Big Tex

by Alexis Lauren

  Willow picked up the box of jewelry and brought it downstairs with her after locking the safe back up. Brody and Maggie were cleaning out the fridge and taking out the garbage.

  "You guys don't have to do that, I'll have a maid come in and clean everything up." Willow said.

  "Oh, we're just getting rid of the perishables so that they don't spoil and make the house stink." Maggie said. Willow nodded her head and walked into the family room.

  She went over to her mother's mantle that had picture frames arranged on top of it. She ran her hand along the cool marble of the mantle, and took one of the pictures down. It was of her and her mother on Lauren's first day in Texas. The girls were standing in the middle of the room surrounded by boxes, looking overwhelmed. Willow didn't know it, but Sierra must have taken the picture.

  That picture was just taken a few months ago, and her mother was fine. Now she's dead. Willow started to cry. Her mom was so happy moving down here. Things were finally starting to go right in their lives, then this had to happen. Why! Why did her mom have to leave her. What was she going to do without a mother, what was she going to do without her mother. Lauren meant everything to Willow, and now Willow was alone.

  Just as that thought went through Willow's mind, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her from behind. Willow turned and buried her head in Brody's chest. He whispered soft, comforting words into her ear as Maggie walked up and rubbed her back.

  Willow realized right then that her mother didn't leave her all alone. She left her with the support of a wonderful fiancé and a caring mother-in-law-to-be. Willow knew that even though it hurt to lose her mother, that things were going to be ok. Willow was still alive, and she had a life to live. Life couldn't stop because she lost her mother, it was just the beginning of a new chapter in her life.

  Willow picked her head up and Brody wiped the tears from her cheeks. Maggie handed her a tissue so she could blow her nose. Willow looked up and thought 'Thank you Mom. Thank you for showing me I'm not alone.' The three of them left the house shortly after carrying the jewelry box, the picture of Lauren and Willow in the midst of boxes, and the dress for Lauren to wear.

  The wake was a somber affair, but Willow made it through. The funeral director told Willow that he had never seen so many flowers or so many people. A lot of people that Willow didn't know came to pay their respect.

  Willow looked around the room at the set up. Maggie had chosen a beautiful casket. She thought that if her mother was alive, she would have remarked at how it was just perfect for her. Next to the casket was a big board, scattered with pictures of Lauren over the years. A lot of them had Willow in them, with both Mom and daughter looking so happy. Willow had put a picture of her and her mom in the casket with Lauren, from when Lauren graduated high school. She also put a picture of Sierra, Lauren and her in there, from when Sierra and Willow graduated college. Along with the pictures was a stuffed toy Ladybug.

  Willow went up to the casket before everyone got there and knelt before her mom. She reached over to put her hand on her mother's and was shocked at how cold it was. It brought tears to Willow's eyes as she looked at her mother laying there, looking so peaceful, as if she was sleeping. Willow knelt there for a while, silently talking to her mother, until people started to show up. Willow kissed her fingertips and touched her mom's face.

  Throughout the rest of the night, Willow stood in a 'receiving line' with Sierra, Brody, and Micah. Everyone commented on how sorry they were and how much they all liked Lauren. By the end of the night, Willow was ready to drop. The wake had lasted 3 hours longer than it should have because there were so many people who came.

  Willow fell asleep in the car on the way home, and Brody carried her up the stairs to their bedroom. He took of her dress and put her pajamas on, then laid her on the bed. She didn't wake up during any of it.

  *****

  The next day at the funeral, Willow was grateful that there were chairs. She had stood so much at the wake, and she was so exhausted, that she didn't think she'd be able to stand anymore.

