Alison smiled and reached out to touch his shoulder. “You’re welcome, and yes, I do think I understand all of that. You see, I think that’s kind of what I was doing when I refused to accept Sarah as my mother for the past year.”
He took another quick look her way. “Does that mean that you’ve finally accepted her in spite of all the years you were apart?”
Tears came to her eyes. “Yes, I guess that’s exactly what I am saying. It’s time.”
Once they were all four inside Sarah’s spacious new house, Alison went straight to the kitchen where Sarah and Sybil were doing last minute preparations for the meal.
Alison didn’t notice Stan motion for Grant to follow or that they watched from the doorway.
Both women turned when Alison came in. She walked straight up to Sarah and said, “Thank you for inviting us tonight, Mother.” Then she held out her arms to Sarah.
Sarah burst into tears and accepted the hug that Alison was offering. They clung to each other for what seemed like a long time with Sybil patting both of them on the back and sobbing along with them.
Alison looked up and saw that Leo was suddenly hovering over the three of them with a concerned look on his face. Where did he come from? She hadn’t seen him when she came in. Sarah looked up at him and said, “It’s okay, Leo. In fact, everything’s okay now that I have my daughter back.”
He relaxed and turned to go into the living room but almost bumped into Grant and Stan who were still watching the whole scene. Leo just placed a huge hand on each of their shoulders as they tried to look around him and herded them back into the living room.
Kelly took that opportunity to slip past the men and join the women in the kitchen.
When Alison regained some of her composure, her thoughts turned to the big man. What was he doing here? There was no time for that now. Sarah was still wiping her eyes and trying to compose herself as Sybil began calling everyone into the dining room.
Alison sat with Stan on her right and Sarah on her left and couldn’t have been happier. She wanted to talk to her mother and find out everything about her, all that had happened in the twenty years they were apart. With acceptance came curiosity, and she wanted to know everything.
Alison pumped Sarah with questions throughout the meal. She didn’t realize it until the meal was almost over that no one else at the table had said much. They were all watching mother and daughter getting reacquainted. There were big smiles on all their faces, with the exception of Leo of course. She’d seen very little show of emotion on his face.
When everyone left the table, the three men went into the living room and the four women began to clear the table. That was when Alison noticed that there were framed photos of her and Grant as kids and a few more recent ones as well all over the house. Some of them even had a young Sarah in them. She still marveled at how much she looked like her mother, especially what Sarah looked like back then. That was when she knew without a doubt that she had done the right thing in accepting her mother back into her life. She would just have to accept the memories that they had made separately and cherish the ones to come even more.
Now, more than ever, she wanted to learn everything she could about the stranger who had always been her mother.
She heard the men laughing in the living room and smiled when she was able to pick Stan’s laugh out of the rest. That made her think of something that hadn’t occurred to her before. With her new relationship with Stan, what was going to happen to the bond she and her brother had always had?
Could she love Stan as much as she now realized she did and still have room in her heart for Grant? Not only Grant, but Sybil and now Sarah too! Then she thought of her new sister-in-law and just had to include Kelly too. She was truly beginning to love her like the sister she never had. Sonia? She liked Sonia too and hoped they could continue to develop their friendship as well.
Oh my! There was just so much to think about and so much to do now. She felt like she was awakening from a long sleep. She was just now coming to life. She’d never had a best friend. Now, if things progressed the way they were going, she just might have two of them . . . and . . . a mother too.
* * *
Stan sat in the living room with Grant and Leo. He tried to give Leo what he liked to call his investigative once over. In other words, look into his eyes, take in any facial expressions, and try to read his mind. He’d tried before with Leo, and it flat didn’t work with the big guy. He’d just have to come right out and ask him.
Grant, however, beat him to the punch. “Leo I know in a way this is none of my business, but Sarah is my mother, and I would like to know more about you.”
When Leo didn’t respond, Grant continued, “I mean, Mr. Newcomb got you to admit that you love her. I just want to get to know you. Is that okay?”
Leo was quiet for so long that Stan didn’t think he was going to acknowledge that Grant had spoken to him much less answer him. It gave Stan an opportunity to look a little closer at the retired Air Force sergeant. His hair, which had been shaved when he first came to Sycamore, was now growing out and even had a natural wave in it. His brown eyes, which had looked so small before now looked normal beneath the new hair. He was still huge though. Leo had told them once that he was six feet six inches tall and weighed three hundred pounds. Wow!
Then, all of a sudden, the big man’s face split into a huge grin. “Yes, I would like to get to know you too, Grant.”
Grant didn’t say anything and Stan wondered if that was going to be the end of the conversation. After all, he hadn’t heard the guy say very much since he’d known him. He seldom said more than a few words at a time.
