A Hero's Reward

by Morrel, Amy

  Ellen fumed all the way back to the house.

  The children were set to doing their homework before dinner with the promise that they could watch television after dinner if they had all finished their homework first and could agree on something to watch.

  This set the pattern for the coming weeks. Ellen continued to have some attitude problems but both Greg and Margaret, at separate times, decided that it was mostly a defensive facade that she had built since she slipped up with each of them now and again. When they discussed it they thought that it might have been something she did to deal with her mom growing stranger and more distant. It was amazing to them that Christine was still fine. She appeared to have withdrawn a bit in response to her mother's actions but she came right back out of her shell for Margaret.

  * * *

  Chapter 13 – Court and Courting

  Several weeks after Greg had returned to work he approached his boss, asking him for another day off.

  “Again Greg? It seems like we just got caught up from you being off for two weeks.”

  “Yeah boss, I told you about the thing with Emily ditching my girls back with me, right?”

  “Yeah, so?”

  “Well, my lawyer got a custody hearing into the docket for me. They tried to contact her and couldn't find her. All I need to do is show up and I'm pretty much guaranteed legal custody of Ellen and Christine. But I do have to show up and they have the hearing scheduled for this Thursday. The hearing is in the morning and if it's as quick as I hope it will be then I could probably be in after lunch if you need me.”

  “No Greg, take the whole day. You should have just told me that's what it was about when you asked. You got it, I'll get Bernie to fill in for you again on Thursday.”

  “It looks like Bernie did a good job while I was gone. You were talking about adding an extra crew, right? How about we give Bernie the head slot for that?”

  “I was planning on it. I just need to overstaff the other crews first so I can switch people over and make sure Bernie starts with a fully trained crew.”

  “If you need me to do so, I can take Bernie with me on the next couple of jobs and walk him through step by step. I think he's got it down already but I don't know that he's all that confident about it yet.”

  “We'll do that after your court date. You worry about getting your girls where they belong first. Then we'll see about training him up.”

  “Thanks boss, you're the best.”

  “Hey, you're one of my best employees. If you have a hitch here or there with your schedule, you make up for it by working harder when you get back to work. It's no problem.”

  When Greg returned home he told Margaret that he'd gotten the day off and would be in court on Thursday. The girls would be going as well since they could relate what they knew about their mom's recent habits to the judge. Margaret wasn't working that day and considered asking if he wanted her to go but she was sure he would and she wasn't sure that it would reflect well on him if she was there with him.

  On Thursday morning Greg and the girls headed for the courthouse. The hearing was the second one of the day and lasted for less than half an hour. The lawyer stated the case; that Emily had abandoned the children with a letter to Greg. He had the letter submitted as evidence. He pointed out that the support payments Greg made would have covered their rent with some to spare so that Emily was neglecting the safety of the children by not providing a residence. The girls told the judge exactly how their mom had changed in both attitude and physical appearance over the last several months. The judge noted that repeated attempts had been made to notify Emily of the court date and that there was no response. He took a five minute recess before he made his ruling.

  Greg was awarded full custody of his daughters. After thanking the judge and his lawyer profusely, he took the girls out for lunch to celebrate and then headed home. When he got there, he asked Margaret to watch the girls while he ran an errand. She agreed and had the girls sit down and tell her all about the morning while Greg headed back out.

  Greg left the house and went to a local jewelers. He had been thinking about this all morning, through the entire court session, all the way through lunch, and on the drive home. He'd been considering this step for a week or more and had even gone so far as to take a measurement of Margaret's ring finger with a small piece of string while she slept. He was looking through the engagement rings at the store since he now knew that he was going to ask Margaret to marry him. The only question in his mind was when to pop the question. He'd have to build up his courage to do so. The thought of asking her utterly terrified him, primarily because he didn't know what he'd do if she said no.

  The thought of being married again, in general, had terrified him for years. The thought of being married again, specifically to Margaret, filled him with the same feeling he had when looking at a newly finished house that he knew his crew had gotten exactly right. The only difference was that the thought of being married to Margaret struck him on a much more serious level.

  It took a while but he finally found something that he thought she'd love. It was only a half carat diamond but the band was white gold and it had a textured surface with a pebbled feel. Somehow he thought she'd like this one better than the others, even those with larger stones. He bought the ring and slid it into its case which he put into his coat pocket. Then he headed home again.

  Throughout the rest of the day he kept thinking about asking her but his courage kept failing him. He had left the ring in its box in his inner coat pocket and every now and then he'd pat the front of his coat, reassuring himself that it was still there.

  Greg returned to work the next day and shared the good news regarding the custody of his daughters with both his boss and his crew. The decision to ask Margaret to marry him he only shared with his boss.

  “Are you sure that's a good idea Greg? The last time didn't go so well for you.”

  “Well, Margaret's last time went even worse for her. I think if she hadn't had such a hell of a time in her first marriage I'd be more confident about asking her now. I'm just worried that she'll associate her first marriage with marriage in general and turn me down. Honestly, if she says yes I don't think that there will ever be any of the issues Emily and I had. Margaret and I already get along better than Emily and I ever did, either before or after we were married.”