  The preacher spoke a few words about Lauren, and did the standard funeral speech. When it was time for the eulogy, Brody got up and went to the podium. He talked for a while about how Lauren was such a great influence on him, how she became his mentor when she took over the company. As he listed her accomplishments, he talked about how her biggest accomplishment was her daughter. As Brody spoke about how proud Lauren was of Willow, his voice cracked and he broke down into sobs. He looked into the crowd and said, "I'm sorry, this part is so hard for me. It's easy for me to talk about her work and distance myself from it, but when I talk about Willow, it's personal. She is the love of my life, and I couldn't imagine a day without her. Lauren made Willow into the woman that she is today, and though Lauren is gone, a large part of her lives on through Willow." Brody stopped for a minute and composed himself. "Before I knew that Willow was Lauren's daughter, Lauren always used to drag me into her office to tell me about her fabulous daughter that she was so proud of. She thought I would be perfect for her and kept saying that she was going to set me up with her. Little did any of us know, I was already dating her daughter." Everyone laughed softly. "But the one thing I will always remember is the sparkle in her eyes every time she mentioned Willow. They had a bond between them stronger than any other parent/child bond I've seen, and they truly were best friends. We're all going to miss her dearly, and she will always hold a place in our hearts." Brody looked up to the ceiling. "Lauren, I know you're up there watching over us right now. Just know that I'm going to take good care of your daughter for you." He said as more tears slipped from his eyes. He walked down from the podium and was met halfway by Willow, tears streaming down her face. She ran into his arms and held onto him for dear life as her sobs shook through her whole body. There wasn't a dry eye in the place.

  After the funeral, everyone congregated at Brody's house. Maggie had arranged to have a caterer bring food to the house. People were reminiscing about Lauren and congratulating Willow on her engagement. Brody didn't leave her side all night. He was there to get her food, drinks, and tissues. She didn't think she would have been able to get through the whole thing without Brody or Maggie. Sierra had been really distant and didn't want to talk to anyone. She didn't stay at the 'party' for very long, but instead went up to her and Micah's room to be alone.

  At the end of the night, after all of the guests had left, Brody went upstairs to run a bath for Willow. Maggie took Willow onto the back patio and talked to her alone for the first time since Lauren had passed. "Willow, I want you to know how truly sorry I am about your mom. I know we haven't known each other long, but you are a part of our family now. If you ever need anything, you let me know. I'm not trying to take over for your mother, because no one could ever replace her, but just know that I am here for you."

  "Maggie, I can't thank you enough for all that you've already done for me. I wouldn't have been able to get through all of this without your help. I hope you know how much it means to me. And your son…I can't thank you enough for him." Willow said with a small laugh. "You did a great job raising him and I don't know where I'd be without him. I love him so much, it's unreal." Willow said with a smile on her face.

  "Well, he loves you so much it's unreal." Brody said from behind her. Willow turned and smiled as he kissed her softly on the lips. "I see, I leave for two minutes and you start talking about me to my mother. Have you been asking for baby pictures again?" Brody joked.

  "Ha-ha, funny Country Boy. Actually, your mom and I were just talking about everything this week. But I wouldn't mind seeing the baby pictures." Willow laughed.

  "God, that's music to my ears!" Brody said. Willow gave him a questioning look as he picked her up into his arms. "I haven't heard that beautiful laugh in a while. I miss it."

  "I know. It felt pretty good to laugh too. Where would I be without the two of you?" Willow asked Maggie and Brody.

  "Well, without me, you'd probably be on t
he ground since I'm carrying you right now." He pretended he was going to drop her and her arms tightened around his neck. "Come on, your bath's ready."

  "Good night Maggie. Thank you again, for everything." Willow said.

  "You’re welcome dear. See you tomorrow." Maggie said as Brody carried Willow back into the house and up the stairs. She was so happy to know that Brody was so in love and that Willow loved him just as much. Her heart went out to Willow for losing her mother at such a young age. Maggie vowed to be there for the kids whenever they needed her.

  The next day, Brody and Micah went in to the office to see how everything was going. They hadn't been at the office since Monday, and they had closed the office Wednesday and Thursday in observance of Lauren's passing. Friday was going to be a short day for everyone, they had just opened it to let people finish up last minute things they were working on. Everything else could wait until next week.

