The First Gardener (13 page)

Gray laughed and pushed himself off the bed. “First, you’d better never tell Gigi she’s old, or she’ll make you go outside and pull your own switch from her willow tree. And second, there isn’t another man in this town who’s going out with my wife tonight when she’s wearing that green dress of hers.” He stuck his chest out. “I’m the only specimen she can handle anyway. So I will force myself to wear my tuxes and make sure no other man gets my wife’s attention.”

Maddie snickered. “Daddy’s jealous, Mommy.”

Mackenzie touched her forehead to Maddie’s. “I think we got him, didn’t we?”

“Yep.” Maddie grinned. “We got him.”

Mackenzie stood too and headed for her closet. She heard the thump of Maddie’s feet as they hit the floor and then the pounding as they barreled into the closet behind her.

“Let me watch you get fancy, Mommy. I want to see your dress.”

Together Mackenzie and Maddie picked out everything for that evening—dress, lingerie, jewelry, shoes. And when every item was in place on Mackenzie’s delicate frame, they did a spin around the closet and a final study in the mirror. Maddie slipped a tiny hand inside hers. “You look beautiful, Mommy. Just beautiful.”

“Well, you helped me. I wouldn’t look like this without you.”

Gray walked into the room, and Mackenzie couldn’t help but let out a slight gasp. He looked so handsome. He studied her with his eyes too—something that used to make her uncomfortable when they were newly married. Now, she loved knowing that her man was taking her in, every inch of her. It was a that’s-my-girl kind of look—one that made her feel known and appreciated.

He kissed her softly on the head. “You’ll blow them away, babe.” Then he knelt in front of Maddie. “You helped make Mommy this beautiful tonight, Maddie lady?”

“Yep. Sure did.”

“Then you did a fantastic job,” he said, hugging her close. Then he stood. “And now it’s time for me to escort your beautiful mommy to this fancy shindig.”

They walked out into the bedroom just as Eugenia knocked on the door. “Well, have mercy, Hannah,” she exclaimed when they opened it. “Don’t you two look like a stunning pair this evening.”

“They look handsome, don’t they, Gigi?”

Eugenia gave her gaze to Maddie. “They sure do, Madeline. Now, are you ready to go hang out with Gigi for the evening? We’ve got us some trouble to stir up.”

“Mother,” Mackenzie warned, “be good.”

“What do you mean, good?” Eugenia huffed. “We are going to the playroom, and Oliver is coming over to join us in a game of bridge against me and Burt.”

“Bridge?” Gray questioned.

“We can whoop her, Daddy!”

“You’ve taught my child how to play bridge?”

She shrugged. “It could be worse. I could have taught her how to play poker.”

“Burt’s coming?” Mackenzie inquired.

Eugenia puffed her chest and lifted her chin. “You want me to force Oliver and Madeline to spend the evening with Sandra or Berlyn?”

“We thank you for that.” Gray walked over to the bed and lifted Sophie and Lola from it. “And y’all get to watch these characters tonight too.”

Eugenia eyed the two things hanging from his hands as if they were aliens. “Doll babies I do.” She snatched Lola from his hand. “Dogs I don’t. I told you this when you asked me earlier.”

Maddie reached up and took Sophie from her daddy’s hands. “This is Sophie,” she said, sticking the ball of fur in Eugenia’s face. Her grandmother jerked back about the same time Sophie did. Mackenzie thought she might have heard the puppy growl.

“Does it poop?” Eugenia asked.

Maddie laughed. “All dogs go poop, Gigi. Means they’re healthy, Mommy says. That’s what she tells me when I poop.”

“Well, I don’t do dog poop.”

“I’ll clean it up if it goes poop.”

This uplifting conversation was interrupted by the ringing of their bedroom phone. Gray left them to answer it.

“Mother, thank you for watching Maddie. And for watching Sophie.” She held up a hand before Eugenia could speak. “Yes, your protest was noted, but we don’t really have a choice. So, well . . . just be good.”

Eugenia looked at Maddie and gave her a sly smile. Maddie giggled. “We will be
so
good. By the way, did you know Berlyn’s boy finally got married?”

“Walter? Really? He’s fifty years old, isn’t he?”

“Yep.” She laughed. “I told Sandra there was hope for her yet.”

“When did this happen?”

“According to Berlyn, one very bad day. She can’t stand his new wife. Says she dated the girl’s third cousin once, and that should only happen in Kentucky.”

Mackenzie shook her head. “Shoo, Mother.” She pushed the two of them out of the bedroom and down the hall.

“Don’t put that dog near me, Madeline.”

Maddie giggled at her grandmother as she skipped toward her playroom.

Mackenzie walked through the bedroom. Gray was still on the phone, obviously talking to someone from the nursing home. She ached for her husband. His father had been as captivating as he was just a few years ago, but Alzheimer’s had taken its toll. Hardly any pieces of the man remained. Gray had one older brother who lived in Knoxville, but they hardly ever heard from him—another situation that broke her heart.

Gray hung up the phone and joined her.

“You okay, babe?” she asked.

“Yeah. I’m okay. They had to sedate him tonight. Said he was screaming and talking about the war one minute and crying over Mom the next.”

“Is he sleeping now?”

“They said he’s settled.” He let out a heavy sigh and held out his arm. “Now, let’s go pretend we own the place.”

Chapter 13

The door opened as the unknown heroes and the self-declared heroes of Tennessee made their way toward the governor’s mansion. Average folks who had simply desired to help their neighbors lined up with senators and representatives to shake hands with the governor and his wife. Behind them, shouts and chanting marred the summer evening.

