Page 62 of For the Love of the Lawyer

"I can promise my parents will love both of you. I know they're anxious to meet the two of you.” Jon made the turn onto SR-630 to get to the farm.

"Do they know all about me? I'm sure most folks would love Meggie, but I'm a juvenile delinquent. Not many folks like to havemykind around.” Terrence looked out the front window of the two-door Mercedes. He rarely addressed Jon by looking into his eyes, and Jon knew that had to change.

The “scared straight” thing was coming up pretty quick, and Jon was very concerned about it. On the outside, Terrence gave the impression he wasn’t afraid of anything, but Jon had researched the program, and it scared the shit out ofhim.He didn't want to frighten the kid that way. He wanted to show him love and family and make him want for better things. Scaring the hell out of the teen didn't seem like a good road to rehabilitation.

Jon swallowed, knowing his answer was important. "Of course, they know about you, Terry. My dad is my boss, actually. He runs the firm where I work, and not much slips by him. He knows all about both of you, and my mom's been ready to meet you since the day I brought you home. I'll apologize for her behavior in advance.” Jon grinned, hoping to get some positive emotions from the boy.

There were none.

With an exasperated sigh, Jon turned the car into the driveway of his parents' farm, surprised to see a Circle C truck and small trailer on the driveway near the barn.

"Damn. This ain't like any farm I ever saw. This joint is more like a mansion. Your folks must be loaded," Terry said, his voice filled with wonder.

Without responding, Jon parked in the empty spot under a large carport off the side porch. He flipped the seat to get Megan from her booster in the back as Terrence let himself out on the other side. Jon walked around the side of the car, hearing a lot of chatter from the barn. "Well, let's go see what's going on. Sounds like all the activity is in the barn.” The trio headed toward the large brick building with the red tin roof.

Megan grabbed his face and turned his head. "Fix my hair, please?" Jon looked at her to see her curls were wild. He had only learned how to wash and condition her unruly hair. He could pull it back into a ponytail if she asked, but anything else was out of his purview.

"Sweetie, I can pull it back into a ponytail, but…"

"Put her down. I can braid it," Terrence told him. He did as the boy asked, and he was surprised how quickly he'd been able to braid it and wrap a rubber band around the end that hung down her back.

Jon turned to him and smiled. "How'd you learn to do that?"

"I watched my granny braid hair for years.” Jon saw the boy had said more than he’d intended, but it was something. Not enough to find his family, but another piece of the puzzle.

Megan pulled on his shorts and when he looked down, she smiled. "Can I look at myself in your phone?" Jon pulled up the camera app and turned it so she could see her hair, capturing her smile in a picture.

After she was satisfied, she took Terry's hand. "Ready?"

He nodded, and the two of them led the way to the barn. When they were inside, Megan broke free from Terry and made a sprint for Mickey, who was talking to Jon's parents. "I missedyou!" Mickey scooped her up into his arms and hugged her.

Jon could see the tears in his mother's eyes as she watched Mickey hugging Megan, and he knew it was because she’d given up hoping he'd have any semblance of a family of his own. As he looked around the barn that day, he realized he had a perfect one.

Maybe it wasn't greeting card fashion, but it was just right for him. He had a man who loved him and wasn't ready to hotfoot it down an aisle. He had a daughter who had challenges he was ready to take on right alongside her, and he had a son who wasn't sure of him but hadn't rejected him totally. That was okay. He had patience, and he'd work to help Megan grow up with love and security as the family weathered the storms of her development together.

Jon also knew he and Mickey would give Terrence the security he'd need to grow into a great man. Jon was ready to put in the time with all three members of his new family because he knew the reward would be magnificent.

"He was in the choir in school because he has a very nice voice, though you can't get him to sing anymore.” Allison Granger Wells was holding court.

Mickey and Terrence were sitting at the kitchen counter with her while Jon was responding to work emails. As far as Jon knew, his dad and Megan were watching a movie in the family room.

"You mean he sang in public?" Mickey was cutting up a loaf of challah bread for Allison. The afternoon had been incredible, especially when Megan and Terry were introduced to Josie, thedonkey, owned by Ryan Collins, and Kennedy, a very gentle, bay gelding Ally had bought from a neighbor.

The kids had ridden all afternoon, Mick riding Hercules to accompany them, and they'd enjoyed themselves very much. Jon had stayed behind to explain the intricacies of the situation to his parents—mostly his mother—who hugged him tightly but really didn't say much. He knew they were stewing, and that was fine. It was how they dealt with new situations.

Ally laughed at Mickey's question. "I mean he stood in front of the whole school and sang his sweet little heart out. Unfortunately, he didn't realize he'd not zipped his pants from his last visit to the boys' room, and his shirttail was sticking out the gap.

"People tried to be respectful, but the more passionately he sang the song, the more they laughed. Finally, the choir director stopped and told him to zip his pants. God bless him, he turned his back, zipped up, and turned back to the audience, finishing the song. I don't think I've been prouder in my life," Ally gushed as she whisked eggs for a casserole for breakfast the next morning. Ursula was out of town that weekend, so Ally was doing all the cooking, though Mickey had offered to help her.

Not surprisingly, Terrence was a thirteen-year-old boy, and the story was too funny to ignore, so he cracked up, finally falling off the stool onto the floor. Before Jon had a chance to protest, his father and Megan walked into the kitchen. "Which story?" he asked Ally.

"The zipper story.”

Of course, his father laughed as he always did, which pissed off Jon to no end.Absolutely no respect!

"We watcheded Mermaid.Papa Ham said he never see’d it, so we watched it. Now we're gonna watch baseball. We come to get a drink.” Jon laughed because Megan had quickly become very comfortable with his parents, and it was truly joyous to watch.

"How about you and Terry come with me to put the horses to bed? Josie might like you to tell her a story while we get her settled in her new stall.” Mickey’s warm smile touched Jon’s heart.

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