Letters From Al by Pieper, Kathleen (ebook audio reader TXT) 📕

"Not as cute as you."

"Good answer, come on."

"I guess Larry didn't like the room you gave him, Maddy." Skip tied to keep a straight face as they settled down in the living room later.

"Well, I did give him the one that needs repapering." They all laughed and enjoyed easy conversation as they got acquainted. Skip and Buffy were full of wedding plans, and surprisingly, Alec really did seem to enjoy her friends.

"Tell you what, Maddy. We'll have a big old-fashioned barbecue to celebrate your staying and Buffy and Skip's engagement. I'll invite my friends and fire up the grill."

"What do you think about it, guys?" Maddy turned to the couple and they nodded enthusiastically.

"We can have it at my place," Alec offered.

"Oh, no, let's have the party here. It can be a housewarming, too." Maddy said excitedly.

"That's a great idea. We'll have room to set up the volleyball net in your yard." Alec's excitement was infectious. Maddy never had hosted a big party before but it sounded like fun. The afternoon was over too quickly, and Maddy walked Alec to his patrol car.

"Sure you can't stay longer?" She liked to have him around.

"No, wish I could. I traded shifts with a guy at work. But I'm relieved you won't be alone tonight."

"Worry wart, I told you I have a baseball bat under my bed. Actually it's Aunt Polly's, she had an extra one."

"That was lucky for Larry. Hey, I really do have to go to work. Not much else would keep me away, you know that?"

"Something like that, I'm just glad I popped in when I did today. If that guy calls or comes back and bothers you, you know what to do."

Her touch brought him back to the present, and he relaxed and kissed her fingers, folding them into his own.

"What's the matter? Don't you think I handled him pretty good? I thought I did fine." She flexed her arm muscle and tried to look tough.

Alec paused a moment before answering, amusement on his face as he tried to cover a grin.

"Oh, I wasn't worried about you so much. It was poor, old Larry I felt sorry for. That was a good move with the elbow. Looked like it hurt."

He waved at Skip and Buffy and got in his car. Laughing she shook a fist at him and then waved as he drove away.

"He's quite a guy, Maddy. Much improved from your last boyfriend." Buffy stood on the porch behind her.

"Yes, he is." Maddy hugged herself happily and smiled in agreement. "I never believed I’d find a love anymore until now. But we're not rushing into anything. We're having too much fun getting to know each other again."

"You're playing it smart, girl." Skip interrupted, "Look how Buffy rushed me into marriage."

"Yes, how long have you been going together? Six years. Some rush job." Maddy figured with Buffy agreeing.

"We're in it for the long haul." He bent over and kissed Buffy.

That's what I want, Maddy thought, watching her two friends so happily in love.

Alec's comings and goings since she arrived were becoming more and more a habit she loved. His joyful personality and tenderness were easy to be around. He knew just when she needed a soft touch and sympathetic ear and she enjoyed that closeness. Sometimes when she was alone she feared they were going too fast, but when they were together, everything was right.

Alec handled it all perfectly. He hadn't seemed overly upset when he left and was teasing her so maybe it bothered her more than him. It would take time to get over being bushwhacked by Larry and Marie, but seeing Alec in action with Larry only reinforced her feelings for him.

Chapter 12

True to his word, Alec got a barbecue together complete with 20 or 30 of his closest friends. Party day dawned sunny and hot, typical August weather in the Midwest. Maddy and her houseguests had talked over old times until the wee hours of the morning. They were bumping around getting coffee and orange juice flowing the next morning when Aunt Polly arrived. After introductions they soon were soon visiting with each other like long lost friends over her famous apple coffeecake.

Aunt Polly had the honor of being the first guest invited to Maddy's very first, official barbecue. Being included pleased her a lot, so much so she offered to bring the potato salad and various homemade goodies.

Settling into her favorite chair in the kitchen, Aunt Polly listened in astonishment about the previous day's visitors and the entire fiasco that followed.

"You mean, this Larry person showed up and tried to talk you into going back to Chicago? Not one to think fast on his feet, I’d say. You should have called me. I would have brought my Louieville slugger along and taken care of things for you."

“Well, our girl handled things pretty well, and having a lawman for a boyfriend as back-up, didn’t hurt.”

"I still feel badly," Buffy said. "We both knew how Marie is, and we should have called you when she started talking about coming, especially when Larry showed up. Believe it or not, I had misgivings but Skip here, wouldn't listen." She poked at him playfully and he sat up straight in protest.

"Hey, you women are supposed to know what you're doing. And Marie, well, she's extra hard to say 'no' to. You know that, Maddy. But I must say you really put your foot down with both her and Larry. And it's about time."

"I should have done it before, but nothing ever seemed worth fighting with her about until now. I hope I didn't hurt her. She's going to have her share of that if she stays with Larry."

* * *

Alec watched the clock for most of the day. He almost wished it wasn't so quiet, being inside doing paperwork made it seem even longer. Finally his shift was over, and he headed