooke
asks.

“
The kids want bubbles on
the tables. I think it’s a cute idea.” 

“
That’s a great
idea.” 

We have coffee at the cute little coffee
shop down the street and then I go home and hide my goodies in the
closet. I don’t want Alec to see them before I have a chance to
wear them for him. Today we are taking Raelynn and James over so
Rae can see Molly’s apartment. Rae is excited, and I think Alec is
worried that Molly will want to start keeping Raelynn. Molly has
been several months clean and she is doing great. I understand his
concern, but I also know Molly is trying and is making great
progress.

“
This is a very nice
apartment complex. I didn’t know this was back here until now,” I
say. 

“
They look new,” Alec says
as he drives the five MPH speed limit.

“
Momma, look at the
waterfalls,” James says excitedly as he points to the community
pool with the waterfall. 

“
Bubby, you and I can swim
there this summer.”

Alec doesn’t say anything but the muscle in
his jaw twitches and I know he isn’t ready for that. We drive
around to the back of the apartment complex near where the
playground is located. Molly and Adam are standing outside waiting
on us.

“
Yay, there’s mommy and
Adam.”

Alec parks the car and doesn’t say anything.
When he gets out of the car and unfastens Raelynn’s seatbelt for
her, he says, “Don’t run off, Raelynn. I want you to wait for
daddy.” I watch as he takes her hand and walks her around the car
to where James and I are waiting.

I smile when I see Molly and Adam. Adam has
his arm around her as they are waiting for us to get closer.

“
Mommy,” Rae yells as she
lets go of Alec’s hands and runs to her mom.

Molly gives us the grand tour of her
apartment and I am surprised that it looks like she has lived here
forever. “It’s hard to believe that you just moved in here,” I say,
honestly. 

“
We have everything we need
except for Raelynn’s bedding. Adam and I went shopping for her
bedroom suite this week. I thought Rae and I could shop for her
bedding online while she’s here.” I look at Alec and his jaw
twitches again. I squeeze his hand to try to relieve some of his
anxiety. Maybe he thinks Molly will want custody of Raelynn. I’m
not sure.

Molly says, “Raelynn, would you like to shop
for your bedding? I found some things I thought you would
like.”