“Sounds like a pretty large crowd of protesters,” Mackenzie said to Gray as they took their places by the stairs.

“Yeah, we expected this. The media has been talking about it all week. If there hadn’t been so much coverage, I doubt there would be as many out there.”

“Do you know how many are there?” She pressed her lips together as she waited for the first person to enter.

“About a hundred, I think.”

“Security pretty tight?” Her anxiety was evident. There had been only a few protests since they moved into the mansion.

“Sure, babe. It’s just people sharing their frustration. I’d go picket with them if I could. In fact, if any are still out there after dinner, I’ll probably go talk with them.”

They ended their conversation abruptly when the first guests reached them.

They were still meeting and greeting thirty minutes later, when Speaker Johnson inserted himself in front of Gray. “You do hear them out there, don’t you?”

Gray studied the aging legislator’s sharp facial angles. The man’s voice was sharp too, even though he whispered.

“Hard to ignore them, wouldn’t you say, Norm?”

“We’re going to encourage the VRA if you don’t stop this.”

“We?”

“Marcus Newman. He’s our new boy.”

Kurt had been right. Marcus was too pretty to be trusted. “Is that who helped you try to railroad the TEA bill today? How’d that work out for you, Norm? I honestly thought your word was your word when you gave it the other day. I had no idea I needed to be looking for the knife in my back.”

“Not all teachers were happy.”

“Nor were all the unions.”

“Well, releasing prisoners is not going to solve our budget crisis.”

Gray placed his hand on the man’s shoulder. “Neither is the six million dollars in pork barrel spending projects you’ve racked up over the last twenty years. So I think what we’re doing here is partially having to make up for your lack of self-control and long-term foresight. Will you share that with the Victims’ Rights Association too?”

The representative shook off Gray’s hand. “You need me on your side, Governor.”

“I want you on my side, Norm. But I won’t let you blackmail me to get you there.”

He could feel Mack bristling and heard her mumble beneath her breath. She couldn’t stand it when someone other than her challenged him. But her breathing softened at the arrival of the next guest. And for the remaining thirty minutes, no other politicians used the receiving line as their opportunity for sparring.

Gray walked into the closet and removed his bow tie. Mack sat on her ottoman, dress still on, legs stretched out in front of her. Her palms rested behind her, and a beautiful smile was on her face. Leaning beside her was a surprise gift he had presented her at the banquet, a black-and-white matted photo of a mud-encrusted Mack working in one of the worst-hit neighborhoods after the flood. The mat had been signed by all the residents of the neighborhood.

“You look relaxed.” He slid his bow tie across the gold tie hanger on the wall.

“Yep,” she said.

He removed his coat and hung it up. “Did I embarrass you?”

“Yep.”

He raised his eyebrows and slipped off his shoes. “I did?”

“You did. But I loved your words. They were so thoughtful. You made each person feel like they were the only one in the room tonight. Including me. I was so proud of you.”

He took off his socks and let his bare feet walk across the thick, cream-colored damask print carpet. He knelt in front of her and leaned over to kiss her. “Thanks.”

“Meant it.”

“I know.” He stood and took off the rest of his clothes while she sat there. He changed into running shorts and a T-shirt and noticed she hadn’t even begun to move. “I’m going to check on Maddie and any remaining protesters. In that order. Are you going to sleep in your dress?” he asked as he put on flip-flops.

“I may.” She smiled.

“Be back in a minute.” He walked down the hall and opened Maddie’s door. Her Cinderella night-light cast a soft pink glow across her pink toile wallpaper and her angelic face. But that was all that was soft in the room, because Eugenia had crawled into the other twin bed and was snoring like a jackhammer. He studied her for a minute, trying to figure out how that sound was even coming out of her. He finally gave up and walked over to Maddie’s bed. Lola was nestled underneath her arm and Sophie was curled up on the other side.

He stood there for a long time, looking, feeling a strange sadness. Did every father feel this when his little girl was growing up, this need to freeze time, to memorize her face? He knelt by her and prayed a quick prayer, brushed a black lock from the side of her face, and kissed her gently.

Eugenia let out a noise that he was certain would wake Maddie. She never stirred. Gray chuckled to himself as he picked up Sophie and headed downstairs.

A few protesters remained outside, so one of his security officers escorted him to the end of the driveway. He and Sophie spent thirty minutes listening to their concerns and offering his understanding; then he told them to head home. He assured them that they had done their job tonight and he had heard them. And he had. He honestly was as frustrated as they were over the whole situation.

When he finally made it back to their bedroom, Mack was nowhere to be found. He set Sophie down on the floor, and the puppy headed straight for the closet. Gray found Mack there sound asleep, still on her ottoman and still in her dress. Sophie licked her toes. Gray nudged her. “Come on, Mack. You need to get to bed.”

Mack rubbed her eyes and stood up slowly. “Okay,” she slurred and headed to her bathroom sink.

“Um, you might want to take the dress off before you brush your teeth.”

She lifted her hand as if to say she heard him, then plodded back to the closet. When they finally climbed into the bed, he heard Sophie whine in her kennel.

He let out a loud exhale. He was too tired for this. He walked to the kennel to see her nose pressed hard against the black grate. “Don’t look at me like that,” he scolded.

She cocked her head and whimpered again.

He opened the kennel door. “If you tell anyone I did this, I will deny it.” He lay down. Sophie nestled under his arm. And for the first time he caught a hint of her puppy breath.

That was when he knew.