For the Love of Suzanne
Page 26
She moved closer to them and kissed her son on the cheek. “This is your daddy,” she told him, unable to keep the happiness from her voice.
Little Cody looked at the elder Cody with a toothless smile and reached for his nose.
Cody cuddled him, already in love with him. He pulled Suzanne into the embrace and hugged his little family, kissing each of them then looked toward the sky. “Thank you,” he whispered.
EPILOGUE
Suzanne sat on the front step of the ranch house watching her two favorite men ride horses around the yard and reflecting on the last four years.
Having the elder Cody around with the younger Cody had almost been like having two babies at once in a lot of ways. She’d had to do some fast talking to get him into the car when she’d first picked him up in the desert. She had showed him how to use a seat belt and explained why the car was cool on the inside while it was so hot outside. She remembered the fear and discomfort his body language had exuded and had held his hand the whole way back to her house, telling him that it was all right.
When he’d entered the house, she went through the same explanations as to why the house was so much cooler than it was outside and gave him some water out of the tap. He’d gone to the faucet while she was putting some ice in his glass and had turned it on and off repeatedly, sticking his hands in it as it poured into the sink. “This is really cool,” he’d said with a wide smile.
She’d shown him how to use the shower and after his first one, he took one every day, sometimes twice. She’d explained the toilet and toilet paper, Kleenex, and showed him how to brush his teeth with toothpaste and a toothbrush. She’d brushed his hair with her brush after his first shower where she showed him how much shampoo to use and taught him about body wash and scrubbies.
She’d let him use a pair of Beau’s old blue jeans that she’d kept and an old t-shirt that had the Budweiser logo printed across the front before buying him his own clothes, socks and underwear.
She’d taught him to use the stove and oven and that certain things needed to be kept in the refrigerator so they wouldn’t spoil. She’d taught him how to use the vacuum cleaner and a broom and mop then showed him how to use the washer and dryer, which he took to despite her teasing that it was considered woman’s work.
He’d learned it all and very quickly and had told her it was easier in her world. But it hadn’t been so easy teaching him to drive a car. He hadn’t wanted to get behind the wheel. It had taken her weeks to get him to do it and when he finally did, he liked it and had fun with it.
He’d driven for a couple of months without a license, but now that he did have one and some money, he drove a new big black pickup. He’d bought Suzanne a new SUV of the same color and had grandly announced to her that they matched. “Well, sort of,” he’d added sheepishly, making her laugh and hug him.
She’d been astounded at the time, but his business was doing well and he didn’t spend money frivolously. His first job had been working for a livestock auctioneer where he learned the ropes and the speech pattern involved with it and then moved onto another auction company that sold everything. From there, he took over and got his own company going and had worked hard to do it.
Oh yeah. They got married six months after their reunion. It had been a process since Suzanne’s stepfather had somehow gotten Cody a fake birth certificate and had come up with a social security card for him. But once those were acquired, John Dillon, Beau’s father, was more than happy to perform the quiet ceremony in a small church close to their neighborhood with just Suzanne’s family there and Beau’s drunk mother, Darla, who thought she’d never get to see her grandson again despite everyone’s assurances that she would. She’d passed out in the pew.
Everyone was curious as to just where this Cody guy had come from and why he had no records of any kind anywhere. Both Suzanne and Cody knew if they were to tell the truth, they’d look like lunatics. But they did it anyway. Of course, everyone thought they were kidding …or crazy and they didn’t care.
“Wanna go for a ride?” Cody asked his wife with a playful wink and a smile as he sat on the back of a big black stallion that strongly resembled Titan, holding his sunglasses loosely between his fingers.
She smiled back at him. “I don’t think that’s a good idea right now.”
“Why?” he asked curiously and slipped off the horse with grace and ease. He lifted little Cody off the back of the horse with an affectionate pat to his back and set him on his feet. “Go get some water, partner,” he told him and watched the boy dash into the house. He sat beside his wife on the steps. “Is Emily sick?” he referred to their toddler daughter who was sleeping in the house.
She shook her head. “No. It’s because I had to do it with little Cody and I don’t want to do it again.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked with confusion.
She rested her hand on his denim-clad thigh and looked into his dark eyes. “Because, my dear husband, you are going to be a daddy again.”
His face lit up with joy. “I am?”
“Yes,” she said with a laugh.
“Oh, wow,” he said happily and hugged her tightly then kissed her on the cheek. “That’s great.”
“What’s so great, Dad?” Little Cody asked as he stepped onto the porch with a plastic cup of water.
He looked at the boy. “Your mom is going to have another baby. Isn’t that great?” he asked with excitement.
He nodded. “I guess so as long as this one leaves my stuff alone. Emily wrecks everything I make.”
Suzanne put her arm around him and pulled him onto her lap. “I know, honey, but she’s two. We have to cut her some slack sometimes.”
“I know,” he said simply. He set the cup down and looked at Cody. “Are we ready to go again, Dad?” he asked casually, sliding off Suzanne’s lap and heading to the bay mare that his dad had gotten him a long time ago.
“Give me a minute,” he said patiently. He leaned over to his wife and kissed her softly for a long moment.
She caught his long hair as it blew in her face and kissed him back, never tiring of his affections, kindness or patience. “Are you really happy?” she asked him in a soft voice.
“When I’m with you, I’m always happy,” he murmured, gazing into her blue eyes and kissed her again. “I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she told him sincerely kissing him.
“Come on, Dad,” Cody said impatiently.
He kissed her again and went to the boy. “You need to learn some patience, son,” he said casually, lifting him onto the mare.
“I know,” he muttered.
Cody went back to Suzanne and gave her another kiss before getting on the black stallion that reared a little behind the mare. “I am happy, honey. This is so cool,” he said happily, smiling with pride.
She smiled and gave him a wave as he followed their son out of the yard. She laughed a little when she heard him give a sharp yip and a whoop and watched him raise his arms toward the sky, a gesture she’d seen him do many times when he was thankful.
She was thankful, too.
About the Author
Kristi Hudecek-Ashwill is a wife and stay-at-home mom who loves reading and writing. She has ghostwritten a novel and writes reviews for the books she reads. These reviews have been posted on various websites. She is also part of Advanced Reader Copy groups (ARC) for several authors. She was first published in the statewide poetry anthology, Prairie Winds, in South Dakota. Her most recent publication was in the short story anthology, Holding Fire, in 2015.
She makes her home in Kansas where she lives with her husband, two sons, and their Pug, Percy. In addition to her reading and writing, she loves working with her family and friends running a time station for Race Across America (RAAM), where she meets ultra-cyclists and crews from all over the world. She quips: “Where do my kids get to play soccer with Brazilians and Italians plus meet some rock stars of the cycling world? In my front yard, of cour
se!”
Connect with Kristi on Twitter: @khudecek