  “I know, you're just doing this to try to get more time off for a honeymoon, aren't you?” said his boss, jestingly.

  “Sorry boss, I'm serious here. I really don't have anybody else I can talk with this about. I don't want to do it with anyone on the crew. I know some of them well enough but the thing about me being their crew chief kind of rules out talking about things like this, at least it does in my opinion.”

  “Greg, you seem to know your mind here but I'll tell you what, if she's worked her way into your heart this far this quickly and it seems that the same thing has happened to her regarding you, then you'd be a fool not to ask her. But yes, if her last marriage was as bad as you told me then you need to be very careful about how and when you ask her. Now, if you ever quote me as having said any of that, I'll have to deny it vehemently.”

  “Thanks boss. That's kind of what I thought myself but it helps to hear it from someone else.”

  “You're welcome. Now get out there and get to work you slacker.” His boss said with a chuckle as Greg left his office.

  As Greg's boss watched him leave he thought Damn that boy has got it bad. I've never seen him this distracted over a woman before, not even back when he was married to Emily. Maybe he'll get lucky this time. It couldn't happen to a more deserving guy.

  The rest of Greg's day dragged out as he kept anticipating seeing Margaret and the children when he got home. Mainly he was thinking of Margaret but he was also discovering that he enjoyed having the children around most of the time. It was nice to see his daughters grow up on a daily basis and share what was happening with them, at least when they'd talk about it a
nyhow. It sure beat seeing them for a few hours every other week.

  Greg stopped on the way home to buy Margaret flowers. He hadn't done anything of the sort yet, since he had been trying to let her cool down from the way he tricked her into allowing him to buy clothing for her and Jack. He had decided that he would court her properly for a while before popping the question though. He hoped that it would lessen the chance of her being surprised and snapping out a 'no' answer reflexively.

  When he arrived home, he found Margaret in the kitchen and made a show of presenting her with the dozen long-stemmed red roses. Her face went blank for a moment, then she smiled:

  “I was going to ask why you were bringing me flowers. But when I went to compare it to Freddy's actions I realized that there wasn't anything to compare it to, he never brought me flowers after we were married and only once before then.”

  “Well then, I guess these are well overdue. I'm sorry I waited so long.”

  “Oh Greg, you don't need to try to make up for what other people did or didn't do for me.”

  “No, but I want to. You don't mind, do you?”

  “You be the judge.”

  Margaret took the flowers and set them on the table. Then she leaned in against Greg, acting as the aggressor in a kiss that took his breath away. Margaret smiled at him shyly when she had finished with the kiss and went to get a vase for the roses.

  Greg shook his head to clear the lasting effects from the kiss then wandered out into the living room. He retrieved his cellphone and made a call to one of the guys on his crew that he knew had children and lived relatively close to him.

  “Mack? Yeah it's Greg.”

  “What can I do for you Greg? We don't have any work scheduled for tomorrow do we? I had plans.”

  “Oh no, this is personal. I was wondering if you knew of a good babysitter. I want to take Margaret out tomorrow night but I had forgotten that I'd need a babysitter. I thought you might know someone I could get on short notice.”

  “How old are your kids again?”

  “There are two girls who are eleven and nine, and a six year old boy.”

  “Let me ask my oldest, she's seventeen and she might like to make a few extra bucks. Would that be okay with you?”

  “Yeah, that'd be great. I trust your judgment as to whether she could handle it or not.”

  “Oh, she can handle it if she wants to. She's got a sharp tongue, just like her mother. I think she's practicing to be a drill sergeant later in life.”

  Greg heard him call out for his daughter and then have a short conversation with her.

  “Yeah, she's willing. What time do you need her? I'll drop her off.”

  “Let me call you back, Margaret and I hadn't finished planning yet since we didn't know if we'd find someone or not.”

  “That'll work. I'll be up for a few more hours. She said she wants ten bucks an hour and a ride home after, if that's okay with you.”

  “That's fine. I'll get back to you in just a few.”

  Greg went and found Margaret. She was still working in the kitchen and had dinner almost ready.

  “Margaret, would you like to go out tomorrow night?”

  “What about the kids?”

  “I have a babysitter lined up. The oldest daughter of one of my crew. He assures me that she can handle it.”

  “What were you thinking?”

  “I don't know, maybe just dinner and a movie? I don't want to be away from the kids for too long but I'd like some time with just the two of us where we don't have to keep an ear out for the kids. I know that sounds rotten but it's been a long time since I had to worry about what I was doing because of the children. I just need a little time off from that and thought you might like to get out as well.”

  “I'd love to. I can make up some dinner for them to just heat up.”

  “Or I can leave some money with the babysitter and they can have a treat also and get a pizza delivered.”

  “That's a good idea. They'll be less jealous about us getting to go out if they get a treat too.”

  “Shall we leave here at five tomorrow then?”

  “Yes, it's a date. And it really is a date, isn't it?” Margaret said in a dreamy voice.

