Mended Fences: Will love and kindness be able to mend the fences broken by intolerance? (Mended Hearts Book 2)

by Sarah Markel

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  “Mom, have you seen my brain?” Zane hollered down to Alex. “It’s in the refrigerator.” She replied, chuckling as she poured the last bag of candy into the large plastic cauldron. As soon as the family had arrived home that evening, the mad dash to get ready had begun. Zane and his best friend Colton had hurried upstairs to help each other get dressed. Kelly had taken Dej up to help the child with her costume while Alex had set about making sure that the decorations were all ready to go. After hauling the cauldron out onto the porch, she took a moment to inspect her handiwork. The floating ghosts that were hung in the willow tree, made of balloons and sheets dyed with glow-in-the-dark ink, provided a spooky sight as the tendrils of the tree swayed in the light breeze. Scattered around the yard were various body parts and head stones, along with a few motion activated spiders the size of small dogs. Smiling at the thought of the night ahead, Alex jumped a bit when the hooded figure sitting in the porch chair spoke. “Thanks for letting me do this, Alex. Alan refuses to let me do it at our house.” The man said, pulling back his hood. Terry, who lived next door with his husband, Alan, had jumped at the chance to scare the crap out of the teenagers in the neighborhood. Nodding, Alex handed the man his scythe and went back inside to put on her costume.

  “Okay, is everyone ready?” Alex asked an hour later. Receiving a collective “yes” from the seven children, she instructed them all to line up in front of the door. Angie and Steve had brought the children over a little while earlier, so that Alex and Kelly could help with the costumes. Looking over each child to make sure they had everything they needed, she nodded approvingly. After several months of debate, Zane, Colton, and Angie’s two oldest boys, Jaxon and Raider, had all come to an agreement that they would dress as zombies. Standing next to each other, the four boys looked as if they had returned from the grave with very healthy appetites. Thanks to Alan’s incredible confectionary abilities, each of the four boys had a brain made out of cherry gummy candy to carry around with them. Moving on to the other three, Alex bent down to adjust Tommy’s policeman’s cap and pat the boy on the shoulder. Once she had finished with the boy, she stopped in front of Dej and Anya and placed her hands on her hips. “Now what in the world are you two supposed to be?” she asked. The two girls had previously decided to go as fairies, but had changed their minds at the last minute. Now, the two girls each wore a sleeveless flannel button down shirt, a pair of jeans, hiking boots, and had their hair styled into a faux mullet. Giggling, neither girl gave her an answer. “They’re lesbians.” Angie said as she came down the stairs in her Wonder Woman costume. Raising her eyebrow, Alex addressed her twin “Really? You do know that we don’t really look like that, right?” With a smug smirk, Angie nodded. “Angie thought it would be funny.” Steve said as he walked in from the kitchen, adjusting his Batman mask. Shaking her head, Alex went to the bottom of the stairs and called up to Kelly.

  “Babe, come on! We’re all waiting on you.” After double checking her costume to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything, Alex looked up just in time to gasp. Coming down the stairs, Kelly smiled to herself when she heard Alex’s sharp intake. This year for Halloween, Kelly had gone out of her comfort zone and chosen a costume that showed off her assets. Her short black and purple skirt showed off her long, toned legs and accentuated her fantastic ass. Her top, a matching black leather with purple lace, strapless corset-style top, was tight enough to show off her trim waist and flat stomach, but still had plenty of room for her ample bosom to be comfortable. With Angie’s help, she had managed to get her thigh-length black curls into a rib-cage braid that complimented her outfit. As a last minute addition, she had attached custom fitted vampire fangs to her eye teeth and smiled at her appearance. Once she had zipped her feet into the knee high pleather stiletto boots and finished applying her makeup, she had made her way downstairs.

  “Good Lord babe, is that you?” Alex asked breathlessly when the woman reached the bottom step. Nodding, Kelly felt herself blush as everyone stared. “Holy shit, Kelly. I think you just turned me gay.” Angie said with awe. While everyone laughed, Alex took Kelly into her arms and looked her over thoroughly. “Do you like it?” Kelly asked. With a slow nod, Alex replied “I could die a happy woman if you agreed to wear this thing every day.” With a snort, Kelly playfully slapped Alex’s shoulder, before taking the woman’s hand. “Let’s get our trick or treat on!” she said, pulling Alex toward the door. After the group flooded out of the house and into the yard, Alex laid out the plan to everyone. “We’re going to start with Alan and Terry’s house and work in a straight line. When we get to Colton’s house, you kids are going to stay with Angie and Steve and finish our neighborhood before you go on to theirs. Everyone is to stay where the adults can see you and you three are not to eat anything out of your bags until it has been checked. Am I clear?” Once she had gotten an acknowledgement from Colton, Zane, and Dej, the group set off on their quest for candy.