  After Brody and Micah left, Willow went to find Sierra. She was laying on the couch in the game room, just staring at the ceiling. "Hey Sierra. Can we talk?" Willow asked.

  "Whatever." Sierra said.

  "Look, I know you're going through a difficult time, but so am I. I think we need each other, and we need to be there for each other."

  "Oh yeah, like you've been there for me the past couple of days?" Sierra asked.

  "Sierra, are you really that selfish? My mother just died. I know she was like a mother to you too, but come on. She was my flesh and blood, she was the only family I had left. Now she's gone. Do you think that's easy for me?"

  "Do you think it's easy for me? I don't have any family either Sierra. At least you've had Brody and Maggie there to help you. Who have I had?" Sierra yelled.

  "Correct me if I'm wrong, but haven't you had Micah. I seem to remember Brody trying to help you out too, before you bit his head off over something. I know you're hurting, but so am I. I don't want to fight with you about this. I'm trying to move on and live my life like I promised my mother I would, but I feel like you're not letting me." Willow told her.

  Sierra was silent. She looked over at Willow with tears in her eyes and sat up. She reached over and hugged Willow and said, "You're right. I'm so sorry. I know I've been being selfish, I just didn't know where I fit into all this. I know Lauren didn't want us to grieve over her, but it's just so hard."

  "Tell me about it. All I know is that we're all going to get through this together. You need to remember it's hard on the guys too. Mom came to mean a lot to them in the short time that she knew them, so comfort Micah a little too, okay?" Willow said.

  "I know. You're the best friend in the whole world, Willow. You know that?"

  "Are you drunk Sierra?" Willow joked.

  "No, but that sounds good for tonight, doesn't it?"

  "I don't know, maybe. What sounds good to me is a nice soak in the hot tub out back. Are you in?" Willow asked.

  Sierra nodded then ran up and put her bathing suit on. Willow did the same, then put some beer in a cooler and put it next to the hot tub. Willow and Sierra both climbed in and relaxed as soon as the hot water and jets hit their body. They stayed in the hot tub talking about the past until the guys got home. It made Sierra feel better to relive some of the memories from when they were younger.

  The girls got out of the hot tub and dried off and met the guys in the kitchen. Willow told Brody that she had called some movers in New York and they were going to pack their stuff up on Monday and drive it down here. She had also called an auction house to set up an estate sale for her mother's stuff, but that they had to go over and get everything they wanted out of her house before the auctioneers got there. They were going to meet a realtor the next day to put the house on the market.

  Micah spoke up then and asked how much Willow was going to sell the house for. "I really hadn't thought about it. I was going to wait to see what the realtor thought it was worth since I don't know what the property value is around here. I know what Mom paid for it, but she also made some improvements, so we need to factor those in. Why?" Willow asked.

  "Well, I was just thinking that Sierra and I might like to buy it." Micah said, looking at Sierra to see what she thought.

  "Wow, that's a great idea Micah. I hadn't even thought of it. We'll be able to get a really good price on it since I own half of it anyways, right Willow?" Sierra asked.

  "Yeah, that's true. It would be a perfect house for you two. Are you sure this is what you want to do?" Micah nodded. "Well, how about you give me half of what my mom paid for it to buy me out?" Willow suggested.

  "You've got a deal Willow." Micah said, then turned to Sierra and said, "And we've got our own house!" Sierra threw her arms around Micah and kissed him hard.

  Everyone started laughing when Sierra started to babble on and on about what she wanted to do to the house. Sierra was finally starting to become happy again.

  Later that day, the four of them went over to Lauren's house to start cleaning it out. They brought Stella and Maggie to help also. Stella and Maggie started in the kitchen, Brody and Micah went to the garage, and Willow and Sierra went to Lauren's bedroom.