  “Yes it really is. Let me go verify our babysitter.”

  Greg called Mack again and made the arrangements. After he had hung up Greg reminded himself to hit the ATM tomorrow since he didn't carry that much cash on him normally. He figured about sixty dollars for the babysitter, forty for the pizzas, then money for the date itself.

  The next day stretched out on and on. It seemed to take forever to pass for Greg. The children squabbled over what they'd watch on the television, they squabbled about who got to use the computer, they squabbled over what they wanted for lunch. The day seemed to be one unending session of the children arguing, at least until the point where Greg told them that he and Margaret would be going out that evening.

  “Where are we going?” asked Ellen.

  “You misunderstood me. Margaret and I are going out on a date. You children will be staying home. I have a babysitter coming at five o'clock.”

  “What?” shrieked Ellen, “I'm eleven years old, I don't need a babysitter!”

  “We've been over this before. I don't trust you yet. You're better than when you got here but I certainly wouldn't trust you to watch Christine and Jack, never mind leave you alone yourself.”

  Ellen stalked off in a huff and all of the sudden the children weren't arguing amongst themselves any more. They presented a unified front to Greg, insisting that he had to take everyone out.

  “Well, I'll tell you what. If all three of you behave well until the sitter arrives and don't give Margaret and I any fuss about our going out I might be convinced to arrange a treat for you three as well.”

  The children chorused in with cries of 'what treat?' and 'That's bribery dad!' and various and sundry other things but eventually boiled their questions down to asking what, exactly, he was offering.

  “I think I could be convinced to leave money with the sitter to order a couple of pizzas and some Cokes delivered. If, that is, you all behave yourselves for the rest of the day.”

  They had just finished lunch when the discussion had begun and the children were amazingly well behaved for the rest of the afternoon. Greg made a mental note to remember that making the kids think that they had extorted a treat from you, even if you had planned it beforehand, worked wonders for their behavior.

  When the doorbell rang at five, Greg got up and answered it. A heavyset seventeen year old girl, with multiple ear piercings and a nose stud, stood on the doorstep. Mack waved from his car out on the street and then drove off.

  “Well come on in, I didn't catch your name from your dad.”

  “I'm Eileen.”

  “Okay, come on in Eileen and I'll introduce you to the kids.”

  She came in and Greg introduced her around. Ellen stared in awe at Eileen's nose stud and Greg suspected he'd be vetoing another one of Ellen's ideas pretty soon. Even Ellen didn't seem to have a problem with Eileen, especially not after the first time Eileen snapped at her. It appeared that Mack was correct, but Greg thought that a sharp tongue wasn't going to hurt the children and might actually help them shape up some from their recent poor behavior. He was pretty sure he and Margaret were spoiling the children but he just didn't know how to be a good parent on a twenty-four/seven basis. He'd been out of the loop of raising them for too long and he was still trying to get a secure footing from which to deal with the new situation.

  Greg told Eileen that they expected to be back by eleven at the latest and gave her money to order dinner for herself and the kids. He let her know that the kids were supposed to be in bed by eight and gave her his cell phone number in case of emergency. Then he and Margaret grabbed their coats and left on their date.

  They had decided that they wanted a sit-down meal, but not someplace that would take too long, so they stopped at the local steak house. After a dec
ent meal they headed to the theater. Greg allowed Margaret to choose the movie and they ended up seeing a fairly well made comedy. On the way home Greg was thinking that it wasn't the wonderful date he would've liked to take her on but that it hadn't been bad. Margaret had certainly enjoyed herself and was talking to him all the way home. If he wasn't mistaken she was actually excited about the whole thing, much more so than he was. He had thoroughly enjoyed spending time with Margaret away from the children and talking with her more. But she was very excited about what had been, to him, a decent but not wonderful date.

  “Thank you Greg. I'm still saying that lot, aren't I?”

  “Yes you are, but you're welcome anyhow.”

  “I know I'm kind of babbling but what you probably don't know is that this is the first real date I've been on since before I married Freddy. I suppose our at home stuff could count but this was actually being taken out somewhere, it just seems different.”

  “I'm sorry, I would've taken you out sooner if I had known. I should've figured it out on my own but I hadn't given it any thought. Even after Emily and I had kids we still normally managed one or two dates a month.”

  “That's okay, I could have said something but I didn't want to sound pushy.”

  “Margaret, you can be as pushy with me as you like. If I have a problem with it, I'll tell you.”

  “I won't promise that, I don't want to be pushy or an imposition.”

  “How about being a joy and delight to be with? That, you've got down cold.”

  “Greg, you're being a flatterer again.”

  “I'm entitled to my opinion, yes? Well, that's my opinion.”

  They arrived home at about ten thirty. Margaret went in to check on the children and Greg paid Eileen and drove her home. Eileen claimed that the kids weren't much of a problem but that she had let Ellen stay up a little later than the others. Ellen was still in bed before nine though, according to Eileen. Greg thanked her and asked her if she might be interested in babysitting for him again some other time and she said she would be happy to, if she could manage it.