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  When the group reached Colton’s house an hour later, Alex and Kelly waved goodbye to the kids and went inside. Each year Judy and Lauren, Colton’s mothers, threw a Halloween party for their adult friends while the children went trick or treating. “Wow Alex, you look sharp. I can’t say I ever pictured you as a Marine before.” Judy, who was dressed as Marilyn Monroe, said as she greeted the couple. Waving Lauren over, Judy complimented Kelly on her costume. “I wish I could pull off an outfit like that.” she said as her wife joined the group. Lauren, who was dressed in her usual Cher costume, let out a wolf whistle when she saw Kelly. “Hot damn, Alex. You better not let her out of your sight, otherwise someone might try to steal your woman!” Laughing, Alex placed her arm protectively around Kelly’s waist while the group wound their way through the house toward the back yard. As they passed through the house, both women received a multitude of compliments on their costumes. “Oh my God! Alex, I haven’t seen you in forever!” a woman dressed as Catwoman yelled as the women reached the back yard. Running up to Alex, the woman threw her arms around her and hugged her tight. Staggering back with a chuckle, Alex held her at arms-length. When she was unable to recall who the woman was, Alex said “I’m sorry, but I am not really sure who you are.” With a laugh, the woman took off her mask and smiled. “Jessie! Oh my goodness, woman, you’re right it has been forever.” Alex said, hugging the woman again. When the two separated, Alex reached for Kelly’s hand and pulled her close. “Baby, this is Jessie McGowan. She used to be the facility doctor at Serenity Home before you came to us. Jessie, this is my fiancée, Doctor Kelly Taylor.” Alex introduced. Stepping back, the woman gazed at Kelly appreciatively. “Wow, Alex. She’s drop dead gorgeous!” Jessie exclaimed as the pair shook hands. Excusing herself for a moment, Jessie ran off leaving Alex and Kelly by themselves. “Well, she’s a little intense isn’t she?” Kelly whispered. Nodding, Alex assured her that the woman was harmless. Taking Kelly’s hand, Alex led them over to get a drink.

  “Alex, this is my wife Rachel.” Jessie said a few moments later. Turning around to face the women, Alex and Kelly both smiled in greeting. “Babe, this is my old boss, Alex Walker. She’s the one I told you all those stories about.” Jessie introduced. After shaking Alex’s hand with a smile, the woman nodded appreciatively when she took Kelly’s hand. While the woman took a moment to appraise her costume, Kelly distinctly heard her mutter “yummy” under her breath. After the introduction, the four women went over to sit on a bench near the back of the yard. Seeing the way Rachel was eyeing her, Kelly decided to sit on her fiancée’s lap instead of taking the seat next to her. Smiling, Alex wrapped her arms around the woman as the group listened to Jessie recall memories of the past. Using the distraction, Kelly took a few moments to quietly assess the two women. Rachel, who stood nearly six feet tall and probably weighed an easy two hundred and fifty pounds, was the complete physical opposite of her wife. Her long blonde hair had been pulled back into a ponytail, and the rest of her rather large frame had been poure
d into a Lara Croft type costume. While she was not wholly unattractive, Kelly got the feeling that she would have been more comfortable dressed as Indiana Jones rather than Tomb Raider. Jessie on the other hand, was just a bit taller than Kelly’s own five feet-three inches. She was long and lanky with short mousy brown hair, and compared to her wife, had almost no curves at all. “Babe, is something wrong?” Alex whispered into her ear. Jumping a little bit, Kelly smiled and shook her head. “No, honey, everything’s fine. I’m just listening.” She replied quietly. Looking at her with skepticism, Alex smiled and gave the woman a squeeze.

