Page 17 of Aaron
“He sounds like a nice person to work for.”Mac told LouCinda that she had no idea what kind of stuff he pulled all the time.“Well, you don’t have to work for him anymore.He took his retirement.Not without a fuss, but he’s now retired from the FBI.Franklin got a call from someone yesterday who told him he was no longer going to be a threat to work for or have a job.”
“That’s wonderful news.I wasn’t sure I was going to go back anyway, not after the way he treated me in the hospital, but it’s good to know that no one else has to put up with his bullshit.”Mac looked at Aaron when he cleared his throat.“You called his boss yesterday, didn’t you?I mean, you said you were, so I’m assuming that you did.”
“I called John to tell him what he said to you and that I didn’t much like it.He said that he’d talk to him, and I guess he figured out that he wasn’t a great guy to have around.I know that some of the things that I learned about him were scary.Not in a national security sort of way, but just to have a man in a profession like he’s in to be spouting off the things that he was.”She thanked him.“No need for that.I would have done it for anyone.But I’m glad that I could help you out.”
After Aaron left, she had a sandwich as well.It was really good, tuna fish on rye, and she loved how cold the water was.But after being brought home, all she could think about was a nap.And she snuggled down in the blankets she was under and closed her eyes.She was asleep in no time, she thought.
When she woke up, she was afraid that she’d slept until dinner.But the maid who came in to clear away some of the blankets that she had that had fallen to the floor told her that there was a huge storm coming and that they were bracing for it.She loved to be out on a porch when a storm came into the area where she was, and was hoping that she could see the weather changing before dinner time.Then she remembered that Aaron was going to be coming home about then, and she got excited for that too.
She and Aaron had been talking a great deal about the life they planned to have.They talked about everything from what sort of house they wanted to how many children they wished to have.She didn’t think that four was all that many; he had five brothers, and she had two, so they were kind of thinking someplace in the middle.
She’d been talking to him about her job, too.How she loved being an agent in name, but she’d never gotten to use any of her training.While she knew that research was needed, she wanted to go out and try her hand at bringing in the bad guys.She didn’t sign on for being a coffee maker either, but that was something that she and the other women in their department did all the time for the men who worked there.She wanted to do something that gave her an edge in life and something she could do that would make her proud of herself.Something that made a difference in someone’s life.
When LouCinda came up to talk to her around three, she had a tea set brought up with a bottle of water for her.They had cheese and crackers with a little ham and turkey with their drinks, and it was a good thing to have that was light for luncheon.She was looking forward to dinner too, as she had been told they were having chili for the meal with cornbread and sliced tomatoes.
“Aaron has asked to spend the night here, and I have no trouble with that if you don’t mind.”She said that they’d been talking about it, but he did want to ask her first.“Yes, that was nice of him.I suppose you’ll be sleeping in the same bed too.Again, I have no trouble with that, but I do want towarn you that there are others who might think that it’s wrong because you’ve only just met.I love it, to be honest with you.Knowing that my son has finally found someone makes me beyond happy.I just hope that now that it’s started, the other boys will find someone to love them as well.It’s all I’ve ever wanted for my boys.”
“We never discussed sleeping together here.But we did talk about him staying here while we look for a house.”She said that they were going with them to hunt down a home.“That would be wonderful.I already feel like I know you both so well.Your husband is one of the nicest men that I’ve ever met, and Reagan is a great doctor.”
“I think that they’re going into practice together.However, I think that Franklin is going to retire soon after.It’s become too much, and we want to travel and go on cruises and such.We want to have some fun now that the boys are all grown.Not that they’ve not been grown for a while, but we wanted to see them established.”LouCinda said she wasn’t making any sense.“I know I get excited about the boys and what their lives are going to be.I’m so happy for you and Aaron getting together.It’s going to be nice to have other women around since you came into the family.”
“I’ve never had a real family before.After my parents divorced, it was just me and my mom for a long time.I had my brothers, but they were usually out doing things, and I never got along with my dad.For that matter, I didn’t get along with my brothers either, but I learned to avoid them.They do me too for the most part.”She said she’d not have to worry about them hurting her again if that’s what she meant.“It is and Aaron said the same thing.That I was under his protection.I thought that I’d not like being that way, held under someone’s protection, but with him, it just feels right.”
When LouCinda said that she had to go to the hairdresser, she left her with the rest of the luncheon.She was told that someone would come up and get it later.How she wanted to take it to the kitchen and have a look around.She’d missed all of the house being carried in on a gurney and wanted to explore.She’d been told by Aaron that it was a beautiful home and that his parents had lived there for nearly forty years.Well before he’d been born.
At a little after three-thirty, someone came to get the tray.She was polite and everything, but she had a feeling that she had more important things to do other than to talk small talk with a stranger.It was all right, she supposed.But Mac was bored.She had a television, but wasn’t into daytime shows, and game shows drove her insane with all the fake excitement from people.Since she didn’t want to whine, she decided to take another nap and be rested when Aaron came home at five-thirty.She’d been making a mental list of things that she wanted to ask him about and to tell him things that would pop into her head, like her job.