“I guess I’m a little rusty on talking. You have to understand the military, especially the upper ranks like I was always in with the general. In those circles, sergeants are supposed to be like what some people say about little kids. They’re to be seen but not heard. I was the general’s orderly, but most of all, I was his bodyguard. I went everywhere he did and usually drove him. I was in on so many meetings where it was a bunch of generals and their sergeants like me.”
He stopped and grinned at them again. “I guess you could say that it was almost like I just forgot how to talk.”
“I can understand that.” Grant seemed to be trying to continue drawing the big guy out more. But it wasn’t necessary. It looked like Leo was ready to talk.
“Okay, here’s my life history. I’m fifty-three years old, which makes me four years older than your mother. I grew up on the south side of Chicago. It was a rough neighborhood, but I was always so much bigger than the other guys, even older ones, that they left me alone. They didn’t even try to get me to join any of the local gangs.
“As soon as I graduated from high school, I joined the Air Force. A few years later I married a girl I had known since high school, but a little over a year later, she decided that she didn’t like the military life so she divorced me, went back to Chicago, and married a dentist.
“That was it for me as far as women were concerned. I just spent my time and efforts trying to be the best airman then sergeant that I could be.
Stan thought he was finished, but Grant prompted him. “How about my mother?”
This time Leo smiled and Stan could have sworn that a dreamy look came over his face very briefly. “Yes, Sarah. It’s still hard for me to call her that. She was always Mrs. Newcomb or the general’s wife. Eight years ago, when I was ordered to report to General Newcomb to be his new orderly if he approved, I wasn’t too thrilled about the assignment. But, the general, no matter what else he may have done, he was good to me. That first day, he took me home with him. I guess I should say that I drove him home. He took me right into their apartment and introduced me to his wife.
That dreamy look was back and longer this time. “That was when I took one look at her and fell in love. The whole idea was just so impossible and I knew it, so I tried my best to hide it. And I thought I was successful at it until Mr. Newcomb said
what he did last Sunday. I’ve thought about that a lot since then, and I think he may be right. The general never would have made me promise to take care of his wife if he hadn’t known how much she meant to me.”
He shook his head. “It makes me respect the man that much more.”
No one spoke for a few minutes, but the silence wasn’t at all uncomfortable.
Stan asked the question that he knew Grant wanted to ask but was reluctant to. “So, Leo, how is it going between you and Sarah? You must be making some progress or you wouldn’t be here tonight.”
Leo looked straight at Stan for a long moment. “I can’t believe it, but she seems to like me too, for who I am rather than what I always did for her and the general.”
“Does that mean that you think she’s attracted to you?”
“I hope so.” He seemed to be in thought for a short time then said, “Is there any way I can help with protecting Alison. I was in the military police for most of my career. That’s was part of the reason why I was assigned to the general.”
Stan chuckled, “Your size didn’t hurt.”
Stan couldn’t help but admire the way this guy who wasn’t used to talking had changed the topic away from his personal life and to one that they’d probably go with for a while.
Grant answered this time. “I don’t think there’s anything specific you can do. I’m sure you understand that this has to be a police matter, at least officially. But whenever you happen to be around her or any of those women in there.” He motioned toward the kitchen. “I’d appreciate if you were on the alert.”
“I’m already doing that and I’m always prepared.” He leaned over and patted his pant leg reminding them of the handgun that was in his boot.
After straightening up, he reached his hand up to the top of his head as if he was going to run his hand across it, but realized it wasn’t smooth anymore and just scratched it instead. Then he looked Grant in the eye. “Can I ask you a question?”
When Grant smiled and nodded, he asked, “How do you feel about me possibly being with your mother?”
Grant leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them and said, “I don’t know my own mother very well right now. What I’ve seen so far, I like. One thing I do know is that my father was an abusive alcoholic, and no matter what you think about Harry, he lied to her and kept us apart for twenty years.”
Grant leaned forward and looked into Leo’s eyes. “What I’m trying to say is that I don’t know you very well yet either. I think you’re okay, but I don’t know you well enough to say for sure. I will say this though, and it’s not a threat or even a promise but simply a fact. If you hurt her in any way, I will find a way, no matter how big you are, to take you down. Do you understand?”
The mask was back on Leo’s face. Stan and Grant were both expecting an explosion of some sort, but they sure didn’t expect the type of explosion they did get.
Leo leaned back on the sofa and shouted out in laughter so loud that it brought the women to the doorway to see what was going on.
As soon as the women realized there was nothing wrong and they went back into the kitchen, Leo turned to Grant and said, “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
That, thought Stan, was an unexpected answer, but also the perfect answer. Yes, things were looking up more and more all the time.
* * *
When the men went into the living room, Alison looked around her at the other three women who were starting to clear the table. She had only known one of them for more than a year. Sybil! Sybil, who had been there for her when they thought her mother had died. Sybil, who had been there for her ever since.