  After a while, Rachel appeared to be getting bored and had no qualms about voicing her feelings. “Jessie, let’s go dance. I didn’t take the night off from work to sit around and talk.” the woman said as she stood. Looking slightly embarrassed, Jessie said her goodbyes to Alex and Kelly and followed her wife. “So, what did you think of Jessie?” Alex asked, turning Kelly around to face her. Shrugging, Kelly replied “She seems nice. A little hyper, but she seems like she’d be a hoot if her wife wasn’t around.” Chuckling, Alex nodded “Yeah, Rachel does seem to be a bit on the demanding side.” She said, lifting her hands to rest on Kelly’s hips. “I don’t think I like Rachel.” Kelly said. “She seemed like she would rather be anywhere else tonight, and I didn’t like how she was looking at me.” Raising her eyebrow, Alex asked “How she was looking at you? What do you mean?” Placing her hands on Alex’s shoulders, Kelly mimicked the I-want-you-in-my-bed-now look Rachel had been throwing her way all night. “Oh, Baby. If you keep that up, we’re leaving right now because that is the sexiest look I have ever seen on your face.” Alex groaned, tightening her grip on Kelly’s hips. Laughing, Kelly stood up and vacated Alex’s lap. “I wasn’t trying to turn you on, honey. I was trying to show you how that woman was looking at me.” Chuckling, Alex stood and took Kelly’s hand. “Baby, I didn’t even notice it. I don’t care how anyone looks at you. As long as they don’t touch, they can look at you all they want.” she said, pulling Kelly with her as she headed back into the crowd.

  As the night progressed, Kelly was introduced to dozens of people that Alex knew in one way or another. Each person she had met had seemed to be happy that the pair was engaged, but Kelly had gotten the feeling on more than one occasion that some of those people were jealous. She had observed several women looking longingly at Alex over the course of the evening, and had done her best not to let herself get upset by it. When Alex had suggested the two go find Lauren and Judy, Kelly was relieved. At least I won’t have to worry about them, she thought to herself as they went inside. Finding the couple in the kitchen, Alex leaned against the counter as Kelly took a seat on the barstool next to her.

  “Hey, guys. Great turn out this year, I’m surprised you could fit so many people in your backyard.” Alex said with a smile. Chuckling, Lauren agreed “Yeah, we weren’t expecting so many to actually show up! I think it’s because it’s a Saturday.” she added with a shrug. “So, the two of you got to meet my sister, huh?” Judy said, rolling her eyes. Seeing the unsure looks on their faces, Judy elaborated “Rachel. Tall, blonde, dressed like Tomb Raider.” Chuckling, Alex nodded “Yeah, we met her. I didn’t even know you had a sister, Jude.” Nodding, Judy replied with a glare “Yep. Not overly happy to admit that it’s her, but yes I have a sister.” Curious why Judy seemed less than thrilled about her sister, Kelly asked “Do you not like her?” Handing margaritas to Alex, Kelly, and Lauren, Judy took a seat and explained.

  “Rachel and I don’t get along very well. When Lauren and I first started dating, Rachel did everything she could to steal her away from me. She’s not a very nice person, and she is incredibly domineering. I don’t know how or why Jessie deals with her.” She said, shaking her head. Patting her wife on the knee, Lauren kissed her forehead. “Relax, sweetheart. As long as Jessie isn’t complaining, there isn’t a whole lot we can do.” Looking at Judy, Alex wondered “Why would Jessie complain? She seemed pretty happy to me.” Judy looked at Alex dolefully. “In all the time Jessie worked for you, did you ever know her to wear long clothing in the summertime?” Shaking her head, Alex sipped her drink. “Rachel likes it when her partners do what she tells them to. It’s not really a choice either. If they don’t do things her way, she knocks them around. I can’t tell you how many times she’s been arrested for domestic violence.” Nearly dropping her drink at the revelation, Kelly looked shocked. “You’re kidding.” she said. Shaking her head, Judy took her wife’s hand. “I wish I was. In August, they came over for a barbeque and I noticed Jessie was wearing a pair of jeans and a long sleeved shirt. When I asked about it, she blew me off and said it was because she didn’t want to get a sunburn. After we had finished eating, Rachel and Lauren went off to play catch with Colton and Jessie helped me clean up. I noticed a bruise on her arm when she reached across the counter and I asked her about it. She wouldn’t even look at me when she lied and said she had hit it on a door.” she explained. Slapping her hands on the counter suddenly, Alex said nothing and stormed back outside. “Alex, stop! What are you doing?” Kelly asked as the three women followed quickly. Stopping to look around when she stepped out on the deck, Alex spied Rachel and Jessie near the back fence. Rachel appeared to be giving Jessie a piece of her mind, and when she grabbed Jessie’s arm, Alex took off running.

