Page 32 of Courageous Demands

And the little punk swore at her again before giving her the middle finger. She stared him down, unphased, and then leaned forward on the bench, glaring at him.

“That’s two,” she said softly, not blinking an eye. “You are barely eighteen years old, young man. You have a lot to learn, and one of them is respect. Your five-hundred-dollar fine is now a thousand – and,” she said loudly, holding up her finger as he opened his mouth. “Before you utter one more syllable, you should decide if you want to spend the next twenty-four hours in lock-up or not. I would shut my mouth if I were you.”

She was surprised to see him clamp his mouth closed, pressing his lips together in a firm line. Nodding, she looked at Mrs. Wexman.

“You are too kind to suggest having the door professionally cleaned, and if he ever acts out toward you again, I recommend going for the jugular. He is extremely lucky you are being so easy on him,” Willow said flatly. “And if we are done now…?”

No one said a word.

“Court adjourned.”

Getting to her feet, Willow stepped down from the bench and disappeared through a doorway in the distance, making her way quickly down the hallway toward her office. The last thing she wanted to do was be late to the unexpected hand in friendship from the woman who didn’t quite seem so friendly the last time she saw her – Mary Beckett, Alec’s mother.

Oh, she understood completely, and Mary had every right to be protective of her son, but the woman wasn’t exactly outgoing when Ruth Kendall was giving her ‘what for’ and telling her how to handle bridging the gap between her and Alec.

“But it worked,” she mumbled under her breath, digging her purse out of her desk drawer. “And now I’m going to look at flowers with his mother. Will wonders never cease?”

Rushing out the back door of the courthouse to the gated parking lot, she slipped into her vehicle quickly and glanced at her watch. As long as she didn’t hit traffic, she would be at the garden center just in the nick of time. Alec said he was going to start ‘turning a spot’ (whatever that meant) and told her to pick out her favorite colors, all shapes and sizes.

“I’ll handle the rest,” he said confidently, bragging over his tiramisu last night as they talked – really talked – like a couple of old friends. It had been so very nice, and maybe this was what was missing before in their relationship. They had been so naïve, so young, and so fascinated with each other that the ‘newness’ was overwhelming… but this was so different. It was almost like coming home, seeing his smile and the glint in his eyes.

“Should I be worried about my landscaping or lack of it?” she teased.

“Nahhhhh,” he chuckled. “Boys thrive in dirt, and I get paid to play with hoses, remember? Besides, this is kinda weirdly nice.”

“In what way?”

“Well, it’s like playing house and not having to clean up the mess.”

“Now, wait a second,” she laughed nervously. “You want to ‘play house’ with my home but skip the cleaning up portion? How is that fair?”

“Life ain’t fair… it just ‘is,’” he shrugged, but there was a tell-tale twitch to his lips that told her he was playing around with her – and she wasn’t about to argue. The sheer fact that they were sitting here together would be a miracle she would never forget.

Oh, she was fully aware of how badly things could have gone. It could have been anyone from the truck that entered her house, but Mrs. Kendall assured her she would make certain it was Alec. All of this had taken a lot of faith, trust, and hope – from the both of them. He had shown up for dinner, said his piece, and while it didn’t end the greatest way, they were still talking, but something had changed.

Something had happened from the moment he’d left her place after dinner and arrived the next day with the flowers. It was like someone had turned on a light, flipped a switch, or yanked back the curtains between them. A spotlight had shown on the perceived ‘wrongs,’ the miscommunication, and both fighters had laid down arms. Yeah, things weren’t perfect, but it was a start.

Pulling up to the garden center, Willow saw Alec’s mother getting out of her vehicle and waved politely. Mentally, she shoved the ball of anxiety down and put a bright smile on her face but braced herself at the same time. There was no telling what Alec had told his mother, no guessing at how she was about to be received, and however this went, this was his mom. She was going to befriend this woman come hell or high water.

“Hi, Mrs. Beckett,” she began politely – and as Mary walked over toward her, her face not giving away anything, and she snatched Willow - hugged her tightly, squeezing a breathless grunt from the shocked woman. She was so stunned, so shocked to the core at the unexpected sign of affection, that she just stood there, unsure what to say or do.

Mary backed away and looked at her, actually wiping her eyes and looking so happy that Willow took a second to glance behind her, wondering if the woman meant to hug someone else and made a mistake.

“Uh, hi?” she said weakly, and Mary smiled.

“Sorry. I’m just a little shocked and overwhelmed. I don’t know what happened, nor do I want to know, but I’ve never had my son ask for flowers, help with anything, or seen him so relaxed in years.”

“Really?”

“It’s like my boy is back… and I can’t thank you enough,” Mary chuckled nervously. “I know I was really upset before – and I’d like to apologize. Now, tell me what is going on and why on earth my son is asking to start a flower garden at your house.”

“What did Alec tell you?” Willow asked, allowing the woman to pull her forward into the gravel lot where several greenhouses were. There were tables and tables full of blooming flowers and various ground cover plants. Several containers were lined up, anywhere from small pots to massive trees and bushes, in rows. There were tables laden with paper bags and boxes of bulbs in the distance. Everything smelled so good, and the bees were dancing from flower to flower as Mary spoke to her.

“Not a whole lot except that he wanted a cutting garden like I have and…” Mary’s face crumbled slightly as her lips pressed together, taking a deep breath to pull herself together. “Alec’s dad did that, you know? I was so angry because he had forgotten our wedding anniversary. The next thing I knew, that infernal man was digging up a two-foot-wide row that ran the entire length of the fence.”

Willow started, looking at Mary in surprise.

“Brian, Alec’s father, said he was never going to forgive himself for that because I meant the world to him,” Mary said thickly, swallowing as her eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “He said that I would always have flowers from him, no matter what… and I still do.”

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