  Willow and Sierra went through Lauren's clothes making four piles. One for Sierra, one for Willow, one for Goodwill, and one for garbage. All of Lauren's undergarments went immediately into the garbage pile. Some of her business suits and formal wear went into Willow's pile, while Sierra's pile remained empty.

  "None of this stuff fits me. Your mom was too little!" Sierra whined. She ended up finding some purses in the closet that she was crazy about and put those in her pile. Everything else went to Goodwill. Brody and Micah brought up boxes and filled them according to what pile they were in and labeled them. They carried them downstairs and put them in the garage.

  Willow started cleaning out the nightstand beside her mom's bed and screamed. Sierra ran over to her to see what happened, and Micah and Brody ran back up the stairs. Everyone looked at Willow and asked if she was ok. She reached into the drawer and pulled out a box of condoms. She held them up at the corner by two fingers, and held them as far from her body as she could. She had a look of disgust on her face that caused Micah, Brody and Sierra to burst out laughing.

  "I can't believe my mom was having sex and using condoms!" Willow shouted. She threw the condoms into a garbage bag and watched as everyone laughed at her. "Come on guys, you know that was gross. What if they were your mothers'?" Willow asked. Brody immediately stopped laughing and turned a little green. That caused Willow to start laughing which made Brody laugh again. Finally everyone regained their composure and went back to work. Willow opened the next drawer and swore.

  "What the fuck are you doing to me mother?" She said as she looked to the ceiling. "Someone get me some gloves or something." Willow said. Brody went over to her to see what was wrong now. He looked into the drawer and found a vibrator, a Playgirl, and motion lotion. As hard as he tried to keep a straight face, he just couldn't do it. He fell over laughing again as the others came over to see what it was.

  "Man, she's been dead for almost a week and she's still keeping us in stitches." Micah said. "I always knew your mom was a little freaky Willow." Micah teased. Willow smacked his arm.

  "Ok, anyone got gloves? I'm not touching that thing." Willow said.

  "Hey, do you think we can get something like that?" Brody asked Willow. "You wear me out sometimes." He joked. Willow's face got red and she punched his arm. "Ok, ok. Keep abusing me then!"

  Micah got an empty garbage bag and put it over his hand. He picked up the vibrator, the magazine, and motion lotion and threw them into another garbage bag.

  "Ok, I'm done going through these drawers. I don't think I can handle finding anything else." Willow said and walked into the bathroom.

  At the end of the night, all they had left was the study and the living room to go through. They also had to decide who got what furniture, and what was going to be sold. They decided to wait and go through the rest in the morning after a good night's sleep.<
br />
  The next day, Brody, Micah, Willow, and Sierra went back to Lauren's and finished cleaning. The divided up the furniture and set aside the stuff they were going to sell. Micah packed his truck with stuff to bring to Goodwill and Brody packed a trailer with stuff to bring back to his house for him and Willow. Little by little, Willow was beginning to feel at peace with her mother's death.

  Chapter 15 Always in my Heart

  Monday morning, everyone returned to work. No one was surprised when Willow announced that she and Sierra would be running the company, and that Brody was now a part owner. There were a few older architects that seemed resentful that people so young were now running the company. Willow sensed this and told everyone that if they were uncomfortable with the new management, then they were free to leave and would get their positive recommendations for new jobs. No one took Willow up on her offer.

  The rest of the day was spent with Willow, Sierra, and Brody redesigning the offices to give both Willow and Sierra new office space. Willow would need a big office because Brody would be sharing her office with her when he wasn't working in the Think Tank.

  They also divided up duties, giving Sierra most of the publicity type of work, since that was what she was most interested in. It would give Sierra the opportunity to go out and meet people, make new contacts, and travel. She felt that she would thrive in this atmosphere, and still do some interior design when time allowed.

  Willow would spend most of the time managing the employees and keeping the clients happy. She still wanted to design, but they all agreed that she would only do big projects and special requests.