  “Let her go!” Alex demanded when she reached the pair. Whipping her head around, Rachel glared down at the woman. “Mind your own business. This is between me and my wife.” Stepping between the two, Alex crossed her arms over her chest and returned the glare. “I said to let her go. I don’t care who she is to you, there is no reason to lay your hands on her.” When Kelly and the other two women arrived, Rachel let go of Jessie, who ran off to stand beside Judy. “Alex, come on. I’m ready to go home.” Kelly said pleadingly, hoping to diffuse the situation. “Yeah Alex. Why don’t you take your little sex toy home.” Rachel sneered. Before any of the women could react, Alex pulled back her fist and smashed it into the tall woman’s jaw. As Rachel fell backward to the ground, Alex screamed as she bent down and pummeled the woman. “Don’t you ever talk that way about my wife again!” she commanded between blows. Catching Alex off guard, Rachel swung out her leg and knocked her off her feet. Scrambling over, Rachel grabbed the front of Alex’s shirt and swung hard, catching her right under her left eye. Before the fight could go any further, a tall, well-built man, dressed as the Hulk, grabbed Rachel around her waist and hauled her off of Alex. “That’s enough!” he said, dropping the woman on her ass next to Alex. Standing with his hands on his hips, the man demanded that both women stop their behavior. “Who the hell do you think you are?” Rachel asked defiantly. “He’s my husband.” a woman said as she stepped forward dressed as a police officer. Laughing, Rachel stood and approached the woman. “And who exactly are you, princess?” she said with a scoff. Before Rachel could reach her, the Hulk stuck out his arm, separating the two. “I’m Officer Celina Betancourt. What’s going on here?” the woman replied, tapping her badge and taking out her notepad.

  CHAPTER 10

  “Babe, please. That hurts!” Alex said, attempting to pull away from Kelly. Glaring at the woman, Kelly shook her head. “Too bad, Alex. You’re the one who went all street fighter on her. You’re lucky Brett called Celina right away, otherwise it might have been a less understanding officer who showed up. Now sit still and let me finish.” Huffing out a breath, Alex did as she was told. After Celina had placed Rachel in handcuffs when the woman tried to walk away from her, the Halloween party had ended quickly. Once the other guests had cleared out, Alex and Rachel sat at different ends of the picnic table until they had given their statements. Rachel, who was loudly protesting the handcuffs and claiming police brutality, was loaded into the back of Celina’s patrol car after Jessie had shown the officer the bruises under her costume. Shaking her head at Alex’s bloody face, Celina had sent her home and warned her that next time she would have to charge her. Now back in their ow
n kitchen, Kelly was busily cleaning up the blood. “It looks like you have just the one small cut, Honey. I’m going to glue it closed, but you are going to have one hell of a black eye tomorrow.” she said, turning Alex’s cheek toward the light. Hissing out a breath as Kelly applied the glue, Alex wished that Kelly wasn’t so upset at her. I only hit that bitch because of what she called Kelly. She thought to herself as the woman gathered up the soiled items and tossed them away. Before Kelly could walk off, Alex grabbed her by the waist and pulled her back against herself.

  “Baby, please don’t be so mad at me. I only hit her because of what she called you. It made me mad and I lost my temper. I’m sorry that I upset you.” She said softly into Kelly’s ear. Fighting to ignore the arousal shooting through her at the feeling of Alex’s breasts against her back, Kelly shook her head. “I’m not mad at you for hitting her, Alex. She’s a bully and she deserved a dose of her own medicine. I’m mad because you chose to fight instead of just pulling Jessie away and calling the police.” Hanging her head, Alex let her hands drop. Turning to look at her, Kelly lifted Alex’s chin and met the woman’s eyes. “Thank you for defending me, my love, but next time don’t sacrifice your beautiful face to do it.” she said, leaning in to press her lips gently against Alex’s. Smirking, Alex pulled Kelly back between her legs and deepened the kiss. “Does that mean this Marine is going to get the girl tonight?” she asked when the kiss broke. Biting her lip, Kelly gave Alex the same look she had demonstrated at the party and nodded her head slowly. With a throaty growl, Alex stood and scooped Kelly into her arms and headed up the stairs.