The other two women, she didn’t know all that well. Sure, she was beginning to, but that wasn’t the same or enough. She decided that it was time she started getting to know both her mother and her new sister-in-law who was also her stepsister. Kelly, for that matter, had already insinuated herself so much into Alison’s life that she was beginning to feel comfortable with her.
Her relationship with her mother, on the other hand, was still somewhat tense. That was going to change starting right now.
She turned to Sarah and said, “Mother, how do you think we can best go about getting to know each other?”
With tears in her eyes, Sarah reached out and placed a hand on Alison’s shoulder. “We’re doing just that right now, dear. The more we are around each other, the more we’ll get to know and understand each other.”
Kelly, who always seemed to know just when a less than comfortable subject needed to be changed, said, “What about Leo, Sarah? When I first met him, he scared me, but now he seems more like the proverbial gentle giant. I’m beginning to like him.”
Sarah avoided the intent of the question. “Yes and your grandfather must like him too. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be giving him such a great job opportunity.” She turned to Alison and explained. “You see, dear, based on his military police background, Harold is making Leo head of security for all of Newcomb Motors.”
Alison realized they both expected her to say something, so she said the first thing that popped into her mind. “That’s great. How does he feel about that?”
Sarah smiled. “He is as excited as a little boy on Christmas morning. I think he’ll do a great job too.”
“Does that mean that he’ll have to travel much?”
Sarah looked to Kelly for conformation. Kelly said, “He shouldn’t have to visit the other sites more than once a month as long as there isn’t anything unusual that comes up.”
Alison knew where Kelly had been trying to go, so she decided she would be a little more direct. This way, she could also test her mother feelings toward her. If she could get away with asking a personal question, maybe they were on the way to building the relationship she thought they both wanted.
“I gather from the fact that Leo is here tonight, and that he sat on your other side, that something is going on there. Would you care to tell us about it . . . please?”
Sarah blushed. Then she smiled at both of them and said, “I guess you could say that it’s complicated. You realize that Leo has been a fixture in my life for the last eight years. He was Harry’s orderly, which meant that he was also Harry’s driver and even bodyguard. He was always around. It got to where I just took his presence for granted, sort of like you would a piece of furniture.”
Alison laughed and she noticed that Kelly did too. “How can someone that big not be noticed?”
Sarah laughed softly and said, “Not in that sense. It was more like he had a role to play in our lives and I never questioned it or even thought much about it.”
She pulled out a chair and sat down and the other three women followed her example, anxiously waiting for her to continue. Alison couldn’t remember the last time Sybil was so quiet, but she just sat there waiting for her sister to talk.
“But that all changed when Harry died and Leo came back here to watch over me. He was no longer there for Harry first and for me second. He was now there for me only. I guess you could say that’s when I began to take a good look at Leo, the man, who was no longer Leo the orderly.” She smiled again. “And I liked what I saw.”
Kelly giggled and said, “I’ll bet him growing his hair out helped.”
This time Sarah laughed too. “Yes, I guess it helped me to see the difference in him now and really see him, the gentle, caring, and even emotional man that he is.”
Alison was surprised at that summation of Leo. “You must be really getting to know him then.”
“Yes, I guess I am.”
Sybil, who had remained uncharacteristically silent up to this point in the conversation, jumped up out of her chair and said, “I guess we need to get all this cleared up or Sarah will be stuck with a huge mess in her new house.”
All four women worked quietly for fifteen minutes before they finished cleaning the dining room and kitchen.
Once they did, they were about to join the men in the living ro
om when they heard a loud noise coming from there. They all rushed to the doorway and saw that it was just Leo laughing.
They all sensed that the timing to join the men wasn’t quite right yet, so they went back into the kitchen for a few more minutes.
When they did join the men, it was almost too calm in there. Alison went over to where Stan was sitting on one of the two sofas and sat next to him. Kelly sat on Grant’s lap. It was going to take some time for Alison to get used to that. Then Sarah went to the sofa that Leo was sitting on and sat next to him. Because not too many regular chairs would fit him, he tended to choose sofas or at least love seats. Thus, Sarah was sitting close to Leo even though she wasn’t all that far from the arm of the sofa.
Sarah looked at Leo and said, “Leo, did you tell Grant and Stan about your new job?”
When he shook his head, Alison was sure that was all Sarah would get out of him. But she was surprised when her mother nodded her head at the big man and he spoke up.
“Mr. Newcomb has offered me the position of company wide security manager for Newcomb Motors.”
Grant jumped out of his seat and Stan was right behind him. They both shook his hand and congratulated him.
Alison almost laughed aloud when her mother looked back at Leo and said, “See, that wasn’t so bad, was it?”
This situation was getting more and more interesting all the time. In fact, the whole family was getting mighty interesting. And shocker to her, Alison was liking it. She did like being part of a large family. For most of her life, it had just been her, Sybil, and Grant. This large happy family was truly great. It warmed her through and through.
Accepted Memories (Sycamore P.D. Series Book 2) Page 21