She wanted to work.Figuring out what she wanted to do was something that she didn’t know.She could work for the police department if that wouldn’t be too much for her and Aaron to be working for the same company.Or she thought that she could work at the school as a sub.Teachers always needed a break, and she had enough education that she could teach something like science or math.She’d minored in elementary education and thought that she’d enjoy working with kids rather than adults who treated her like dirt.
Not that she thought kids were all that different sometimes.They could be cruel and mean as well.But she thought that after working with Gravestone and his way of treating her, she could handle just about anything thrown at her.At least she’d have a better chance of going outside at playtime.
~*~
Aaron could tell that Mac was bored.As soon as he walked in the door, she started in on him about how her day had been.After taking a couple of naps, she was cranky and sour, and he wanted to point that out to her but didn’t.She seemed like she would tear his head off if he said one cross word to her.And he liked his head right where it was on top of his neck.
When she seemed to calm down, he was glad that she was happy again, and he told her how his day had gone.He was off for the next two days, and they were going to go house hunting with his parents.He wasn’t sure why they wanted to go, but he was all right with spending time with them.He loved his mom and dad.
Taking her down to supper, he realized how heavy the cast really was.Dad was going to remove it and put her in a boot so that people wouldn’t talk, but he wondered how she got around at all with it on.After the boot, she’d be able to walk on it like nothing happened to her.He would be glad for her so that she could go outside, something he knew she missed while convalescing at his parents’ home.
After taking an X-ray of her foot and declaring her healed, Dad had the cast off in less than ten minutes, and she was fitted with a boot in less time than that.She walked around the office that Dad had in one of the many buildings on their land, and he could tell that she was happy with it.He was, too.
After dinner, they went to the living room and talked about the upcoming town parade.It was the kick-off to the melon festival that was held yearly, and it was a lot of fun too.There were lawn mower races and a contest for who had the biggest melon.Face painting as well as fishing contests, as it was so close to the Muskingum River.His favorite was the kettle corn that they had, and he’d get a couple of bags of it to save for the fall when there were football games going on.They sold it at the concession stand, too.
“You should see the mower contests, Mac.People come from all around with their souped-up mowers to try to pull the most weight.They have to mow the lawn while they’re at it.You should see them.They paint them in different colors and have décor on them that makes you know whose is who.”
“Dad usually does the biggest melon contest, not as a participant but as the judge.People are very competitive about it, too.Some people will grow several of them and weigh them in daily.I don’t know what they do to make them the biggest, but it’s a blast to see who wins.Dad is fair, and they know it, so ask him to do it yearly.”Mac asked if his dad had ever grown the biggest.“No, that would make it unfair to the other people.Melons don’t get all that big, so it’s really a close contest with a tenth of an ounce deciding the winner.”
“There are other vegetables there as well.Last year, they had eggplants.The year before that, they had cauliflower, and who grew the biggest heads.That was a great deal of fun, but there are always melons there.”She asked if there were any crafters.“Oh yes, lots of those.They bring in their wares and sell them to everyone.I think it was last year that I bought windchimes for the house.They were made of clay and sounded just perfect for the outdoors.”
“And then you like football?”Mac laughed at him when he said yes fairly loudly.“Good to know.I like it too, but mostly the college kind.I didn’t know anyone on the team around where I was living, and didn’t know who to root for, so I didn’t go to those games.And I rarely watch professional football.I don’t know why, but I just don’t.”
“We have boxed seats for the Browns.We go about four or five times a year to their home games.Less for the out of state ones.Our favorite matchup is the Browns vs the Bengals.Of course, you understand why.”She said she got it and laughed.“I don’t know why we don’t root for the Bengals more often, but we started with the Browns and stick with them.They don’t win all that much, but we certainly do enjoy watching them.”
It was late when they went up to bed.Nearly midnight.Once she was in her bed, Dad had told her that she could take the boot off and sleep with it off.Once she had it off, she was walking around the room and enjoying that very much.He watched her carefully to make sure she didn’t hurt herself again, but he was glad that she was healed up so that she could have some fun.
“I know I have to wear the boot tomorrow when we go house hunting, but this is so nice.And so light weight.”Aaron told her that he could tell she was having fun.“You’ve no idea how much fun this is.And tomorrow will be fun as well.I’ve never house hunted before, so that will be an experience.”
“Mom said that they wanted to go with us to see the town again.They don’t get out as much as they used to.No reason for it, but they tend to stay home or go to the grandparents’ home.Last year they had Christmas at my grandparents’ home, and it was nice, but I do love Christmases at the family home.It’s more homey to me.”She said that she could understand that.Also, that she’d not put up a tree in the last five or so years.“I don’t know what I’d do without a tree being put up.Even in my tiny apartment, I put one up.Not a big one, but enough where I can put a few gifts under it to take to Momand Dad’s house.”
